PALEOLITHIC PERIOD“Old Stone Age”

2.5 million yrs ago – 12,000 yrs ago

Begins with development of stone tools

Stone, bone & wood tools Small roving bands scavenging for food Lived through periods of glaciation In late period, evidence of ritual, burial,

cooking, and art Neanderthals, Cro-Magnons - eventually

went extinct Homo sapiens – what we are

Neanderthals

Reconstruction of an adult male based on fossils.

Skull found in Gibraltar

Skulls of 1. Gorilla 2. Australopithecine 3. Homo erectus4. Neanderthal (La-Chapelle-aux-Saints) 5. Steinheim Skull 6. Modern human

In the past, scientists believed that Neanderthals were primitive beings, unable to compete with our human forebears. Now, researchers have uncovered new relics that reveal that two cultural traditions existed among Neanderthals living in what is now northern Europe between 115,000 and 35,000 years ago. (Photo : Reuters)

Cro-Magnon Spear throwers Cave artwork Left many artifacts Big game hunters

Picture of a half-human, half-animal being in a Paleolithic cave painting in Dordogne. France. Archeologists believe that cave paintings of half-human, half-animal beings may be evidence for early shamanic practices during the Paleolithic.

MESOLITHIC PERIOD“Middle Stone Age”

12,000 yrs ago – 10,000 yrs ago

Bone fish hooks

NEOLITHIC PERIOD“New Stone Age”

10,000 yrs ago – 4,000 yrs ago

Instead of chipping tools, grinding and polishing

Some settlements forming Agriculture Domestication of animals More complex societies

Amber beads

Rise of Civilizations Surplus food Large cities with a form of government Job specialization

Other Characteristics Calendar Some form of writing