The Stone Age is a prehistoric cultural stage characterized by the creation and use of stone tools. It is usually divided into three separate periods based on the degree of sophistication in the fashioning and use of tools:
-
Paleolithic Period (Old Stone Age): This period started when humans began to use stones as tools, which is believed to have occurred sometime before 3.3 million years ago. It lasted until about 8000 BCE and is the earliest and longest of the Stone Age periods. During this period, humans mainly used a type of stone called flint, which could easily be shaped into sharp pointed tools that didnt go blunt. Bones, antlers, shells, amber, animal teeth, and mammoth ivory were also used to make tools as well as jewelry.
-
Mesolithic Period (Middle Stone Age): This period followed the Paleolithic period and is characterized by the development of more advanced tools and weapons, such as the bow and arrow. It lasted from about 8000 BCE to 5000 BCE.
-
Neolithic Period (New Stone Age): This period is characterized by the development of agriculture and the domestication of animals. It lasted from about 5000 BCE to the end of the Stone Age, which is marked by the beginning of the Bronze Age.
These three periods are recognized in Europe, and they are commonly used to divide the timeline of human technological prehistory into functional periods.
