A shovel is a tool used for digging, lifting and moving bulk materials such as soil, coal, gravel, snow, sand or ore. Most shovels are hand tools consisting of a broad blade fixed to a medium-length handle; the blade is usually made of sheet steel or hard plastic, and the handle is usually made of wood, particularly ash or maple, or of glass-reinforced plastic. Some shovel designs, such as the square shovel, carry a generally square blade outline rather than the pointed profile common on many spades.
Facts
Introduced When (Circa)Neolithic age or earlier. 1 OriginThe earliest crude shovels were animal shoulder blades (scapulae); the source names no specific region for this earliest use, only the era. 1 Introduced era (class) In the Other Atlases
Sources
1. Shovel (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationHistory section, opening sentenceQuote, History section, opening sentence
In the Neolithic age and earlier, a large animal's scapula (shoulder blade) was often used as a crude shovel or spade.
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