Prehistoric Art has proved to be effective in giving us insight on culture in the Stone Ages. We are able to interpret and draw conclusions from prehistoric art because most of the art is representational; depicting life as it was. If it isn’t representative, the art is symbolic, which exposes not only the culture, but also the mind capacity of Neanderthals. Using prehistoric art, we’re able to examine the transition of human culture through two distinct time periods; Paleolithic and Neolithic. Paleolithic and Neolithic art differ greatly, which gives us clues as to how human culture developed into what it is today.
Culture is the way of life of a group of people including the behaviors, beliefs, values, symbols, life and art. In the Paleolithic
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Humans began to settle down into actual communities, which left them enough time to explore some key concepts of civilization. This new sedentary lifestyle inspired the Neolithic man’s art as well. Mentioned by, visual-arts-cork.com,” Indeed as Neolithic farming settlements gained control of their food supply and became less vulnerable to predators, several things happened. First the population expanded significantly: from 8 million to 65 million in 5,000 years. Second, communities became more aware and more protective of their “territory”. They frequently joined with others, creating larger settlements and (ultimately) cities. Thirdly, they became more organized and more hierarchical. Lastly Neolithic man began to develop systems of belief in supernatural deities. Each of these social developments had an impact on the art of the period.” The Neolithic period produced more portable art than stationary art as their materials became sturdier; Paleolithic people used stone and mammoth ivory while Neolithic people used baked stone and clay. Human figurines were in abundance in the Neolithic era suggesting that people began to pay more attention to humans and their value. As stated in the Art History book, “ the huge numbers of Neolithic figurines that would have been in circulations at any one place and time, have convinced experts that critical significance of these objects is that they mark the emergence of the human body as the core location of human identity.” The Neolithic era definitely emerged human figurines in greater detail, such as the Cernavoda woman and man. The Cernavoda woman and man were created around 4500 BCE and found in Romania together, suggesting a relationship between the two, to archaeologists. The fact that the Cernavoda woman and man were found together differs from Paleolithic figurines that