Prehistory

A condensed, point-by-point summary of the module, for reviewing right before a test or exam.

1. The Paleolithic: Human Evolution and Hunter-Gatherers. The Paleolithic, the longest stage of Prehistory, saw several hunter-gatherer human species evolve.
2. Material Life in the Paleolithic: Tools, Fire, and Nomadism. Stone tool technology, the control of fire, and nomadic subsistence defined material life in the Paleolithic.
3. Cave Art and the First Symbolic Expressions. The Upper Paleolithic produced cave art and symbolic objects, as seen at Altamira, Lascaux, and Chauvet.
4. The Neolithic Revolution: Agriculture, Livestock, and Sedentism. The Neolithic Revolution marked the shift from hunting and gathering to agriculture, livestock farming, and settled life.
5. Neolithic Society: Villages, Pottery, and Social Organization. Neolithic sedentism gave rise to permanent villages, pottery, and a more complex social organization.
6. Megalithism and Early Religious Beliefs. Megalithism, with monuments such as Stonehenge, reflects funerary beliefs and rituals of the late Neolithic.
7. The Metal Ages: Copper, Bronze, and Iron. The Metal Ages span the Chalcolithic, Bronze, and Iron periods, marked by growing social hierarchy.
8. The End of Prehistory: Toward the First Urban Civilizations. The emergence of writing and city-states, such as Uruk, conventionally marks the end of Prehistory.