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The Paleolithic is the longest of all stone ages, covering roughly 2 million years.
The hominid species who lived side by side were Australopithecus, Homo habilis and
Homoerectus.
EARLY STONE AGE TOOLS
The hominids Made tools from stone
The Tool Traditions was called Oldowan tools / pebble tools. The tools were named after
Olduvai Gorge where they were found. They were made by Australopithecus and Homo
erectus. They were also known as pebble tools because they were made of stones.
Among the finds at Olduvai were the chopper, fist hatchet (core tools) and several flake
tools.Such tools were also found at Kobi For a near Lake Turkana, Omo River Valley in
Ethiopia, and Kafu Valley in Uganda, Shaba province in Zaire and in Algeria, Tunisia
and morocco.In Kenya, the tools were found at sites in kariandusi, Olorgesaillie,
Kilombe, Chesowanja, Mtongwe, Isenya and Lewa DownsAustralopithecus “Southern
Ape” They didn’t have the intelligence to make sophisticated tools, so they may have
made tools out of bones that they foundAustralopithecus afarensis mostly used tools that
they found or that nature had created, example was a stick, which they stuck into a
termite mound, then the termites clung to it letting the ape pull out the stick covered in
food. He is however also credited for making Oldowan tools.
Homo habilis and the Oldowan Tradition
They made stone tools for chopping, scraping, and cutting. Making of Choppers (lower
left) involved knapping a few flakes off the core. Both cores and flakes were used. The
Knapper could strike a spherical piece of stone until Flake falls off opposite side. The
Tool would then be flipped over and procedure repeated. Several blows would create a
cutting edgeRequirements reflect Intelligence, Planning, foreknowledge of design and
Knowledge of breakage pattern of rock. There must also be Hand-eye coordination
The second phase of the Old Stone Age was marked by tools called Acheulian tools,
named after the site of St Acheul in France. Others found in Tanzania, Uganda, Malawi,
Zambia, and Zimbabwe. In Kenya, the tools were found at Kariandusi, Olorgesaillie,
Kilombe, Chesowanja, Mtongwe, Isenya and Lewa DownsThey were made by
Homoerectus. Homo erectus and the Acheulian tool technology. Signature tool: a well-
designed hand axe and cleavers
The Hand axe had multiple uses, from cutting, skinning, scraping animal skins, digging
and sharpening bone and wood.
Characteristics of Acheulian hand axe
~ It was Bifacial: both sides were knapped
~ Symmetrical in breadth
~ Shaped to a point on one end
~ The edge is thin and sharp
~ Broad end is curved, but edge is still sharp.
Process of Manufacturing Acheulian Hand axes