A History of Locks and the Locksmithing Trade
- Apr 3
- 4 min read
Ancient Marvels
Assyria
Given the inherent isolation of individual ancient civilizations, there are often multiple locations throughout the world where we see similar impressive and innovative engineering solutions to the challenges faced by the human race. The oldest lock ever found was of Assyrian origin, used roughly 6,000 years ago at the site of modern-day northern Iraq. The mechanism in the photo on the right is an example of how this early lock functioned.
Egypt
It should be no surprise that the same civilization that brought us brilliantly engineered pyramids, black ink, written language, irrigation, clocks, calendars, and so much more also invented an enduring lock design way back in 2000 BCE. Though they were rudimentary, wooden, and utilized very large keys, the original principle of Egyptian lock design carries through human history, eventually inspiring the cylinder locks we still use today.
China
As with many impressive trades and notable technical achievements in China, there is not a lot of documentation pertaining to specific innovations and construction methods. What we do know is that their earliest locks date back to the 3rd century BC, with both simple wooden door locks and the comparatively early invention of barbed spring padlocks. As with so many ancient Chinese innovations, it was not long before form was an integral part of function.
By 1279 AD, precious metals and hidden keyholes were in use, and locks began to be crafted into more diverse symbolic shapes. By 1644 AD, intricate puzzle locks were in use, with both standard and puzzle locks including a diverse array of complex carved designs. These locks featured culturally significant imagery, including animals of the Zodiac, status-related and professional themes, and symbolic designs denoting luck and warding.
Introducing Metal
870-900 AD saw metallurgy taking security to the next level. England, Rome, Greece and
China all independently invented stronger lock mechanisms by crafting locks from metal. These locks were made using iron or brass and were typically used for storage chests and boxes rather than entryways. In Ancient Greece and Rome, keys were worn as jewelry in the form of a necklace or ring as a status symbol to flaunt wealth. These rings were a visible display advertising the fact that the wearer could afford the custom craftsmanship of a lock and had assets enough to warrant such security measures. These days we would call that kind of showmanship an unnecessary risk, but when the penalty for law breaking often included getting thrown in an arena with lions, it's amazing one ever needed a lock to deter theft in the first place.
The Middle Ages in England saw the introduction of multiple security measures used on a single item to decrease the likelihood of theft. These measures included both false and hidden keyholes, booby trap locks, and the presence of multiple locks to protect their valuables.
The latter years of the Middle Ages saw an aesthetic lift in lock design. Nobles began to request locks crafted with custom artistic elements. Often in the form of crests or royal imagery, there are surviving examples of this marriage between form and function that seem
to parallel the cultural shift occurring during the Renaissance as we moved through the Middle Ages to the Early Modern Period.
Booby Traps
The Middle Ages in Europe also saw a focus on chest and box locks. Locks at the time had not yet advanced significantly in terms of security. Instead, they focused on complexity building chests with false bottoms, multiple locks, hidden keyholes, multi-key sequential locks, and/or brutal booby traps to deter theft. In true Middle Ages brutality, tampering with locks on some of these devices could cost a thief a finger.
Innovation by Competition
A necessity for better security at the Portsmouth Dockyard in 1818 prompted the British
government to sponsor a competition to create a better lock. A locksmith named Jeremiah Chubb won this competition with a more complex design that included his invention of a relocker. The relocker is a feature that automatically creates a mechanical jam within the lock that requires a secondary key to reset. This feature not only made the lock impossible to pick at the time, but the jam would alert the owner that a break-in had been attempted. This lock would not be picked by anyone until The Great Exhibition in 1851, when the six-lever lock was picked by an American locksmith named Alfred Charles Hobbs. Jeremiah and his brother Charles went on to build a successful lock company called Chubb Locks, where they manufactured, serviced, and improved their design. This innovation marked a change in quality standards and broadened the skill set of locksmiths to include lock repair, parts fabrication, and key duplication.
Industrial Revolution
The industrial revolution redefined life un uncountable ways. It changed the history of locks and locksmithing profoundly. In terms of the locksmith trade, it saw the introduction of cylinder locks with pins, and refined design into one that could be mass produced, making locks of all types widely available. This advancement in production created the need for more locksmiths, growing the trade significantly.
On the Shoulders of the Ancients
The roots of the modern cylindrical lock trace straight back to the original Egyptian model. We would not be here today without the old carpenters, blacksmiths, and early engineers who paved the way. We now secure more types of items with a wider array of lock-building techniques than at any other time in human history. Our ability to innovate and mass-produce such a wide variety of lock styles with diverse internal security mechanisms has allowed us to close many gaps in personal and property security. The modern locksmith needs to be trained to work with a vast array of locks and can be grateful that our predecessors innovated the trade far away from the booby traps of the Middle Ages.
