1. Beginnings of Civilization

2. Prehistory – period of time before the development of writing.
History – the record of events since people first developed writing, about 5,000 years ago.

3. Before writing, people were unable to leave
permanent records
descriptions of other people or events
written opinions, ideas, facts or stories
After writing, people were able to leave

4. A historian is a person who researches, studies, and writes about the past, and is regarded as an authority on it.

5. Historians use sources to study the past
Primary sources – original documents and objects which were created at the time under study
Secondary sources – address or analyze events, people, works, or topics after the fact by someone without first-hand experience

7. Historians must treat evidence without bias (prejudice for or against someone or something)
The historian must weigh the truthfulness of all accounts
The historian must take the motives of historical actors into consideration

8. Examining Prehistory
How can we learn anything about what happened before people learned to keep written records?

9. Anthropologists, such as archaeologists, paleontologists and other scientists work learn more about the past.
Archeologists study surviving material remains of past human activities.
Places where these materials are found are called archeological sites

10. Locating archeological sites
Accident
Remote Sensing
Survey

11. Accident
Often archaeologists hear about a site from people who came across it accidentally
Farmers
Hikers
Construction crews
Pilots

12. Remote Sensing
Archaeologists can locate sites using remote sensing, such as ground-penetrating radar
Remote sensing – tools and techniques that allow archaeologists (and others) to probe a site without physically disturbing it
Remote sensing is non-invasive, saves time, and can cover a lot more surface area than traditional survey methods

13. Survey
Another common way for archaeologists to find sites is through survey.
Survey - Archaeologists actively search areas for sites in areas that were likely to support human populations
Places that old records and maps indicated where past civilization once existed

14. Places that would likely be inhabited in ancient times, such as along rivers

15. Uncovering ancient settlements
Excavation
Archaeologists excavate ancient settlements to learn about the past

16. Excavate – remove earth carefully and systematically from (an area) in order to find buried remains.
An excavation site is often called a “dig”

17. Archaeologists use specialized techniques
Archaeologists use a great variety of tools for excavation, depending on the nature of the area in which they are working.
The most common digging tools are picks, shovels and trowels.

18. Archaeologists must be careful, because many objects have been buried for hundreds of years and may be quite fragile

19. Excavation involves the recovery of several types of data from a site.

20. Fossils
Fossils – preserved remains of animals and plants

21. Animal bones and plant remains left over from meals can tell us what people ate
Human bones found in ancient cemeteries give us about health, including diseases and other concerns
“Lucy”
“radiocarbon dating”

22. Ecofacts
Ecofacts – evidence for the local environment and resources being used such as snail shells, seeds, and butchered bones

23. Artifacts
Artifacts – man made objects
Archeological remains often include tools for hunting, farming, cooking, craft making, building houses or warfare

24. Recording the findings
Archaeologists carefully record the location of each find, because the goal is to notice the relationships and connections between the objects
Artifacts uncovered during an excavation are carefully collected, cleaned, labeled, recorded, and photographed, and then taken to a lab where they are analyze

25. Many known sites have been deliberately left unexcavated
preserve them for future generations
modern communities surround the sites

26. Fossils – preserved remains of plants and animals
“Lucy”
“radiocarbon dating”
Artifacts – human made objects
“Otzi the Iceman”

28. Ötzi the Iceman
In 1991, two German hikers made an accidental discovery that gave archaeologists a firsthand look at the technology of early toolmakers
Near the border of Austria and Italy, the hikers spotted the mummified body of a prehistoric traveler, preserved in ice for some 5,000 years

30. Archaeologists discovered several artifacts near the body of Otzi the Iceman
Imagine that you part of a team of archaeologists and see how many of these artifacts you can correctly identify

31. A

32. B

33. C

34. D

35. E

36. F

37. G

38. H

39. I

40. J

41. K

42. L

43. Scientists examine excavated artifacts to learn about early people’s cultural behavior

44. Use page 6 in your textbook to complete the chart
Common Practices
Shared Understandings
Social Organizations

45. Use page 6 in your textbook to complete the chart
Common Practices
Shared Understandings
Social Organizations
what people eat
language
family
clothing and adornment
symbols
class and caste structure
sports
religious beliefs
relationships between individual and community
tools and technology
values
government
social customs
the arts
economic system
work
political beliefs
view of authority

46. Scientists believe that several of most impressive achievements in human history occurred during the Stone Age, a prehistoric period spanning nearly 2.5 million years

47. The Stone Age is typically divided into two eras…
Old Stone Age known as the Paleolithic Age
New Stone Age known as the Neolithic Age

48. Paleolithic Age lasted from about 2
Paleolithic Age lasted from about 2.5 million years ago until approximately 10,000 B.C.
Neolithic Age lasted from about 10,000 B.C. until approximately 3000 B.C.

49. Paleolithic people adapted to their environment and invented many tools to help them survive
In the Neolithic Age, people started farming, building communities, producing goods, and trading

50. Paleolithic people were mostly nomads, people who moved from place to place chasing animals and food

51. Paleolithic people lived in small hunting and gathering groups
In general, men spent most of their time hunting and fishing
In general, women gathered food, such as fruit, nuts and grains

52. Much of the Paleolithic Age occurred during the period known as the Ice Age, a time where the earth cooled and thick sheets of ice covered much of the globe

53. Several advancements were made during the Paleolithic Age…
basic tools and weapons were created
clothes were invented, fire was mastered and shelter used to deal with the ice age
spoken language and religion began to develop

54. New Stone Age
Neolithic Age began with the Agricultural Revolution, a period when people began to grow crops
Farming allowed Neolithic people to settle in permanent villages, rather than chase after food

55. Several advancements were made during the Neolithic Age…
crops were grown and animals were domesticated
human population boomed
villages and small towns emerged
people learned to make pottery
basic forms of government developed

56. Use your notes to complete the chart
Advancements of the Paleolithic Age
Advancements of the Neolithic Age

57. Advancements of the Paleolithic Age Advancements of the Neolithic Age
People were hunters and gatherer
People grew crops
Basic tools were created
Animals were domesticated
Weapons were developed
Human population boomed
Clothes were invented to deal with the ice age
Villages and small towns emerged
Fire was mastered to deal with the ice age
People learned to make pottery
Shelter was used to deal with the ice age
Basic forms of government developed
Spoken language was developed
Religion began to develop

58. Although we only have limited information about the lives of early humans, scientists continue to search for new discoveries
These discoveries continue to change our views of the lives of early humans

59. Paleolithic or Neolithic?
Clothes were invented
Religion began to develop
People learned
to grow crops
Animals were domesticated
Ice covered
much of the globe
People chased animals
Pottery was invented
Population boom!
Spoken language
began to develop
Fire was mastered
Villages and small
towns emerged
Basic government developed
Basic tools and weapons
were created
Shelter was developed

60. Paleolithic or Neolithic?
Clothes were invented
Religion began to develop
People learned
to grow crops
Animals were domesticated
People chased animals
Ice covered
much of the globe
Pottery was invented
Population boom!
Fire was mastered
Spoken language
began to develop
Basic government developed
Villages and small
towns emerged
Basic tools and weapons
were created
Shelter was developed

61. Paleolithic or Neolithic?
Basic government developed
Religion began to develop
Animals were domesticated
Population boom!
Clothes were invented
Villages and small
towns emerged
People learned
to grow crops
Fire was mastered
People chased animals
Shelter was developed
Basic tools and weapons
were created
Pottery was invented
Ice covered
much of the globe
Spoken language
began to develop

62. Paleolithic people adapted to their environment and invented many tools to help them survive
In the Neolithic Age, people started farming, building communities, producing goods, and trading