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Prehistoric Entrepreneurs
Recent research by Prof. Hercule dAlene suggests that self storage may be the Worlds second oldest profession. This article highlights some of the great historical self storage facilities.
The cave art discovered in cave is France, Spain and Germany is now thought to have been an inventory of the animals stored in each cave by early hunters. The paintings, undertaken with only the most rudimentary tools, furnish valuable insights into early commercial activity. Nearly 350 caves with such art have been discovered suggesting an operation of some scale and sophistication. It is not known what the typical storage charges were; but the costs of storing a hairy mammoth would have been beyond the average caveman.
Perhaps the most spectacular storage building is The Great Pyramid of Giza. Built with 2.3 million limestone blocks, it's over 50 stories high. It took 3800 years before the 160m spire of Lincoln cathedral surpassed the pyramid's height. Incredibly there are only 3 chambers in this vast structure. Builders of modern storage structures would be horrified with this poor utilisation of space. Concerns would also be expressed about security since the items in all 3 chambers were stolen.
Noah benefitted from a tip off about an impending storm and created the first floating self storage operation. He subsequently cornered the market and achieved one of the fastest fill rates ever known for self storage. The flood removed his competitors giving him a monopoly on storage provision. His charitable disposition meant he didn't abuse this dominant position and instead gave shelter to animals.
Many storage operators would struggle to accommodate 8,000 terracotta soldiers, 130 chariots, 520 ponies and a further 150 cavalry horses. The figures vary in height (183"195 cm - 6ft"6ft 5in), according to their role, the tallest being the generals. For Qin Shi Huang, the First Emperor of China it was no problem. Perhaps youthful exuberance helped; he was only 13 when construction began. And he did have 7,000 staff, so customer service must have been superb.
Stalag Luft III was a Luftwaffe (German Air Force) prisoner-of-war camp during World War II that housed captured air force servicemen. The site near Sagan, now aga in Poland, was chosen because it would be difficult to escape from by tunneling. However as we know from the film, The Great Escape, Steve McQueen had no problem in escaping. Charles Bronson seemed to dig a 300ft tunnel by himself, using tools acquired by James Garner. Even Donald Pleasence, for whom tea was terribly important, managed to get out. So this storage facility failed in its primary task of safely and securely storing prisoners.
The United States Bullion Depository, commonly called Fort Knox, is a fortified vault building located near Fort Knox, Kentucky, which is used to store a large portion of United States official gold reserves and, occasionally, other precious items belonging or entrusted to the federal government. Now that makes it a pretty valuable self storage operation. Who else can claim to store $134 billion worth of goods? Well Jeremy Irons in Die Hard with a Vengeance knew that he'd make more by targeting the Federal Reserve in New York.
It would appear that the majority of the British public would like nothing more than to see their members of Parliament incarcerated in a self storage facility. Many would like to throw away the key. But instead they are stored in the mother of all Parliaments, spending their precious hours deciding on which home should be their primary residence this week. After a productive lunch they spend the afternoon completing their expense claims. Democracy: some may pine for the days of King Khufu and Qin Shi Huang; at least you know where you are with an omnipotent ruler.
Who'd have thought when Zog the caveman offered to store some meat for the hunter-gatherers of the Upper Palaeolithic period that self storage would endure for so long? At some point in their lives everyone needs a little storage.
About the Author Rob Shorten is an inventive student of history. He's also a self storage entrepreneur, web conversion expert, a coleopterologist, raconteur, halitosisist and father to Tipsy and Cedric. His presentation on the history of self storage was the hit of this years storage convention in Bird's Landing. Have a look at a modern self storage facility Kangaroo Self Storage. Qin Shi Huang would be impressed.
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