2.4: The Mesolithic and Neolithic Periods

The Mesolithic Period

The Mesolithic period, or Middle Stone Age, is an archaeological term describing specific cultures that fall between the Paleolithic and the Neolithic periods. While the start and end dates of the Mesolithic period vary by geographical region, it is dated from approximately 10,000 BCE to 8,000 BCE.

The Paleolithic was an age of hunting and gathering, but during the Mesolithic period the development of agriculture contributed to the rise of permanent settlements and a sedentary—rather than nomadic—lifestyle. The later Neolithic period is distinguished by the domestication of plants and animals. Some Mesolithic people continued with intensive hunting, while others practiced the initial stages of domestication. Some Mesolithic settlements were villages of huts; others were walled cities.

The Neolithic Period

Figure 2.7: An array of Neolithic artifacts by Michael Greenhalgh is under licensed CC BY-SA 2.5

The term Neolithic, or New Stone Age, is most frequently used in connection with agriculture. This is because the Neolithic period is the time when the domestication of animals and the cultivation of cereal grains were introduced, both of which allowed for food surpluses and the development of permanent settlements. Since agriculture developed at different times in different regions of the world, there is no single date for the beginning of the Neolithic period. In the Near East, agriculture developed around 9,000 BCE, in Southeast Europe around 7,000 BCE, and later in other regions. Even within a specific region, agriculture developed during different times. For example, agriculture first developed in Southeast Europe about 7,000 BCE, in Central Europe about 5,500 BCE, and Northern Europe about 4,000 BCE. In East Asia, the Neolithic spans roughly 6000 to 2000 BCE.

Pottery is another element that makes the dating of the Neolithic problematic. In some regions, the appearance of pottery is considered a symbol of the Neolithic, but this notion makes the term Neolithic even more ambiguous, since the use of pottery does not always occur after agriculture. In Japan, for example, pottery appears before agriculture, while in the Near East agriculture pre-dates pottery production.

All these factors make the starting point of the Neolithic somewhat fuzzy. It should be remembered that the origin of the term lies in a late 19th-century classification system, so while it remains useful, it has its limitations.

A Revolution?

In order to reflect the deep impact that agriculture had over the human population, an Australian archaeologist named Gordon Childe popularized the term "Neolithic Revolution" in the 1940s. Today, however, it's believed that the impact of agricultural innovation was exaggerated in the past; the development of Neolithic culture appears to have been a gradual rather than a sudden change. Moreover, before agriculture was established, archaeological evidence has shown that there is usually a period of semi-nomadic life, where pre-agricultural societies might have a network of campsites and live in different locations according to how the resources respond to seasonal variations. Sometimes, one of these campsites might be adopted as a base camp. The group might spend the majority of time there during the year exploiting local resources, including wild plants, which is a step closer to agriculture. Agriculture and foraging are not mutually exclusive ways of life. This means that a group could perform hunter-gatherer activities for part of the year and some farming during the rest, perhaps on a small scale. Rather than a revolution, the archaeological record suggests that the adoption of agriculture is the result of small and gradual changes.

Agriculture was developed independently in several regions. Since its origin, the dominant pattern in these separate regions is the spread of agricultural economies and the reduction of hunting and gathering activities, to the point that today hunting economies only persist in marginal areas where farming is not possible, such as frozen arctic regions, densely forested areas, or arid deserts.

The advent of agriculture brought profound changes to human society, transforming how people organized themselves and interacted with the environment. These changes included the clearing of forests, the cultivation of root crops and cereal grains that could be stored for long periods, and the development of new farming and herding technologies such as plows and irrigation systems. More intensive agricultural practices led to increased food production, which supported larger populations, the growth of permanent villages, and a gradual shift toward more complex social and political structures. As village populations grew, many evolved into towns and eventually into cities.

Changes During the Neolithic Period

By adopting a sedentary lifestyle, Neolithic groups developed a stronger sense of of territoriality. Settling in one place meant investing in land for farming, building permanent dwellings, and protecting resources, which encouraged a clearer definition of boundaries and ownership. During the period from roughly 9600 to 6900 BCE in the Ancient Near East, there were significant innovations in stone tool production, including more refined arrowhead designs. Although no major changes in the types of animals hunted have been detected from this time, some human skeletons have been found with arrowheads embedded in them, suggesting instances of interpersonal violence. Notably, the ancient settlement of Jericho, dating to around 8000 BCE, was surrounded by a substantial stone wall and a large ditch, possibly for defense. Additionally, the widespread adoption of new lithic technologies by distant groups points to the presence of extensive exchange networks and cultural interaction across the region.

Living in permanent settlements brought new forms of social organization as well. As the subsistence strategies of Neolithic communities—such as farming and herding—became more efficient, settlement populations grew. Anthropological research indicates that, generally, as group size increases, societies tend to become less egalitarian and more hierarchical. Individuals involved in managing and allocating food and other communal resources often gained greater social importance. Archaeological evidence supports this shift: in early Neolithic villages, individual houses typically lacked private storage facilities, suggesting that food storage and distribution were coordinated at the community level. At the site of Jarf el Ahmar in northern Syria (dated to the 9th millennium BCE), for instance, a large subterranean structure appears to have functioned as a communal granary. Its central location among households, and signs of ritual activity within, suggest that it served both practical and symbolic roles in village life.

With larger, more complex communities came the beginnings of labor specialization. As not everyone needed to be directly involved in food production, some individuals could focus on other roles—such as toolmaking, construction, ritual leadership, or trade. This diversification of labor contributed to emerging social distinctions and laid the groundwork for more stratified and organized societies in the millennia to follow.

Neolithic Culture

While the Neolithic period saw an expansion in artistic expression—including pottery, figurines, and architectural decoration—cave painting declined significantly. Neolithic people lived in permanent settlements and created more art on portable objects or architectural surfaces, rather than inside caves. While cave paintings are a hallmark of Paleolithic culture, by the Neolithic, art shifted to other media and contexts, reflecting changes in lifestyle, such as agriculture and sedentary village life. Many Neolithic societies produced sculptures of animals and women, engravings, and elaborate pottery decoration. In Western Europe, though, this period is best represented by the megalithic (large stone) monuments and passage tomb structures found from Malta to Portugal, through France and Germany, and across southern England to most of Wales and Ireland.

Stonehenge

Figure 2.8: Above ground layout of Stonehenge Drawn by en:User:Adamsan is under licensed CC BY-SA 3.0

Perhaps the best known megalithic structure is Stonehenge, located on Salisbury Plain in the county of Wiltshire in south-central England. Archaeologists believe it was constructed from roughly 3000 BCE to 2000 BCE. The surrounding circular earth bank and ditch, which constitute the earliest phase of the monument, have been dated to about 3100 BCE. Radiocarbon dating suggests that the first bluestones in the innermost ring of Stonehenge were raised between 2400 and 2200 BCE, although these stones may have been transported to the site as early as 3000 BCE.

Even the smallest bluestones weigh several tons each. These stones, so-called because they appear blue when wet, were quarried approximately 150 miles away in the Prescelly Mountains in southwest Wales. The quarrying and transport of these massive stones took place without the aid of the wheel, requiring a sophisticated system involving felled trees used as rollers and earthen mounds to move and position the stones. Similarly impressive are the larger Sarsen stones that form the post-and-lintel ring and the free-standing trilithons; these were quarried approximately 25 miles to the north of Salisbury Plain and transported using the same ingenious methods.

Although human remains have been found at the site, archaeologists are uncertain whether Stonehenge primarily served funerary purposes, ritual purposes, or a combination of both. The discovery of cremated remains and burial pits suggests that it was a significant ceremonial center for ancestral veneration and mortuary practices. Additionally, its precise alignments with the sunrise of the summer solstice and the sunset of the winter solstice have led many scholars to propose that Stonehenge functioned as an ancient astronomical observatory or calendar. These solar alignments could have helped early agrarian societies mark the changing seasons, crucial for timing agricultural activities such as planting and harvesting.

Beyond its practical uses, Stonehenge likely held deep symbolic and religious significance for its builders. It may have been a site for communal gatherings, rites of passage, or spiritual ceremonies intended to connect people with the cosmos, the land, and their ancestors. The enormous effort involved in quarrying and transporting these massive stones over great distances—without the use of wheels or draft animals—demonstrates the monument’s extraordinary cultural importance. This undertaking reflects social cohesion and the emergence of organized leadership in Neolithic Britain. Thus, Stonehenge embodies a complex interplay of astronomy, ritual, community, and memory, making it one of the most enigmatic and studied prehistoric monuments in the world.

Figure 2.9: Stonehenge, Wiltshire, England by Diego Delso is under licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

Avebury

Figure 2.10: Avebury Henges by Diliff is under licensed CC BY-SA 3.0

 

One of the best known prehistoric sites in the United Kingdom, Avebury, contains the largest stone circle in Europe. Located in the same county as Stonehenge, Avebury lies north of the better-known site. Constructed over several hundred years in the third millennium BCE, the monument comprises a large henge with a large outer stone circle and two separate smaller stone circles situated inside the center of the monument. Its original purpose is unknown, though archaeologists believe it was likely used for ritual or ceremony. The Avebury monument was part of a larger prehistoric landscape containing several older monuments.

The chronology of Avebury's construction is unclear. It was not designed as a single monument but was the result of various projects undertaken at different times during late prehistory. Experts date the construction of the central cove to 3,000 BCE, the inner stone circle to 2,900 BCE, the outer circle and henge to 2,600 BCE, and the avenues to 2,400 BCE. The construction of Avebury and Stonehenge indicate that a stable agrarian economy had developed in this region of England by 4000 to 3500 BCE.

Passage Tombs

Passage tombs (also called passage graves) consist of narrow passages made of large stones and one or multiple burial chambers covered in earth or stone. Megaliths were commonly used in the construction of passage tombs and typically date to the Neolithic period. A common layout is the cruciform passage tomb, characterized by a cross-shaped structure.

Figure 2.11: Newgrange Monument, Ireland by Popsracer is under licensed CC BY-SA 3.0

The Newgrange monument is comprised of a large mound built of alternating layers of earth and stones, covered with growing grass and with flat white quartz stones studded around the circumference. The mound covers 4500 square meters of ground. Within, a passage stretches through the structure ending at three small chambers.

Newgrange contains various examples of abstract Neolithic art carved onto its rocks. These are separated into 10 categories consisting of curvilinear forms like circles, spirals, arcs, serpentiforms, and dot-in-circles, as well as rectilinear examples such as chevrons, lozenges, radials, parallel lines, and offsets.

There is no agreement as to what the site was used for, but it has been speculated that it had some form of religious significance due to its alignment with the rising sun, which floods the stone room with light on the winter solstice.

The End of the Neolithic Period and the Prehistoric Era

Figure 2.12: greenish-metallic slab of copper by Chris 73 is under licensed CC BY-SA 3.0

At least two key factors mark the transition from the prehistoric era to the ancient era. The first is the shift from stone to metal technology. Toward the end of the Neolithic era, copper metallurgy was introduced, signaling the beginning of the Bronze Age—also known as the Chalcolithic or Eneolithic period. Bronze, an alloy of copper and tin, is harder than pure copper, has better casting properties, and melts at a lower temperature. Unlike copper, which is too soft to withstand combat, bronze could be used to make durable weapons. Over time, bronze became the primary material for tools and weapons, rendering much stone technology obsolete. This technological shift marks the end of the Neolithic and, more broadly, the Stone Age.

The second factor is the emergence of writing. While prehistoric peoples relied on oral storytelling and images to preserve their culture and traditions, by around 3000 BCE, societies in Mesopotamia and Egypt developed written scripts to record their ideas. With this innovation (the production of written records), the transition from prehistory to history began, marking the end of the Prehistoric era and the close of the first chapter of the human story. 

CC licensed content, Original Authored by: Florida State College at Jacksonville. License: CC BY: Attribution

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• Mesolithic Art. Provided by: Boundless. Located at: https://courses.lumenlearning.com/boundless-arthistory/. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
• An array of Neolithic Artifacts. Authored by: Michael Greenhalgh. Located at: https://en.Wikipedia.org/wiki/File:N%C3%A9olithique_0001.jpg. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
• Neolithic . Authored by: Cristian Violatti. Located at: https://www.ancient.eu/Neolithic/. License: CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
• Neolithic Monuments. Provided by: Boundless. Located at: https://courses.lumenlearning.com/boundless-arthistory/. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
• Above ground layout of Stonehenge. Authored by: Adamsan. Located at: https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=167793. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
• Stonehenge, Wiltshire England. Authored by: Diego Delso. Located at: https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=35323162. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
• Avebury Hinges. Authored by: Diliff. Located at: https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=33014322. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
• Newgrange Monument, Ireland. Authored by: Popsracer. Located at: https://en.Wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Newgrange_ireland_750px.jpg. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
• greenish-metallic slab of copper. Authored by: Chris 73. Located at: https://en.Wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Copper_Ingot_Crete.jpg. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike