M a tt M o s s & S a r a h A bda l l a h
T h e Cave m a n C h r o n i c le s :
N o v e m be r 1 s t, 2 0 1 3
S TONE A GE S PECIAL (PRE)HISTORICAL HOUSING Do you think you could survive in the wild without easy access to food, clothing, or more importantly, shelter? As you know, early humans were hunter-gatherers. That means they would stay in one place until the food ran out. When it ran out, the people would pack up and move to another location. Because of their frequent movement, the shelters they used had to be easy to put up and easy to take back down. So how did people go about building these shelters? Although mankind has changed a lot since then, people still took advantage of the resources available to them. The materials available to them depended on where they were located geographically. People in Africa most likely lived in tents crafted from animal skins or branches. In a colder climate, people probably built huts from bones and animal hides. Some people relied on natural shelters, such as caves or other natural rock formations. Following the discovery of fire, people began to put hearths (pictured right) in their huts to cook food and eat meals
with one another. In addition to serving as a place to cook food, hearths were also used as places to socialize. After the agricultural advancements that were discovered during the Neolithic Revolution were introduced to mankind, houses started to catch on, which were more complex shelters that offered people a settled way of life. These “Neolithic Houses� were made from mud bricks and coated with plaster. Trapdoors were also made on the roof, with ladders leading to the roof in both the interior and exterior of the homes.