Talk about First inventions of man Implies to mention a series of tools and ideas that today are very basic and indispensable, because it is difficult to imagine what would be the life of the present man if there were no such inventions.
Perhaps it is not the most important discoveries, but those first expressions of intelligence materialized in objects and processes that meant a great novelty in the life of prehistoric man.
The earliest evidence: Stone Tools
The need for survival, specifically as to how to get daily food, led primitive man to create objects that could help him with this task.
Hammers, axes and even species of sharp tools carved in stone were the first forms designed to carry out the activity of hunting, the main source of food in prehistory, as well as to cut or condition the meat obtained from large animals.
Until some years ago, the fossils found by then in archaeological excavations pointed to the oldest stone tools corresponding to the Olduvayense Stage, whose name comes from the site of the site of the Olduwai Gorge (Tanzania).
With an age of 2.6 million years, it was believed that these artifacts were the first stone tools and were attributed to Australopithecus garhi .
Figure 1. Characteristic carving of Olduvayense industry.
But in 2009, during excavations in Dikika, Ethiopia, skeletal remains of animals dating to about 3.4 million years ago were found, which had cut marks, indicating that their predator would have used some type of sharp tool.
Subsequently, in 2011 a group of researchers found a series of stone artifacts in Lake Turkana, Kenya at the site called Lomekwi, which dates back to about 3.3 million years.
These findings have greatly impacted the theories about the evolution of man, since they involve the development of a human species prior to Australopithecus garhi . At the same time it reveals new evidence concerning the changes of the human brain in history.
Fire, a mystery for archaeologists
Until now, it has not been possible to establish the exact moment in the history of the world in which man began to use the fire under his control in order to take advantage of his action on food, as a source of heat and protection or his Useful in the manufacture of tools.
It has been impossible to define whether the archaeological data found in the research sites had natural or man-initiated origins, since there are many controversial inferences and opinions.
It has only been possible to establish a range within which man is likely to have begun to control fire: at least 120,000 years but not beyond 700,000 years.
Now the impact of the discovery of fire in the history of man has been enormous. It is presumed that primitive man's first contact with fire was caused by naturally occurring fires, most likely by lightning falling into wooded or bushy areas, events whose consequences drew attention to the benefits he derived from it.
From that moment on, he set out to create it, control it and take advantage of its benefits at will.
One of the great consequences of the use of fire in the earliest times of human history was, in fact, the same evolution.
When changing from a diet based on raw foods to one in which food was subjected to the action of fire, it acquired a greater nutritional value and caloric, an effect directly related to the biological development of the first humans.
Not to mention the immense technological and cultural advances that have brought fire to the history of humanity, being an important source of energy and a transformative element that allowed the development of areas such as biology, chemistry and metallurgy, among others.
The first pigments, signs of social evolution
In addition to being the basis of an industry of great importance in our day, the creation of colors from chemical substances has deeper implications, referring to the evolution of man as a social being.
The discovery of pigments and tools for their shredding in a Zambian cave in the town of Twin Rivers, whose antiquity ranges from 350,000 to 400,000 years, not only have a technological significance, but suggest the use of some form of Language and social behavior for the time.
Archaeologists argue that these pigments were used for a kind of ritual in which the body was covered with them, as an expression of art. The fact that man was involved in this type of activity obviously suggests the existence of social groups in which it was necessary to communicate with one another in order to carry out the ritual or social event in question.
Hence the great importance attributed to the invention of pigments, being a key to research in matters as important as the evolution of language.
And is that the use of signs and symbols used for this body art is a new fact that can change the theories of researchers about the first uses of figures and representations as a form of communication.
CONCLUSIONS
Although they seem very basic today, all these inventions were the basis for many of the things that today are part of modern life, being the beginning of many technological processes and / or important tools.
Moreover, these are inventions that changed the life of man when it comes to surviving or interacting with each other. Achievements that defined cultures, beliefs and behaviors over the years and that even in modern history, continue to have an impact that changes us every day.
References
- Berezow, A. (2016). American Council on Science and Health: How and When Did Humans Discover Fire?. Retrieved from www.acsh.org.
- Choi, C. (2015). Livescience: World's Oldest Stone Tools Predate Humans. Retrieved from livescience.com.
- Earliest evidence of art found (2000). Retrieved from bbc.co.uk.
- Gowlett, J. (2015). Royal Society Publishing: The discovery of fire by humans: a long and convoluted process. Retrieved from royalsocietypublishing.org.
- Himelfarb, E. (2000). Archeology Archive: Prehistoric Body Painting. Retrieved from archaeology.org.
- Oldowan Tools from Lokalalei, Kenya. (2016). Retrieved from www.humanorigins.si.edu.
- Seemaw, S. et al (1997). Proquest: 2.5-Million-Year-Old Stone Tools From Gona, Ethiopia. Retrieved from search.proquest.com.