Historic Background

In 1588, Agostino Ramelli (1531 - c.1610) designed plans for a grand bookwheel. The Italian military engineer had designed many things, including water pumps, cranes, and grain mills. In his illustrated work on mechanical solutions, Le diverse et artificiose machine del Capitano Agostino Ramelli [The various and ingenious machines of Captain Agostino Ramelli], he wrote of his bookwheel design: “This is a beautiful and ingenious machine, very useful and convenient for anyone who takes pleasure in study, especially those who are indisposed and tormented by gout…Moreover, it has another fine convenience in that it occupies very little space in the place where it is set.” Bookwheels were useful for those interested in reading multiple books at once. Think of how useful it is having the ability to have multiple web tabs open at the same time!

Ramelli’s bookwheel design was never made during his lifetime. However, it is likely his design inspired similar bookwheels that were built in the 17th and 18th centuries. Other bookwheel designs predate Ramelli’s, such as horizontal ones which operated more like a lazy Susan than a Ferris wheel. Ramelli’s knowledge of gears allowed him to envision his more complicated mechanism, and in 2018 a team of RIT students brought it to life.