© Oxford University Press España S.A., 2012

The S

tone

Age

OBJECTIVES

1 Identify the chronological boundaries of the prehistoric era.

2 Learn about the evolution of hominids up until the appearance of today’s

human beings.

3 Distinguish the different periods of the Stone Age and learn about the skills,

way of life, socioeconomic structure and artistic expression in each of them.

4 Explain the consequences of changes in the climate, flora and fauna that

occurred at the end of the Paleolithic Age and the start of the Neolithic Age.

5 Describe the changes that took place in the economy and way of life, which

defined the Neolithic Revolution, and understand the importance of these.

6 Learn about the main features of the Paleolithic and Neolithic Ages in Spain.

7 Respect the ways of life of communities from the past.

8 Recognise and appreciate the artistic and cultural manifestations of the Stone

Age.

CONTENTS

1- Prehistory.

2- Origin and evolution of human beings.

3- Life in the Paleolithic Age.

4- The Neolithic Revolution.

5- The Stone Age in Spain.

What do we know?

PREHISTORY

▪ Long period of time → started with the appearance of the first human beings

→ ended with the invention of writing

→ divided into two prehistoric ages:

❑ The Stone Age: Paleolithic and Neolithic

❑ The Metal Age: Copper, Bronze and Iron Ages

THE FIRST HUMAN BEINGS

➢ HOMINIDS: upper primates who walked upright and all their descendants.

They appeared in Africa and some spread the rest of the world.

➢ PROCESS OF HOMINISATION: evolution of hominids that made them

become human beings like us today:

■ Bipedalism

■ More developed brain

■ Ability to make tools and utensils

■ Use of language

The origin of human beings

Which of these hominids used tools?

Which of these hominids knew about fire?

Homo antecessor Homo neanderthalensis

Homo sapiens sapiens

LIFE IN THE PALEOLITHIC AGE

ECONOMY AND SOCIETY

❏ CLIMATE: cold periods alternated with milder periods

❏ FOOD

❏ They were predators, not producers

❏ Hunting and fishing

❏ Fruit, honey, eggs gathering

❏ NOMADIC LIFE:

❏ Caves or shelters grouped to form camps

❏ groups of 20/30 people: hordes → tribes

❏ HIERARCHICAL groups of people and TASKS SHARED between:

❏ MEN: hunting, defence, tools making

❏ WOMEN: looked after children, gathered fruit, tended fire,

hunted small animals, treated animal hides

❏ RELIGIOUS BELIEFS: THEY BELIEVED IN THE FORCES OF NATURE

(RAIN, SUN…) → They buried their dead

The Palaeolithic Age

Where are the people in these images?

What activities are the Palaeolithic people in these images doing?

Palaeolithic skills

What are the people in each image doing?

Why was each of these skills important?

WORKING WITH STONE ANIMAL HIDES

MAKING AND CONTROLLING FIRE

LIFE IN THE PALEOLITHIC AGE

ART

❏ CAVE PAINTINGS: Earliest expressions of art

❏ THEORIES THAT EXPLAIN ROCK PAINTING → ANIMALS

❏ AS A WAY THAT ALLOWED THEM TO HUNT ANIMALS MORE

EASILY

❏ AS A WAY OF EXPRESSING THEMSELVES

❏ AS A WAY OF SHOWING WHAT THEY HAD SEEN

❏ REALISM OF REPRESENTATIONS

❏ THEY OBTAINED COLOURS FROM NATURE (E.G. RED FROM

IRON/BLOOD)

❏ THEY USED THEIR FINGERS OF BRUSHES MADE WITH ANIMAL

HAIR

❏ OTHER FORMS OF ART

❏ BATONS → Bone of horn

❏ VENUS STATUES → ivory, stone, bone → symbols of fertility

Palaeolithic art

What type of art can you see in these images?

Why do you think Palaeolithic people produced these works of art?

THE NEOLITHIC REVOLUTION

BEGAN AROUND 7000 BC AND LASTED UNTIL 3500 BC WRITING

REVOLUTION IMPORTANT ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL CHANGES

ECONOMY AND SOCIETY

Climate change increase in the world Tº transformation of flora and fauna

more forests more herbivores moved north less food for humans

Increase in plant species: barley, wild wheat, millet, rice, maize, sunflowers,

People lived from agriculture and livestock keeping discovery of agriculture

Humans stopped being predators and became producers

They domesticated animals such as sheep, goats, pigs, oxen, asses

They became sedentary permanent settlements

Division of labour different jobs done by different people

Religious beliefs religious rites (burials to worship the dead) necropolises

The Neolithic revolution

Where are the people in these images?

What activities are the Neolithic people in these images doing?

The Neolithic economy

What crops grew in Europe and the Middle East in the Neolithic Age?

Why did new plant species appear in the Neolithic Age?

THE NEOLITHIC REVOLUTION

SKILLS

- Stonework new agricultural tools: ploughs, scythes, axes (marble, granite)

- Materials vegetable fibres, linen, cotton, wool, esparto grass (in looms)

- Pottery first, pots directly baked in the fire; later they invented the kiln

ART

- Ceramic pots were painted and decorated

- Funeral idols (stone/bone)

- Rock painting more schematic; people as the main topic; but also hunting scenes,

ritual dances (religious significance)

Neolithic skills

What are the people in each image doing?

Why was each of these skills important?

THE STONE AGE IN SPAIN

PALEOLITHIC

- People lived from hunting, fishing and gathering

- They lived in caves and outdoor shelters (Cave of Morín, Cantabria)

NEOLITHIC

- They grew wheat and barley (cereals); they kept goats, sheep, etc

- Areas: North-East (caves in Montserrat); East (La Sarsa, Bocairent cardial

pots); Andalucia (cardial pots)

- Most significant cave painting are in Levante (Cogull, Valltorta)

The Stone Age in Spain

Which parts of Spain have Neolithic sites?

In which of these sites have Cardial pots been found?