2. PREHISTORY

Talking book

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Prehistory began with the appearance of the first human beings and ended with the appearance of writing.

As there are no written documents from this long period of time, other historical sources are used to study it, such as human remains and tools.

Prehistory is divided into various periods according to how technologically advanced the tools that have been discovered were. The first period is called the Stone Age because the tools that have survived were mainly made from this material.

The Stone Age itself is divided into two periods:

The Paleolithic Period, which means ‘old stone’, began two and a half million years ago. It is divided into three periods: Lower, Middle and Upper Paleolithic. These were followed by a period of transition called the Epipaleolithic.
The Neolithic Period, which means ‘new stone’, began around 8 000 B.C., when agriculture and the domestication of animals appeared.

The Stone Age is followed by the Bronze and Iron Ages. Human beings learnt to metals and make them into adornments, tools and weapons.

Initially, these objects were made of copper (around 4 000 B.C.).
Then, they were made of bronze (around 3 000 B.C.).
Finally, they were made of iron (around 1 500 B.C.).

The beginning and end of each of these periods have been established according to particular advances that were made. Therefore, they vary from region to region and are often modified due to new discoveries.

IMPORTANT

In the Paleolithic Period, stone tools were made by hitting one stone against another to break pieces off. These are called knapped stone objects.	In the Neolithic Period, the knapped stone objects were rubbed with a harder stone to smooth the surface. This is called polished stone.

Look at the first timeline and name the period of Prehistory which the following dates correspond to:

A Prehistory timeline

Fill in the blank spaces with the correct answer.

a) 2 500 000 B.C. .

b) 8000 B.C. .

c) 3500 B.C. .

Look at the double timeline on the previous page. What differences are there in the the chronology of the Iberian Peninsula and the world?

Look at the illustrations of how people made knapped and polished objects and answer the questions.


knapped stone	polished stone

a) Which of the two methods took more time and effort?

b) Could you tell the difference between a Paleolithic tool and a Neolithic one just by touching them?

Put these objects in order, from the least to the most advanced.

Are there written sources from Prehistory that we can use to learn about the period?

Why not?

What other sources can we use?

Imagine that tomorrow a new discovery is made in the Middle East. Agricultural tools are found that are older than those which have been discovered up until now. Which period of Prehistory would we need to change the start date of? Would this change affect the Iberian Peninsula?

Drag and drop the name of the period onto the tool it corresponds to.

Prehistoric tools

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2. PREHISTORY

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