Paleolithic Age Tools: Learn All About Their Incredible Implements

From the time humans started their journey on Earth, records of stone artefacts used for survival are found.

The age system as such was introduced by Christian J. Thomsen, a Danish scholar. He coined the terms 'Stone Age', 'Bronze Age', and 'Iron Age' depending on the base materials used to make tools and artifacts.

The Stone Age refers to the first known time period when our human ancestors, or primates, started using tools made from stone. The Stone Age is classified into three periods: the Old or Early Stone Age or Paleolithic Age, Middle Stone Age or Mesolithic Age, and finally, the New Stone Age or Neolithic Age.

The classification is done depending on the kinds of tools used during the specific eras. The Stone Age overlaps the Ice Age of the Pleistocene, as named by geologists. The Paleolithic Age, or Old Stone Age, is the longest Stone Age period recorded. The Mesolithic Age saw the last of the Ice Age.

The Paleolithic Age, or Old Stone Age, dates back approximately 2.6 million years ago. The Paleolithic Era is further divided into the Lower Paleolithic Age, Middle Paleolithic Age, and the Upper Paleolithic Age.

The tools used during the Paleolithic Period were made from stones and animal bones. The Lower Paleolithic age was spread across western Europe, Asia, and some parts of Africa as the primates, or hominids, or great apes, followed a nomadic lifestyle, moving everywhere.

The Middle Paleolithic period was mainly spread in Europe and witnessed the human evolution of neanderthals, or early humans. The Upper Paleolithic Age saw the evolution of Homo sapiens, or modern humans, starting in Africa and slowly spreading to Asia and Europe.

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Humans And Stone Tools

The Paleolithic Era shows us a clear picture of human evolution, human history, and human development. We can see humans evolving from Homo habilis (the handyman) to Homo erectus (the upright man) to Homo neanderthalensis (Neanderthals) to Homo sapiens (modern man).

As the human species evolved, so did their brains, their way of life, the tools and weapons they used, the technology behind them, their clothing, art, and more.

The Paleolithic Age had very basic and crude tools made from stones. The process of producing such stone tools is termed 'knapping'.

Our ancestors would spend hours creating the tools the way they wanted. Without much knowledge or other technology to support them, the stone tools were such that one wrong move while crafting the tool, and it would break, and the process had to be started from the beginning.

The Paleolithic people also made tools out of animal bones and wood other than stones. But as they evolved, their brains evolved too, which led to the creation of more efficient tools.

Paleolithic tools at a later stage of the Paleolithic Era served various purposes, like fishhooks for fishing, arrows and spears for hunting, sewing needles for making clothes, carving tools for jewelry, and cave art.

Stone Tools Before Humans

Several archaeological sites from around the globe show proof of the existence of stone tools for a long time. The proof dates back to the time when prehistoric humans, walked the Earth.

Called Homo habilis, or the handyman, they used primitive stone tools with sharp edges. The tools were used to attack or defend themselves in times of danger and for hitting and cutting up the food that the Paleolithic groups hunted and gathered.

The earliest stone tools were very basic and crude. They were known as the Oldowan toolkit. They were the first tools and the first technology used by the human species.

It consisted of hammerstones, sharp stone flakes, stone cores, and other tools. These were primarily used for scraping, cutting, and chopping food. The proof for such tools was first found in Ethiopia and Tanzania in Africa.

Early Stone Age Tools

The Early Stone Age, or Paleolithic Age, saw the emergence and improvements in toolmaking.

In the Lower Paleolithic Period, the Homo erectus species of humans developed the Acheulean style of stone tools, such as hand axes, which had sharp edges. They were an important tool in the Paleolithic Period.

They were sharper and more effective when it came to hunting. Proof of this was first found in Africa and is spread far and wide across Africa, Europe till India.

The next human species, Homo neanderthalensis, came up with the Levallois technique to produce knife-like tools of various sizes and shapes, like picks and cleavers. Evidence of this was found in western and northern Europe, the areas inhabited by Neanderthals.

The next set of improvements in tool technology comes from the Middle Paleolithic Period. It came in the form of cutting blades or the Aurignacian culture of the Neanderthals, with evidence of remains in Europe.

Another important point associated with the Aurignacian culture is the first Paleolithic art, where they drew animal shapes and carved shapes of female figures from engraved limestone blocks. This was followed by the Magdalenian culture, or the emergence of micro blades.

The awls and small blades came in geometric forms that were attached to handles and used as projectile points or weapons for preparing food and woodwork.

Proof of the same was seen all over Africa and Europe. These were the main weapons used in the Middle Paleolithic Period.

Next comes the Upper Paleolithic Period, where the first Homo sapiens, or modern man, created Neolithic tools like chisels, axes, celts, burins, adzes, gouges, bone, and ivory needles, and harpoon points. Evidence of this period and the tools used are seen in sites near Europe.

Also known as the New Stone Age, humans in this period preferred agricultural settlements.

The Upper Paleolithic Period also saw the discovery of metals like copper and bronze and other raw materials like bones and ivory, which led to the transition from stone to metal tools. The Upper Paleolithic Period also saw the rise of cave paintings in the form of geometric shapes and stencils as a larger artistic expression.

Handaxe From India Vs Handaxe From Europe

Hand axes, also known as the Acheulean hand axes, are said to be the longest-utilized tool in history. It is the one Stone Age tool that has survived all the different periods of the Stone Age. They were used primarily by Homo erectus and rarely by Homo sapiens.

They have an almond shape, a round base, and a pointy head. The hand axes were shaped by hand through knapping. They were used to hunt animals, chop wood, search for root vegetables, remove wild plants, and many other things.

Hand axes from Europe can be traced back to the Lower Paleolithic period. The first rudimentary ax was seen near France, and a refined version was later made as humans evolved. In Europe, flakes of stone were used to make hand axes.

Flint was the main material used to make the hand axe. Hand axes from Europe survived till the Upper Paleolithic period, when their making involved specialization and more complexity. The humans in the region started using bones, antlers from deer, and ivory as well.

The hand axes from India can similarly be traced back to the Lower Paleolithic period and the Acheulean culture about 500,000 years ago. Evidence of this has also been found in the desert state of Rajasthan in India.

A stone called 'Chert' was found in the Rohri hills near the Indus River banks. It was used to make tools and weapons like the hand ax. As the Upper Paleolithic period set in, the humans in the region began making parallel-sided blades as well.

They also used materials like bone, leather from animals, and wood. Even in the Neolithic period, evidence of a few ground stone axes has been found near present-day Sind, or Baluchistan, and the Kashmir Valley.

Improvement In Tools

The Paleolithic technology witnessed the making of stone tools using different techniques like the Oldowan toolkit style, the Acheulean style, the Levallois technique, the Aurignacian culture, and more.

In the Oldowan toolkit, the tools were mostly stone cores with just the flakes removed for a sharp edge. In the Acheulean style, the stone tools were properly shaped from longer stone cores to form a cutting edge.

The stone tools made using the Acheulean style were slightly more sophisticated than the Oldowan toolkit. Next came the Levallois technique that was used in the Mousterian tool culture. It is considered a great advancement in toolmaking technology and helped produce knife-life tools.

This was followed by the Middle Paleolithic period, which consisted of the Aurignacian culture, where stone cores were shaped as rectangular blades and attached to a handle, and the Magdalenian culture, where microliths, or small blades in geometric shapes, were designed and attached to the bones of animals to be used as projectile weapons.

Lastly, came the Lower Paleolithic period, or Neolithic period, where stone tools were produced by grinding and polishing the tools rather than flaking the stones. This method made the tools look good and was easier to sharpen when they became blunt.

With the Neolithic period, the concept of stone tools came to an end as humans started exploring tools made with metals and other raw materials. The modern man started living the life of civilizations and settlements.

As we can see, stones weren't the only material used in the Stone Age. Materials like antlers, animal bones, animal leather, fiber, wood, and ivory were also used. Other materials like copper, glass, and clay also emerged, but it was stone that prevailed most due to its durability and ability to survive long periods of time.

As the daily life of the human species evolved, they explored newer materials and invented ways to make them durable. Pottery is one such art that developed in the Neolithic Era and was used for making utensils to cook food.

As the Bronze Age came up, the durability of metals was explored, and metallurgy was used to make bronze, a mix of copper and tin. Humans found that metals could be used to make tools, utensils, weapons, and much more.

The metals survived rough conditions and were lighter than stones. Once this truth was understood, the stone artifacts and usage of stones slowly reduced, and this led to the end of the Stone Age.

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