Löwenmensch, a prehistoric ivory sculpture discovered in Hohlenstein-Stadel, c. 40,000–35,000 years old
Period
Stone Age
Dates
50,000 to 12,000 BP
Preceded by
Middle Paleolithic
Followed by
Mesolithic
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Expansion of early modern humans from Africa
The Upper Paleolithic (or Upper Palaeolithic) is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. Very broadly, it dates to between 50,000 and 12,000 years ago (the beginning of the Holocene), according to some theories coinciding with the appearance of behavioral modernity in early modern humans,[1] until the advent of the Neolithic Revolution and agriculture.
Anatomically modern humans (i.e. Homo sapiens) are believed to have emerged in Africa around 300,000 years ago. It has been argued by some that their ways of life changed relatively little from that of archaic humans of the Middle Paleolithic,[2] until about 50,000 years ago, when there was a marked increase in the diversity of artefacts found associated with modern human remains.
This period coincides with the most common date assigned to expansion of modern humans from Africa throughout Asia and Eurasia, which contributed to the extinction of the Neanderthals.
The Upper Paleolithic has the earliest known evidence of organized settlements, in the form of campsites, some with storage pits. Artistic work blossomed, with cave painting, petroglyphs, carvings and engravings on bone or ivory. The first evidence of human fishing is also found, from artefacts in places such as Blombos cave in South Africa. More complex social groupings emerged, supported by more varied and reliable food sources and specialized tool types. This probably contributed to increasing group identification or ethnicity.[3]
The peopling of Australia most likely took place before c. 60 ka. Europe was peopled after c. 45 ka.
Anatomically modern humans are known to have expanded northward into Siberia as far as the 58th parallel by about 45 ka (Ust'-Ishim man).
The Upper Paleolithic is divided by the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), from about 25 to 15 ka. The peopling of the Americas occurred during this time, with East and Central Asia populations reaching the Bering land bridge after about 35 ka, and expanding into the Americas by about 15 ka.
In Western Eurasia, the Paleolithic eases into the so-called Epipaleolithic or Mesolithic from the end of the LGM, beginning 15 ka. The Holocene glacial retreat begins 11.7 ka (10th millennium BC), falling well into the Old World Epipaleolithic, and marking the beginning of the earliest forms of farming in the Fertile Crescent.
^Cite error: The named reference ScienceDaily1998 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Rightmire, G. P. (2009). "Out of Africa: modern human origins special feature: middle and later Pleistocene hominids in Africa and Southwest Asia". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 106 (38): 16046–16050. Bibcode:2009PNAS..10616046R. doi:10.1073/pnas.0903930106. PMC 2752549. PMID 19581595.
^Gilman, Antonio. 1996. "Explaining the Upper Palaeolithic Revolution". pp. 220–239 (Chap. 8) in Contemporary Archaeology in Theory: A Reader. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Blackwell
The UpperPaleolithic (or Upper Palaeolithic) is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. Very broadly, it dates to between...
behaviourally modern humans by the UpperPaleolithic. During the end of the Paleolithic Age, specifically the Middle or UpperPaleolithic Age, humans began to produce...
The Initial UpperPaleolithic (also IUP, c. 50,000-40,000 BP) covers the first stage of the UpperPaleolithic, during which modern human populations expanded...
The art of the UpperPaleolithic represents the oldest form of prehistoric art. Figurative art is present in Europe and Southeast Asia, beginning between...
considerable dating differences between regions. The Middle Paleolithic was succeeded by the UpperPaleolithic subdivision which first began between 50,000 and 40...
Michelson believe unmistakably religious behavior emerged by the UpperPaleolithic, before 30,000 years ago at the latest, but behavioral patterns such...
tend to fall into two camps: cognitive and gradualist. The Later UpperPaleolithic Model theorizes that modern human behavior arose through cognitive...
Serbia, Slovenia, and European Turkey) covers the period from the UpperPaleolithic, beginning with the presence of Homo sapiens in the area some 44,000...
West-Eurasian backflow, started in the early Holocene or already earlier in the Paleolithic period, sometimes between 30-15,000 years ago, followed by pre-Neolithic...
as early as during the Homo erectus expansion to Eurasia, in the UpperPaleolithic peopling of Europe, and again in the re-peopling Mesolithic Europe...
years ago; the Middle Paleolithic, marked by the presence of Neanderthals, 300,000 to 40,000 years ago; the UpperPaleolithic, c. 46,000 to 12,000 years...
Middle Paleolithic (300,000–50,000 years ago), religion emerged with certainty in the UpperPaleolithic around 50,000 years ago. UpperPaleolithic religion...
Middle Stone Age is the Old World archaeological period between the UpperPaleolithic and the Neolithic. The term Epipaleolithic is often used synonymously...
(c. 14 ka to c. 13 ka). This millennium is during the UpperPaleolithic period. The Paleolithic-Mesolithic transition began in the Near East during this...
further across the Earth during the period known as the UpperPaleolithic. The UpperPaleolithic is marked by a relatively rapid succession of often complex...
The Gravettian was an archaeological industry of the European UpperPaleolithic that succeeded the Aurignacian circa 33,000 years BP. It is archaeologically...
industry of the UpperPaleolithic associated with Early European modern humans (EEMH) lasting from 43,000 to 26,000 years ago. The UpperPaleolithic developed...
Sungir (Russian: Сунгирь, sometimes spelled Sunghir) is an UpperPaleolithic archaeological site in Russia and one of the earliest records of modern Homo...
resettle areas north, as the effects of the eruption slowly vanished. UpperPaleolithic revolution began after this extreme event, the earliest finds are...
archaeological excavations, several flutes that date to the European UpperPaleolithic were discovered in caves in the Swabian Alb region of Germany. Dated...
"Venus" Figurines: Textiles, Basketry, Gender, and Status in the UpperPaleolithic". Current Anthropology. 41 (4): 511–537. doi:10.1086/317381. ISSN 0011-3204...
The list is divided into four categories, Middle Paleolithic (before 50,000 years ago), UpperPaleolithic (50,000 to 12,500 years ago), Holocene (12,500...
called prehistoric art. For fuller lists see Art of the UpperPaleolithic, Art of the Middle Paleolithic, and Category:Prehistoric art and its many sub-categories...
cave at Qafzeh, Israel with a variety of grave goods. During the UpperPaleolithic Revolution, advancements in human intelligence and technology changed...
The Lower Paleolithic (or Lower Palaeolithic) is the earliest subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. It spans the time from around 3.3 million...
to 12,001 BC (c. 15 ka to c. 14 ka). This millennium is during the UpperPaleolithic period. It is impossible to precisely date events that happened during...
It is clear that such workmanship existed 40,000 years ago in the UpperPaleolithic era, although it is quite possible that it began earlier. In September...
The prehistory of Southern Africa spans from the earliest human presence in the region until the emergence of the Iron Age in Southern Africa. In 1,000...
species including the mammoth, mastodon, and Irish elk became extinct. UpperPaleolithic people also made paintings and engravings on walls. Cave paintings...
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