NEOLITHIC AND

NEOLITHIC AND

1. THE NEOLITHIC PERIOD

   • When the last glacial period ended around 8 000 B.C., there was an increase in the Earth's temperature. The flora and fauna changed, and human beings had to adapt to these new conditions. They learned to cultivate the land (agriculture) and domesticate animals (livestock). These innovations marked the beginning of a new historical period called the Neolithic Period.
   • These discoveries were made by observing nature. People observed how wild seeds that fell on the ground grew into plants. They began to sow wheat and barley. Eventually, the best seeds were selected and more abundant harvests were obtained.
   • At the same time, they discovered that they could domesticate animals and breed them in captivity. This was easier than hunting and guaranteed a steady supply of meat, milk, leather and wool.
   • In the Neolithic Period, the way of life of human beings changed completely. They changed from predators to food producers. As they were able to feed a larger number of people, the population increased.
   • In the Neolithic Period, new tools made from polished stone were created for the new activities. These changes occurred in several places at once. One of the earliest Neolithic settlements was in the Fertile Crescent in the Near East. Neolithic culture spread all over the world from these points. Meanwhile, Neolithic and Paleolithic tribes coexisted. The changes were so dramatic that it is called the Neolithic Revolution.

2. THE FIRST SEDENTARY SOCIETIS

   • Neolithic groups abandoned their nomadic way of life and became sedentary. This means they settled permanently in villages and small settlements.
   • The houses were made of mud, wood, reeds and straw. The crop fields and animal pens were situated around the village. These villages were built on river banks so they had access to water for drinking and watering the crops. The land nearest the rivers is also the most fertile and therefore produces more abundant harvests.
   • THE SOCIAL STRUCTURE AND NEW ACTIVITIES
     • Agricultural production and the domestication of animals created new needs. Craftsmanship developed to meet these needs.
     • Wicker baskets were made (basket making) to store grain and food. They also began to make ceramic pots by shaping wet clay into objects (pottery making)
     • Spindles and looms were invented to make clothes. First long threads were spun from flax or wool, on a spindle. Then these threads were woven together on a loom to make cloth.
     • While the men went hunting, the women looked after the crops and livestock. Therefore, they played an important role in the development of these activities.
     • The remains discovered in houses and burial sites show that the social equality of the previous era was maintained. None of the groups held power over the others.
   • THE NEOLITHIC ART AND CULTURE
     • The new Neolithic discoveries of agriculture and livestock farming influenced religion. The Sun, water and stars were deified (worshipped as Gods) to control the forces of nature.
     • One of the first divinities was the mother goddess, who was worshipped to increase the fertility of the population and the land for better harvests. Burials also became more common. The dead were buried under houses or in the necropolises (cemeteries) outside the settlements. Families remembered the dead and eventually began to venerate them. This is called ancestor worship. A new form of artistic expression emerged with the decoration of ceramic objects. This was done with paints or by making small imprints on the object.

3. THE BRONZE AND IRON AGES

   • The Bronze and Iron Ages began when metallurgy was discovered in the Near East in around 4 000 B.C., although during the Neolithic Period metal objects were already being used.
   • Metallurgy is the technique that consists of heating metals to high temperatures in order to shape them into objects (weapons, adornments and tools). This discovery was probably made when people saw metals fall into a fire, melt and then harden when they cooled.
   • The Bronze and Iron Ages is divided into three periods, which are defined by the type of metal used:
     • The Copper Age: before 5 000 B.C., copper began to be used on the Anatolian Peninsula. Initially, objects were made by heating the metal and beating it into the required shape. Later, the ore was smelted in an oven and poured into a mould in the shape of the required object. Then the object was taken out and the impurities were removed. As copper was not very strong, it was mainly used to make decorative objects
     • The Bronze Age: improvements in smelting techniques led to the creation of an alloy or mixture of two metals, copper and tin, to make bronze. Bronze is stronger than copper and was also used to make weapons. The oldest known object made from bronze was discovered in Mesopotamia and dates from around 3 000 B.C
     • The Iron Age: when the technique for smelting iron was discovered, iron working began. Iron is stronger than bronze. The process for making iron was not easy because it has to be heated to a temperature above 1 000 ºC. This was achieved for the first time on the Anatolian Peninsula around 1 500 B.C. However, the use of smelted iron did not become common until the 1st millennium B.C. Many types of objects were made of iron, the most important one being swords, which were much stronger than the bronze ones.
   • THE ECONOMY IN THE BRONZE AND IRON AGES
     • The discovery of metallurgy led to important developments in agriculture and trade.
     • Metals were used to make stronger and more effective agricultural tools, like the iron plough. When harvests were abundant, surplus products were exchanged with the neighbouring village. This type of activity is called trade. Initially, this was done by bartering. This means one product was exchanged for another without using money.
     • Traders had to travel frequently in search of minerals. Eventually, trade routes were established between distant places. This helped new knowledge, customs and religious beliefs to spread rapidly while minerals, tools, weapons, agricultural products, cloths and luxury articles (jewels) were exchanged.
     • Trade benefited from some of the inventions that were created at the beginning of the Bronze and Iron Ages such as the potter's wheel, the wheeled cart, sail boats and maps drawn on clay tablets.
   • SOCIETY IN THE BRONZE AND IRON AGES
     • Due to the prosperity created by trade, the populations of the villages grew and they became towns.
     • More resistant materials were commonly used to construct buildings, such as adobe (sun-dried earth) and stone for the base or plinth.
     • The increase in agricultural production meant that some people could stop working in the fields and dedicate themselves to other tasks. This marked the beginning of the division of labour.
     • Some activities were more profitable than others, so social differences appeared. The differences in wealth discovered through funerary objects show that one part of society became much richer than the rest.
     • The increasing wealth of some towns led to sackings. These were violent attacks by neighbouring villages or nomads, who wanted to enter the town and steal its riches.
     • To guarantee their safety, villages were built in high places and were protected by palisades (wooden stakes) and brick or stone walls. War made the position of women weaker. The men, who were the ones who fought, took the control of the decision making away from women.
     • The most powerful position was held by the military chieftain, who eventually took control of the decision making. Many of them converted their positions into hereditary ones by transforming themselves into kings or monarchs.
   • ART IN THE BRONZE AND IRON AGES
     • The most important art forms from the Bronze and Iron Ages were megalithic monuments. These were made from enormous blocks of stone (megaliths), which were placed on their own or arranged together to form a structure.
     • Megalithic monuments were used for different purposes: funerary (such as collective tombs), commemorative (to mark an important event), territorial (to mark boundaries) and even astronomical (to mark the change in seasons)
     • The first megaliths appeared at the end of the Neolithic Period, but the most famous ones were constructed during the Bronze Age. The builders of megaliths travelled by sea in search of metals. As a result, megalithic architecture spread along the Mediterranean coast and through Western Europe.
     • The construction of megalithic monuments required the participation of many people, good organisation of labour and a chain of command (some people had to give orders and others had to obey them).

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