History of Humanity

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Prehistory and the beginnings of civilization

Editor
The late S.J. De Laet 

Co-editors
A.H. Dani 
The late J.L. Lorenzo 
R.B. Nunoo 

 

Summary :

This volume covers the emergence and the earliest history of humanity. The remains of the 3 million-year-old Australopithecus afarensis, discovered in Ethiopia in 1974 and christened Lucy, show that the first human beings developed in Africa. The invention of writing and the founding of great unified states 5,000 years ago mark the end of this volume.

Forty-nine authors from 31 countries specializing in all the necessary disciplines (archaeology, anthropology, geology, etc.) have helped to provide this overall view of the human adventure.

  Table of Contents

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Editions

English:

1994, Routledge/ UNESCO Publishing

French:

2000, EDICEF / Éditions UNESCO

  Table of Contents


Preface
Federico Mayor, Director-General of UNESCO

Foreword
Charles Morazé, former President of the International Commission

General Introduction
Georges-Henri Dumont, President of the International Commission

The International Commission

Series list

List of figures

List of maps

List of plates

List of tables

The authors

Acknowledgements

Introduction to Volume 1
Sigfried J. De Laet (the late)

Part 1 : From anthropogenesis to the beginnings of food production

A Anthropogenesis and the period of Homo habilis and Homo erectus

1. Anthropogenesis: an overview
Yves Coppens and Denis Geraads

2. The period of Homo habilis and Homo erectus: an overview
Yves Coppens and Denis Geraads

3. Africa during the Lower Palaeolithic and the first settlements
Jean Chavaillon

4. Europe: Lower and Middle Pleistocene archaeology
Paola Villa

5. Western Asia in the period of Homo habilis and Homo erectus
Francis Hours, Sj

6. Southern Asia in the period of Homo habilis and Homo erectus
Ramchandra V. Joshi

7. Cha in the period of Homo habilis and Homo erectus
Wu Rukang and Jia Lanpo

8. Indonesia in the period of Homo habilis and Homo erectus
Gert-Jan Bartstra

B. The period of Homo sapiens neanderthalensis and contemporaries

9. Physical anthropology of the Neanderthalers and their contemporaries: an overview
Bernard Vandermeersch

10. Archaeology of the Neanderthalers and their contemporaries: an overview
Karel Valoch

11. Africa in the period of Homo Sapiens neanderthalensis and contemporaries
Fred Wendorf, Augela E. Close and Romuald Schild

12. Europe (excluding the former USSR) in the period of Homo Sapiens neanderthalensis and contemporaries
Karel Valoch

13. The territory of the former USSR during the Middle Palaeolithic
Valeriy P Alexeev

14. Western Asia during the Middle Palaeolithic
Arthur J. Jelinek

15. Indonesia in the period of Homo habilis and Homo erectus
Gert-Jan Bartstra

16. China in the period of Homo Sapiens neanderthalensis and contemporaries
Wu Rukang and Jia Lanpo

17. Indonesia in the period of Homo Sapiens neanderthalensis and contemporaries
Gert-Jan Bartstra

C The period of Homo Sapiens Sapiens (Modern humans) to the beginnings of food production

18. The period Homo Sapiens Sapiens to the beginnings of food production: an overview (excluding art)
Bohuslav Klima

19. The origins of art: an overview
Hans-Georg Bandi

20. Africa from the appearance of Homo Sapiens Sapiens to the beginnings of food production
J. Desmond Clark

21. Europe during the Upper Palaeolithic and Mesolithic
Marcel Otte

22. The territory of the former USSR during the Upper Palaeolithic
Valeriy P Alexeev

23. Palaeolithic and Mesolithic art in Europe
Hans-Georg Bandi

24. Western Asia from the end of the Middle Palaeolithic to the beginnings of food production
Ofer Bar-Yosef

25. South Asia in the period of Homo Sapiens Sapiens up to the beginnings of food production (Upper Palaeolithic and Mesolithic)
Ranchandra V. Joshi

26. China in the period of Homo Sapiens Sapiens up to the beginnings of food production
Jia Lanpo and Wu Rukang

27. South-east Asia and Japan in the period of Homo Sapiens Sapiens up to the beginnings of food production
Karl L. Hutterer

28. Australia and New Guinea in the period of Homo Sapiens Sapiens up to about 5,000 years ago
Josephine M. Flood

29. The origins of humanity in America
José L. Lorenzo (the late)

30. Prehistory of North America
Alan L. Bryan

31. Mexico and Central America from the arrival of humans to the beginnings of food production
José L. Lorenzo (the late)

32. Central America, the Caribbean, northern South America and the Amazon: the way of life of the ancient hunters
Mario Sanoja Obediente

33. Prehistory of the non-Andean region of South America (Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina, 31,000-5,000 years ago)
Osvaldo R. Heredia (the late)

34. The Equatorial and tropical Andes from the arrival of humans to the beginnings of food production
Luis G. Lumbreras Salcedo

35. The western part of South America (southern Peru, Bolivia, north-west Argentina and Chile) during the Stone Age
Lautaro Nuniez Atencio

Part II : From the beginnings of food production to the first states

36. From the beginnings of food production to the first states: an overview
Sigfried De Laet (the late)

37. Plant domestication: an overview
Jack R. Harlan

38. Domestication of animals from the beginnings of food production up to about 5,000 years ago: an overview
Sandor Bökönyi (the late)

39. Late prehistory of Egypt
Lech Krzyzaniak

40. Africa (excluding Egypt) from the beginnings of food production up to about 5,000 years ago
David W. Phillipson

41. Western Asia during the Neolithic and the Chalcolithic (about 12,000 - 5,000 years ago)
James Mellaart

42. Prehistory of the Arabian Peninsula
Abdullah Hassan Masry, with the collaboration of Ahmad Hasan Dani

43. Southern Asia during the Neolithic and to the beginnings of the Bronze Age
Ahmad Hasan Dani

44. Central and northern Asia during the Neolithic
Anatoly P. Derevyanko

45. South-east Asia and Korea from the beginnings of food production to the first states
Wilhelm G. Solheim II

46. China during the Neolithic
An Zhimin

47. Europe during the Neolithic
Sigfried De Laet

48. The Aegean during the Neolithic
Christos Doumas

49. Western Mediterranean cultures during the Neolithic
Jean Guilaine

50. The Balkan peninsula and south-east Europe during the Neolithic
Milutin Garasanin

51. Central Europe during the Neolithic
Jens Lüning

52. The European part of the former USSR during the Neolithic and the Chalcolithic
Nikolaij Merpert

53. Atlantic Europe during the Neolithic
Pierre-Roland Giot

54. The north European lowlands: Neolithic acculturation
Lili Kaelas

55. Megalithic monuments of Europe
Lili Kaelas

56. Mining in Europe during the Neolithic and the Chalcolithic
Robert Shepherd

57. Mexico and Central America: incipient food production
José L. Lorenzo (the late)

58. Central America, the Caribbean, northern South America and the Amazon: the beginnings of food production
Mario Sanoja Obediente

59. The Equatorial and tropical Andes from the beginnings of food production up to 5,000 years ago
Luis G. Lumbreras Salcedo

Afterword
Sigfried De Laet (the late)

 

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