Ancient Civilizations: Paleolithic Era to Ancient Egypt

Paleolithic Era

• Paleolithic: Refers to the ancient Stone Age.
• Nomads: People who frequently moved to find food and shelter or to flee from danger.
• Flint: A hard rock that, when struck, breaks into plates and produces a very sharp edge. This was used to manufacture bifaces (axes), cutting tools used on both sides.
• Burial: The deceased were often buried with objects known as grave goods.
• Funerary Rites: These rites reflected a concern for what happened after death.
• Art: A set of carved or painted objects, such as the Paleolithic Venus figurines.

Neolithic Era

• Cardium Pottery: A type of pottery from the Neolithic period.
• Neolithic: During this period, people transitioned from nomadic to sedentary lifestyles.
• Megaliths: Monuments constructed with large slabs of stone.
• Menhir: A large stone stuck vertically in the ground, thought to be a memorial or regional marker.
• Dolmen: A chamber formed by large vertical stones supporting a slab of coverage, used as a collective burial site.
• Cromlech: A group of vertical stone slabs arranged to form a horizontal circle. Its function may have been related to agriculture or solar worship.
• Eastern and Cantabrian Painting: Notable art styles from this period.

Ancient Civilizations

Mesopotamia

• Ziggurat: Structures used to communicate with the gods. Some were artificial mountains built from the superposition of several brick terraces. The top was the sanctuary, the residence of the gods.
• Materials: Clay bricks, either sun-dried or covered with bitumen to make them impervious to rain.

Ancient Egypt

• Pharaoh: Around 3000 BC, the Pharaoh ruled with the help of governors, staff, and the army.
• Privileged Class: Included officials, priests, nobles, and scribes.
• Non-Privileged Class: Included farmers, merchants, craftsmen, and slaves.
• Polytheism: Egyptians worshiped many gods, such as Ra (the sun god), Amun (god of Thebes), Osiris (god of the dead), Seth (god of darkness), Isis (goddess of fertility), Horus (god of war), Anubis (god of the underworld), and Thoth (inventor of writing and god of wisdom).
• Canopic Jars: Used to store the organs of the deceased: Falcon (intestines), Baboon (lungs), Jackal (stomach), and Human (liver).
• Mastaba: The first Egyptian tombs were simple, rectangular structures of low height called mastabas.
• Pyramids: The most significant pyramids are those of Cheops, Khafre, and Menkaure.
• Hypogea: Large burial chambers dug beneath the ground and decorated with great luxury.