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1. Prehistory: the Paleolithic Period
Blade
:
finely knapped.
Used as spear heads.
Chopper
:
pebble, roughly
worked on one side. Used for
digging and skinning.
Knife
:
utensil knapped on
one side. Used for cutting or
as a weapon.
Scraper
:
used for cleaning
animal hides
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and sharpening
knives.
Biface
:
hand axe knapped
on both sides. Used for
cutting.
Javelin
:
weapon for throwing.
Similar to a small spear.
Spear thrower
:
used
to throw javelins.
Perforator
:
used for
making holes in hides.
Needle
:
made of bone and used
for sewing.
Harpoon
:
used for
fishing.
3. THE PALEOLITHIC PERIOD
It is divided into three periods of different lengths:
❚
The
Lower Paleolithic
(from two and a half million years ago). In this period,
stones were
knapped
, that is, they were shaped by hitting them with a stone.
The first tools appeared in the
Rift Valley
(Africa) and were used to cut up animals
and firewood. They are associated with
Australopithecus
and the earliest genus
Homo
species:
Homo habilis
and
Homo erectus
.
Homo erectus
learned to make
bifaces.
❚
The
Middle Paleolithic
(from 125 000 years ago).
Homo neanderthalensis
is from
this period. The members of this species lived in Europe and Western Asia.
Technological advances were made and knives and scrapers began to be produced.
❚
The
Upper Paleolithic
(from 40 000 to 10 000 years ago).
Homo sapiens
came
from this period. Carving techniques developed and new types of tools made of
stone, ivory
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, bone and wood appeared. These included perforators, arrow heads,
harpoons, javelins, spear throwers and needles.
The
Epipaleolithic
(from 8000 B.C.) was a period of transition between the Paleolithic
and Neolithic Age in Europe and on the Iberian Peninsula. As temperatures rose and
the ice receded, some Neolithic advances were adopted in these regions. The tools
they made were similar to those of the previous period, but smaller.
The Paleolithic Period is the
longest period in Prehistory
. It covers 99.5% of the
history of the human race. It began with the
appearance of tools
made of stone,
bone and wood.
PALEOLITHIC TOOLS
LOWER PALEOLITHIC
MIDDLE PALEOLITHIC
UPPER PALEOLITHIC
Minerals like flint and obsidian
are very hard. However, it is easy
to break small, thin pieces off in
layers called chips. This is done by
hitting the minerals. This is why
they were popular with human
beings for making tools in the
Paleolithic Age.
Did you know?
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ivory
:
material from the tusks of
animals such as elephants
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hide
:
skin of an animal
