What's that thing called? Ancient wheelless method of transporting a person or supplies

Tazlima

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OK, picture a basic two-man stretcher like might be used to transport an injured person off a battlefield.

The thing I'm thinking of looks similar (two poles and a load-bearing flat bit in between), only it's used by one person, who lifts one end of the poles and pulls them like a rickshaw-driver, letting the other end drag on the ground.

What is that called? I'm racking my brains over here.
 
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cornflake

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OK, picture a basic two-man stretcher like might be used to transport an injured person off a battlefield.

The thing I'm thinking of looks similar (two poles and a load-bearing flat bit in between), only it's used by one person, who lifts one end of the poles and pulls them like a rickshaw-driver, letting the other end drag on the ground.

What is that called? I'm racking my brains over here.

A rickshaw? A pedicab? A tuk tuk?

You don't mean a palanquin, right?
 

frimble3

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I don't know about 'pulled by people', but the Plains Indians of N.A. used the same idea, only pulled by horses or dogs. I suppose, lacking horses or dogs, they might have pulled them by hand. It's generally called a 'travois', from the French for work 'travail'. Also called a 'drag sled', which might be more generic and suitable for your needs.
 

Tazlima

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Travois! That's what I was thinking of! I forgot the sticks are often crossed at the top, and "drag sled" is perfect for my purposes (never heard that term before).

Thanks so much, everyone!
 
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frimble3

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I've only heard 'drag sled' used a couple of times, in books about animals, trying to describe a travois without being specific. (Which is why I mentioned it: if you're writing about someplace other than 'here' it might be useful to have a term not-French, and not associated with a particular set of cultures that might not be in your world.)
 

snafu1056

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Isn't that also called a litter? Or is that just when someone's being carried on one? Litters don't usually get dragged, though. Unless you hate the person youre carrying
 

Tazlima

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I think litters are completely carried. The stretcher Enlightened posted is, I believe, a kind of travois, and is very close to my original mental image, although for my story purposes, I ended up using this simple travois made from a few sticks as the template for the one my character makes.
 
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frimble3

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One handy detail the Enlightened's example has (if I'm seeing the photo correctly) is the shoulder-yoke (bar over the shoulders) which would stop the weight from pulling straight down the hands by spreading it over the shoulders.
That's why you see pictures of milk-maids and water-carriers using carved shoulder yokes.
A plain pole would work, if you had something to pad the shoulders with - a folded or stuffed piece of clothing or fabric?