Wheelbarrow as a Grain Transport Tool

Timeline

1. c. 1000–1271Bianjing · Central PlainsAs the Northern Song grain transport system matured, wheelbarrows moved grain sacks between canal docks and granaries; wheelbarrows came in wooden-wheel and iron-hooped-wheel types, capable of carrying several hundred jin.
2. 1331–1340Tongzhou grain transport docks · North ChinaIn the Yuan, annual grain tribute was shipped north, with wheelbarrows at docks such as Tongzhou and Zhigu unloading grain sacks from boats to granaries, forming a fixed transfer chain with river workers and cart haulers.
3. c. 1368Jiangnan countryside · JiangnanFrom the Ming and Qing onward, wheelbarrows remained in use for field and market freight; some regions retained traditional wooden-wheel wheelbarrows, whose form continued the Yuan grain transport tool lineage.