1. Chapter 1
Before History

2. Forming the Complex Society
Basic development:
Hunting and Foraging
Agriculture
Complex Society
Key issue: surplus capital
Major development of first complex societies 3500 BCE – 500 BCE

3. Prehistory What is “history”? Documentation
Written records
Archaeological discovery
Requisite human presence (or “natural” history)

4. Development of Hominids
Animals adapt themselves to environment
Hominids adapt environment to themselves
Use of tools
Language
Complex cooperative social structures
Skeleton of Lucy, chronology/contentpage1.shtml

5. Australopithecus “the southern ape” – despite name a hominid
Discovery of skeleton AL-288-1, north of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Nicknamed “Lucy”
40% of SWF, 3’5”, 55lb., bipedal, Brain 500 cc (modern human: 1400 cc), limited speech but opposable digit
Estimated date of death: 3.5 million years ago
Reconstruction of Lucy: chronology/contentpage1.shtml

6. Later Hominids Homo Erectus, “upright man”
Larger brain capacity (1000 cc), improved tool use, control of fire
Homo Sapiens, “consciously thinking human”
Largest brain, esp. frontal regions
most sophisticated tools and social organization
Migrations of Homo Erectus and Homo Sapiens

7. Global spread of hominids and Homo sapiens

8. The Natural Environment
By 13,000 BCE Homo sapiens in every inhabitable part of the world
Archaeological finds:
Sophisticated tools
Choppers, scrapers, axes, knives, bows, arrows
Cave and hut like dwellings
Use of fire, animal skins
Hunted several mammal species to extinction
Climactic change may have accelerated process

9. Paleolithic Era (“Old Stone Age”)
Evidence:
Archaeological finds
Extrapolation from modern hunter-gatherer societies
Nomadic existence precludes advanced civilization
Groups of 30-50
Division of labor along gender lines

10. Relative Social Equality
Nomadic culture precludes accumulation of land-based wealth
More likely determinants of status: age, hunting skill, fertility, personality
Possible gender equality related to food production
Men: protein from hunting
Women: plant gathering

11. Big Game Hunting
Evidence of intelligent coordination of hunting expeditions
Development of weaponry
Animal-skin disguises
Stampeding tactics
Lighting of fires, etc. to drive game into kill zones
Requires planning, communication

12. Paleolithic Settlements
Natufian society
Modern Israel and Jordan
Wild wheat, herding
Jomon society
Japan
Wild buckwheat, fishing
Chinook society
Pacific Northwest
Berries, acorns, salmon runs
Groups of 1000 or more
Natufian burial w/dog dogs/facts.html

13. Neandertal Peoples Neander valley, western Germany
Flourished in Europe & SW Asia, 200,000 – 35,000 years ago
Also found in Africa, east Asia
Evidence of spirituality: ritual burial
Inhabited some of the same areas as Homo sapiens

14. Creativity of Homo sapiens
Constructed flexible languages for communication of complex ideas
Increased variety of tools – stone blades, spear throwers, sewing needles, barbed harpoons
Fabricated ornamental beads, necklaces and bracelets
The bow and arrow – a dramatic improvement in humans power over nature
“Venus” figurines
Cave paintings

15. Neolithic Era (“New Stone Age”)
Distinction in tool production
Chipped vs. polished
Men: herding animals rather than hunting
Women: nurtured vegetation rather than foraging
Spread of Agriculture
Slash-and-and burn techniques
Exhaustion of soil promotes migration
Transport of crops from one region to another
sanat.bilkent.edu.tr/ imot/neolithic/RMO52-27.html

16. Origins and early spread of agriculture

17. Agriculture and Population Growth

18. Early Agricultural Society
Emergence of villages and towns
Discoveries at Çatal Hüyük – a prominent village located in Turkey, occupied BCE
Pots, baskets, textiles, leather, stone, metal tools, wood carvings, carpets, beads, and jewelry
Development of crafts –pottery, metallurgy, and textile production

19. Social Distinctions
Accumulation of landed wealth initiates development of social classes
Individuals could trade surplus food for valuable items
Archaeological evidence in variety of household decorations, goods buried with deceased members of society at Çatal Hüyük

20. Neolithic Culture
Farmers closely observed the natural world – an early kind of applied science
Elements of natural environment essential for functioning
Archaeological evidence of religious worship: thousands of clay figurines, drawings on pots, tool decorations, other ritual objects
Fertility: Venus figurines

21. Beginnings of Urbanization
Jericho: concentration of wealth, building a wall
Craft specialization
Social stratification
Governance
Cultural workers
Development of the city – a gradual process
Photo of jericho walls may132003jericho.htm