The earliest known hinge is the vestige of a socket in stone that received the pivot for a heavy wood fortification door in Hattusa, Turkey, c. 1600 BC.  In 957 BC, chapter 1 of Kings 7, verse 50, describes Solomon’s temple in Jerusalem as having gold doors with gold “sockets” for the innermost room. A bronze hinge found in Egyptian ruins dates to c. 760-650 BC and was inscribed with a subsequent king’s name to mark the succession.

Similar pivot hinged doors were found in Mesopotamia from c. 5th-4th century BC. The Romans were serious about their hinges, designating the Roman goddess of the hinge, Cardea (right), to preside over both door and cabinet hinges. By the late 17th and 18th centuries, H- and L-strap hinges had become common.

In the North American context, hinges were obtained from England into the 17th century, until blacksmithing emerged as a trade and strap hinges were forged locally. The butt hinge emerged in 1900 Recessed into the frame and the door leaf, it took over as the hinge style of choice.

Early hinges had two “knuckles.” The “pintle” is a fixed pin attached to the frame, over which the “gudgeon” (attached to the door so it can be lifted off) is placed. Paumelle hinges are similar, but the pintle is attached to the door and fitted down into the gudgeon. A special configuration of the pintle, the gudgeon, and the paumelle is the olive hinge, where the pintle and gudgeon are enclosed and form an olive shape. As the hinge evolved, it came to have three parts: the flanges, the jamb, and the stile. The stile has gudgeons and a pin, which threads alternate gudgeons and connects the two flanges. The hinge can be “loose,” as in removable, or “fast,” as in fixed. The pin can have no detail, being flat on the ends, or it can have an array of decorations, such as ball, acorn, or finials on either or both ends.

The strap hinge evolved to have two knuckles, and more later on. The more knuckles, the less strain on each one. The T-hinge is differentiated from a strap hinge by a jamb flange that is taller than the stile flange. Both strap and T-hinges can have simple or elaborate stile flanges mounted exposed to the door. The later butt hinge, so named because it is mounted where the door abuts the jamb, is mortised into both the door and frame, with just the knuckles showing.

Originally, hinges were placed two to a door and were sold in pairs because doors never used just one. In the early 1950s it was understood that the more hinges on the door, the less strain on the hinge, and the practice of placing a third hinge at the midpoint between the other hinges became standard. This evolved into the industry of ‘one and a half pair butts.’

With the understanding that more knuckles experienced less strain and that more hinges better supported heavy doors, eventually the continuous or “piano” hinge was developed to support a large leaf.

The knuckles began as plain bearing—metal on metal. Ball bearings evolved to make the door operate more smoothly. Spring hinges  evolved as a way to automatically close the door but were suitable for only lighter screen doors. Rising butt hinges are a specialty type, where the door leaf is lifted about a half inch as it opens, to clear carpets or uneven floors.

Hinges can be highly decorative in their exposed parts. When the hinge moved to the butt style, the decorative nature continued through the 1800s and early 1900s, but has gradually been phased out and replaced by the utilitarian style used today.

From tradtionalbuilding.com