Middle Stone Age_History Notes Form One
Middle Stone Age
The Middle Stone Age covered approximately 500,000 and 50,000 years ago. The main difference between the Middle Stone Age and the Old Stone Age lies in the quality of tools made.
During this period, tools were better and more specialised than Old Stone Age tools. Tools were smaller, sharper and easier to handle.
Examples of Middle Stone Age tools included spears, arrowheads, knives, scrapers and stone picks as shown in the figure below. The makers of tools in this period were Homo erectus and Homo sapiens.
Middle Stone Age societies developed the culture of obtaining food by hunting and gathering. They also managed to live in different environments, such as grasslands, rock shelters, river valleys, riverine areas, and highlands. They also did rock painting and personal decoration. They also developed religions.
The major technological developments during this period was the discovery and use of fire. Fire was made by striking stones against each other.
Later on, they learnt how to make fire by hand drilling a stick on a dry wood, as illustrated in figure below.
With fire and relatively advanced tools, human beings controlled their environment better than before. They managed to clear bushes and forests.
This enabled them to live in thick woodland and mountainous regions. Evidence of the Middle Stone Age tools has been found at Koobi Fora and Chesowanja in Kenya and Swartkrans in South Africa.
Advantages of using fire
Using fire enabled human beings to roast food instead of eating it raw.
Human beings could also burn trees and bushes to drive out or kill wild animals.
In addition fire enabled human beings to move to and live in the cold regions of Europe and Asia. This was possible because man could warm his body by using fire.
Lastly, fire was used to turn gums into glue used to join spear and arrow points onto shafts.
Physical changes in human beings during the Middle Stone Age
During this period, human beings (that is, Homo sapiens) became more intelligent than before. This is because they had developed bigger brains ranging between 900cc and 1,300cc.
Homo sapiens contained features of both Homo erectus and modern human beings. Their physical features include large bodies and heavy muscles. They also had thick chests, well-rounded foreheads, and smaller teeth than the Old Stone Age people.
During this period, human beings could prepare better tools from stones and wood. These enabled them to hunt large animals such as buffaloes, rhinoceros and elephants.
They hunted animals that provided sufficient food for families and communities. Men also engaged in other activities like fishing and gathering.
Activity
Read various reliable online and library sources on Middle Stone Age, then identify the aspects of knowledge and skills that can be applied in the present life.