Handcrafted Nautical Decor - Solid Brass Titanic Propeller Key Chain 5"

From ancient practices to modern seafaring, the propeller has truly revolutionized ocean travel. The contemporarily designed models on these fabulous brass keychains are now common the world over, but their history stretches as far back as ancient China and Europe. Combining traditional paddling techniques with the principles of the Archimedes Screw, the first propellers were developed in the mid-1700s. Unlike the modern versions on these nautical keychains, the original propellers were literal screws that were hand-cranked to create propulsion as water was forced over the teeth. By 1775 these screws were used in a number of sea-faring vessels, including the first attempts at submarines. In 1827 the screw design was combined with steam engine technology to create the first powered propeller-driven ships, quickly replacing the classically beautiful, yet somewhat cumbersome, paddleboats that had until that point been the standard.  Modern propellers were still many years off, though by 1835 the fundamental design was beginning to take shape. Throughout the end of the 1800s the propeller was studied mathematically, as design and fluid theories were tested, and leading scientists and engineers strove to create an efficient blade. It wasn’t until the Wright Brothers created the first effective airfoil-style blades that the modern shape, recognizable on these nautical keychains, took form. Taking that brilliant design and applying it to the burgeoning technologies of the second Industrial Revolution, the modern model for a propeller driven ship took form. These brass key rings depict a seemingly simple creation, just three blades that would rotate around a single shaft, however, they are the result of amazing insight, unwavering vision, and unending determination. As the result of hundreds of years of innovation and perseverance, the propeller continues to stand as a feat of engineering as well as a fabulous nautical keychain to call your own.