Early European Courier Services From Rome
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Society
Feb 28, 2008
sparta
Early European Courier Services From Rome
The notion that bad news travels fast is not a new one. Dating back to Roman times, this saying comes from the fact that the courier service of the time would be accompanied by a laurel for good news and a feather, indicating swiftness, for bad news. When thinking of European courier services, it's hard to imagine that it all started with the Romans. Introduced by Emperor Augustus, messages and letters were transported between parties via a messenger, or courier, who could travel at around 50 miles per day to most destinations, weather permitting to deliver the goods. The method of one message - one courier, derived from the Persian system of several couriers along the main routes, came into existence to ensure news travelled and help could be enlisted as quickly as possible. The person sending the message would employ a courier to take the message to the destination. Travelling at an average of 50 miles per day by horseback, the courier could stop at stations along the road for accommodation, rest, food, fodder for his horse or to be provided with a new horse. The initial expense would be met by the person sending the message and recuperation costs were met by the areas the stations were based in. These couriers were able to travel any distance, throughout our modern day Europe and further, by sea or land. This early form of European courier service was mainly for the businessman and authorities. The general public would normally send messages abroad via slaves or travelling associates. It's quite a surprise that these messages, by and large, made it to their destination eventually. It also puts to shame our modern world. Even with our modern advancements, messages go astray with more and more frequency. Text messages are sent to the wrong number, or even to the right number, and never arrive. Emails go awry and can be intercepted by the wrong recipients and this has led to some very embarrassing problems. The postal service is open to disputes, strikes, thieves and human error, sometimes with mail reportedly being delivered many years after it was posted, if you get it at all. Secure courier services can also be a problem for some using unscrupulous European Courier Service companies. Choose the right European courier services and you will see they have come have come a long way these days. Safe, secure systems of getting your parcel, letters or messages across any European destination have developed to a point where 50 miles per day looks positively antiquated. Same day European courier services are now available through many companies, which will involve just the one driver, thus going back to the Roman days. Back in Roman times, mail would have been traceable to a degree because checks could be made at various stations along the way. It was also possible for the emperor, or court official, to quiz the messenger on his arrival for more details. This is partly why one messenger was eventually used, instead of several. Nowadays, despatched items are electronically tracked and it is possible to know the whereabouts of any message, at any time. It seems many of the original ideas involving a form of courier service have stayed with us up until modern times with just a few tweaks for security but with the added usefulness of speed.
Logistics expert Catherine Harvey looks at the use of European courier services from the Romans to the present. To find out more please visit http://www.vennards.com/european-courier-service/
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