What do the artifacts tell us about the lives of early humans?

In the past week, my group looked at some artifacts from early civilizations. After examining these artifacts, we concluded that they were primitive tools used by early humans to make paintings and sculptures.

For example, we saw large rocks which were used to crush and grind minerals, which were then mixed with animal fat and vegetable oil to make paint. Different types of minerals would produce different colors. Early humans probably painted with brushes made of moss, fur or human hair. Apart from using brushes, early humans may have also blown paint through hollow bird bones to create special effects like shaggy-looking fur on horses and other animals. Another interesting artifact we saw was a black rock that was probably used to make fire, maybe to light up the dark caves. There were also long pointy rocks that were probably used to carve sculptures. They look really similar to modern sculptor's picks.

Examples of cave art tools

http://www.bradshawfoundation.com/france/niaux_cave3.php

Some early humans were good artists and sculptors! I especially like this painting of a bison in the Altamira cave in Spain:

Painting of a bison in the Altamira cave in Spain

http://whc.unesco.org/include/tool_image.cfm?src=/uploads/sites/gallery/full/site_0310_0001.jpg

In Le Tuc d'Audoubert cave in France, there is an altar made of clay sculptures of a bull and cow bison. The sculptures were probably carved with tools similar to the long sharp artifacts that we saw.

Altar of bull and cow Bison sculptures in Le Tuc d'Audoubert cave in France

http://www.bradshawfoundation.com/bison-tuc-d-audoubert2.php

The artifacts we saw and the cave paintings and sculptures tell us a lot of important things about early humans and how they lived. They were intelligent and resourceful. They were able to make tools to survive and to express themselves. The paintings show us that early humans hunted and killed animals for food, even big and fierce animals like mammoths and bison. They were superstitious and worshiped spirits and powerful animals like bison. Early humans were able to control fire because they could paint in the darkness of the caves. We can also tell that early humans lived in groups and communicated with each other. Even if they did not have a written language, they were able to express themselves through images.

In conclusion, I think that early humans actually have a lot in common with us even though thousands of years separate us. While the tools and technology may change, the human need to live together, to eat and to communicate has not changed at all.

Ancient Rock Art & Cave Paintings of the World by BoilerPlateFilms




Links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stone_Age
http://www.bradshawfoundation.com/france/niaux_cave4.php
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cave_painting
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Ancient_History/Human_Evolution/Paleolithic_Age