Paleolithic Era

Examples of Paleolithic Era in the following topics:

• Paleolithic Artifacts

  • The Paleolithic era has a number of artifacts that range from stone, bone, and wood tools to stone sculptures.
  • The Paleolithic or Old Stone Age originated around 30,000 BCE, lasting until 10,000 BCE, and is separated into three periods: the Lower Paleolithic (the earliest subdivision), Middle Paleolithic, and Upper Paleolithic.
  • The Paleolithic era is characterized by the use of stone tools, although at the time humans also used wood and bone tools.
  • Surviving artifacts of the Paleolithic era are known as paleoliths.
  • The earliest undisputed art originated in the Upper Paleolithic.

• Paleolithic Architecture

  • A typical Paleolithic society followed a hunter-gatherer economy.
  • As the Paleolithic era progressed, dwellings became more sophisticated, more elaborate, and more house-like.
  • At the end of the Paleolithic era, humans began to produce works of art such as cave paintings, rock art, and jewelry, and began to engage in religious behavior such as burial and rituals.
  • In the Upper Paleolithic (the latest part of the Paleolithic), caves ceased to act as houses.
  • An artist's rendering of a temporary wood house, based on evidence found at Terra Amata (in Nice, France) and dated to the Lower Paleolithic era.

• The Stone Age

  • While numerous artifacts still exist today, the lack of writing systems from this era greatly limits our understanding of prehistoric art and culture.
  • The Paleolithic era is characterized by the emergence of basic stone tools and stone art in the archaeological record.
  • There are also various examples of carved bone and ivory flutes in the Paleolithic era, indicating another art form utilized by prehistoric humans.
  • In particular, Venus figurines are the most indicative of this era.
  • The second main form of Paleolithic art consists of monumental cave paintings and engravings.

• The Neolithic Revolution

  • The first humans evolved in Africa during the Paleolithic Era, or Stone Age, which spans the period of history from 2.5 million to about 10,000 BCE.
  • Humankind gradually evolved from early members of the genus Homo— such as Homo habilis, who used simple stone tools— into fully behaviorally and anatomically modern humans (Homo sapiens) during the Paleolithic era.
  • During the end of the Paleolithic, specifically the Middle and or Upper Paleolithic, humans began to produce the earliest works of art and engage in religious and spiritual behavior, such as burial and ritual.
  • Paleolithic humans were nomads, who often moved their settlements as food became scarce.
  • Paleoliths (artifacts from the Paleolithic), such as this stone ball, demonstrate some of the stone technologies that the early humans used as tools and weapons.

• Paleolithic Cave Paintings

  • Paleolithic cave paintings demonstrate early humans' capacity to give meaning to their surroundings and communicate with others.
  • The Paleolithic, or Old Stone Age, ranges from 30,000 BCE to 10,000 BCE and produced the first accomplishments in human creativity, preceding the invention of writing.
  • Lascaux (circa 15,000 BCE), in southwestern France, is an interconnected series of caves with one of the most impressive examples of artistic creations by Paleolithic humans.
  • Altamira's famous Upper Paleolithic cave paintings feature drawings and polychrome rock paintings of wild mammals and human hands.
  • Identify the types of images found in cave paintings in Europe dating from the Paleolithic era

• Paleolithic Art

• Paleolithic Sculpture

  • Paleolithic sculptures found in caves are some of the earliest examples of representational art.
  • The Paleolithic or Old Stone Age existed from approximately 30,000 BCE until 10,000 BCE, and produced the first accomplishments in human creativity.
  • Sculptural work from the Paleolithic consists mainly of figurines, beads, and some decorative utilitarian objects constructed with stone, bone, ivory, clay, and wood.
  • "Venus figurines" is an umbrella term for a number of prehistoric statuettes of women that have been found mostly in Europe, but also in Asia and Siberia, dating from the Upper Paleolithic.
  • While some archaeologists question whether this artifact does indeed represent a rendered face, it is typically regarded as an example of Paleolithic figurative artistic expression.

• Art in Western Europe

  • Western Europe was particularly bountiful for archaeological discoveries, such as the Venus figurines, from the Paleolithic.
  • The Paleolithic or Old Stone Age existed from approximately 30,000 BC until 10,000 BC and produced some of the first accomplishments in human creativity.
  • The Chauvet-Pont-d'Arc Cave (circa 30,000 BC) in the Ardèche department of southern France contains some of the earliest known paintings form the Upper Paleolithic.
  • As elsewhere, many Venus figurines have been discovered throughout western Europe that date from the Paleolithic period.
  • Numerous engravings in bone and ivory from the Upper Paleolithic have been discovered in western Europe.

• Mesolithic Art

  • The Mesolithic Period, or Middle Stone Age, is an archaeological term used to describe specific groups of cultures defined as falling between the Paleolithic and the Neolithic Periods.
  • The Paleolithic was an age of purely hunting and gathering, but toward the Mesolithic period the development of agriculture contributed to the rise of permanent settlements.
  • The Paleolithic had utilized more primitive stone treatments, and the Neolithic mainly abandoned the modes in favor of polished, rather than chipped, stone tools.
  • It is difficult to find a unique type of artistic production during the Mesolithic Period, and it is believed that people most likely continued the art forms developed during the Upper Paleolithic (the latest period of the Paleolithic).
  • Compare and contrast the Mesolithic period with the Paleolithic and Neolithic periods.

• How to Compare Economies Throughout History

  • Stone Age: Including the Paleolithic, Mesolithic, and Neolithic time frames (up to 3500 B.C.), economics was virtually basic trade between small, local groups.
  • This era is marked by the Industrial Revolution, and the exponential productivity growth inherently found in technological advancement and standardized education systems.
  • With these four eras in mind, it is easy to empathize with economists attempting to unveil relative economic strength in the context of capitalist evolution.