Stone Age Man

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MAN THE TOOL MAKER

Tools And The Stone Age
One of the most important advancements in human history was the development and use of tools. Tools allowed hominids to become the masters of their environments, to hunt, to build, and to perform important tasks that made life easier for them. The first tools were made out of stone. Thus, historians refer to the period of time before written history as the stone age.

Historians divide the stone age into three different periods, based on the sophistication and methods of tool design. The first such period is referred to as the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. The Old Stone Age began about 2 million years ago with the development

of the first tools by Homo Habilis, and lasted until around 12,000 years ago. The Mesolithic or Middle Stone Age began around 12,000 years ago, and continued through about 8,000 years ago. The Neolithic or New Stone Age lasted from 8,000 years until around 3,000 years ago.

Early Hominids
Human like animals that walked upright were known as hominids. It is believed that the earliest hominids lived around 4.4 million years ago in the humid forests of eastern and southern Africa. These animals, known as Australopithecus are believed to have been around three to five feet tall, and probably fed on leaves, fruits, and the remains of dead animals. There is no evidence that Australopithecus made their own tools. There is however strong evidence that they used sticks, and bones to help them dig, and defend themselves.

Hominid Types
Scientists such as anthropologists divide hominids into three different types based on their body shapes, and lifestyles. The first type of hominids are referred to as Homo habilis, which means ‘person with abilities’. It is believed that Homo habilis lived until about 1.6 million years ago. The second type of early

human living on the Earth was Homo erectus which means ‘person who walks upright’. Homo erectus lived on the Earth until about 150,000 years ago. The final type of hominid living on the Earth are Homo sapiens. Homo sapien means ‘person who can think’. All humans living on the Earth today are Homo sapiens.

Homo Habilis
It is believed that Homo habilis were the first hominids to create and use tools. These creatures lived in Africa from about 2.2 million years ago until around 1.6 million years ago. Homo Habilis probably lived alongside Australopithecus. However, their larger bodies, and brains would have given them a clear advantage.

Homo Erectus
Homo erectus inhabited Africa, Asia and Europe some 1.6 million years ago, and remained active in these areas until around 250,000 years ago. Their large brains allowed them to easily adapt to a wide variety of environments. Fossils of Homo erectus have been found in forests, planes, and grasslands. Historians believe that Homo erectus began as gatherers but advanced over many generations into hunters. The women likely stayed close to home, where they cared for children, and gathered nuts, fruit, and leaves for eating. It is believed that the men went in hunting groups in search of meat. At first they only looked for animals that were already dead. Over time, however, they developed tools such as clubs that allowed them to hunt and kill animals. With the

discovery of fire, Homo erectus became even more adept at survival. Fire allowed them to cook their food, to stay warm in cool environments, and to utilize caves as shelter. In order to keep warm, Homo erectus began utilizing clothing. This began with individuals placing animal skins over their bodies, and became more advanced as they learned to stitch animal skins together using stripes of leather.

Homo Sapiens
Hominids evolved and developed for millions of years prior to the arrival of Homo sapiens on the Earth. This evolution was slow. The development of a new skill, or tool often took thousands of years. With the arrival of Homo sapiens, this all changed. The speed of advancements increased dramatically. Instead of thousands of years, great progress was made in hundreds or even dozens of years. The first Homo sapiens are believed to have been the Neanderthals. Neanderthal people first appeared on the Earth around 200,000 years ago, in Africa. They migrated from frica to the rest of the world around 100,000 years ago. Neanderthals were around five to six feet in height. They had thick sturdy bones, and muscular shoulders, legs, arms, and necks. The Neanderthals also had a large brain, in fact their brain was slightly larger than that of modern humans. Like earlier hominids, Neanderthals made and used tools, however

the tools produced by the Neanderthals were much more advanced than those used by their predecessors. Neanderthals learned to create specialized cutting, and scrapping tools by chipping away at the edge of a rock. They learned to combine different types of stone into a single tool, and they discovered how to use a wide variety of soft and hard stones for specialized tasks.

Homo Sapiens Sapiens
It is believed that modern humans like you and I first originated on the Earth around 50,000 years ago in Africa. These modern humans are referred to by historians as Homo sapiens sapiens. Within just a few thousand years these modern humans had spread to every continent across the entire planet, and onto many islands. As Homo sapiens sapiens migrated outward from Africa, it is believed that they wiped out Neanderthals, either by absorbing them through intermarriage, or by destroying them through war and competition.

Villages Develop
With the advent of farming and domesticated animals to feed a society, life became much easier for early humans. As a result, many more humans survived the difficulties of life. The population quickly rose from around 2 million humans on the Earth, to more than 90 million. Farming allowed people to build villages along rivers, or wherever the ground was fertile enough for crops to grow.

Technologies Advance Quickly
With an abundance of food, and more permanent shelters, people had more time to devote to the development of new technologies. Better farming equipment, such as the ox driven plow were invented. The wheel aided humans greatly in transporting goods from one location to another. The loom allowed people to weave cloth, and create finer and more comfortable clothing. Tools were created for measuring the passage of time, such as calendars, star charts, and sun dials. This helped farmers track when the growing season would arrive, and when the best time to plant crops

would be. People learned improved farming techniques, such as how to use fertilizers in their fields, and how to better utilize water through irrigation. Villages dug large canals, and complex systems of ditches delivering water from distant sources to where it was most needed.