Artes mechanicae (mechanical arts) are a medieval concept of ordered practices or skills, often juxtaposed to the traditional seven liberal arts (artes liberales). Also called "servile" and "vulgar",[1] from antiquity they had been deemed "unbecoming" for a free man, as they minister to basic needs.
Johannes Scotus Eriugena (9th century) divided them into seven parts:
In hisDidascalicon,Hugh of St Victor (12th century) includesnavigation,medicine andtheatrical arts instead of commerce, agriculture and cooking.[3] Hugh's treatment somewhat elevates the mechanical arts as ordained to the improvement of humanity, a promotion which was to represent a growing trend among late medievals.[4][5]
The classification of theartes mechanicae as appliedgeometry was introduced to Western Europe byDominicus Gundissalinus (12th century) under the influence of his readings in Arabic scholarship.[citation needed]
In the 19th century, "mechanic arts" referred to some of the fields that are now known asengineering. Use of the term was apparently an attempt to distinguish these fields from creative and artistic endeavors like theperforming arts and thefine arts, which were for the upper class of the time, and theintelligentsia. The mechanic arts were also considered practical fields for those that did not come from good families.[citation needed]
Related phrases, "useful arts" or "applied arts" probably encompass the mechanic arts as well as craftsmanship in general.
In the United States, the most famous usage of the term "mechanic arts" (and the one in which it is most commonly encountered today) is in theMorrill Land-Grant Colleges Act.[citation needed]