DEVELOPMENT OF HIGHWAY TRAVEL MITMAN 329 



Archeological records indicate that wheeled vehicles were adopted 

 by the Assyrians almost simultaneously with the Egyptians, if not 

 before, and that in subsequent centuries they gradually became an 

 indispensable tool of all the civilized nations of the ancient world. 

 Persia, Greece, and Italy in turn all made contributions to the vehic- 

 ular art but especially to the improvement of the chariot, because that 

 vehicle was of paramount importance both for hunting and for war. 

 The Romans without a doubt were the largest contributors and after 

 300 B. C. had in general use the greatest variety of wheeled vehicles 

 ever produced. This was due probably to the fact that the Roman 

 rulers had instituted the construction of a network of permanent 

 highways throughout Italy such as the Appian Way begun in 312 

 B, C, thus providing an incentive for vehicular improvements. 

 Among the Roman vehicles were the chariot called the higa or the 

 currus used not only for war and hunting but also for racing; a 

 two-wheeled covered carriage known as the carpentum developed 

 by the Romans as early as 500 B. C. and used by them for a thousand 

 years ; a light-weight two-wheeled gig called the cisium and used both 

 for private and public rapid transit; a heavy four-wheeled freight 

 and passenger wagon called the clahulare; a large four-wheeled 

 coach for long journeys known as the rheda; and the humble two- 

 wheeled farm cart called the plaustnmi. There were, in addition, 

 state and ceremonial wagons and carts, as well as litters, sedan 

 chairs, and palanquins carried by slaves. 



There is evidence, too, that the peoples of Europe were not slow 

 in the adoption of wheeled vehicles once the wheel was made known 

 to them. Most of the vehicles used in Italy during the time of 

 Roman supremacy (27 B. C. to 467 A. D.) were of local origin, but 

 there were some which were copies of vehicles found among their 

 conquered foreign subjects. For example, the Roman two-wheeled 

 cart, opened in front, closed behind and drawn by two horses, known 

 as the essedum, was commonly used by the ancient Britons, Gauls, 

 and Belgians. The Romans made it a vehicle for state occasions, by 

 decorating it heavily with silver and gold overlays in beautiful de- 

 signs. A less ornate esseduin was also made for rapid travel and 

 for hire along Roman roads. The Roman harrnamaxa^ a four- 

 wheeled, four-horse carriage for women and children was copied 

 from a similar vehicle of Eastern origin, and the single-passenger 

 traveling chariot closed at the back and sides but open at the front, 

 known as the covinus, was modeled after the Belgian war chariot. 



Little is known of the transportation media of the Middle Ages, 

 but more than likely most travel was on horseback or in litters, and 

 wheeled vehicles, except farm carts, were little used. During the 

 Renaissance, however, the vehicular art shared in the general cul- 



