Los coleccionables del Museo Zumalakarregi

The steam engine, one of the most revolutionary 1807 inventions in mankind’s history, began to be used in the field of transport. The first commercial shipping line was set up using steam-driven ships which could make the same journey in a third of the time required by sail-driven ones.

Vicenta Antonia Mogel, the first Basque woman writer, wrote ‘Ipui onak’, a Latin-Basque translation of Aesop’s fables. 1804 At the time, translating directly from Latin was no easy task, due to the fact that there was no standardised version of the Basque language and it was often difficult to choose between its numerous dialects.

Morphine was discovered as a painkiller. Up until 1805 this time, eau-de-vie had been the only recourse for deadening the pain suffered during surgery. The discovery of this new analgesic marked the start of the science of anaesthesia.

Since they were more submissive and could be paid lower salaries, children were an extremely cost-efficient source of labour. Working conditions for minors were appalling. A law was enacted reducing the 1802 working day to twelve hours and prohibiting night-time work for the children of Great Britain. The law stated that all young people should learn to read and write.

An official United States expedition, 1805 organised with the aim of reaching the Pacific Ocean and consisting of over thirty men, crossed the American continent from east to west, travelling over 12,000 km.