Mesolithic

1. Began approximately 12,000 years ago

2. Warmer, drier climate with disappearance of large herd animals such as mammoths and wooly rhinoceros.

3. Greater reliance on small game, wild plants, fishing

4. Stone tool technology changes: microliths, smoothly ground stone axes, harpoons

5. Natufians in Southwest Asia (Fertile Crescent)

a.Villagers living in small towns such as Jericho

b.They were Hunters and gatherers

c. Used Storage pits for grains

6. Transition from:

a. Nomadic Hunting and Gathering way of life

b. to Settled Agricultural lifestyle.

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The Neolithic

1. The Neolithic means the new Stone Age.

2. However what's really important is

a. the domestication of plants and animals and

b. the development of sedentary communities.

3. This happened 10,500 years ago in Southwest Asia.

4. And 8000 years ago in southeast Asia, Mexico, Peru.

Characteristics of Domesticated Plants

1. Increased size of edible parts, for example, wheat and corn.

2. Loss or reduction of husk, for example, teosinte to corn.

3. The development of tough stems, e.g., wheat, so seeds can be harvested easily

Teosintle; Maize Evolution

Major Cultigens (Plant Domesticates)

1. Southwest Asia: wheat, barley, flax, lentil, rye

2. Southeast Asia: millet, rice, taro

3. Africa: sorghum, yams

4. Melanesia: yams

5. Mesoamerica: corn, beans, squash, cotton, chili,

avocado, amaranth

6. Highland South America: potato, quinoa

7. Tropical South America: manioc , peanuts

Taro Root for Sale

Sorghum

Quinoa

Manioc

Characteristics of Domesticated Animals

1. Reduction or loss of horns, sheep.

2. Greater number of woolly follicles,

sheep.

3. Reduction in the size of teeth, pigs

Identification of domesticated animals in the

archaeological record

1. higher percentage of remains of male or

young animals. Why?

a. Butchering of male sheep only in Iraq.

b. High newborn mortality due to diseases in

corrals, llamas in Peru

Some Animal Domesticates

• Southwest Asia: sheep, goats, cattle, dogs,

camels, horses, ducks.

• Southeast Asia: silk worm, pigs, water

buffalo, ducks, geese, chickens.

• South America: guinea pig, llama, alpaca

• Mexico: turkey, dog, honey bee

• Egypt: cat

Silk Worm

Guinea Pigs

Alpaca (Lama pacos)

 Xoloitzcuintli, Mexican hairless dog

Theories for the

Origins of the Domestication of

Plants and Animals

The Oasis Theory by V. Gordon Childe; 1950s

1. A type of environmental determinism.

2. Southwest Asia became drier 12 to 15,000

years ago.

3. People congregated around oases.

4. People collected the seeds of wild grasses

5. This led to plant cultivation.

6. Cultivation of plants attracted wild cattle,

sheep, and goats.

7. This led to animal domestication.

8. Problem with the Oasis Theory:

-- Domestication did not occur first at oases

Population Growth By Cohen

1. Hunting, fishing, and gathering were very

productive

2. So productive, that population grew.

3. More people needed more food

4. People in marginal areas decided to

domesticate animals and plants to

provide new food

Problems with Population Growth Theory

1. Domestication is gradual and would not

provide people with more food in the short

term.

2. Assumes domestication was intentional.

However, people cannot predict which

plants or animals can be domesticated.

Seasonal Stress Theory

of Plant Domestication

1. by McCorriston and Hole

2. For South West Asia only

3. The earliest plant domestication took

place around the margins of evaporating

lakes. For example, the Jordan River

Valley.

4. Beginning in the Mesolithic, the climate became

warmer with seasonal droughts (these are

seasonal stresses.)

5. Annuals are best adapted to this environment,

a. wild cereal grains produce abundant seeds

and

b. survive for long periods of drought.

6. People collected wild plants, for example,

wheat, barley, and rye

7. They used sickles, which meant that plants with

tough stems and seeds were the most likely to

be carried back to settlements.

8. Some lost seeds germinated at disturbed sites

such as latrines, garbage pits, and burned over

areas.

9. People began to promote growth of these

annuals.

The Hilly Flanks Theory Of Animal Domestication by Hole

1. For South West Asia, only

2. Wild sheep and goats were domesticated in the hilly

flanks (foothills) of the Zargos Mountains in present

day Iraq and Iran

3. Wild sheep and goats migrated up and down

mountains due to the seasonal availability of grasses.

4. Sheep and goats grazed in the lowlands during the

winter and in the high pastures in the summer.

4. People followed these animals, and became very

familiar with their behavior and habits

5. By 11,000 years ago, the percentage of male lamb

remains increased.

6. Females were spared for breeding and people

were feasting on ram lambs.

7. This indicates the presence of herd management

8. By 8000 years ago, domesticated sheep and goats

were being kept at villages like Jericho.

An example of Neolithic life; Jericho in the Jordan

River Valley.

1. 10,350 years before present, Jericho was first

settled by hunters and gatherers.

2. 8000 years before present, the farmers were

raising animals, and cultivating plants.

3. Wheat, barley, sheep, goats.

4. 400 to 900 people –

5. egalitarian, centralized cemetery

6. Massive stone walls to prevent flooding7. Mud brick houses with courtyards8. Storage rooms9. Stone Tower10. Obsidian, turquoise, and shells traded

with other villages11. Tools included:

a. Polished Stone, Wood, Bone, Hornb. Scythes, Forks, Hoes, Plowc. Mortar And Pestled. Pottery

Stone Tower in Jericho

Foundation of Round House in Jericho

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Neolithic Health

1. There were waterborne diseases and

gastrointestinal diseases due to poor

sanitation.

2. Airborne diseases.

3. Carbohydrate-related diseases.

4. Periodic epidemics and food shortages led to

malnutrition and stunted growth.

a) Harris lines in long bones,

b) Enamel hypoplasias

5. Zoonoses such as smallpox and chickenpox --

transmitted from domesticated animals.

6. Sickle cell anemia, malaria, and farming

Enamel Hypoplasia

Harris Lines