ANT 101 Lecture Notes - Lecture 31: Lower Paleolithic, Homo Erectus, Europe 1
Document Summary
Many artifacts may have been lost from crude blowing up of the caves they used. Presence of animals indicate that the climate was somewhat warmer than it is today. Also suggests area around zhoukoudian was a mosaic of forested hills, open plains, lakes, and rivers. More skulls tend to be found than other parts because of how resistant to destruction they are and because they are more easily recognized. Increase in brain size over time can be seen from materials in zhoukoudian: layers of cave date from 700,000 years ago to 200,000 years ago. Comes from term coup de poing (axe wielded in the hand) Used for cutting, sawing, digging, bashing, boring large holes, etc. Oldest acheulean handaxes known from site of konso-gardula in southern. 700,000 year old site of kilombe in kenya contains a collection of these handaxes. Stone artifacts made by process of reduction: removal of flakes from a core.
