A Visual History of Lock and Key

The HISTORY OF LOCK & KEY • from • 4000 BCE TO NOW 4000 BCE 720 BCE The earliest recorded use of a lock is a wooden pin tumbler, used by ancient Egyptians. Discovered in 1843 by Paul-Émile Botta and 8TH CENTURY BCE Austen Henry Layard, the oldest surviving lock was a wooden predecessor of the modern cylinder lock used in Nineveh's Khorsabad Palace in modern-day northern Iraq. IST CENTURY XOXOX Homer's Odyssey describes the hero's wife, Penelope, opening a locked room by pulling a strap and inserting a bronze and ivory key, causing the door's bolts to open "with a noise like a bull bellowing in a meadow." The Chinese invent padlocks, commonly used to secure property being traded along the Silk Road. 2ND-3RD CENTURY 1206 DOSXWQ РКССHУ Ancient Romans, having no pockets in their togas, sometimes wear keys on their fingers for safekeeping. Turkish engineer al-Jazari writes about his 18TH CENTURY combination lock invention, a security mech- anism that uses 12 letters of the alphabet. 1778 BARRON First profiled in a London magazine, elaborate belt-chains with keys attached became a status symbol for wealthy women. They were called chatelaines (from the French word for "lady of the castle"). English locksmith Robert Barron invents the first double-acting lever tumbler lock, far more secure than any other lock of the time. 1784 1789 English locksmith Joseph Bramah patents an "unpickable" lock that can be mechanically mass-produced, though it is largely unafforable Louis XVI, a lock and picking enthusiast himself, is beheaded after disloyal locksmith François Gamain tips off revolutionaries to a locked chest holding secret papers. to the masses. 1818 1851 "THE ARTIST WHO CAN MAKE AN INSTRUMENT THAT WILL PICK OR OPEN Englishman Jeremiah Chubb improves Barron's design by adding a detector feature that jams the lock if it is tampered with. THIS LOCK, SHALL RECEIVE 200 GUINEAS THE MOMENT IT IS PRODUCED." After remaining unpicked for 67 years, Bramah's famous "challenge lock" is successfully picked by 1861 American locksmith Alfred Charles Hobbs at the Great Exhibition in London. It takes him 51 hours over the course of 16 days. TALE 1872 American manufacturer Linus Yale patents the Yale cylinder pin tumbler lock, a barrel drilled with several slots that can be opened using a small, flat key with a serrated edge. 1916 New Yorker James Sargent invents the time lock for bank vaults. 1973 ÄÄA (") Former New York City cop Samuel Segal invents a "jimmy-proof" lock that prevents intruders from prying open a door frame. 1976 California entrepreneur Charles Walton patents a transponder that uses RFID (radio frequency identification) technology to unlock a door. He licenses his invention to Schlage. WALDORF ASTORIA НОTEL 1980 Norwegian Tor Sørnes introduces the first mechanical keycard lock for hotels. 1990s The Renault Fuego becomes the first car model to be fitted with a remote keyless system. 2013 Kwikset Several companies begin developing biometric locks, which are opened using unique physical characteristics like fingerprints. The Kwikset Kevo, the first smart lock supported by Bluetooth, arrives on the market, enabling users to control access to their homes with their smartphones. WALDORF ASTORIA 1000 - TIOH – INSERT KEY CARD