Perhaps the most complex task of the human sciences, especially for history, archeology and anthropology, is to define where the "human", that is, how to date the origin of humanity? Within the school history studies there is a resource to ponder this impasse, adapting what can be learned with what is researched by specialists. It's about the division between Prehistory and History. "History", didactically speaking, begins with the appearance of the first civilizations, that is, with the emergence of the first cities, the first political systems and systems of writing. already the Prehistory it would correspond to the period before the first civilizations, but it presents elements and aspects that, in one way or another, prepared the ground for its advent.
In this sense, Prehistory is an area of knowledge shared between several disciplines, which, each in its own way, form a mosaic of understanding of man's pre-civilizational past. In addition to archeology and anthropology, biology (especially the
Paleontology) it is also part of the set of these disciplines. It is from her that the nomenclatures that classify the hominids, that is, the groups of prehistoric beings who resembled Man today. Hominid genera varied in some main segments and their temporality also ranged from five million years to approximately 120 thousand years, as we will highlight below.The oldest hominids are of the genus Ardipithecus and Austrolopithecus. O Ardipithecus ramidus, for example, has its presence on Earth, confirmed by experts, ranging between 5 and 4 million years. the one of the Australopithecus afarensis varies between 3.9 and 3 million years. The features and behavior of these hominids were far less versatile than the genus. Homo that would come later. The performance of the homo habilis, for example, ranged from 2.4 to 1.5 million years. the erectus man, between 1.8 million to 300 thousand years. As for the successor of the latter, Homo neanderthalensis, ranged between 230 and 30,000 years. O Homo sapiens, which constitutes the human being as we know it today, appeared probably around 120,000 years ago as a variation of the Homo neanderthalensis.
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Generally speaking, these groups of hominids are classified as hunters and gatherers, that is, they did not have fixed territory. They were basically practitioners of nomadism. Archeology and history, through dating systems such as Carbon 14 and thermoluminescence, divide the action of these hominids into the following phases: o Paleolithic, or Chipped Stone Age, it's the Neolithic, or Polished Stone Age. These divisions also occur through the degree of mastery of rustic technology. The use of artifacts such as stone, wood, bone pieces and pottery is crucial for such classification.
The last phase of Prehistory would be the Age of Metals, which corresponds to the period in which man came to have full control of fire and began to melt metals, obtaining bronze, for example. This period dates from 6,000 to 5,000 years ago and coincides with the appearance of the first civilizations.
Another point to be highlighted in relation to Prehistory and the documents studied by specialists in this area is the rock art (see image at the top of the page), which contains the first symbols and records of Man's action, thus having an inestimable value.
By Me. Cláudio Fernandes
"It has already been said that Prehistory is a continuity of Natural History, with an analogy between organic evolution and the progress of culture"
a) Several sciences help in the study, such as anthropology, archeology and chemistry.
b) Prehistory can be divided into Paleolithic and Neolithic, with regard to the technical process of working stone.
c) About the Paleolithic, we can say that it was the period of great artistic development, whose example is the anthropomorphic and zoomorphic paintings carried out in caves.
d) The Neolithic presented an artistic development different from the Paleolithic one, through the geometric traces of drawing and painting.
e) The first human-like beings were Australopithecus and Java Man who were much more adapted than Neanderthal Man.
Examine the three propositions, judging whether they are true or false. Then check the correct alternative.
I. Prehistory, the period between the appearance of man on Earth and the use of writing, is traditionally divided into two periods: Paleolithic and Neolithic.
II. The domestication of animals and the emergence of agriculture only took place after the invention of writing, which was, therefore, after the Neolithic.
III. The duration of the Paleolithic is much longer than that of the Neolithic, involving technical levels that are naturally more primitive.
a) All propositions are true.
b) Only propositions I and II are true.
c) Only propositions I and III are true.
d) Only propositions II and III are true.
e) All propositions are false.
