Paleolithic and Mesolithic Periods

Purpose

In this module, students will examine the Paleolithic and Mesolithic periods with a focus on the the earliest human development, about 2 million years ago. The Paleolithic period, or Old Stone Age, most outstanding feature was the development of the homo species and the eventual presence of Homo sapiens. Students will survey development of hominids. The term "hominids" refers to primate species that had evolved into upright, bi-pedal beings, separate from four-legged apes. Hominids include, but are not limited to Homo habilis (Latin: "able man" or "handyman") is considered the earliest human species. Homo erectus (Latin: "upright man") originated in Africa starting about 1.9 million years ago. Homo sapiens (Latin: "wise man"), the species to which all modern human beings belong. 

 

Paleolithic peoples were nomadic hunters and gatherers who used fire, and fashioned stone tools. Their cultures are identified by distinctive stone-tool industries, evidence of communal hunting, constructed shelters, and belief systems centering on beliefs, magic and the supernatural. The Mesolithic period, or Middle Stone Age, began at the end of the last glacial era, over 10,000 years ago. Mesolithic cultures developed skills that included gradual domestication of plants and animals, formation of settled communities, use of the bow, and development of delicate stone microliths and pottery.

  

These periods are often referred to as “revolutions” and capture human evolution, behavior, and the origins of culture that are the foundation for ancient civilizations. 

Learning Outcomes:

• Compare and contrast how our ancestors lived during the Paleolithic and the Mesolithic periods
• Critically assess the cultural behavior and environmental changes that occurred within prehistory.
• Identify factors leading to the domestication of plants and animals and the effects domestication had on cultural development.

Instructions

• Review each Paleolithic and the Mesolithic periods, paying close attention to the evidence presented.
• Read the materials and watch the accompanying videos.
• Record key facts and be ready to present your interpretations and insights from the materials and share during our class discussion. 
• Complete the Paleolithic and Mesolithic Periods Quiz.

Watch the video: Paleolithic Age Hunter Gathers

The Upper Paleolithic period was approximately 35 to 12 thousand years ago. It was a period our ancestors began to act in ways that seem more familiar to us today.  The Paleolithic is divided into three broad periods of unequal lengths of time. The largest by far is the Lower Paleolithic (from Paleo = old, Lithic = stone), the time period of our earliest human ancestors; the Middle Paleolithic includes hominids as the Neanderthals. The Upper Paleolithic is the most recent of the three periods. The names reflect what researchers find when digging into unearthing history. the most recent is usually near the surface (“Upper”), while the oldest material is at the bottom (“Lower”). The Upper Paleolithic contains is the time period of the famous rock and cave art paintings that represent the material culture. There were changes in the way humans treat each other after death, in terms of burials, gravesites, and body decorations. Anatomically, Homo sapiens have not changed in tens of thousands of years. There has been an evolution of the mind rather than of the body that has fostered human innovations and inventions. Both innovation and inventions have helped homo sapiens survive in any environment.

According to the genetic and paleontological record, humans started to leave Africa between 60,000 and 70,000 years ago. The journey began by following the path of animals they hunted and along the coasts where resources were abundant. The earliest people probably crossed the Bab-al-Mandab Strait separating present-day Yemen from Djibouti. These early explorers gradually moved along the coast to India and reached Southeast Asia and Australia by 50,000 years ago. The peoples who stayed behind in Africa continued to be creative and learn to thrive.

In 1987, the paper "Mitochondrial DNA and Human Evolution", was published by Rebecca Cann, Mark Stoneking, and Allan Wilson. It put modern human origins on the front pages of newspapers all over the world for the first time for it showed that a tiny and peculiar part of our genome, inherited only through mothers and daughters, derived from an African ancestor about 200,000 years ago. This woman became known as Mitochondrial Eve. [Source: Chris Stringer, The Guardian, June 19, 2011.] Stringer is head of human origins at the Natural History Museum in London] This dynamism is what makes studying human evolution so fascinating. Science is not about being right or wrong, but about gradually approaching the truth about the natural world.

The Mesolithic Age (12,000 to 2700 BCE) was a relatively short period that began after the recession of continental glaciers, at the end of the Ice Age. Earth experienced rapid climatic changes that included earthquakes and abrupt cold and dry weather patterns. It also witnessed the growth of forests, redistribution of animals, and extinction of megafauna or large-bodied animals. During the Mesolithic era, Homo sapiens evolved from nomadic hunter-gatherers foraging, gathering plants, and following animals to secure their food source. They learned to make tools from chipped stones and bones, which included scrapers and knives for working hides and wood, butchering, and cutting. Homo sapiens were able to gradually tame fire, which allowed them to create light and heat whenever they needed to and also allowed them to cook food. As the early human species progressed through the Mesolithic Age, they used animal hides for garments and animal stomachs for sacks to store food, and they invented the bow and arrow, the bone needle, and the oil lamp. The first appearance of human artwork took the form of simple wood carvings, cave, and rock paintings, which usually took the form of animal sculptures or sample human figures.  

Archeological evidence from the Mesolithic era shows that our earliest ancestors banded together to constitute a single tribe, shared a common language, common myths, and common norms and values, and practiced inhumation (burial) or cremation of the dead. Gradually, they were able to cultivate crops and domestic livestock, constructed "houses" with stone-built foundations, establish permanent dwellings, and congregate in villages, that grew into towns, cities, and empires. People developed technological innovations to make bladelets and jewelry, pottery, fishhooks, and nets and tools for hollowing out logs to make boats. Scientists believe cooperation was one of the most important trademarks of humans and it gave them a crucial edge over other species. Humans are the only known species to have successfully populated, adapted to, and significantly altered a wide variety of land regions across the world, resulting in profound historical and environmental impacts.

Watch the video: Mesolithic Age of Migration

Before Civilization: Scientists have identified signs of the first developing societies through archaeological discoveries of artwork, tools, and cave paintings. These artifacts reveal their cultural and historical beginnings from the Stone Age to the Neolithic Age - Agricultural Revolutions.