Lesson 2 – Stone Age Technology

Pgs 38-41

21st Century Tools

• What are some common tools used in our lives?

• What is a tool?

Paleolithic Technology

• Stone knives, axes, arrowheads, spear points.

• Only had stone, bone, or wood tools until 9,000 BC.

• Tools were shaped by “flaking” – or chipping pieces off the edges.

• Hand axe was one of the earliest tools made from a rock with a naturally sharp edge.

Hand Axe

Flaking

• Sharpen a stone by hitting it against another stone.

• Strong rocks were used for flaking like:– Flint– Obsidian– Quartz

Technology improvements: baking stones to harden them.

Hunting Tools

• Stone spearheads and arrowheads.

• Stone scrapers for hide cleaning.

• Spear throwers and bows allowed hunters to hunt from greater distances.

• Polished and decorated their tools later on.

• Hafting sharp stones on a handle increased the uses of the tool.

Tools

Sewing Tools

• Bone needles• Dried animal muscles for thread

Fire & Shelter

• Used fire for warmth and for cooking.

• Built more permanent shelters from materials found in their environment:– Mammoth bones– Wood– Foliage

Cave Dwellings

Metals

• Copper made stronger tools than stone.• Allowed people to live more comfortably in their

environment.

Nova – How to make a stone tool

• http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/stoneage/toolkit.html

• http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/stoneage/maki-i.html

Activity

• Write a description that an archaeologist would write about a stone tool they uncovered. Describe the way the tool looks and how the stone age craftsman made it.