Structures of the prehistoric period, although interesting for archaeological reasons, have little or no architectural value, and will only be lightly touched upon. The remains may be classified under : i. Monoliths , or single upright stones, also known as menhirs, a well-known example 63 feet high, 14 feet in diameter, and weighing 260 tons, being at Carnac, Brittany. Another example is at Locmariaker, also in Brittany (No. 2 B). ii. Dolmens (Daul, a table, and maen, a stone), consisting of one large flat stone supported by upright stones. Examples are to be found near Maidstone and other places in England, also in Ireland, Northern France, the Channel Islands, Italy (No. 2 F) and India. iii. Cromlechs , or circles of stone, as at Stonehenge (No. 2 G), Avebury (Wilts), and elsewhere, consisting of a series of upright stones arranged in a circle and supporting horizontal slabs. iv. Tumuli , or burial mounds, were probably prototypes of the Pyramids of Egypt (No. 4) and the beehive huts found in Wales, Cornwall, Ireland (No. 2 D, E) and elsewhere. That at New Grange (Ireland) resembles somewhat the Treasury of Atreus at Mycenae (No. 15). v. Lake Dwellings , as discovered in the lakes of Switzerland, Italy and Ireland consisted of wooden huts supported on piles, and were so placed for protection against hostile attacks of all kinds. Prehistoric Architecture Divided according to period as follows:- i.Paleolithic Age ii.Mesolithic Age iii.Neolithic Age iv.Chalcolithic Age v.Bronze Age
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Structures of the prehistoric period, although interesting for archaeological reasons, have little or no
architectural value, and will only be lightly touched upon.
The remains may be classified under :
i. Monoliths, or single upright stones, also known as menhirs, a well-known example 63 feet high, 14 feet in
diameter, and weighing 260 tons, being at Carnac, Brittany. Another example
is at Locmariaker, also in Brittany (No. 2 B).
ii. Dolmens (Daul, a table, and maen, a stone), consisting of one large flat stone supported by upright stones.
Examples are to be found near Maidstone and other places in England, also in
Ireland, Northern France, the Channel Islands, Italy (No. 2 F) and India.
iii. Cromlechs, or circles of stone, as at Stonehenge (No. 2 G), Avebury (Wilts), and elsewhere, consisting of a
series of upright stones arranged in a circle and supporting horizontal slabs.
iv. Tumuli, or burial mounds, were probably prototypes of the Pyramids of Egypt (No. 4) and the beehive huts
found in Wales, Cornwall, Ireland (No. 2 D, E) and elsewhere. That at New Grange (Ireland) resembles somewhat
the Treasury of Atreus at Mycenae (No. 15).
v. Lake Dwellings, as discovered in the lakes of Switzerland, Italy and Ireland consisted of wooden huts
supported on piles, and were so placed for protection against hostile attacks of
all kinds.
Pre
his
tori
c A
rch
itec
ture
Divided according to period as follows:-
i.Paleolithic Age
ii.Mesolithic Age
iii.Neolithic Age
iv.Chalcolithic Age
v.Bronze Age
Pale
olit
hic
Age
It covers the greatest portion of humanity's time (roughly 99% of human history) on Earth, extending from 2.5
or 2.6 million years ago, with the introduction of stone tools by hominids such as Homo habilis, to the
introduction of agriculture and the end of the Pleistocene around 10,000 BC. The Paleolithic era ended with the Mesolithic, or in areas with an early neolithisation, the Epipaleolithic. During the Paleolithic humans were
grouped together in small scale societies such as bands and gained their subsistence from gathering plants
and hunting wild animals.[12] The Paleolithic is characterized by the use of knapped stone tools, although at the
time, humans also used wood and bone tools. Other organic commodities were adapted for use as tools,
including leather and vegetable fibers; however, given their nature, these have not been preserved to any great
degree.Throughout the stone age, man was a food gatherer.
Lower Paleolithic Age
The oldest recognizable tools made by members of the family of man are simple stone choppers, such as those
discovered at Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania. Lower Paleolithic stone industries of the early species of humans
called Homo erectus. Stone tools of this period are of the core type, made by chipping the stone to form a
cutting edge, or of the flake type, fashioned from fragments struck off a stone. Hand axes were the typical tool
of these early hunters and food-gatherers.
Middle Paleolithic Age
It includes the Mousterian culture, often associated with Neanderthal man, an early form of man, living between
40,000 and 100,000 years ago. Neanderthal remains are often found in caves with evidence of the use of fire.
Neanderthals were hunters of prehistoric mammals, and their cultural remains, though unearthed chiefly in
Europe, have been found also in N Africa, Palestine, and Siberia. Stone tools of this period are of the flake
tradition, and bone implements, such as needles, indicate that crudely sewn furs and skins were used as body
coverings. Since the dead were painted before burial, a kind of primitive religion may have been practiced.