LECTURE 2

PREHISTORIC AGES

• Paleolithic Age (Old Stone Age)

• Neolithic Age (New Stone Age)
• Iron Age
• Industrial Revolution
 PREHISTORIC ARCHITECTURE

The history of man can be classified into different stages

and with it corresponding structures were built:

1. Paleolithic Age (Old Stone Age) – Up to 9000BC

2. Neolithic Age (New Stone Age) -9000BC to 3000BC
3. Iron Age (Bronze Age)
 PREHISTORIC ARCHITECTURE
Prehistoric architecture refers to the architectural styles and structures that were built
before written record of human history. These structures were built during the stone Age,
Bronze Age and Iron Age, and were made from materials such as stone, mud and wood.

 Prehistoric era is one that is very difficult to define, dating back to tens of thousands of
years. For an era that is so vast, it is difficult to recognize any real themes in its
architecture, but there are few key forms and concepts that pre-date any know
civilization and were significant enough that they would influence key architectural
developments in the centuries and millennia to come.
 Pre history covers the Old Stone Age and the New Stone Age (Paleolithic, and Neolithic)
Periods as well as portions of the Bronze or Iron Ages. These ages refer to the material
with which tools were made during those periods. The earliest tools were made of stone
and then people developed bonze and iron tools.
 Prehistoric periods are not restricted to any particular geographical regions because the
occurred in different localities, usually close to source of food near rivers.
 TIME LINE EVOLUTION OF MANKIND AND
ARCHITECTURAL INFLUENCES
Direct human ancestors evolved in Africa from 2.4 million years ago. Humans spread
from Africa into southern Europe, Asia. They could not settle far north due to cold
climate conditions
• Homo habilis - (Latin: “able man” or “handy man”) extinct species of human, the
most ancient representative of humans. Homo habilis inhabited parts of sub-
Saharan Africa from roughly 2.4 to 1.5 million years ago
• Homo erectus species lived between 100,000 to 1.6 million years ago.
• Homo sapiens (300,000 years to the present).
 Homo erectus
(Neanderthal Museum,
Germany)

Approximately 2 million
years ago a hominin left
Africa for the first time and
spread around north and
east part of the world.
 Homo Sapiens
(Neanderthal Museum,
Germany)
PALEOLITHIC AGE (EARLY STONE AGE)
• "Historians call the early period of human history the Stone Age. They
do this because it was the time when people used stone to make tools
and weapons. The earliest part of this period was the Paleolithic Age.
In Greek, paleolithic means "old stone." Therefore, the Paleolithic Age
is also called the Old Stone Age. The Paleolithic Age began about 2.5
million years ago and lasted until around 9000 B.C.

• "Hunter-gatherers of the Paleolithic period were prehistoric nomadic

groups that harnessed the use of fire, developed intricate knowledge
of plant life and refined technology for hunting and domestic
purposes as they spread from Africa to Asia, Europe and beyond.
From African hominins of 2 million years ago to modern-day Homo
sapiens, the evolution of humans can be traced through what the
hunter-gatherers left behind..."
PALEOLITHIC AGE (EARLY STONE AGE)
 Always on the move, in search for food, water and good climate
 Used temporary structures
 Provided basic shelter and protection for short period of time.

ARCHITECTURAL ORGANIZATION (DWELLINGS AND SETTLEMENTS):

 Primary requirements is for temporary structure
 No desire to invest in construction of dwellings
 Constructed dwellings using local available materials such as wood,
grass, leaves and animal skins
 Form directly reflecting natural objects
PALEOLITHIC AGE (EARLY STONE AGE)
• The Paleolithic Period is characterized by the creation and use of
chipped stone tools.
• These tools included simple pebble tools (rock shaped by the
pounding of another stone to produce tools with a serrated crest that
served as a chopping blade), hand adzes (tools shaped from a block of
stone to create a rounded butt and a single-bevel straight or curved
cutting edge), stone scrapers, cleavers, and points. Such tools were
also made of bone and wood.
• The Paleolithic Period was also characterized by the manufacture of
small sculptures (e.g., carved stone statuettes of
women, clay figurines of animals, and other bone and ivory carvings)
and paintings, incised designs, and reliefs on cave walls.
• The Paleolithic Period has traditionally coincided with the first
evidence of tool construction and use by Homo around 2.58 million
years ago.
 PALEOLITHIC AGE (EARLY STONE AGE)
Depictions of animals in the paintings were not merely decoration or representational
depictions of life, but instead reflected a religious conception of the world. Paleolithic art
depicted large, powerful animals such as bison or aurochs that humans of the time were
loath to hunt due to the inherent danger in the task..
PALEOLITHIC AGE CAVE PAINTINGS (EARLY STONE
AGE)
PALEOLITHIC AGE TOOLS (EARLY
STONE AGE)
 NEOLITHIC AGE (NEW STONE AGE)
• Neolithic: the new stone Age began around (8,000 – 2300BCE), which
marked the beginnings of monumental (extremely large architecture)

• The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is characterized by the

beginning of a settled human lifestyle. People learned to cultivate
plants and domesticate animals for food, rather than rely solely on
hunting and gathering. That coincided with the use of more
sophisticated stone tools, which were useful for farming and animal
herding.

• Neolithic people did not write. However, because they lived in settled
communities, they left many traces behind, including the foundations
of their houses, burial sites, tools, and crafts.
 NEOLITHIC AGE (NEW STONE AGE)
• Established permanent dwellings and settlements
• Introduction of non residential buildings for work, storage and rituals
• Use of durable materials such as adobe and stone
• Needed to understand the forces of nature that nourishes and
destroys
• Funerary and religious buildings were introduced during the new
stone age.
FUNERARY BUILDINGS
• Structures such as tombs used for rituals and burial for the dead.
Example Dolmen Tomb.
RELIGIOUS BUILDINGS
• Evidence of the first practices of religion
• Buildings used for rituals related to worship and religion.
A dolmen or portal tomb is a type of single-chamber megalithic tomb, usually
consisting of two or more upright megaliths supporting a large flat horizontal
capstone or "table"
 NEOLITHIC AGE (NEW STONE AGE)

ARCHITECTURAL ORGANIZATION (DWELLINGS AND SETTLEMENTS):

• Became settled requiring permanent dwellings
• Improvements in house form including change to rectangular rooms with
furniture
• Introduction of multi room houses
• Required durable construction
• Improvements in construction technology
AERIAL VIEW OF HAGAR QIM MALTA
EARLIEST HUMAN SETTLEMENTS OF THE
STONE AGE
• Three main types of primitive dwellings include:
• Cliff dwellings
• Thatch and mud structures
• Free-standing stone monuments
• The earliest constructions were from organic materials. The shapes of
the houses were round, domes, and conical with internal wood
frames and built with organic materials.
• Organic materials include:
• branches
• brushes
• Animal hides
• Timbers and wood stakes
• Fiber Cordage
• Wattle and daub (basket works of sticks covered with plaster)
 PRINCIPLES OF ARCHIECTURAL
ORGANIZATION
Two factors shaped the for of dwellings and settlements:
• Functional needs
• Available construction materials.
 EXAMPLES OF STONE AGE
STRUCTURES
1. TERRA AMATA
•Terra Amata is the earliest of homo Erectus dwelling.
•It also represents the earliest known human-construction dwelling.
•Reconstructed from holes left by decayed wooden structural members and rocks placed
around the perimeter.
 2. CRO – MAGNON DWELLING
• It represents Cro – Magnon dwelling.
• The shapes of the dwellings were either round/conical/or dome.
• These houses have internal frames of wood covered with animal
hides. They were braced at the bottom with massive mammoth
bones, piled all over the perimeter.
 2. CRO – MAGNON DWELLING
• A Paleolithic village was successfully excavated in Mezhirich in the Ukraine dating
back to approximately 15,000 BCE.
• The village revealed a cluster of huts made of woolly mammoth bones which provided
an intricate framework for structures.
• These huts ranged in diameter from 13 to 33 feet, some with ashes and charred bones
suggesting the presence of a hearth inside.
 3. MONTE VERDE DWELLINGS
• Monte Verde dwellings – Use of organic materials such as base frame
timbers, mammoth hide covers, wood stakes, and fiber cordage.
 4. MIDDLE STONE AGE VILLAGE
• A fence of wooden stakes was on either side, leaning against an inclined central
ridge pole.
• The floors of the huts were covered with earth plaster around a central stone-lined
hearth.
 5. SHEILINGS
• One of the primitive dwellings is similar to the types of nests of birds.
• Huts were of branches of trees and covered with turf
 6. BEEHIVE HUTS – VILLAGE DES BORIES
• The structures were constructed using local stone quarried locally – thin and small.
• They were roughly laid in horizontal layers to fit together. Each horizontal layer
were one above the other reducing in length to create a vault shape in the interiors.
• Beehive shape.
• These type of stone structures were multifunctional for shelters (both human and
animals) and storage of grains.
 7. GGANTIJA TEMPLES IN GOZO
• Megalithic Temples of Malta,
• Ggantija temples in Gozo are considered as the oldest free standing
structures in the world,
• Clover-leaf shape,
• UNESCO World Heritage Site.
8. STONE HENGE – PREDOMINANT IN
STONE AGE
• The stone age is famous for the use of huge rocks such as
Megaliths.
• These Megaliths are predominantly found in Stone Henges.
Henges were made of stone circles.
• Henges, simply circles of stone usually in a circular ditch, are
quite common in the Stone Age and seem to have had some
kind of religious or astronomical significance.

• The three different types of these massive stone structures are:

• Menhir, dolmen, and cromlech.
• It consists of a series of concentric circles and U-shapes.
 MENHIR
• A menhir is large standing stone
that was used in prehistoric times,
especially during the Neolithic
period, the term “menhir” comes
from the Breton language, meaning
“long stone”
• Menhirs were found across Europe
and Asia and they were used for
variety of purposes such as
marking graves, astronomical
observations, religious sites and
boundary markers
• The size of menhirs varies greatly
with some being few feet tall and
others over 20 feet tall
MENHIR
 DOLMEN
• A dolmen is type of prehistoric
monument during the
Neolithic period that consists
of a large, flat stone placed on
top of several upright stones.
Dolmens are used as tombs in
many cultures .
• The term dolmen comes from
Breton language meaning
“stone table”. were found
across Europe and Asia and
they were used for burial sites
for individuals or group of
people.
• Tombs of standing stones
usually capped with a large
horizontal stab
 CROMLECH

• A cromlech is type of prehistoric

monument made up of a circular
arrangement of large stones.
• The term cromlech comes from the
Welsh language meaning “circle of
stones”
• Neolithic structures like Stonehenge
were likely inspired by circular shapes
such as the sun and the moon or are
possibly a reference to the cyclical
nature of prehistoric life.
• The passing of the seasons and the
appearance of the sun and moon each
day and night were likely to be central
to the religious beliefs of Neolithic Stonehenge, Salisbury Plain, England, 2550-1600 BCE
people.
IRON/BRONZE AGE
 IRON/BRONZE AGE
 The Bronze Age is dated between 1800 - 600 BC and the Iron Age is dated
between 600 BC - 400 AD when iron was discovered.
 Iron and Bronze Age Architecture emerged as the social and cultural
environment moved on from small Neolithic groups of people of the Stone
Age to much larger tribes.
 Bronze and Iron Age Hillforts mark the transition to an organised
community of people with leaders or Kings.
 Tribal disputes and warfare escalated as did the use of more sophisticated
and lethal weapons made first of Bronze and then of Iron.
 THE HISTORY OF IRON AND
BRONZE AGE ARCHITECTURE
• The History of Iron and Bronze Age Architecture encompasses the
Bronze and Iron Age Hillforts - the ancient forts, or fortresses,
which sat on the top of hills! Iron and Bronze Age Architecture
moved away from building the massive sacred Stone Monoliths
such as Stonehenge.
• The Hillforts were developed due to more sophisticated weapons
made bronze and lead. The pattern of fortress and castle
development and changing architecture continued up to the English
Medieval Castles.
• The evidence of more than 2000 Hillforts have been found in
Britain! Hillforts - the Bronze and Iron Age equivalent to a
medieval castle!
HILLFORTS
HILLFORTS
 WHAT WAS THE PURPOSE OF
HILLFORTS?
A Hillfort was built as an enclosed area which was used for:
• A meeting place for formal tribal purposes
• Trading
• Many were permanently occupied by people
• They were a safe retreat against intrusion from raids from other
tribes
• Provided shelter for rising population levels
• Provided shelter against harsh winters and wild animals
• Small Hillforts were built to defend small homestead or even small
villages.
 PHYSICAL CHRACTERISTICS OF
HILLFORTS
Hillforts varied in size, shape and design which include the following
elements:
• Hillforts were built on hilltops or high ground
• They were surrounded by at least one concentric bank and ditch
• Hillforts were constructed using stone, soil and wood - Timber was
favoured as it was clearly lighter to transport up the hilltops and was used
for strengthening the ramparts and for interior building construction
• Some Hillforts were massive and covered and enormous area of over 300
acres!
• Each Hillfort had a rampart - an embankment built around a space for
defensive purposes
• Within their interior, protected by the defences, Hill forts contained
detached buildings - homesteads, or farmhouses, granaries and communal
gathering areas
• The entrance to living areas was through a large wooden gate
INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION
 INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION
• The Industrial Revolution was a period of scientific and
technological development in the 18th century that
transformed largely rural, agrarian societies, especially in
Europe and North America into industrialized, urban ones.
Goods that had once been painstakingly crafted by hand
started to be produced in mass quantities by machines in
factories, thanks to the introduction of new machines and
techniques in textiles, iron making and other industries.
• Though a few innovations were developed as early as the
1700s, the Industrial Revolution began in earnest by the 1830s
and 1840s in Britain, and soon spread to the rest of the world.
 INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION
• Modern historians often refer to this period as the First Industrial
Revolution, to set it apart from a second period of industrialization
that took place from the late 19th to early 20th centuries and saw
rapid advances in the steel, electric and automobile industries.
• Though many people in Britain had begun moving to the cities from
rural areas before the Industrial Revolution, this process accelerated
dramatically with industrialization, as the rise of large factories
turned smaller towns into major cities over the span of decades. This
rapid urbanization brought significant challenges, as overcrowded
cities suffered from pollution, inadequate sanitation, miserable
housing conditions and a lack of safe drinking water.
• Meanwhile, even as industrialization increased economic output
overall and improved the standard of living for the middle and upper
classes, poor and working class people continued to struggle. The
mechanization of labor created by technological innovation had made
working in factories increasingly tedious (and sometimes dangerous),
and many workers including children were forced to work long hours
for pitifully low wages.
 IMPORTANT TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS
The commencement of the Industrial Revolution is closely linked to a
small number of innovations, beginning in the second half of the 18th
century. By the 1830s, the following gains had been made in important
technologies:
• Textiles – mechanized cotton spinning powered by steam or water
increased the output of a worker by a factor of around 500.
• Steam power – The development of the stationary steam engine was an
important element of the Industrial Revolution; however, during the
early period of the Industrial Revolution, most industrial power was
supplied by water and wind.
• Invention of machine tools – the first machine tools were invented
included the screw-cutting lathe, and the milling machine. Machine
tools made the economical manufacture of precision metal parts with
effective techniques.
 PRESENTATION 2
Each group will choose one of the following periods and prepare a presentation
using African built environment as a study area or as a contextual area. with the use
of PICTURES, DIAGRAMS and SKETCHES.

• Paleolithic Age (Old Stone Age)

• Neolithic Age (New Stone Age)
• Iron Age
• Industrial Revolution

Presentation Guidelines
 Maximum 10 Slides per person
 Each group will have 7 mins to present
 You are to write a summary of your presentation (I page), to be submitted as
print out in the class.