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By this time, man had become very
capable hunters/gatherers, and had scattered all over the world.
Scientists have found remains of these early people in Europe, Asia,
America, Africa, all over, really.
Life was harsh, but they had plenty of
food and warm shelter. Many members of these groups lived to a very
old age.
The Homo sapiens sapiens who lived in
Europe were called Cro-Magnon.
HOMES: These
early men built permanent homes, to shelter from the long, harsh
winter of the Ice Age. In the summer, they followed the herds, and
lived in tents.
Winter homes were Ice Age huts,
built tepee style, from branches and mammoth bones, covered with
animal skins. These huts were used for many years, so they built
them carefully. Holes were dug, deeply into the ground. Poles were
inserted into these holes, and then tied tightly together at the
point of the tepee, at the top, with string made from animal guts.
Warm furs were laid over this structure and sewn tightly in place.
Large rocks were piled around the bottom, to help hold the hut
together.
Some huts were built to hold only a
small group of people. In the Ukraine, remains of "long
huts" have been found, large enough to hold an entire tribe.
Long huts had several entrances, with rooms for several fires
inside.
In the summer, the tribe moved,
following the animals. They lived in sturdy tents, that could be
moved from place to place. As winter approached, they returned to
their winter shelters. Quite often, they had to chase out the wild
life that had moved in, during their absence!
FOOD: These
hunter-gatherers ate a variety of seeds, berries, roots and nuts,
as did their ancestors. They also ate fish and seemed to have an
ample supply of freshly caught game.
Their lives were not a
constant struggle for survival because they were such good
hunters. They learned to organize hunts and to cure and store food
for the long winter. Hunting was done individually and in groups.
They used traps, which allowed them to catch food while they busy
doing something else. Fisherman used bows and arrows, nets woven
from vines, fish hooks, and even poisons. Some groups built rafts
and canoes, to catch bigger fish in deeper waters.
CLOTHING: In
colder climates, early man learned to soften leather to make warm,
comfortable clothes, sewn together with string made from animal
guts, using needles made from bone. In warmer climates, they made
cooler clothes from woven grass, and even from bark.
They made necklaces and bracelets
out of shells, teeth, feathers, flowers, and bone. Some decorated
their bodies with paint and tattoos, made from natural dyes. These
may have been signs of social standing or tribal ID's
(identification signs).
ART:
As well as jewelry, they created pottery, and fired it
to give it luster, strength, and durability. They created little
statues, carved from ivory and bone.
TOOLS
& WEAPONS: Man had learned to be a skilled
toolmaker. Weapons included stone axes, knives, spears, harpoons,
wooden bows & sharp stone tipped arrows.
Both the saber-toothed tiger and
the woolly mammoth became extinct during this period, but that
more probably reflects a shift in climate rather than hunting by
humans.
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