47 Interesting Stone Age Facts For History Lovers

The Stone Age began on earth, millions of years ago, when the Ice Age was still in process.

The Stone age is characterized by the widespread use of stones. The Stone Age facts explain how early people lived during the Stone Age.

The Stone Age refers to a broad prehistoric period in which historians have observed a remarkable use of stones to make everything we use. It is the oldest known period in the history of humans. Stones are the earliest known human tools.

A million years ago, early humans or cave dwellers used stones, such as flint, to make tools. Early humans discovered one of the most important elements while using stones, fire. However, metalworking was present in the later stages of the Stone Age.

Much of the information that we know and gather about the Stone Age comes from weapons and tools that were left by people several years ago. Stone Age villages were established in regions that could provide enough resources to feed the entire population of a village.

People settled in family groups, previously they were hunter-gatherers that roamed around the earth in search of food. Agriculture included growing domesticated plants and cattle rearing.

Introduction To The Stone Age

The Stone Age lasted for approximately 3.4 million years, and according to stages of development, it is divided into different phases.

• The Stone Age followed the Ice Age, and the Stone Age was, in turn, followed by the Bronze Age.
• This age ended when metalwork highly rose in popularity replacing stone tools. The transformation from the period of the Stone Age to the age of metalworking took place between 4000-2000 B.C.E.
• Even though some forms of metalworking were observed in the later periods of the Stone Age, it ended with the practice of melting and smelting copper.
• Historians have discovered several artifacts to envision the human culture of the Stone People and describe the Stone Age history.
• The Stone Age is further divided into three periods to determine the technological progress of the Stone Age people. They are the Paleolithic Age or the Early Stone Age, the Mesolithic Age or the Middle Stone Age, and the Neolithic Period or the New Stone Age.
• Each period was characterized by different types of inventions and advancements. Out of the three periods, the Paleolithic Age was the longest Stone Age period.
• When the Paleolithic Age started, Earth was still in the Ice Age. The earliest Stone Age people evolved in Africa and gradually began to spread in different parts of the world. At that time of evolution, several species of humans were found. The Homo erectus was the earliest species of Stone Age humans.
• The date and time period of these stages varies across the world as development did not occur together in every corner of the world.
• In the Early Stone Age, the people were hunter-gatherers. They foraged for food in local regions and even changed locations according to seasons, similar to animals.
• Stone Age people lived in small nomadic groups and were threatened by the mega-sized fauna that roamed around the earth during the Stone Age. Some common Stone Age animals were mastodons, giant ground sloths, and saber-toothed cats. They hunted huge herbivorous animals like the mammoth, cave bear, giant bison, and groups of deer.
• In the Stone Age, people used tools made of animal bones, wood, fiber, and leather. The stone tools were used to cut, crush, and pound the animals to extract the meat and nutrients properly. The evolution and advancement of the Stone Age tools made it easier for prehistoric humans to extract nutrients compared to early humans.
• Earth started to warm up about 14000 years ago, and many Ice Age animals went extinct during this warming period. This marked the beginning of the Mesolithic Age, and it lasted till the widespread onset of farming. The stone tools also became much finer, and canoes were invented in this age which indicated that apart from hunting, early humans also engaged in fishing in the Middle Stone Age.
• A boomerang-shaped region called the Fertile Crescent bounded by the Mediterranean Sea on the west and the Persian Gulf on the east. Cultivation of wild wheat and barley in the Fertile Crescent became abundant as the earth warmed up. This led to the development of farming, and the New Stone Age began.
• The Stone Age people of the Neolithic Period domesticated animals like sheep, goats, and forms of bovines for food. They realized the benefits of domesticating these animals since they were a ready supply of milk, meat, bone, and fiber. Storing grain for an extended period for later usage also became popular in the New Stone Age.
• People started abandoning their nomadic lifestyle and began settling in permanent houses. Farming became widespread. Humans also started creating Stone Age art in the Neolithic Age. Cave art, sculpture making, pottery, and weaving started on a large scale.

What foods were eaten during the Stone Age?

The diet of Stone Age humans changed over time as they became less reliant on hunting and gathering and more dependent on agriculture. The rise of agriculture marked the end of the Old Stone Age and the beginning of the Neolithic Age.

• Million years ago, the Old Stone Age people were hunters and gatherers; they tracked and caught wild animals for their flesh and ate raw meat. Fishing was possible after the discovery of canoes during the Middle Stone Age. They collected insects, fruits, and nuts from forest trees.
• People from the Old Stone Age used weapons to prey and often were seen working in groups to hunt large animals. They ate the meat of plant-eating animals such as mammoths and deers. Plants formed only 20% of their diet.
• After the discovery of fire, they also prepared food on an open fire or inside cooking pits. Meat and fish were grilled by keeping them on flat stones.
• The food habits of the Stone Age people also depended on the local availability of flora and fauna in a particular area.
• As the Ice Age ended and Earth's surface warmed up, the flora and fauna in every corner of the world changed. Woodland and grassland pastures gradually changed into open forests. Several animals became extinct, and smaller-sized animals appeared, which made it easier for people to hunt.
• Food became available widely as the lands became ice-free during the Stone Age. People did not need to travel long distances in different seasons like before. Each season saw the blooming of different types of vegetarian food, similar to what we see now.
• Hunting, gathering, and fishing were very important sources of food for millions of years, but the new age introduced a new method of food gathering that changed lifestyles. Arable farming methods and cattle breeding brought changes in sustenance.
• A Million years ago, agriculture was of slash and burn type. At that point in time, this type of agriculture was beneficial since it ensured the creation of new open areas for farming by destroying the thickly wooded ancient forests from many years ago.
• The population slowly began to grow as the number of settlements increased, and there was enough food to provide for the increasing population.
• The fertile fields and meadows helped people grow enough crops inorder for them to survive.
• The first crops grown included barley, peas, wheat, lentils, poppies, and mistletoe.
• Among the first animals domesticated were sheep, cows, pigs, and goats. Raw milk and meat were used as food. Animal skin was also utilized as shelter.
• By the New Stone Age, pottery had significantly developed. It became easy for the humans to store their harvest for each season inside their houses, using storage vessels and pots. Unlike the early species of humans, the modern humans of the Neolithic Age cooked, baked, and roasted their food before eating.

Tools Used During The Stone Age

An interesting fact about the ancient stone tools is that most of the tools were aimed for the use of right-handed people, which means that the tendency of right-handedness of the majority was still persistent.

• Even though many types of stone tools were available million years ago, the go-to Stone Age tool for early humans was the spear and arrow. They were composite tools that were made of a wooden shaft and tied to a rock. Spears were deadly weapons. The arrowhead was made of pointy wood, but the tail was often made with feathers.
• Spears, bows, and arrows formed an important weapon for riders and hunters. The tip was sharpened to form a triangular leaf shape and was thrown or pushed down the throat of an animal of the enemy in combat.
• Axes were a creation of the Stone Age. Combined with a spear and arrow, the ax formed one of the major stone weapons of that age. Axes had a more limited range and were often helpful in close combats. Apart from slitting an animal, these tools were also for chopping wood and cutting undergrowth.
• Hammerstones were one of the simplest yet effective stone tools of the ancient age. Years ago, the hard and unbreakable hammerstones were used as a weapon for crunching animal bones or breaking other stones.
• Hammerstones were also used for flaking. This process included breaking larger rocks into smaller pieces. The larger flakes were sharpened to form tools like arrows, spears, and axes. Scrapers were made of stones, and they varied in size depending on the work they were needed for.
• The extremely sharp flakes were separated as choppers. Choppers were used for cutting the flesh of animals. Choppers were also used to cut plant roots and plants. Fiber and fabrics used for warm clothes and portable tents were also cut using choppers.
• However, not all weapons of the Stone Age were made of stone. Other raw materials such as bones, ivory, and antlers were also used for making utility tools and weapons years ago in the Stone Age, especially during the later phases of the Stone Age.
• Examples of some tools and weapons that were not made of stones in the Prehistoric Age include ivory and bone needle, chisel-like tools for carving antlers, bone, and wood, as well as tools to carve into cave walls. In the later years, tools became more diverse for a faster pace of innovation.
• A tool was carved in such a way so that it can be used as a multi-purpose tool. Although the Stone Age was believed to be an unsophisticated age, many innovations took place in this era.
• It was an era of unskilled labor relative to the present day. However, a number of discoveries took place in this era. This demonstrates that Homo sapiens were highly innovative and sturdy in nature; they coped with an environment that was alarmingly harsh.

What were houses like in the Stone Age?

As societies began to become more civilized, the Stone Age people needed permanent houses to settle in. A Neolithic Orkney village called Skara Brae is one of the best-preserved locations that contain groups of Stone Age huts.

• The transformation from being hunter-gatherers to Neolithic farmers did not occur overnight; it was a prolonged process that carried on for many years. From the beginning till the end, the houses of the Stone Age have evolved and ended closely in a form that resembles our modern houses.
• The earliest forms of houses in the Stone Age were caves. Humans or Homo sapiens lived in caves for a long time, allowing them to take shelter from wild animals. Cave paintings are major proof that cave dwellers existed all over the world.
• Before the Stone Age people decided to settle down, they roamed from one place to another like nomads in search of food. Light, portable huts, and tepees made of tree bark, or the skin of animals were perfect for portable houses.
• The custom of permanent homes came into being in the late Stone Age. These houses were rectangular in shape and built-in larger settlements. The walls of the houses were made of wattle and daub and had a thatched roof.
• Daub was a mixed product of crushed chalk., chopped straw, and water. It was made into a thick paste and poured into the holes of woven wattles. The roof was made of straw, and they did not have any windows.
• Skara Brae of Scotland is a preserved village of Stone Age houses that gives elaborate details about homes of during the Stone Age.
• These houses had one rectangular room with curved edges. They were connected to one another with paved alleys.
• The entrance of the house was low; they would put a large and heavy rock slab as the door of the house.
• The homes at Skara Brae featured many Stone Age furniture such as cupboards, chairs, and stools that were made mainly of stones as well.