The history of swings
You might be surprised to discover that humans have been enjoying swings since at least the 5th century B.C. Early Ancient Greek vases have been discovered with artist impressions of women and children on swings. Isn’t that fantastic?
It’s easy to believe that swinging goes back even further than the Ancient Greeks in human history too. We can picture our early ancestors grabbing a vine and swinging on trees just to enjoy the simple pleasure it brings.
Over the centuries, the way we’ve made swings has changed, but the basic idea has remained the same. Ancient swings were made of wooden sticks or planks and rope that hung delicately from trees. Now, we fashion sturdier constructions from metal, plastic, treated, manufactured woods and other innovative materials.
Swings for children really grew in popularity in the nineteenth century. As the Victorian era progressed, child labour laws began to take shape. Rather than working, children had much more time to play. Parks and playgrounds were created specifically for them and swings were incredibly popular.
You can learn a little more about Victorian playground games here.