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Exploring!Paleolithic!Art:!The!Dawn!of!Being!Human!
Dr.!Mara!Vejby!
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Course'Outline'
Week!1:!Introduction!to!the!Paleolithic!and!Neanderthals!
Week!2:!Environmental!change!and!the!expansion!of!Homo!sapiens!
Week!3:!Paleolithic!art!in!Europe!and!Asia!
Week!4:!Paleolithic!art!in!Africa!and!Europe!
Week!5:!Paleolithic!art!in!Australia!and!the!Americas!
Week!6:!Transitions!at!the!end!of!the!Paleolithic!
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Links'to'longer'academic'articles'and'videos'for'each'week'will'be'posted'at:'
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http://archlocality.org/paleolithicart.html!
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The!Paleolithic!Period!(also!spelled!Palaeolithic)!in!human!prehistory!is!the!name!given!
to!the!period!roughly!between!2.7!million!and!10,000!years!ago!(you'll!see!different!
ranges!for!the!Paleolithic!periods!because!these!dates!vary!slightly!by!region).!The!
Paleolithic!is!all!about!us–our!species!Homo'sapiens–and!how!we!got!to!be!what!we!are!
today.!The!Paleolithic!period!is!divided!into!three!phases:!the!Lower!Paleolithic,!the!
Middle!Paleolithic,!and!the!Upper!Paleolithic.!It!begins!in!Africa!with!the!earliest!humanT
like!behaviors!of!crude!stone!tool!manufacture!about!2.7!million!years!ago.!By!the!
Middle!Paleolithic!Neanderthals!are!found!across!Europe!and!Asia,!and!eventually!so!are!
the!first!anatomically!modern!Homo!sapiens.!We!will!start!with!this!phase!of!the!
Paleolithic.!
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Introduction*to*Neanderthals*
Name!Means:!The!Latin!word!homo!means!“man”!or!“human!being.”!Fossils!of!this!
species!were!first!discovered!in!Neadertal,!Germany.!The!Latin!suffix!Tensis!means!
“belonging!to!a!place.”!
!
Region:!Europe!and!southwestern!to!central!Asia!
Date!Range:!About!200,000!T!28,000!years!ago!
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Height:!!
Males:!average!5!ft!5!in!(164!cm);! Females:!average!5!ft!1!in!(155!cm)!
Weight:!!
Males:!average!143!lbs!(65!kg);!!
Females:!average!119!lbs!(54!kg)!
!
Height!&!Weight!Supplemental!Information:!!
While!the!tall,!lean!bodies!of!earlier!Homo!species!like!Homo!erectus!were!adapted!to!
tropical!temperatures,!the!short,!stocky!bodies!of!Neanderthals!were!adapted!to!winter!
climates.!With!thick,!short!lower!arm!and!leg!bones!making!up!a!very!strong!and!
compact!body,!Neanderthals!were!more!heavily!built!than!modern!humans!and!were!
more!efficient!at!conserving!body!heat,!allowing!them!to!withstand!living!in!cold!
!
climates!during!ice!ages.!Neanderthal!males!were!slightly!
taller!and!heavier!than!Neanderthal!females;!however,!
sexual!dimorphism!was!not!nearly!as!extreme!as!what!is!
seen!in!earlier!Homo!species.!
Additional!Information:!
Neanderthals!(NeanderTthal,!the!‘th’!pronounced!as!‘t’)!
are!our!closest!extinct!human!relative.!Some!defining!
features!of!their!skulls!include!the!large!middle!part!of!
the!face,!angled!cheekbones,!and!a!huge!nose!for!
humidifying!and!warming!cold,!dry!air.!Their!bodies!were!
shorter!and!stockier!than!ours,!another!adaptation!to!
living!in!cold!environments.!But!their!brains!were!just!as!
large!as!ours!and!often!larger.!
!
!
!
Neanderthals!made!and!used!
a!diverse!set!of!sophisticated!
tools,!controlled!fire,!lived!in!
shelters,!made!and!wore!
clothing,!were!skilled!hunters!
of!large!animals!and!also!ate!
plant!foods,!and!occasionally!
made!symbolic!or!
ornamental!objects.!There!is!
evidence!that!Neanderthals!
deliberately!buried!their!
dead!and!occasionally!even!marked!their!graves!with!offerings,!such!as!flowers.!No!
other!primates,!and!no!earlier!Homo!species,!had!ever!practiced!this!sophisticated!and!
symbolic!behavior.!This!may!be!one!of!the!reasons!that!the!Neanderthal!fossil!record!is!
so!rich!compared!to!some!earlier!human!species;!being!buried!greatly!increases!the!
chance!of!becoming!a!fossil!!
!
DNA!has!been!recovered!from!more!than!a!dozen!Neanderthal!fossils,!all!from!Europe;!
the!Neanderthal!Genome!Project!is!one!of!the!exciting!new!areas!of!human!origins!
research.!
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How!They!Survived:!
Compared!to!early!Homo!species!living!in!tropical!Africa,!with!more!abundant!edible!
plant!foods!available!yearTround,!the!number!of!plant!foods!Neanderthals!could!eat!
would!have!dropped!significantly!during!the!winter!of!colder!climates,!forcing!
Neanderthals+to+exploit+other+food+options+like+meat+more+heavily.+There+is+evidence+
that+Neanderthals+were+specialized+seasonal+hunters,+eating+animals+were+available+at+
the+time+(i.e.+reindeer+in+the+winter+and+red+deer+in+the+summer).+Scientists+have+clear+
evidence+of+Neanderthal+hunting+from+uncovering+sharp+wooden+spears+and+large+
numbers+of+big+game+animal+remains+were+hunted+and+butchered+by+Neanderthals.+
There+is+also+evidence+from+Gibraltar+that+when+they+lived+in+coastal+areas,+they+
exploited+marine+resources+such+as+mollusks,+seals,+dolphins,+and+fish.+Isotopic+chemical+
analyses+of+Neanderthal+bones+tell+scientists+the+average+Neanderthal’s+diet+consisted+of+
a+lot+of+meat.+Scientists+have+also+found+plaque+on+the+remains+of+molar+teeth+
containing+starch+grains—concrete+evidence+that+Neanderthals+ate+plants.+
+
The+Mousterian+stone+tool+industry+of+Neanderthals+is+
characterized+by+sophisticated+flaketools+that+were+
detached+from+a+prepared+stone+core.+This+innovative+
technique+allowed+flakes+of+predetermined+shape+to+be+
removed+and+fashioned+into+tools+from+a+single+suitable+
stone.+This+technology+differs+from+earlier+‘core+tool’+
traditions,+such+as+the+Acheulean+tradition+of+Homo+
erectus.+Acheulean+tools+worked+from+a+suitable+stone+that+
was+chipped+down+to+tool+form+by+the+removal+of+flakes+off+the+surface.+
+
Neanderthals+used+tools+for+activities+like+hunting+and+sewing.+LeftKright+arm+asymmetry+
indicates+that+they+hunted+with+thrusting+(rather+than+throwing)+spears+that+allowed+
them+to+kill+large+animals+from+a+safe+distance.+Neanderthal+bones+have+a+high+
frequency+of+fractures,+which+(along+with+their+distribution)+are+similar+to+injuries+among+
professional+rodeo+riders+who+regularly+interact+with+large,+dangerous,+animals.+
Scientists+have+also+recovered+scrapers+and+awls+(larger+stone+or+bone+versions+of+the+
sewing+needle+that+modern+humans+use+today)+associated+with+animal+bones+at+
Neanderthal+sites.+A+Neanderthal+would+probably+have+used+a+scraper+to+first+clean+the+
animal+hide,+and+then+used+an+awl+to+poke+holes+in+it,+and+finally+use+strips+of+animal+
tissue+to+lace+together+a+looseKfitting+garment.+Neanderthals+were+the+first+early+humans+
to+wear+clothing,+but+it+is+only+with+modern+humans+that+scientists+find+evidence+of+the+
manufacture+and+use+of+bone+sewing+needles+to+sew+together+tighter+fitting+clothing.+
+
+
Smithsonian+National+Museum+of+Natural+History+
http://humanorigins.si.edu/evidence/humanKfossils/species++