Thanks to the following paragraphs we will go through the shortest stage of the Stone Age: the Mesolithic.
What is the Mesolithic?
The best way to answer this question is to contextualize the Mesolithic within prehistory:
The prehistory It is the time before the appearance of the first written document and is divided into two ages: the Stone Age and the Metal Age. Each of them is divided into three different stages depending on the main characteristics that define the evolution of life on the planet.
In the following chronological axis you can see all the temporal divisions that human beings have experienced.
Approaching the moment at hand, we are left in the Stone Age, which is the longest temporal division of all by far, since it is counted in millions of years. This age is divided into the Paleolithic, the Mesolithic and the Neolithic. The following main characteristics could be highlighted from each of these subdivisions:
Paleolithic: It begins with the appearance of the first human being as a species and extends for millions of years based on a nomadic human life. The mastery of fire is always pointed out as one of his fundamental contributions.
Mesolithic: It coincides with the end of the last ice age and represents a short period of transition between nomadism and sedentary lifestyle, in which the foundations of everything that would come in the following stage are laid.
Neolithic: It is the last period of the Stone Age and represents a true revolution at all levels. So much so that some of the things from then have been maintained to this day. Among so many revolutionary advances, one that stands out the most is the invention of the wheel.
The diagram that appears below shows in a single glance the distribution of prehistory into three stages.
The term Mesolithic comes from Greek mesos“intermediate”, and lithos, “stone”. Thus, it can be translated as “Intermediate Stone” and John Lubbock began using it in his work of 1895. Prehistoric Times. At the time when this British banker and researcher developed his work, the Mesolithic was not given much importance because it was understood that it was simply the step between the Paleolithic and the Neolithic. Today, there are still people who ignore this subdivision and argue that the Stone Age is only made up of the Paleolithic and the Neolithic.
What is the origin of the Mesolithic?
Changes in historical stages do not happen overnight, but rather lead to a process of transition and settlement towards new evolutionary milestones. For this reason and the absence of written testimonies, locating the beginning of a stage and the end of another in cases like this in which there is no major event that gives rise to the step, is quite a challenge and the reason why there is so much disparity when it comes to placing each of the prehistoric periods.
Taking into account what was stated in the previous paragraph, we could place the beginning of the Mesolithic around the year 12,000 BC. C. and mark its completion approximately in the year 10,000 BC. C. (ten up, ten down). However, a geological moment can be determined that gives rise to the end of the Paleolithic and the beginning of this new stage: a climate change.
Around the year 12,000 BC. C. the last glaciation ended (the geological Pleistocene ends) and the Holocene (one of the divisions of time in Geology that serves as a reference to represent what happened on the planet, that is, it is analogous to the division in History that we make between prehistory and history with its stages and substages) with a planet climate similar to that we have today, perhaps somewhat colder due to the global warming to which the Earth is currently subjected. This entry into the Holocene meant that temperatures rose and that fauna and flora literally gained ground on the ice that occupied a good part of the continents during the Paleolithic.
Before delving into the Mesolithic, we will allow ourselves a “stop along the way” to use the following sheet to establish its location.
What are the economic and social characteristics of the Mesolithic?
The circumstances of this stage are peculiar as it is a bridge period between two others, as has already been mentioned in the previous sections. This circumstance means that the Mesolithic is characterized by being in full duality between what came before and what was to come. Thus, a series of characteristics can be cited that, in relation to the Paleolithic and Neolithic, may sound familiar, but more “moderate”.
Among them, the following should be highlighted:
Thanks to climate change, little by little some species, such as the mammoth, disappeared and others adapted to the new circumstances more conducive to growth and expansion.
Due to the aforementioned characteristic, human beings found more food than normal in those places where they arrived, since we must not forget their condition as nomads (they changed location when food and/or water was scarce).
As they found more resources, they were able to stay longer in a place that, being warmer, allowed them to start camping outdoors in a kind of improvised village. In this way, they abandoned the caves as temporary shelters. Here the first vestiges of sedentary lifestyle typical of the Neolithic are shown where, instead of sleeping under the stars, they began to generate constructions as homes.
The need to hunt in a more “refined” way and the evolution of prey towards smaller species led to the development of hunting techniques and weapons: they carved and polished the stones that served as raw material to manufacture them. Among them, the ax with a handle stands out, the microliths (smaller carved stones) that were very suitable for making arrows and the invention of the bow whose strings were made with the tendons of the animals they hunted. The bow and arrow also served as weapons of defense and attack.
Food diversification increased as the species of fruits and vegetables evolved and fishing began to take center stage. All of this meant an improvement and enrichment in the human diet.
The previous characteristic has as a consequence the increase in population and the emergence of the first outlines of true sedentary human communities. An example, which serves as confirmation, is the case of Katal Huyuk which is one of the first confirmed “cities” in the history of humans and dates back to this prehistoric period.
At this time, specialization, division of tasks, and true social differentiation did not appear.
With so many features, the most logical thing is that we gather all the information and do a little work with it. Surely the art, which comes next, can wait a while.
What were art and beliefs like in the Mesolithic?
ART
Remains have been found on practically all continents and their main characteristics according to the different disciplines are as follows:
In paint:
It was performed on rock walls (parietal art), caves and even on the skins that served to protect them from the cold. The color for painting was reduced to red ocher. The techniques varied depending on the instruments used to paint: reeds, pads, rocks… In general, the paintings were based on the abstract and geometric. As in the preceding period, there are hardly any human representations. However, when they appear they are found in hunting scenes, dances, rituals… with more dynamism (sense of movement) and the figures are more stylized. An example of notable Mesolithic painting has been found in the Cueva de Manos, in the valley of the Pintura River in Patagonia (Argentina).
© Left – Maxima20
– Creative Commons
© Right – Carlos Zito
– Creative Commons
In sculpture and ceramics:
The relief sculptures stand out, that is, figures sculpted directly into the wall (in the rock) in such a way that it seems that they are embedded. They also created free-standing carved figures: an example of these sculptures was found at Nevali Cori (this was later a Neolithic settlement) in Turkey. Little by little, people also began to carve on wood, as forests began to have more importance and the use of wood for various things became more common. A trend appeared to generate personal decoration objects and make tools both to carry out tasks that are called domestic today and to hunt without damaging the skins of the prey. Ceramics with a containment function were developed. The objects created were also decorated with simple geometric shapes and, of course, red.
© Mazbin
– Creative Commons
In Architecture:
In the previous section, it has already been mentioned that they used to live in temporary outdoor settlements. However, to protect themselves from the cold they continued to use caves, although they began to make very rudimentary constructions based on branches, trunks and stones half buried in the ground. Once again, we see signs of the transition to the true specialized communities and sedentary homes of the Neolithic.
© Albolandwex
– Creative Commons
RELIGIOUS BELIEFS
Linking with art, it can be said that they developed religious worship through cemeteries and sanctuaries. In these places, there were sculptures of animals and anthropomorphic figures in reliefs or sculpted in stone and other human figures made with clay.
The deceased were buried with personal objects, which suggests that they carried out burial rites.
© Didier Descouens
– creative commons
It seems that the Mesolithic culture, like that of any historical stage, deserves its space, its time for study and, why not, to recreate and reflect on it as well. So the following worksheets may be a good way to do it.
What is the importance of the Mesolithic?
Throughout the text, clear evidence has been given of the reasons why the Mesolithic is a transcendental period and not merely another 2,000 years of prehistoric evolution.
During this time, the foundations of the great revolution that represented the Neolithic were laid, since during these years, the Homo sapiens They began to maintain stationary settlements (they remained in the same place, in rudimentary villages during certain seasons), their diet changed until it was more varied and they significantly improved their hunting techniques, artistic creations,…