Unit 1 The First Civilizations and

Empires, Prehistory-A.D. 500 The First HumansChapter 1, Section 1

Early Humans

Section 1-1 Early Humans, pp. 19-25  

Objectives:  

1. By 10,000 B.C., Homo sapiens had spread throughout the world.  

2. Paleolithic peoples used technology.  

Louis B. and Mary Nicol Leakey

Louis S.B. LeakeyAnthropologist

1903 - 1972

Mary Nicol Leakey

Anthropologist

1913 - 1996

The Olduvai Gorge in northern Tanzania has a geology that fossil-hunters love. A river cuts through several layers of strata with four distinct beds. Bed I, the oldest, is about 2 million years old.

From the late 1930s, Louis and Mary Leakey found stone tools in Olduvai, and, elsewhere, found several extinct vertebrates, including the 25-million-year-old Pronconsul primate, one of the first and few fossil ape skulls to be found.

Radiocarbon DatingProfessor William F. Libby worked with a team of scientists to develop radiocarbon methodAt University of Chicago in immediate post-WWII years.Libby received Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1960.Today there are 130 radiocarbon dating laboratories around the world.(14C method) One carbon 14 atom exists in nature for every 1,000,000,000,000 C12 atoms in living material.Radiocarbon method is based on the rate of decay of the radioactive or unstable isotope 14 (14C).14N + n =>14C + p where n is a neutron and p is a proton.Initially sampled articles from prehistoric Egypt.

William F. Libby

Thermoluminescence DatingThermoluminescence (TL) dating is the determination by means of measuring the accumulated radiation dose of the time elapsed since material containing crystalline minerals was either heated (lava, ceramics) or exposed to sunlight (sediments). As the material is heated during measurements, a weak light signal, the thermoluminescence, proportional to the radiation dose is produced.Depending on the depth of the traps (the energy required to free an electron from them) the storage time of trapped electrons will vary -- some traps are sufficiently deep to store charge for hundreds of thousands of years.

In thermoluminescence dating, these long-term traps are used to determine the age of materials: When irradiated crystalline material is again heated or exposed to strong light, the trapped electrons are given sufficient energy to escape.The amount of light produced is proportional to the number of trapped electrons that have been freed which is in turn proportional to the radiation dose accumulated. Thermoluminescence dating is used for material where radiocarbon dating is not available, like sediments. Its use is now common in the authentication of old ceramic wares, for which it gives the approximate date of the last firing.

Donald C. JohansonDonald Johanson and Tim White suggested this evolutionary scheme, which shows that about 3 million years ago, humans split from a common ancestor.In Hadar, Ethiopia, Johanson discovered a creature, now known as “Lucy”.Discovered November 30, 1974.Consisted of skull fragments, a lower, ribs, an arm bone, a portion of a pelvis, a thighbone, and fragments of shinbones.Johanson and White decided to bump Richard Leakey’s prized Australopithecus africanus off the main hominid tree and replace it with a. afarensis.

“Lucy”“Lucy” was named Australopithecus afarensis – the southern ape from the Afar depression of northeastern Ethiopia. One irony of her discovery had to do with the size of her skull.Evolutionists had assumed these ape-like species had evolved larger brains.“Lucy’s” brain case was not enlarged. It was comparable in size to the common chimpanzee. “Lucy’s” hominid status began to be questioned.“Lucy’s” pelvis was not structured correctly for the birth process.Actually, it’s more likely that “she” was a “he”.

Hominid GroupsI. Homo Habilis – “person with ability”

a. Lived in Africa, 1.5 million years ago (Paleolithic)b. Larger brains indicate physical and mental advances c. Oldest hominids known to manufacture tools

II. Homo Erectus – “person who walks upright” a. Appeared in Africa from 1.8 million to 30,000 years ago b. Chores of men and women changed over time c. Learned to make fire for warmth, cooking, protection d. Made clothingIII. Homo Sapiens – “person who thinks” a. Two groups developed from this group – Neanderthals and Homo Sapiens Sapiens, who looked most like us b. Neanderthals died out because of conflict between Homo Sapiens and Homo Sapiens Sapiens.

Cro-Magnons During construction for a

railroad in 1868, a rock shelter in a limestone cliff was uncovered.

The geologist Louis Lartet discovered the first five skeletons in March 1868 in the Cro-Magnon rock shelter at Les Eyzies, Dordogne, France. The rock shelter contained a large cavity which protected the fossils.

Cro-Magnon 1 preserved the skeleton of an adult male. The individual was probably middle-aged (less than 50 years old) at his death on the basis of the pattern of closure of cranial sutures. The bones in his face are noticeably pitted (see top photograph) from a fungal infection.

The skull of Cro-Magnon 1 does, however, show the traits that are unique to modern humans, including the high rounded cranial vault with a near vertical forehead. The orbits are no longer topped by a large browridge.

Neanderthal

Neanderthals were shedding their sturdy physique and evolving in the direction of modern humans just before they disappeared from the fossil record. Newly identified remains from Vindija in Croatia, which date to between 42,000 and 28,000 years ago, are more delicate than "classic" Neanderthals. Excavations also reveal the Vindija Neanderthals were developing advanced ways of making stone tools that mirror innovations elsewhere by modern humans (Homo sapiens). Neanderthals began to evolve in Europe around 230,000 years ago and dominated the continent until around 35,000 years ago when people with a more modern anatomy entered the continent.

Neanderthals (cont’d)

They were proficient hunters and well-adapted to an Ice Age climate. But their distinctive anatomy has led researchers to classify them as a separate species from us.Scientists suggest that Neanderthals and modern humans in Africa were evolving in the same direction in response to common environmental pressures.They were evolving in the same way because they were part of a larger human species. Neanderthals just didn't change as rapidly as some of the other peopleThese pressures may have been rooted in sharp changes in the global climate. The evolution of a modern, slight, physique by humans in Africa is thought to coincide with an emphasis on cultural and technological ways of dealing with everyday tasks earlier people - including the Neanderthals - solved with brute force.

The Hunter-Gatherers of the Old Stone Age (pages 22-25)

A basic distinguishing feature of human beings is making and using tools. Early tools were made of stone. Therefore, the term Paleolithic Age ("old stone") designates the earliest period of human history. The Paleolithic Age is from 2,500,000 to 10,000 B.C.

Paleolithic Way of LifeMen ruled the public sphere, while women, at least in principle were restricted to the private sphere -- in other words the home and family. It is obvious that when human beings were all hunter- gatherers, there was a division of labor that was largely based on gender. Women bore the children, and at least in young adulthood had to spend most of their time caring for those children. Caring for children must have been the major work of most women throughout their lives.However, raising children was not the women's only work, even in the Old Stone Age.

Everyone in a hunter-gatherer tribe had to work at collecting food, one way or another. With their responsibility for children, women concentrated on gathering foods close to the tribe's current home base. This led women eventually to invent agriculture, which is widely accepted today. Men's special work was clearly hunting.So in the early days of humanity, there was a fairly clear division of work, one that only made sense. The women of the tribe could not be risked, as a routine thing, on "men's work."

Discovery of FireFire is a discovery rather than an invention. Man had been searching since prehistoric times for a way of making fire easily and quickly, but a really satisfactory answer was found only when tinder-boxes and matches appeared on the scene.Prehistoric men knew about fire. They must have discovered it by chance, perhaps when lightening caused a fire or when the sun, shining on dry leaves, caused them to ignite.To our ancestors, the discovery of fire was as important as the discovery of electricity or atomic energy has been to us.

Discovery of Fire (cont’d)

It was so important that to the primitive mind of early man it seemed holy, a gift from the gods, and became the subject of many myths.One of the ways in which prehistoric men made fire was by rubbing two pieces of wood together. It could also be done by rubbing two flint stones together.Once man had discovered fire, he could warm himself in front of the flames and cook the flesh of animals (previously he had eaten meat raw). Fire brought light into the dark caves.

Ice AgeWhat is an ice age?An ice age is a relatively cool period in Earth’s history, when vast ice sheets covered much of Earth’s land surface. There have been at least five major ice ages during the last billion years. The most recent ice age began 2.5 million years ago. How do we know that ice ages occurred?The giant ice sheets that form during ice ages leave behind geological evidence in the surrounding landscape. Evidence for ice ages can also be found by studying natural recorders of climate change, such as fossil pollen, ancient coral reefs, ocean sediments and ice cores.

At the peak of the last glacial cycle, giant ice sheets a mile thick covered half of North America.

Ice Age (cont’d)

W hat causes the long-term changes leading to an ice age?Factors that are thought to play important roles in long-term changes in Earth's climate over millions or tens of millions of years are: 1. Changes in the positions of the continents

2. Changes in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration

3. Changes in volcanic activity

4. Influence of the biosphere

5. Variations in the energy output of sun

What causes the glacial cycles within an ice age?During an ice age, the shorter-term cycles of advancing and retreating glaciers are thought to be driven by regular, predictable variations in the Earth's orbit and orientation relative to the Sun.

Ice sheets expand during an ice age. This image is of the

Antarctic ice sheet.

Discussion Question

Why did it take Homo sapiens sapiens tens of thousands of years to spread over the world?

Groups of these people moved beyond their old hunting grounds at a rate of probably only two to three miles per generation.

Cave paintingsThe western edges of the Massif Central and the northern slopes of the Pyrenees are noted for an exceptional concentration of Paleolithic caves. In fact, there are no fewer than one hundred and thirty sanctuaries, the most renowned of which is Lascaux.

The excellent state of conservation of our prehistoric heritage is due to the numerous rock-shelters and natural caves in limestone, which dot the landscape.

The work carried out at Lascaux shortly after the Second World War made access to the cave easier.

At that time, the entrance was considerably enlarged and the floors lowered to enable the constant flow of tourists (almost 1,200 people per day) to circulate more easily. Lascaux, France

But, in 1955 the first indications of deterioration of the paintings appeared. A thorough study found that the cause was an excess of carbon dioxide in the air

brought about by the visitors' breath.

Lascaux Cave Paintings

Altamira, Spain, Cave Paintings

One of the bisons on the ceiling of Altamira in Spain, repre-senting the final stage of polychrome art in which four shades of color are used.

Bison at Altamira

The owner of the estate was a Spanish Nobleman and amateur archeologist, Don Marcelino Sanz de Sautuola (1831 - 88). The paintings were not discovered until November 1879 when the Don's daughter Maria, aged 5 to 9 years old, looked up from where the Don was digging for tools, and saw a herd of red animals spread across the ceiling. 'Mira, Papa, bueyes!' (Look, Papa, oxen!) she exclaimed.

Don Marcelino

Sanz de Sautuola

DiscussionLook at map on page 22. Why did Homo sapiens sapiens migrate from place to place?On page 22 map – into which area did Homo sapiens sapiens arrive most recently?

WORK IN SMALL GROUPS1. List foods your family consumes each week.2. Identify original sources of the food items (supermarket is not one).3. Prepare a similar list of foods you would eat if you had to gather, grow, or hunt it yourself.4. Identify factors such as climate, geography, and tool-making that would affect your ability to gather food.

Section 1-2 The Neolithic Revolution and the Rise of Civilization, pp. 27-31

Objective:  

1. Systematic agriculture brought about major economic, political, and social changes for early humans.  

Did You Know? Early civilizations' food surpluses were made possible by a variety of agricultural innovations. Among these was the crossbreeding of crops. In the Indus Valley, for example, crossing local goats face grass with Western Asiatic enmer wheat produced bread-wheat.

Section 2 The Neolithic Revolution (pages 27-30)

Human survival depends on the systematic growing and storing of food, an accomplishment of the people of the Neolithic Age.

After the end of the last Ice Age (8000 B.C.), the Neolithic Revolution began. The word neolithic is Greek for "new stone." The revolution was a change from hunting and gathering to systematic agriculture.

Systematic agriculture means planting crops and domesticating (taming) animals for food, clothing, and work. Some historians believe that this agricultural revolution was the single most important event in human history.

The ability to acquire food regularly gave humans greater control over their environment and made it possible to give up nomadic ways of life for settling into communities, a step vital for the development of civilization.

Systematic agriculture developed all over the world between 8000 and 5000 B.C. Mesoamericans (inhabitants of present-day Mexico and Central America), for example, grew beans, squash, and maize (corn). Systematic agriculture gave rise to permanent settlements, which historians call Neolithic farming villages. One was Jericho, in Palestine. The largest was Çatal Hüyük, in present-day Turkey.

Archaeologists found 12 products that were grown in Çatal Hüyük and evidence of widespread domestication of animals. Because of increased food production and storage, people had more food than they needed. These surpluses allowed some people to do work other than farming. Artisans made such things as jewelry and weapons. These items fostered trade.

Çatal Hüyük also had shrines to and statues of gods and goddesses. These show that religion was gaining importance during the Neolithic period.

The Neolithic period brought many important changes: more complex communities were developed, trade caused people to specialize and a division of labor developed, basic crops were first cultivated, and cloth was first woven.

Men became more active in farming and herding, which took them away from the home. Women did more domestic tasks like weaving. As men took on more responsibility for obtaining food and protecting the settlements, they played a more dominant role.

Between 4000 and 3000 B.C., people learned to use metals. First they used copper. Then people mixed copper and tin to make bronze, a more durable metal. Historians call the period when bronze was in widespread use (3000 to 1200 B.C.) the Bronze Age.

Discussion Question

In what ways did the development of agriculture make life better or worse for Neolithic people?

(Answers will vary. Students should show an understanding of the changes agriculture caused in Neolithic life.)

The Emergence of Civilization (pages 30-31)

Culture is a people's way of life. A civilization is a complex culture. Historians have identified six of the most important characteristics of civilization: cities, government, religion, social structures, writing, and art. The first civilizations and cities developed in river valleys.

Generally, the first governments were led by monarchs (kings or queens) who organized armies to protect their subjects and made laws to regulate their lives. Religions explained the workings of nature and the existence of things. A class of priests developed to perform rituals for pleasing the deities. Many rulers claimed their power came from the divine. Some rulers even claimed to be divine themselves.

Social structures developed based on economic status. Rulers, priests, officials, and warriors were the upper classes. Below them was a class of free farmers, traders, artisans, and craftspeople. Below them were slaves and servants.

Writing was used to keep records and for creative expression through literature. Arts such as painting and sculpture were developed to portray natural forces or gods and goddesses on temples and shrines.

Discussion Question

Why do you think so many civilizations arose in river valleys?

(Answers will vary. Students should demonstrate an understanding of the needs of a civilization and the resources that a river environment provides.)

End of Chapter One