Do you know that locksmithing may have been one of the oldest professions in the world? It seems that people had cared about security and privacy for literally thousands of years. Various archaeological records suggest the enduring interest of various human civilizations in locks and keys.
The first signs of something resembling a lock and key system, probably the work of a locksmith, were found in Egypt, near what was known in ancient times as Nineveh. Many experts say that this lock, a large wooden bolt with holes that is believed to have been made around 2000 BC. C., is a direct forerunner of the basic barrel-and-bolt lock design that is still widely used today. It had pins from the lock casing that fell through the holes in one end of the bolt. His key was made from a long wooden bar that is fitted with pins whose pattern matches that of the lock, allowing him to lift the pins and allow the bolt to slide.
Locksmiths from other Mediterranean countries, mainly Greece, have also produced lock and key systems that have contributed to the development of security systems. The first Greeks were believed to be the first civilization to use locks.
Meanwhile, the Romans who achieved widespread power after the decline of the Greeks, were the first to create metal locks, which meant that the first true locksmiths, skilled craftsmen who worked with metal, also came into vogue around this time. . The Romans also created the earliest forms of padlocks and developed small keys (a departure from the heavy designs favored by earlier civilizations). Roman locksmiths are also credited with introducing protected locks, various versions of which are still mass produced today. This type of lock uses projections (the shields) within the lock housing that obstruct any key except one that has the exact cut of the notches that match the shield. The protected lock had been the standard design for lock and key systems from then until around the 17th century, with the only variations being the rather elaborate aesthetic designs.
While locksmiths in Eurasia were trapped for a couple of centuries in the easy-open lock, in another part of the world, Chinese locksmiths were able to develop the combination lock. This type of lock does not need a key to open. It can only be locked and unlocked by the correct alignment of letters or numbers on a dial. In the 16th century, a variation of the combination locks that had been developed in China also appeared in Germany. In the 17th century, some English locksmiths also began to produce combination locks.
Modern locksmith entered modern history in the 18th century, when Joseph Bramah received a British patent for a lock mechanism that requires a cylinder key to push down and deflect an arrangement of thin metal slides in a plug that holds the bold instead. This is believed to be the first lock and key design to be mass produced.
In the mid-1800s, the men whose names still appear on one of the world’s most popular lock brands, Linus Yale and Linus Yale, Jr., received a patent for a radial pliers lock and enhancements. The Yales manufactured the lock that features a cylindrical plug, with the pins arranged in a row along the axis of rotation of the cylinder. This can be opened with the corresponding serrated flat wrench that lifts the pin and then releases the bolt.
