Definition of Stone Age

There is talk of prehistory to refer to the period when humanity did not have a system of writing and, therefore, he could not testify to his own history. The idea of ​​prehistory is divided, in turn, into two major stages: an initial one known as the Stone Age and a later one called the Metal Age.

General features

In this period the different tools that were manufactured were made precisely of stone. From this element so abundant in nature it was possible to manufacture all kinds of utensils to facilitate daily life, such as objects for hunting, large stones to lift all kinds of buildings or sharp stones to cut the food.

The Stone Age takes place in three great periods: paleolithic, Mesolithic and neolithic. The first began about two million years ago and the Neolithic ended with the last ice age 10,000 years ago.

In these three stages the stone tools were gradually perfected. In addition to stone, other materials were used, such as animal bones or stone. wood that was obtained from trees.

Subsistence in the Stone Age was based on gathering food, hunting, and fishing. What pattern In general, human communities lived organized in small clans or hordes and practiced the nomadism to survive.

In the Stone Age the first artistic manifestations took place and the custom of burying the dead was adopted. These circumstances took place during the Neolithic Age, when man abandoned nomadism and began to settle in a fixed place.

Everyday life

During this period, human beings already knew the use of fire and thanks to it it was possible to warm up and improve their diet.

To stay protected from inclement weather and large mammals, the small clans temporarily took refuge in caves. In them it was possible to carry out all kinds of activities: make fabrics from the skins of animals, make pigment paints to decorate the walls or make utensils for hunt.

The food diet was based on meat, a food with a high caloric and protein content. In this sense, some researchers maintain that our current diet began precisely in the Stone Age.

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