Early Hominids
(prehistoric humans)
Chapter 2
Australopithecus Afarensis:
“Southern Ape”
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aka: Lucy.
Discovered by anthropologist,
Donald Johanson, in Africa in an
area known as, the Afar Triangle.
Lucy was 3’ tall and had a mix of
ape and human features.
Her arms were long but her hands
and feet were similar to modern
humans.
She had a large head and her
forehead and jaw stuck out from
her face.
Lucy was a biped.
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Remains of other hominids have been found in the same area.
Scientists guess that Lucy’s relatives lived in Africa, about 3 to
4 million years ago.
Anthropologists agree that Lucy was an early form of humans.
Lucy had many advantages because she was a biped:
-gather and carry food easily
-use their hands to defend their young
Lucy’s brain was 1/3 our size.
Scientists have not found any tools from Lucy’s time and they
don’t think these early hominids could speak.
Homo Habilis
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aka: Handy Man
Discovered in Africa, by a husband-wife team Louis and Mary
Leakey.
The Leakeys named their discovery Homo Habilis, or Handy
Man because the artifacts they discovered that looked like
tools.
Handy Man also had a combination of human and ape features.
They were bipeds but they were taller than Lucy with slightly
more humanlike features.
Handy Man’s brain was twice the size of Lucy’s.
Handy Man lived in groups, this allowed them to work together
to:
gather food
protect themselves
Handy Man: The Toolmaker
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Handy Man lived 1.5 to 2 million years ago.
They were more advanced than Lucy, however, his tools were
very simple. They used:
rocks as chopping tools
sharp pieces of stone for cutting
animal bones as digging sticks
Making a tool takes some thought. They had to imagine the
tool, then plan how to craft it and then make it. They may have
passed this knowledge down.
These tools allowed Handy Man to lead a better life than Lucy.
With their tools they could:
cut meat off of dead animals
crack animal bones
dig traps for small animals
Homo Erectus
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aka: Upright Man
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A third type of hominid was discovered in 1891 by Eugene Dubois. It was
found on the island of Java off the coast of Asia. He was found before Lucy
or Handy Man.
Upright Man was around much longer than any hominid group.
Scientists believe that they were the first to migrate out of Africa. Their
remains have been found in parts of Asia and Europe.
Upright Man was taller and thinner than earlier hominids. Their bones
were strong and they were good walkers and runners.
The face was much more like Modern Humans. Their foreheads were
round and smooth, but they still had a jaw and brow that stuck out.
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Traveling with Fire
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Upright Man still had Handy Man’s tools, plus he had
a bigger brain. So, Upright Man was able to improve
Handy Man’s tools and invent better ones.
Upright Man’s biggest discovery was fire. Upright
Man used fire to cook their meat.
Upright Man built huts and used fire and animal skins
to keep warm and comfortable.
Building shelters gave Upright Man protection from
the weather and any animals that might want to hurt
them. He had the first hominid communities.
Homo Sapiens Neanderthalensis
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aka: Wise Man
Found in 1856 by mine workers in Germany’s Neander Valley.
Scientist believe that it is from this group of big brained
hominids that modern humans belong to.
Neanderthals walked upright, they were shorter and stockier
than modern humans but they were also stronger.
Neanderthals created more than 60 tools, including: knives,
spears, scrapers and sharp thin blades.
Neanderthals and their community.
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When Neanderthals were sick or injured, their
community took care of them.
When Neanderthals died they were buried in burial
mounds with hunting tools and flowers.
When they hunted, Neanderthals worked together in
groups to trap an animal.
Neanderthals existed side-by-side with Modern
Humans for 10,000 years. Scientists don’t know how
they disappeared. All they know is that only one type
of Homo sapiens survived to become early modern
humans.
Homo Sapiens Sapiens
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aka: Early Modern Humans or Doubly Wise Man
They lived in Europe, Asia, Australia and eventually (across
land bridges) North and South America.
High rounded skulls, large brains, small teeth and slender
bones. They were not adapted for the cold as well as
Neanderthals. They survived because they could create better
tools, shelter and clothing. They made hooks and spears and
the bow and arrow.
They made tools for engraving and sculpting (art) and made
needles to sew clothes of animal skins. They also built
shelters of earth and stone.
Early Modern Human: Cave Artists
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Thanks to the cave art left by the Early Modern
Humans we have a fascinating record of their lives.
They made sculptures, cave art, and even invented
instruments.
Scientists aren’t sure why they created their art,
maybe it was a teaching tool, decoration or maybe it
had to do with a religion.
One thing that this art show is that they had the ability
to dream and express their feelings. They didn’t just
survive, they lived!