A number of years ago I acquired a run of The Antiquary journal from the late 19th century. One of the articles in there, spread over several parts, appeals to my “steam punk” nature. In the volume for 1896 the title is Early Mechanical Carriages by Rhys Jenkins.
It is a series of descriptions of weird and quirky prototypes for vehicles, accompanied by woodblock prints from the seventeenth century through to the nineteenth century. I really doubt that man of these ever progressed beyond the drawing board phase and were ever built. They look like the entrants in a Victorian “Wacky Races” event.
