Paleolithic+Period

The Paleolithic period, also known as the Old Stone Age, lasted from 2.5 million B.C.E. - 12,000 B.C.E. This period featured the development of the human species into homo erectus, and then to homo sapiens. This was an era that also featured very basic advances such as the creation of simple stone tools as well as the ability to control and use fire. Hunter-Forager societies dominated this era, and everyone was highly nomadic. This was also the period where humans migrated a lot, eventually spreading to every continent.
 * Paleolithic Period**

The people of the paleolithic period were extremely nomadic. They migrated to wherever they could find food. They had to find places where there was a high availability of plants and animals. Weather patterns also dictated where they migrated to. They were forced to migrate away from places with destructive weather, and migrate towards more peaceful and stable land. There were also many pastoral societies in the paleolithic period. The pastoral societies needed to migrate to areas where their animals could thrive. Their herds needed a high availability of grass for food, as well as a source of water. Once they exercised all the resources in the area, the pastoral societies migrated again to a new land with new resources. Through all these migrations, the human species managed to migrate to every continent on the Earth.
 * Human Migrations**

Because the people of the paleolithic migrated so much, they needed to travel lightly by carrying only a few personal belongings. They carried roughly the ammount of what people would bring in their backpack today. In these hunter-forager societies, stratification and social status was limited because of the equality that a hunter-forager society brings. There was equality between the sexes and the people because the work that they did was considered of equal importance and value. The men hunted while the women gathered berries and nuts, both activities were valued in the societies, so both sexes were valued fairly equally. The Hunter-Forager societies had no form of written communication, however there are very many cave paintings coming from this era.
 * Hunter-Forager Societies**

Armstrong, Monty. //Cracking the AP World History Exam//. 2012 ed. New York: Random House, 2012. Print. Cracking the AP World History Exam. || There were four main stone implements developed during this era. They were pebble tools, bifacial tools (also known as hand-axes), flake tools, and blade tools. These traditions were carried on until they weren’t needed anymore, unless a more advanced tool was created. There was a definite timeline of these creations, as one of the first developments was a simple pebble tool with a single edge. These were not seen until many years later in Europe, but werefound in southern and eastern Asia.
 * = [[image:http://ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/assets/mediaserver/WorldHistoryAncient/6339/633932w.jpg width="368" height="226" align="center" caption="Bull and red and brown horses at Lascaux"]] ||
 * = Cave painting of abull riding with horses in caves in Dordogne, France
 * Technologies**

In the Lower Paleolithic, there were two main traditions. They were the flake-tool traditions and bifacial-tool traditions. These were most likely manufactured with the use of stone hammers. In the Acheulean, there wasn’t much of a variance in the types of hand axes found. Contrary to the Lower Acheulean, the Micoquian (or Upper Acheulean) was known for the very straight and precise edges on their hand axes. The Clactonian was characterized by flakes, pieces of chipped off hard stone. The Levalloisian was also a flake tradition, with some hand axes found as well.

The Middle Paleolithic was a combination of the Mousterian and Tayacian. These were both characterized by their use of flakes, but hand axes were also seen. The use of fire was found evident in Mousterian levels of caves, and burials were also discovered. Artifacts found in this type site consisted of a Levelloisian tradition, Clactonian tradition, and the recurring bifacial-tool tradition from the Acheulean.

The Upper Paltolithic extended for about one-tenth of the Paleolithic era. Flake tools and hand axes were replaced by more specialized tools. Needles and thread, skin clothing, bone tools, the harpoon, spear throwers, and fishing equipment were some of the most important creations of this period. New types of art related techniques were also developed, such as drawing, sculpting, dancing, and music.


 * Bibliography**

Guisepi, Robert A. "An Overview of the Paleolithic." //World History International: World History Essays From Prehistory To The Present//. Web. 20 Jan. 2012. .

Stearns, Peter N., Michael Adas, Stuart B. Schwartz, and Marc J. Gilbert. //World Civilizations the Global Experience//. 3rd ed. New York: Pearson Longman, 2003. Print. Advanced _Placement.

Armstrong, Monty. //Cracking the AP World History Exam//. 2012 ed. New York: Random House, 2012. Print. Cracking the AP World History Exam.

"Bull and red and brown horses at Lascaux." Image. Corel. //World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras//. ABC-CLIO, 2012. Web. 20 Jan. 2012.

Oppenheimer, Stephen. "Journey of Mankind." //Bradshaw Foundation//. Web. 20 Jan. 2012. .