Prehistoric Technologies

Archaic humans (Homo genus) in the Stone Age:

• Stone tools: roughly 2.5 mya with Homo habilis (some, minor evolution over this time, including attaching handles to make spears or axes)
• Coordinated hunting (Homo erectus, ~1.5 mya?)
• Caring for the weak/infirm: also Homo erectus?
• Fire: 600 kya? (or more than 1M, with Homo ergaster? or maybe daily use is not until Neanderthals?)
• Burial of the dead: Neanderthals, 300 kya?

Behaviorally modern humans in the Upper Paleolithic (Homo sapiens, starting around 50 kya):

• Language, probably
• More sophisticated tools, not only stone but also of bone
• Clothing? (~40 kya? 70 kya? or maybe as far back as 190 kya?)
• Fishing
• Rafts or boats?
• Art (cave paintings, figurines, musical instruments?)
• Musical instruments
• Jewelry/ornamentation
• Ritual/ceremonial burial (including with goods)
• Trade networks? (!)
• Domestication of the dog

Mesolithic / Neolithic:

• Settled societies
• Agriculture
• Metalworking
• Pottery
• Glass? (or later?)
• Domestication of farm animals
• Architecture??
• Writing? Including numbers & recordkeeping?

Bronze Age

Iron Age (circa 1000 BC)

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Sources for the above:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prehistoric_technology
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paleolithic
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stone_Age

More to read:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_technology