Stone Age

The Stone Age is a broad prehistoric time period during which humans widely used stone for toolmaking.

Related Topics:
Prehistoric - Human - Stone

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Stone tools were made from a variety of different kinds of stone. For example, flint and chert were shaped (or chipped) for use as cutting tools and weapons, while basalt and sandstone were used for ground stone tools, such as quern-stones. Wood, bone, shell, antler and other materials were widely used, too. During the most recent part of the period, sediments (like clay) were used to make pottery. A series of metal technology innovations characterize the later Chalcolithic (Copper Age), Bronze Age and Iron Age.

Related Topics:
Stone tool - Flint - Chert - Chipped - Weapon - Basalt - Sandstone - Ground stone - Quern-stone - Wood - Bone - Shell - Antler - Sediment - Clay - Pottery - Technology - Chalcolithic - Bronze Age - Iron Age

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The period encompasses the first widespread use of technology in human evolution and the spread of humanity from the savannas of East Africa to the rest of the world. It ends with the development of agriculture, the domestication of certain animals and the smelting of copper ore to produce metal. It is termed prehistoric, since humanity had not yet started writing -- the traditional start of history (i.e., recorded history).

Related Topics:
Technology - Human evolution - Humanity - Savanna - East Africa - World - Agriculture - Domestication - Smelting - Copper - Ore - Writing - History - Recorded history

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The term "Stone Age" was used by archaeologists to designate this vast pre-metallurgic period whose stone tools survived far more widely than tools made from other (softer) materials. It is the first age in the three-age system and was subdivided into the Palaeolithic, Mesolithic and Neolithic periods, by John Lubbock in his now classic 1865 book Pre-historic Times. These three periods are further subdivided. In reality, the succession of phases differs enormously from one region (and culture) to another, indeed, humanity continued to expand into new areas even during the metal ages. Therefore, it is better to speak of a Stone Age, instead of the Stone Age.

Related Topics:
Archaeologists - Pre-metallurgic - Tool - Three-age system - Palaeolithic - Mesolithic - Neolithic - John Lubbock - Region - Culture

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