Introduction
The history of the primitive era studies human society from the appearance of man (about 2 million years ago) to the formation of the first class societies and states (IV millennium BC). All the peoples of our planet, without exception, have gone through this stage of historical development. In its depths the sources of all subsequent spiritual and material achievements of mankind were formed: thinking and consciousness, tool (or labor) activity, speech and languages, agriculture and cattle breeding, social division of labor, marriage and family, art and religious beliefs, morality and etiquette, healing and hygiene skills.
In terms of its duration, the primitive era covers more than 99% of the entire history of mankind. All subsequent periods of history (the ancient world, the Middle Ages, modern times and modern history) occupy no more than 1% of the historical path of mankind.
The purpose of the essay is to characterize the place of primitive society in human history.
- - highlight options for the periodization of the primitive era of mankind, the main stages of its development;
- - show changes in a person’s physical type;
- - characterize the main features of the community and its evolution;
- - list the main inventions and discoveries of the era;
- - identify the main signs of the decomposition of the primitive system.
Primitive era of humanity
Variants of periodization of the primitive era
In the history of the primitive era there are three eras:
- 1) the formation of a primitive society: the era of the ancestral community, or the primitive human herd (over 2 million years ago - about 40 thousand years ago);
- 2) maturity of primitive society: the era of the primitive community (about 40 thousand years ago - X thousand BC);
- 3) the decomposition of primitive society: the era of class formation (from the 15th century BC).
The given chronological boundaries are very arbitrary, because In different regions of the globe, humanity has developed extremely unevenly.
The first stage in the development of mankind - the primitive communal system - occupies a huge period of time from the moment of the separation of man from the animal kingdom until the formation of class societies in various regions of the planet. Its periodization is based on differences in the material and technique of making tools (archaeological periodization).
In accordance with it, three periods are distinguished in the ancient era:
- - Stone Age (from the emergence of man to the 3rd millennium BC),
- - Bronze Age (from the end of the 4th to the beginning of the 1st millennium BC),
- - Iron Age (from the 1st millennium BC).
In turn, the Stone Age is divided into the Old Stone Age (Paleolithic), the Middle Stone Age (Mesolithic), the New Stone Age (Neolithic) and the copper-stone age transitional to bronze (Chalcolithic).
The first stage is defined as the prehistory of the economy and material culture: from the emergence of humanity to approximately 1 million years ago. This is a time when people's adaptation to the environment was not much different from the livelihood of animals.
The second stage is a primitive appropriating economy approximately I million years ago - XI thousand BC, i.e. covers a significant part of the Stone Age - Early and Middle Paleolithic.
The third stage is a developed appropriating economy. It is difficult to determine its chronological framework, since in a number of places this period ended in the 20th millennium BC. (subtropics of Europe and Africa), in others it continues to the present day. Covers the Late Paleolithic, Mesolithic, and in some areas the entire Neolithic.
The fourth stage is the emergence of a producing economy. In the most economically developed areas of the earth - IX-VIII thousand BC. (late Mesolithic - early Neolithic).
The fifth stage is the era of the producing economy. For some areas of dry and humid subtropics - VIII-V millennium BC.
In addition to the production of tools, the material culture of ancient humanity was closely connected with the creation of dwellings.
The most interesting archaeological finds of ancient dwellings date back to the Early Paleolithic. In the cave of Le Lazare (France), the remains of a shelter were discovered, the reconstruction of which suggests the presence of supports, a roof made of skins, internal partitions and two fireplaces in a large room.
On the territory of the USSR, the remains of above-ground dwellings dating back to the Early Paleolithic were discovered near the village of Molodovo on the Dniester. They were an oval arrangement of specially selected large mammoth bones. Traces of 15 fires located in different parts of the dwelling were also found here.
The primitive era of humanity is characterized by a low level of development of productive forces, their slow improvement, collective appropriation of natural resources and production results (primarily exploited territory), equal distribution, socio-economic equality, absence of private property, exploitation of man by man, classes, states.
An analysis of the development of primitive human society shows that the process of separation of our distant ancestors from the world of apes was very slow.
The general scheme of human evolution is as follows:
Australopithecus Homo;
Homo erectus (early hominids: Pithecanthropus and Sinanthropus):
a person of modern physical appearance (late hominids: Neanderthals and Upper Paleolithic people).
In fact, the appearance of the first australopithecus marked the emergence of material culture directly related to the production of tools. It was the tools that became the means for archaeologists to determine the main stages of the development of ancient humanity.
The rich and generous nature of the period did not help to accelerate this process; Only with the advent of the harsh conditions of the Ice Age, with the intensification of the labor activity of primitive man in his difficult struggle for existence, new skills rapidly appeared, tools were improved, and new social forms were developed. Mastery of fire, collective hunting for large animals, adaptation to the conditions of a melted glacier, the invention of the bow, the transition from appropriating to a producing economy (cattle breeding and agriculture), the discovery of metal (copper, bronze, iron) and the creation of a complex tribal organization of society - these are the most important stages , which mark the path of humanity in the conditions of the primitive communal system.
A colossal glacier (about 100 thousand years ago), which covered half of the planet and created a harsh climate that affected the flora and fauna, inevitably divides the history of primitive mankind into three different periods: pre-glacial with a warm subtropical climate, glacial and post-glacial. Each of these periods corresponds to a certain physical type of person: in the pre-glacial period - archaeoanthropes (Pithecanthropus, Sinanthropus, etc.), in the glacial period - paleoanthropes (Neanderthal man), at the end of the Ice Age, in the late Paleolithic - neoanthropes, modern people.
Topic 1.1. The era of primitiveness.
Primitive society - the longest stage of human development, characterized by an extremely low level of development of the productive forces and communal ownership of the means of production.
Anthropogenesis. Types of man.
Aanthropogenesis – Human Origins.
Labor theory ( F. Engels,XIXc.): the labor activity of human ancestors led to a change in their appearance, and the need for communication contributed to the emergence of language and thinking. This theory is based on Charles Darwin's doctrine of natural selection.
Biologists classify humans as members of the order of higher mammals - primates. Orangutans (genus of tree monkeys) –closest to humans in DNA homology.
Genetics believes that the anatomical changes that led to the emergence of man are associated with mutations, and that anthropogenesis occurred in a zone of increased radioactivity (East Africa) during periods of geomagnetic inversion (change of the Earth's poles).
Scheme of anthropogenesis see Table 1 on topic 1.1., (Table 2 on topic 1.1.).
The Paleolithic is the longest period, so it is divided intoearly (lower) and Late (Upper) Paleolithic .
Mesolithic
ca. 13-12 thousand years – ca. 11-10 thousand years BC
Neolithic
about 11-10 thousand years – about 5-4 thousand years BC
Copper (Copper-Stone) Age – Chalcolithic
ca 5-4 thousand years BC
Bronze Age
ca 4-3 thousand years BC
Iron Age
ca 2-1 thousand years BC
Tribal community.
It is assumed that the first people lived in small groups in whichleader dominance system and their associates over the rest of the team.
According to another opinion, the majority of backward peoples are characterized by equality of members of the collective.
The basis of the social organization of the Cro-Magnons wastribal community (clan) - a group of blood relatives descending from a common ancestor. At the head of the clan wereelders . All the most important issues were resolved bypeople's assembly . ABOUTrelations between men and women were disordered -promiscuity . Gradually, a ban on members of the same family entering into relationships appears -exogamy. So with went to beddual-clan group marriage (members of one clan could only marry members of another clan). Clan communities united intotribes . With time marriage became monogamous (paired) .
Achievements of people during the Paleolithic and Mesolithic periods.
People of the Lower Paleolithic era used roughly processed stone tools. They mastered fire.
The Late Paleolithic is characterized by the presence of a wide variety of stone tools for different purposes. They made composite tools from wood and stone. The spear thrower was invented - the first mechanical device in human history.
It happened gender and age division of labor. Men were engaged in hunting, fishing, making tools, and women were engaged in gathering, cooking, maintaining fire, housing, and raising children.The children helped the women.
The transition from teenagers to adults took place during a ritualinitiation. After initiation, they became full members of the tribe and could marry.
During the Late Paleolithic period, the emergence of ethnic differences was recorded, and three main races of humanity began to emerge.
During the Mesolithic period, chipped chopping tools made of stone were used, as well as tools made of bone and horn.the sickle was invented.Bows and arrows were distributed. The basis of the economy was hunting, fishing and gathering. Domestication has begun(domestication) plants and some animals.
Primitive religion and art.
Observations andreflections led to the emergence among ancient people of the idea ofperfume And gods, T This is how religion was born. Spirits were embodied in specific objects: stones, trees, animals, ancestors of the clan. This kind of faith is calledanimism . Belief in the protection of a real or imaginary ancestor (human, animal or plant) –totemism .
Art became the realization of human creative potential: first, dances and songs arose, fine art arose in the form of rock paintings and sculpture.
Neolithic revolution.
The first people “appropriated” the products of nature -appropriating type of economy.
About 12 thousand years ago, the glacier quickly began to melt, which led to the death of many animals and plants. A way out of the environmental crisis was found in the artificial breeding of plants and raising animals, and this is how agriculture and animal husbandry were born -producing type of economy.
Transition to a producing economy –Neolithic revolution - began during the Mesolithic period and ended in the Neolithic.
People mastered the wheel, learned to produce wool and linen fabrics, invented ceramics, a potter's wheel, bricks, plows and plows, and built primitive canals and pools to irrigate fields.
Social division of labor. The birth of crafts and trade.
Differences in natural conditions have led to the emergencespecializations . Happenedfirst major social division of labor - separation of agriculture and cattle breeding into separate economic complexes.
Thenappearedartisans and it happenedsecond major social division of labor - separation of crafts from agriculture and cattle breeding.
Originatedtrade .
The beginning of the formation of nations.
In the territory of Western Asia, as well as in North Africa, there lived tribes that gave rise toSemitic-Hamitic languages. These languages were spoken by the Egyptians, Babylonians, and Assyrians. In some areas of Western Asia lived tribes that gave rise toIndo-European languages - they are spoken by a significant portion of the world's population.
About the time and place of appearanceIndo-Europeans There are several versions:
southern Russian ancestral home (Eastern Ukraine, Northern Caucasus, Volga region, Southern Cis-Urals),
Eastern Anatolian ancestral home (north of Western Asia).
Some Indo-European tribes, trying to seize the best lands, settled Europe, Central Asia, Iran, India, etc.
Evolution of social relations. Neighborhood community.
Among farmers, as tools improved, the individual family became an increasingly independent production unit and the clan community gave way toneighboring community .
Housing, tools, livestock becomeproperty of individual families . But the earth continued to remain incommunal property .
Among pastoralists, the clan community persisted for a longer period of time.
Over time, some families became more wealthy, equality within the community disappeared, and theft appeared.
At the origins of statehood.
The organization of power in primitive communities and tribes can be calledself-government . During the war, he was elected at the meetingleader . Elders formed the tribal community council. All relations were regulated by customs and traditions. Then the power of the leader began to extend to periods of peace and began to be inherited.
For war, tribes united into alliances led by a leader-military leader, around whom the best warriors rallied (vigilantes ). The leaders also acquired priestly functions.
Over time, voluntary gifts became mandatory taxes -taxes. During a successful raid on neighbors, in addition to booty, they also took prisoners who were forced to work - this is how theslaves .
Some tribes conquered others. The leaders of the conquering tribes became rulers, and their fellow tribesmen became assistants in managing the conquered. The structure created was in many ways reminiscentstate, one of the main features of which is the presencebodies for managing society, separated from society itself.
The birth of cities.
The villages of farmers turned into larger settlements, surrounded by walls made of stone or clay. Houses also began to be made of bricks. In the center stood a temple - the home of the gods. Such settlements resembled cities.
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Primitive society in tables and diagramsThe first stage in the development of mankind occupies a huge period of time in history: from the appearance of man (more than 2.5 million years ago) until the formation of class societies.
There are various periodizations of it:
| According to the method of making tools | According to the forms of human society | According to the physical type of a person | By farm type |
|
| 1.stone age A) ancient (Paleolithic) B) middle (Mesolithic) B) new (Neolithic) 2. Bronze Age 3. Iron Age | 1. primitive herd; 2. primitive tribal community 3. matriarchy 4. patriarchy 5. disintegration of family ties; neighborhood community | 1. archanthropes 2. paleoanthropes, Neanderthals | 1. appropriating economy 2. producing economy (V-II millennium BC) |
|
| ape-like | Humanoid |
|||
| Primitive skull structure, insufficient hand flexibility | Making fire, fried food, primitive funeral rites |
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| 3. neoanthropes (fossil modern man): complex tools, clothing, housing, successful hunting |
||||
Sources:
1) monuments of material culture;
2) ethnographic observations;
The oldest archaeological finds on the territory of our country have been discovered from the Crimea and the Caucasus to Yakutia and the Arctic.
The most famous monument of the Neolithic era is the agricultural culture of Tripoli. Traces were also found in Turkmenistan, Transcaucasia, the North Caucasus and the Black Sea region (in favorable southern regions).
Driving strength:
Changes in natural conditions, climate.
About 800 thousand years ago - the onset of the glacier.
Sharp cooling (Paleolithic, Mesolithic).
Neolithic - post-glacial time.
Construction is the first stage of human development, characterized by:
equality
public ownership of the joint venture,
collectivism and democracy,
primitiveness of tools,
paganism,
almost complete dependence on nature.
| Development of primitive society |
| Climate | Physical type of a person | Period | Economic activity | Organization of social life |
| Pre-Ice Age | Archanthropes
(2-2.5 million years ago) | Paleolithic | The main occupation is collecting, manufacturing and purposeful production of tools | Primitive herd. |
| glacial period 200 – 35 thousand years BC | Middle Paleolithic(400 – 35 thousand years ago) | Ch. activity - collective hunting. Use of fire, caves, clothing. | Primitive community. The emergence of division of labor. Hunting is for men, gathering is for women. Speech development. |
|
| Paleoanthropes (Neanderthals) | Primitive funeral rite | |||
| 40-35 thousand years BC | Neoanthropes(40-35t.) | Upper Paleolithic(35-10 thousand years BC) - Mesolithic | The equipment of hunters has improved. More varied weapons. Artificial dwellings. Women play the main role (keeping the hearth, cooking, making clothes). | Matriarchal clan community (more durable). Joint activities and accommodation. |
| Warming | End of the Mesolithic(10-8 thousand years BC) Neolithic(7-5 thousand years BC) | The appearance of the bow and arrow. Changing the nature of activity, transition to a producing economy. The emergence of agriculture and cattle breeding. Stone is sharpened, sawed, drilled, polished, ceramics and fabrics are made. | ||
| 1 thousand BC (Transcaucasia) | Chalcolithic(4-3 thousand BC) Copper-bronze(3-2 thousand BC) Iron use=> revolution | The use of copper and bronze, the separation of cattle breeding from agriculture, the improvement of crafts, the emergence of art, mythology and religion. A sharp increase in labor productivity. Increased specialization. The second major division of labor: separation of crafts from agriculture | The role of men is increasing sharply. Transition to a patriarchal clan community. Disintegration of ancestral ties: Transition to the neighborhood community. Wealth inequality. Selection of the nobility. |
The primitive era of mankind is the period that lasted before the invention of writing. In the 19th century it received a slightly different name - “prehistoric”. If you do not delve into the meaning of this term, then it unites the entire time period, starting from the origin of the Universe. But in a narrower perception, we are talking only about the past of the human species, which lasted until a certain period (it was mentioned above). If the media, scientists or other people use the word “prehistoric” in official sources, then the period in question must be indicated.
Although the characteristics of the primitive era have been developed by researchers bit by bit for several centuries in a row, discoveries of new facts relating to that time are still being made. Due to the lack of writing, people compare data from archaeological, biological, ethnographic, geographical and other sciences for this purpose.
Development of the primitive era
Throughout the development of mankind, various options for classifying prehistoric time have been constantly proposed. Historians Ferguson and Morgan divided it into several stages: savagery, barbarism and civilization. The primitive era of humanity, which includes the first two components, is divided into three more periods:
Stone Age
The primitive era received its periodization. We can highlight the main stages, among which was and At this time, all weapons and objects for everyday life were made, as you might guess, from stone. Sometimes people used wood and bones in their works. Towards the end of this period, clay dishes appeared. Thanks to the achievements of this century, the area of human settlement on the inhabited territories of the planet has changed greatly, and it was also as a result of it that human evolution began. We are talking about anthropogenesis, i.e. the process of the emergence of intelligent beings on the planet. The end of the Stone Age was marked by the domestication of wild animals and the beginning of the smelting of certain metals.
According to time periods, the primitive era to which this century belongs was divided into stages:
Copper Age
The eras of primitive society, having a chronological sequence, characterize the development and formation of life in different ways. In different territorial regions the period lasted for different times (or did not exist at all). The Eneolithic could have been combined with the Bronze Age, although scientists still distinguish it as a separate period. The approximate time period is 3-4 thousand years. It is logical to assume that this primitive era was usually characterized by the use of copper devices. However, the stone never went out of fashion. Acquaintance with new material happened rather slowly. When people found it, they thought it was a stone. The usual treatment at that time - hitting one piece against another - did not give the usual effect, but still the copper was deformable. When cold forging was introduced into everyday life, work with it went better.
Bronze Age
This primitive era became one of the main ones, according to some scientists. People learned to process certain materials (tin, copper), due to which they achieved the appearance of bronze. Thanks to this invention, a collapse began at the end of the century, which occurred quite synchronously. We are talking about the destruction of human associations - civilizations. This entailed a long development of the Iron Age in a certain area and a too long continuation of the Bronze Age. The latter in the eastern part of the planet lasted a record number of decades. It ended with the emergence of Greece and Rome. The century is divided into three periods: early, middle and late. During all these periods, the architecture of that time actively developed. It was she who influenced the formation of religion and the worldview of society.
Iron Age
Considering the eras of primitive history, we can come to the conclusion that it was the last one before the advent of intelligent writing. Simply put, this century was conditionally singled out as a separate one, since objects made of iron appeared and were widely used in all spheres of life.
Iron smelting was a fairly labor-intensive process for that century. After all, it was impossible to obtain real material. This is due to the fact that it corrodes easily and does not withstand many climate changes. In order to obtain it from ore, a much higher temperature was required than for bronze. And iron casting was mastered after too long a period of time.
The emergence of power
Of course, the emergence of power was not long in coming. There have always been leaders in society, even if we are talking about the primitive era. During this period, there were no institutions of power, and there was no political dominance either. Here, social norms were given more importance. They invested in customs, “laws of life,” traditions. Under the primitive system, all requirements were explained in sign language, and violations of them were punished by an outcast from society.
Variants of periodization of ancient history
The transition from an appropriating economy to a producing one
Decomposition of the primitive communal system
1.1. Variants of periodization of ancient history
The first stage in the development of mankind primitive communal system takes a huge period of time from the moment of the separation of man from the animal kingdom (about 35 million years ago) until the formation of class societies in various regions of the planet (approximately in the 4th millennium BC). Its periodization is based on differences in the material and technique of making tools (archaeological periodization). In accordance with it, three periods are distinguished in the ancient era:
stone Age(from the emergence of man to the 3rd millennium BC),
bronze age(from the end of the 4th to the beginning of the 1st millennium BC),
iron age(from 1 thousand BC).
In turn, the Stone Age is divided into Old Stone Age (Paleolithic), Middle Stone Age (Mesolithic), New Stone Age (Neolithic) and transitional to bronze Copper-Stone Age (Chalcolithic).
A number of scientists divide the history of primitive society into five stages, each of which is distinguished by the degree of development of tools, the materials from which they were made, the quality of housing, and the appropriate organization of housekeeping 1 .
First stage is defined as the prehistory of economy and material culture: from the emergence of humanity to approximately 1 million years ago. This is a time when people's adaptation to the environment was not much different from the livelihood of animals. Many scientists believe that the ancestral home of humans is East Africa. It is here that during excavations they find the bones of the first people who lived more than 2 million years ago.
Second phase– a primitive appropriating economy approximately I million years ago – XI thousand BC, i.e. covers a significant part of the Stone Age - Early and Middle Paleolithic.
Third stage– developed appropriating economy. It is difficult to determine its chronological framework, since in a number of places this period ended in the 20th millennium BC. (subtropics of Europe and Africa), in others (tropics) - continues to this day. Covers the Late Paleolithic, Mesolithic, and in some areas the entire Neolithic.
Fourth stage – the emergence of a productive economy. In the most economically developed areas of the earth - IX-VIII thousand BC. (late Mesolithic – early Neolithic).
Fifth stage- the era of the productive economy. For some areas of dry and humid subtropics - VIII-V millennium BC.
In addition to the production of tools, the material culture of ancient humanity was closely connected with the creation of dwellings.
The most interesting archaeological finds of ancient dwellings date back to the Early Paleolithic. The remains of 21 seasonal camps have been discovered on the territory of France. In one of them, an oval fence made of stones was discovered, which can be interpreted as the foundation of a light dwelling. Inside the dwelling there were hearths and places where tools were made. In the cave of Le Lazare (France), the remains of a shelter were discovered, the reconstruction of which suggests the presence of supports, a roof made of skins, internal partitions and two fireplaces in a large room. The beds are made from animal skins (fox, wolf, lynx) and seaweed. These finds date back to about 150 thousand years.
On the territory of the USSR, the remains of above-ground dwellings dating back to the Early Paleolithic were discovered near the village of Molodovo on the Dniester. They were an oval arrangement of specially selected large mammoth bones. Traces of 15 fires located in different parts of the dwelling were also found here.
The primitive era of humanity is characterized by a low level of development of productive forces, their slow improvement, collective appropriation of natural resources and production results (primarily exploited territory), equal distribution, socio-economic equality, absence of private property, exploitation of man by man, classes, states.
An analysis of the development of primitive human society shows that this development was extremely uneven. The process of separation of our distant ancestors from the world of great apes was very slow.
The general scheme of human evolution is as follows:
Australopithecus Homo;
homo erectus(early hominids: Pithecanthropus and Sinanthropus);
person of modern physical appearance(late hominids: Neanderthals and Upper Paleolithic people).
In fact, the appearance of the first australopithecus marked the emergence of material culture directly related to the production of tools. It was the latter that became a means for archaeologists to determine the main stages of the development of ancient humanity.
The rich and generous nature of the period did not help to accelerate this process; Only with the advent of the harsh conditions of the Ice Age, with the intensification of the labor activity of primitive man in his difficult struggle for existence, new skills rapidly appeared, tools were improved, and new social forms were developed. Mastery of fire, collective hunting of large animals, adaptation to the conditions of a melted glacier, invention of the bow, transition from appropriating to producing economy (cattle breeding and agriculture), discovery of metal (copper, bronze, iron) and the creation of a complex tribal organization of society - these are the most important stages , which mark the path of humanity in the conditions of the primitive communal system.
The pace of development of human culture gradually accelerated, especially with the transition to a productive economy. But another feature has emerged - the geographical unevenness of the development of society. Areas with an unfavorable, harsh geographical environment continued to develop slowly, while areas with a mild climate, ore reserves, etc., moved faster towards civilization.
A colossal glacier (about 100 thousand years ago), which covered half of the planet and created a harsh climate that affected the flora and fauna, inevitably divides the history of primitive mankind into three different periods: pre-glacial with a warm subtropical climate, glacial and post-glacial. Each of these periods corresponds to a certain physical type of person: in the pre-glacial period - archaanthropes(pithecanthropus, synanthropus, etc.), during the glacial period - paleoanthrols(Neanderthal man), at the end of the Ice Age, in the Late Paleolithic - neoanthropes, modern people.
Paleolithic . There are early, middle and late stages of the Paleolithic. IN early paleolithic, in turn, highlight the primary, Chelles 1 And Acheulean era.
The oldest cultural monuments were discovered in the caves of Le Lazare (dating back to about 150 thousand years ago), Lyalko, Nio, Fonde de Gaume (France), Altamira (Spain). A large number of objects of Chelles culture (tools) were found in Africa, especially in the Upper Nile Valley, in Ternifin (Algeria), etc. The most ancient remains of human culture in the USSR (Caucasus, Ukraine) belong to the border of the Chelles and Acheulean eras. By the Acheulean era, people settled more widely, penetrating into Central Asia and the Volga region.
On the eve of the great glaciation, people already knew how to hunt the largest animals: elephants, rhinoceroses, deer, bison. In the Acheulean era, a settled pattern of hunters appeared, living for a long time in one place. Complex hunting has long been a complement to simple gathering.
During this period, humanity was already sufficiently organized and equipped. Perhaps the most significant was the mastery of fire about 300-200 thousand years ago. It is not for nothing that many southern peoples (in those places where people settled at that time) preserved legends about a hero who stole the heavenly fire. The myth of Prometheus, who brought fire and lightning to people, reflects the greatest technical victory of our very distant ancestors.
Some researchers also attribute the Mousterian era to the Early Paleolithic, while others distinguish it as a special stage of the Middle Paleolithic. Mousterian Neanderthals lived both in caves and in dwellings specially made from mammoth bones - tents. At this time, man had already learned to make fire himself by friction, and not just maintain a fire lit by lightning. The basis of the economy was hunting for mammoths, bison, and deer. The hunters were armed with spears, flint points and clubs. The first artificial burials of the dead date back to this era, which indicates the emergence of very complex ideological ideas.
It is believed that the emergence of the clan organization of society can be attributed to this same time. Only the streamlining of gender relations and the emergence of exogamy 2 can explain the fact that the physical appearance of the Neanderthal began to improve and thousands of years later, by the end of the Ice Age, he turned into a neoanthrope, or Cro-Magnon - people of the modern type.
Upper (Late) Paleolithic known to us better than previous eras. Nature was still harsh, the ice age was still ongoing. But man was already armed enough to fight for existence. The economy became complex: it was based on hunting large animals, but the beginnings of fishing appeared, and the collection of edible fruits, grains, and roots was a serious help.
Human stone products were divided into two groups: weapons and tools (spearheads, knives, scrapers for dressing hides, flint tools for processing bone and wood). Various throwing weapons (darts, jagged harpoons, special spear throwers) have become widespread, making it possible to hit an animal at a distance.
According to archaeologists, the main unit of the social structure of the Upper Paleolithic was a small clan community of about a hundred people, twenty of whom were adult hunters who ran the household of the clan. Small round dwellings, the remains of which were discovered, may have been adapted for a paired family.
Finds of burials with beautiful weapons made of mammoth tusks and a large number of decorations indicate the emergence of a cult of leaders, clan or tribal elders.
In the Upper Paleolithic, man settled widely not only in Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia, but also in Siberia. According to scientists, America was settled from Siberia at the end of the Paleolithic.
The art of the Upper Paleolithic testifies to the high development of human intelligence of this era. In the caves of France and Spain, colorful images dating back to this time have been preserved. Such a cave was also discovered by Russian scientists in the Urals (Kalova Cave) with images of a mammoth, rhinoceros, and horse. Images made by Ice Age artists using paints on cave walls and carvings on bones provide insight into the animals they hunted. This was probably associated with various magical rituals, spells and dances of hunters in front of painted animals, which was supposed to ensure a successful hunt.
Elements of such magical actions have been preserved even in modern Christianity: a prayer for rain with the sprinkling of fields with water is an ancient magical act that dates back to primitive times.
Of particular note is the cult of the bear, which dates back to the Mousterian era and allows us to talk about the origin of totemism. At Paleolithic sites, bone figurines of women are often found near fireplaces or dwellings. The women are presented as very portly and mature. Obviously, the main idea of such figurines is fertility, vitality, continuation of the human race, personified in a woman - the mistress of the home and hearth.
The abundance of female images found in the Upper Paleolithic sites of Eurasia allowed scientists to conclude that the cult of the female ancestor was generated matriarchy. With very primitive relationships between the sexes, children knew only their mothers, but did not always know their fathers. Women guarded the fire in the hearths, homes, and children; women of the older generation could keep track of kinship and monitor compliance with exogamous prohibitions so that children were not born from close relatives, the undesirability of which was obviously already realized. The ban on incest had its positive results - the descendants of the former Neanderthals became healthier and gradually turned into modern people.
Mesolithic About ten thousand years BC, a huge glacier, reaching 1000-2000 meters in height, began to melt rapidly; the remains of this glacier have survived to this day in the Alps and on the mountains of Scandinavia. The transition period from the glacier to the modern climate is called the conventional term “Mesolithic”, i.e. The “Middle Stone” Age is the interval between the Paleolithic and Neolithic, which lasts approximately three to four thousand years.
The Mesolithic is clear evidence of the strong influence of the geographical environment on the life and evolution of mankind. Nature has changed in many respects: the climate has warmed, the glacier has melted, deep rivers have flowed south, large expanses of land previously covered by the glacier have gradually become free, vegetation has been renewed and developed, mammoths and rhinoceroses have disappeared.
In connection with all this, the stable, established life of the Paleolithic mammoth hunters was disrupted, and other forms of economy had to be created. Using wood, man created a bow and arrows. This significantly expanded the object of hunting: along with deer, elk, and horses, they began to hunt various small birds and animals. The great ease of such hunting and the ubiquity of game made strong communal groups of mammoth hunters unnecessary. Mesolithic hunters and fishermen roamed the steppes and forests in small groups, leaving behind traces of temporary camps.
The warming climate allowed for the revival of gathering. The collection of wild cereals turned out to be especially important for the future, for which wooden and bone sickles with silicon blades were even invented. An innovation was the ability to create cutting and piercing tools with a large number of sharp pieces of flint inserted into the edge of a wooden object.
Probably at this time people became familiar with moving through water on logs and rafts and with the properties of flexible rods and fibrous tree bark.
The domestication of animals began: a hunter-archer went after game with a dog; killing wild boars, people left litters of piglets to feed.
The Mesolithic is the time of human settlement from south to north. Moving through forests along rivers, Mesolithic man walked through the entire space cleared by the glacier and reached what was then the northern edge of the Eurasian continent, where he began to hunt sea animals.
Mesolithic art differs significantly from Paleolithic art: the leveling communal principle weakened and the role of the individual hunter increased - in rock paintings we see not only animals, but also hunters, men with bows and women waiting for their return.