The Eras of the Stone-Age

Whenever we read history books, we see that there are words like Neolithic and Chalcolithic. Some of us may find this very confusing and, we are not able to understand what they mean. And if you're one of those people who don't understand and feel these words confusing, then you're not the only one. I too sometimes find these words confusing. All the words that have ‘lithic’ in them are related to the evolution of stone tools. So, here I have given 3 words and what they mean:

Cave paintings in Bhimbetka

The first period was Palaeolithic. Palaeo (old or ancient - reference to early times)- 

lithic (related to stone, in this case stone tools) was the earliest period of tool making we know about till now. Palaeolithic itself is divided into 3 parts: Lower Palaeolithic that is the oldest, Middle Palaeolithic and Upper Palaeolithic or the latest. In the Palaeolithic period humans were hunter-gatherers. They were leading a nomadic life and were not settled in a certain place. They used to hunt wild animals like deer, mammoths, wild pigs, wild buffalos etc. and used caves as a temporary form of shelter. The first cave paintings too were made in the Upper Palaeolithic period in cave shelters like Bhimbetka in Madhya Pradesh, India. 

A cave shelter in Bhimbetka

The second period was Mesolithic. Mesolithic (Middle Stone-Age) was the second earliest tool making period we know about till now. In the Mesolithic period humans were still hunter-gatherers, fishermen and in some places were even domesticating animals like cattle, pigs, and fowl! Humans were now able to eat and drink animal products like milk and eggs. Even though humans in some places were domesticating animals, they were still living in caves. Bhimbetka was still inhabited in the Mesolithic period. 

Illustration by- Pronoy Mukherjee

The last period was Neolithic. Neolithic (New Stone-Age) was the last period of the evolution of stone tools. In the Neolithic period, humans in most places had started domesticating animals and plants. They were planting crops like barley and other cereals and were also domesticating animals like cattle, pigs, fowl, goats, and sheep. This enabled the Stone-Agers to start settling down in villages. The humans started building thatched huts and pens to keep their livestock.

After reading this post you all must be understanding what these eras mean. So, the next time you read a book about the Stone-Age, I hope you will understand what those words mean.