Archaic Homo sapiens: Culture

The Levallois Technique

  There is still the use of the Acheulian technology until the middle Pleistocene in Europe and Africa where the Levallois technique is developed. Here with a series of controlled striking maneuvers, the toolmaker has control over the size and shape of the flakes. This produces fewer steps. In Asia there is no evidence found of any hand axes, only choppers and flake tools.

  There is the continued use of caves as shelters but now there is construction of open-air shelters.At Terra Amata in France there is evidence of an oval ring of postholes used to support huts made of saplings. In the Lazaert cave in France evidence is found of a 36 by 11 foot structure at the entrance of the cave. The base of the structure had rocks supports and the inside has remnants of two hearths. This evidence also confirms the existence of controlled fire. New food resources were gathered,fruit, vegetables, seeds, nuts, and bird eggs, Fresh water fish such as, trout, carp, and perch were eaten as well. There is still no evidence of clothes since the materials are unperceivable. 

Reproduction of the Terra Amata Site

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