Mills, cranes, and the great divergence: The use of immovable capital goods in western Europe and the Middle East, ninth to sixteenth centuries (2024)

van Bavel, B. J. P., Buringh, E. (2018). Mills, cranes, and the great divergence: The use of immovable capital goods in western Europe and the Middle East, ninth to sixteenth centuries. The Economic History Review, 71(1), 31-54. https://doi.org/10.1111/ehr.12571

van Bavel, B.J.P. ; Buringh, E. ; Dijkman, J.E.C. / Mills, cranes, and the great divergence : The use of immovable capital goods in western Europe and the Middle East, ninth to sixteenth centuries. In: The Economic History Review. 2018 ; Vol. 71, No. 1. pp. 31-54.

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title = "Mills, cranes, and the great divergence: The use of immovable capital goods in western Europe and the Middle East, ninth to sixteenth centuries",

abstract = "This article contributes to the ongoing debate on the causes of the great divergence by comparing the use of expensive labour-saving capital goods—water-mills, windmills, and cranes—in medieval western Europe and the Middle East. Using novel ways of measuring, we find that whereas the use of these goods increased in Europe, in the Middle East their prevalence decreased, or they were not used at all. We investigate several possible explanations and reject most of them, including religion, geography, technological knowledge, and disparities in wages and cost of capital. Our analysis shows that differences in lordship systems and the security of property rights best explain the patterns found.",

keywords = "Great divergence, immovable capital goods, Western Europe, Middle East",

author = "{van Bavel}, B.J.P. and E. Buringh and J.E.C. Dijkman",

year = "2018",

month = feb,

doi = "10.1111/ehr.12571",

language = "English",

volume = "71",

pages = "31--54",

journal = "The Economic History Review",

issn = "1468-0289",

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van Bavel, BJP, Buringh, E 2018, 'Mills, cranes, and the great divergence: The use of immovable capital goods in western Europe and the Middle East, ninth to sixteenth centuries', The Economic History Review, vol. 71, no. 1, pp. 31-54. https://doi.org/10.1111/ehr.12571

Mills, cranes, and the great divergence: The use of immovable capital goods in western Europe and the Middle East, ninth to sixteenth centuries. / van Bavel, B.J.P.; Buringh, E.; Dijkman, J.E.C.
In: The Economic History Review, Vol. 71, No. 1, 02.2018, p. 31-54.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

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T2 - The use of immovable capital goods in western Europe and the Middle East, ninth to sixteenth centuries

AU - van Bavel, B.J.P.

AU - Buringh, E.

AU - Dijkman, J.E.C.

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N2 - This article contributes to the ongoing debate on the causes of the great divergence by comparing the use of expensive labour-saving capital goods—water-mills, windmills, and cranes—in medieval western Europe and the Middle East. Using novel ways of measuring, we find that whereas the use of these goods increased in Europe, in the Middle East their prevalence decreased, or they were not used at all. We investigate several possible explanations and reject most of them, including religion, geography, technological knowledge, and disparities in wages and cost of capital. Our analysis shows that differences in lordship systems and the security of property rights best explain the patterns found.

AB - This article contributes to the ongoing debate on the causes of the great divergence by comparing the use of expensive labour-saving capital goods—water-mills, windmills, and cranes—in medieval western Europe and the Middle East. Using novel ways of measuring, we find that whereas the use of these goods increased in Europe, in the Middle East their prevalence decreased, or they were not used at all. We investigate several possible explanations and reject most of them, including religion, geography, technological knowledge, and disparities in wages and cost of capital. Our analysis shows that differences in lordship systems and the security of property rights best explain the patterns found.

KW - Great divergence

KW - immovable capital goods

KW - Western Europe

KW - Middle East

U2 - 10.1111/ehr.12571

DO - 10.1111/ehr.12571

M3 - Article

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VL - 71

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van Bavel BJP, Buringh E, Dijkman JEC. Mills, cranes, and the great divergence: The use of immovable capital goods in western Europe and the Middle East, ninth to sixteenth centuries. The Economic History Review. 2018 Feb;71(1):31-54. doi: 10.1111/ehr.12571