What are the tools of the Stone Age?

Since the Stone Age covered 99% of the history of human science and technology, there seems to be a lot to discuss when we look at the development of tools in this period. Although we rely on sometimes few archaeological records, it is true.

The Stone Age showed a lot of time, during which stones were widely used to make tools. So far, the history of the first stone tools can be traced back to about 2.6 million years ago. The end is decided on the first use of bronzes, which did not play a role at the same time anywhere; Around 3300 BC, the Near East was the first region to enter the Bronze Age. It must be admitted that in this period, stone is by no means the only material used for tools, but it is the most stubborn in decay, so it is more durable than other substitutes.

a period of time

It is important to realize that the method of dividing the Stone Age into bite-sized blocks (see below) depends on technological development, not time boundaries. Since these developments will not happen in all regions at the same time, it is impossible to have a strict date range. Of course, this method is difficult because it is up to us to define the characteristics of each stone culture. Like all these manual classification methods, they are too simplistic, leaving many gray areas, such as in the transition period. However, as long as you remember this, it is still a useful method to add a structure for a long time. ?

The Stone Age is considered to include:

The Paleolithic Age spanned the first known Stone Age and can be traced back to BC. 2.6 million years ago, about 12000 years ago, the last ice age ended. It is further subdivided into early Paleolithic or late Paleolithic (about 2.6 million years ago-about 250 thousand years ago). Middle Paleolithic Age (about 250,000 years ago-about 30,000 years ago); And the late or late Paleolithic period (about 50000/40000- about 10000 years ago; Some of these cultures continued until the northern hemisphere warmed again. In addition, within these frameworks, various stone culture has been confirmed, and you will find some of them below.

The Mesolithic Age witnessed the adaptation of human beings to the warm climate, and the transition to agriculture began around 12000 BC, which occurred in different periods and regions, and first occurred in the Near East around 9000 BC (because its lightning speed completely skipped the Mesolithic Age). At the other extreme, it was planted until 4000 BC and spread all the way to northern Europe.

Therefore, the Neolithic Age did not have a clear starting point, but was defined by the transition to a more stable lifestyle based on agriculture and animal husbandry. The appearance of bronzes marked the end of the Neolithic Age and began to appear gradually in various regions around 3300 BC.

The earliest tools

In 20 10, it was claimed that the earliest evidence of using tools should be traced back to the amazing era of 3.3 million years ago-long before the first human was thought to roam the earth, its first appearance was recently pushed back to about 2.8 million years ago. Our presumed ancestor, the Australopithecus afarensis, was responsible for marking cattle bones at a site in Dikika, Ethiopia. In addition, the discovery of 3.3 million-year-old stone tools in West Turkana, Kenya, seems to further support the view that humans may not be the first to use tools.

The earliest tools for correct calculation can be traced back to 2.6 million years ago.

However, after a more rigorous assessment of the two sites, the researchers rejected these claims. The Dikika mark may also be caused by crocodile teeth or trampling, while the West Turkana site may be affected by the material that slipped into the sediment from the young stratum, resulting in incorrect date. Before these possibilities are ruled out, the evidence must be considered insufficient.

However, this does not mean that human beings are the only people who can imagine using tools. All ancient humans who existed in that early period may have used some kind of stone technology to some extent. Ancient humans are a group composed of modern humans, extinct human species and our immediate ancestors-these species are more closely related to modern humans than anything else. This includes not only people, but also Australopithecus (famous Lucy), Paranthropus and Ardipithecus. Many anthropologists believe that humans may be more accustomed to using tools and making tools, because in the first million years after using tools correctly for the first time 2.6 million years ago, the size of human brain grew so fast, while the size of teeth was decreasing. This only happens when there are tools to compensate for smaller teeth. However, this may just be a waiting game until the first rock-solid document used by non-human tools appears.

Although some animals, such as chimpanzees, are known to dig termites with wooden sticks and use some tools, the manufacturing process of these early stone tools is unique to human beings. Although the early stone tools were simple, they still showed a thoughtful and controllable way to break rocks by using shocks-which highlighted an obvious behavioral innovation.

Early or late paleolithic period

The early Paleolithic period began with the first discovery of stone (also known as stone tools) technology. So far, this technology can be traced back to about 2.6 million years ago and originated from the ruins of Ethiopia. During this period, two industries were recognized, namely Aldvan and Ashelian. It lasted about 250,000 years until the middle of the Paleolithic Age.

Aldo Wan

Oldwa Industry, named after Oldwa Canyon in Tanzania, is the earliest stone industry in our archaeological records. It is characterized by a simple core and flaky fragments, which are found together with some worn cultural relics such as hammer stones, and occasionally animal bones with cutting marks.

Although there is no clear end point, and it existed with Ashley Industry (which started about 6.5438+0.7 million years ago) for a period of time, archaeologists usually mark the end point about 6.5438+0.7 million years ago when referring to Aldo Stone Bay. The site of Aldowan was first known in Africa (Ethiopia, Kenya and South Africa), but it was later discovered that it had spread to the Near East and East Asia, possibly brought there by Homo erectus.

In these places, people use simple techniques, which are called hard hammer percussion and bipolar techniques, to turn volcanic lava, timely and quartzite into tools, in which the stone anvil is used as the foundation and the core is placed on it. Hammer with a stone. In this way, the core becomes a kitchen knife, heavy scraper and so on. Percussion instruments, such as hammers and spheres; Slices and debris impact from the rotating and manipulated core; And trimmed parts such as scrapers and awls. Obviously, these early humans were skilled and knew how to make full use of One Piece. They often see dozens of flaky cores with more than a thousand flaky products on the website, which shows that many chips are hammered out by the same core.

Early tools were probably used to help these humans slaughter animals, cut plants and even do some carpentry. ?

These early tools were most likely used to help these humans slaughter animals (not necessarily the animals they killed themselves, but they may be removed if possible), cut plants, and even do some carpentry. Drilling into the skin of early humans, experiments conducted by researchers show that Oldwan slices can kill bodies ranging from small mammals to hundreds of pounds very successfully, which reflects the range of bones usually found in these places. The nutritious bone marrow in the bone and the juicy brain in the solid skull box can be recovered by knocking it open with a hammer stone. Stone is very good at standing the test of time, but it won't be the only thing these people use in their daily lives. It may range from skin and bark to various materials used to make containers; Wood used to make digging sticks, spears or sticks; Digging tools made of horns or bones are also used. ?

Achery people.

When the people of Aldo were still in full swing and just arrived in East Asia through experts of Homo erectus, Africa became the original host of the second tool industry: Ashley (named after French Saint Ascher 6,543.8+0.7 million years ago), which later spread widely in Eurasia. It witnessed the development of tools into new shapes: large double-sided blades such as hand axes, pickaxes, meat cleavers and knives enabled contemporary Homo erectus and later Heidelberg people to better control their killing and gathering process.

These two sides-that is, the two sides with working faces-represent new elements for making stone tools. They are made of large boulders or larger pebbles and the core of nodules. The shapes of tools are wider than before, which can be seen from a large number of well-made decorative tools, such as back knives, awls and side scrapers. However, hand axes and meat cleavers, in particular, demonstrate the ability to create symmetrical objects with stone materials, which shows that cognitive ability and motor skills are higher than those seen in aldo's cultural industry.

Tools with more precise shapes mean that more sophisticated technology is needed; In fact, in the so-called soft hammer technology, softer materials such as wood, bones, antlers, ivory or soft stones are now used as knockers. Flint has become a popular material. By using it and the already familiar lava and quartzite, this technology produces thinner slices and then refines them.

A Qiu's industry is successful and very common. It is not only spread all over Africa and Eurasia, but also extends to the Near East, the Indian subcontinent and Western Europe. Here, some impressive sharp wooden spears were found for later Asherie, Schoeningen (at least 300,000 years ago) and Clacton in England, providing the earliest evidence of active hunting and appropriate designated hunting weapons. They are regarded as Heidelberg people. Europe in the Ice Age will bring some challenges under sometimes quite cold weather conditions, especially in some latitudes, but the use mode of Ashley side scrapers shows that they are used to scrape skin and then can be turned into simple clothes. I wouldn't be surprised if it turns out that comfortable blankets are much older than we thought.

Interestingly, although the shape of hand axes varies greatly with time and space, some Asherie sites show repeated shapes and sizes, which makes their manufacturers seem to subscribe to the same tool manufacturing magazine, because it seems that they all adhere to the style specifications of similar production.

Middle paleolithic period

The middle paleolithic period (about 250,000-30,000 years ago, it was sometimes called "Mousterian", named after the French site Le Moustier) marked the change of the infinite popularity of hand axes and meat cleavers throughout acheulian. Instead, it emphasizes the use of the so-called Levallois technology on well-prepared cores, which was also used in a small amount in the early and late Paleolithic period.

Using this technology means that the flint core should be carefully prepared. Firstly, it should be roughened to make its surface smooth, and then a specific strike platform should be designed. In this way, the tool manufacturer can control the shape of the plate to be rejected. From these plates, trim shapes such as side scrapers, tips, small teeth, and sometimes blades, which is a good reflection of many of these combinations. Both hard hammer and soft hammer technology are used to help tool manufacturers achieve the shapes they want.

In addition to stones, the technique of making wooden spears, which originated from Asheli, continued until the middle of Paleolithic Age. As seen in the site of Lailingen, Germany, a spear with a hard tip was found there, which was connected with the corpse of an elephant. There are few bone points, but they can also be found in this industry. In addition, stone tips with thin bottom were found, which may indicate that they may be fixed on the spear shaft. The discovery of the oldest known tar-handled stone tools in Europe also belongs to the approximate time range corresponding to this industry. Together with the above stone points, it is helpful to demonstrate the development of composite tools in the middle Paleolithic period.

All of the above implies that human beings may have been quite advanced in the middle of Paleolithic period. For example, some people think that the steps and foresight required to successfully use the prepared core technology require the manufacturer to have considerable skills. The beginning of Hafting seems to reinforce this concept. But it is hard to say whether this progress is mainly confined to the technical field, or whether it can be understood as the progress of human ability in a broader sense, such as the progress of social interaction and ambient intelligence.

But it is clear that human beings are all over the world and enter a more challenging environment. Most parts of Africa and Eurasia have been conquered, from tropical and temperate climates to periglacial climates, except for the harsh deserts, dense tropical forests and tundra in the northernmost or Arctic regions. In the late period of this period (overlapping with the late Paleolithic period), humans even reached distant Australia about 40,000 years ago, when Australia and Papua New Guinea were connected due to the low sea level. Humans that match the time frame of this industry are ancient Homo sapiens including Neanderthals and anatomically modern people.

Late paleolithic or late paleolithic

Some areas remained in the middle Paleolithic period for a period of time, while others adopted the feature of pushing it to the late Paleolithic period (about 50,000/40,000-about/kloc-0,000 years ago), which is a typical example of the confusion of dating caused by this technical classification. Industry faded with the last ice age or ice age, and then the climate became warmer. It is famous for the anatomical location occupied by modern humans, and is usually related to them, but some of them also belong to the time range of the last Neanderthals, who disappeared from the fossil record about 30 thousand years ago.

There was a big reproduction in the late Paleolithic period. Blade tools made of stone were invented, but the emphasis shifted from stone to handicrafts made of bones, antlers and ivory. Needles and tips are made of this non-stone material, which is very suitable for these exquisite shapes. Their existence shows that sewing clothes must have been the norm 20 thousand years ago Even began to appear spear thrower, straightener, harpoon, bow and arrow and other technical stunts. The spear thrower is basically a long rod with a hook at the end, which can be used to install an arrow, which will increase the distance and speed of the projectile fired by the capable hand of a keen hunter. Some are luxuriously decorated and beautifully carved, even carved into the actual shape of animals; The Magdalene subculture in western Europe provides some amazing examples. At the end of the Paleolithic period, arrows (therefore, hints, bows) were used because they had been found at the Stelmore site in Germany, and the small size of many points in Germany suggested industry. These mechanical devices represent a great leap in the progress of hunting technology and weapons.

Blade technology is a typical stone technology in this industry, which is manifested as a slender thin sheet produced by soft hammer or indirect percussion: the knocker knocks the punch placed at the core edge of the blade. The manufactured blade can be made into a series of tool forms such as back knife, meat cutter and end scraper. The diversity of technology in the late Paleolithic period means that some of them, such as Solutes in Spain and France, Clovis and Folson in the New World, focused on the peeling of double-sided points, which may be caused by soft hammer technology under pressure. Other technologies, such as those in Africa and some Central and East Asia,

In the middle and late Paleolithic period, modern humans managed to reach Australia about 40,000 years ago. However, it was not until the relatively late Paleolithic period that we saw the first evidence that humans crossed the Bering Strait and entered America. They arrived in America at least 65,438+05,000 years ago. The best culture visible there is Clovis culture (about 13500 years ago-about 13000 years ago), which is famous for its slotted spear tip and is often associated with the remains of mammoths. Man has now conquered all feasible continents (Antarctica will not be considered by any realistic standard) and all kinds of climates from tropical to desert and cold Arctic climate.

Mesolithic Period

The way humans adapted to the new terrain and wider climate in the late Paleolithic period is a good precursor for adaptation at the end of the last glacier or ice age about 65,438+02,000 years ago. Climate warming leads to sea level rise, flooding low-lying coastal areas, forming the English Channel, and denser woodlands begin to appear. Importantly, many prehistoric giant mammals (such as mammoths) are gradually extinct, which may be driven by climate or human hunters, affecting the food sources available to contemporary hunter-gatherers. The Middle Stone Age, from the end of the Ice Age to the transition to agriculture (which occurred in different periods and regions), witnessed the adaptation of human beings to these changing environments.

The typical tool of the Middle Stone Age (although it also appeared outside the industry) was a micro-stone-a small flint blade or part of a blade, usually only about 5 mm long and 4 mm thick. Tapping the small core can produce the desired effect, just like cutting a gap on a larger blade and then breaking a small part. Its by-product is tiny pieces of waste called microburins, which is the name of this technology. Micro-stones can be used as the tip of weapons or arrows, or a plurality of micro-stones can be connected together to form a blade on a tool. In the early Middle Stone Age, compared with similar objects in the late Middle Stone Age, these miniature stones seemed to be highly standardized, which may provide clues for these people's different hunting methods.

A large number of arrows in the Middle Stone Age indicate that the fleshy part of the food eaten by these hunters and gatherers may unfortunately fall into the hands of skilled archers. ?

Although the rich and imaginative decorations seen in the late Paleolithic period were basically absent in the Mesolithic period, these pebbles show the development of a very complex and multifunctional composite tool type, which is more effective in utilizing flint resources than before. A large number of arrows in the Middle Stone Age indicate that the fleshy part of the food eaten by these hunters and gatherers may unfortunately fall into the hands of skilled archers. These arrows can shoot down different kinds of prey, from small animals such as birds and fish to large prey such as Onag and gazelle-they can all be shot down with chisel arrows. Barb can also be fixed on the arrow. As the experiment shows, it turns out that this is really effective in causing a wide range of wounds. Once the tip of the arrow enters the target, it will split. The bigger the wound, the bigger the internal injury and the more blood loss.

However, although these weapons of Mesolithic people were very destructive to behemoths, and because the number of behemoths decreased during this period, they had to find another way. Fortunately, these hunter-gatherers have successfully adapted to a more diverse diet. They shot arrows at many different animals and invented complex fishing gear, namely the earliest fishing nets and hooks. Matocq and axes were even used to remove unwanted trees, and canoes and skis were also found during this period. Bone shovel has proved to be a useful digging stick for pulling out tubers, while awl can be used for plant processing and leather processing. In the late Middle Stone Age, scrapers were also used to peel, thin and soften leather, as well as similar tools for bones and antlers.

It is worth noting that these people seem to be able to get in touch with distant societies to trade goods and tools, such as the spread of Mediterranean obsidian and Polish chocolate flint. It must be emphasized that there are great regional differences in this era.

Neolithic Age

With the emergence of agriculture, it spread from the near east around 9000 BC to northern Europe around 4000 BC, and the lifestyle of related societies has obviously changed a lot. This is the only part of the Stone Age where the relevant society is no longer a hunter-gatherer. However, as implied by the way we chose to let this era end with the beginning of bronze use (first used in the Near East around 3300 BC), stone tools were still in use in the Neolithic Age.

Although the sedentary lifestyle has undergone great changes, it is obvious that some traditions of the Middle Stone Age continued into the Neolithic Age. Such as bone and antlers technology and the use of bullet tips. Harvesters and sickles were found in Paleolithic and Mesolithic times, because they were also used before farming, but they became popular in this new environment. In the late Paleolithic period, grinding, drilling and other stone processing technologies were also very common, and now it has taken on a new look and its application is more enthusiastic than before.

The biggest impact on technology seems to come from the economic need to support more people (rather than hunter-gatherer tribes), such as in villages. This completely sedentary lifestyle requires fewer portable tools so that they can drag across the terrain (some people think there is a contrast between even the sedentary hunter-gatherers and sedentary farmers). A good example is the loom, which is almost completely known by farmers and promotes the production of textiles. This kind of equipment may not be practical only by manpower. As you can imagine, the tools used in textile production are one of the tools that first appeared in the early Neolithic period. Neolithic sites in Syria show some tools, such as drills and reamers, which may be used for joinery or to connect blocks of wood with nails.

If everything seems calm so far, please don't panic. Humans are not human if they can't see the violent side. In the archaeological records of the Neolithic Age, the axe is very obvious. The whole batch of flint axe is known. However, materials other than flint are also used. These tools are grindstone tools, which can be fixed on wooden handles after careful polishing. However, instead of imagining that hordes of axe fighters are violent, it is better to imagine that many of them are working axes, which are used to cut trees instead of people nearby.

Sadly, with the passage of time, people experienced the Bronze Age and the Iron Age. From prehistoric times to history, until today, it seems that the use (and killing potential) of weapons will only increase exponentially. As far as I'm concerned, I prefer paleolithic and other stone age tools.