Where was the first known wheel, dating back to the Copper Age (i.e., 4000-3000 BC), invented?

The earliest known wheels appear in the statues of the Elamites, an ancient civilization that lived throughout modern-day Iran (ancient-day Mesopotamia). These wheels date back to the Copper Age, which lasted from approximately 4500 BC to 3300 BC.

Though the evidence is not definitive, the first wheels might not have been found on vehicles but used to make pottery. The pottery itself is one of humanity’s earliest inventions (if you include ceramic figurines, the process dates back at least 20,000 years). But it wasn’t until about 4500 BC that potter’s wheels were definitively used in the process. Evidence of wheeled vehicles, likely drawn by oxen, dates back to 4000-3000 BC.

Prehistoric Hot Wheels: Multiple cultures developed the wheel independently at various points in history. Wheeled children’s toys have been found in modern-day Mexico dating back to at least 1500 BC. Archaeologists theorize that larger wheels might not have been constructed at the time because there weren’t many domesticated animals able to pull carts — bison have always resisted domestication, and horses appear to have gone extinct in the Americas around 10,000 BC.