A: PREHISTORIC GREECE

Region and First Inhabitants

Paleolithic Period in Greece
(History, archaeological data, topography, technology, society)

1. Introduction

The Paleolithic Period (the Early Period of Humanity) extends from approximately 300,000 to 10,000 BC and represents the era during which the first humans used stone tools, hunted, gathered, and moved across large geographical areas.
Greece, due to its distinctive geomorphology, served as a crossroads of human habitation and technological development during the Late Pleistocene.

2. Main Chronological Stages

Period Chronological Framework Characteristics
Lower Paleolithic ~300,000 – 120,000 BC Earliest stone-working techniques
Middle Paleolithic ~120,000 – 40,000 BC More advanced tools, possible coexistence of Homo species
Upper Paleolithic ~40,000 – 10,000 BC Homo sapiens, sophisticated tools

3. Important Archaeological Sites

Petralona Cave (Chalkidiki)
Official source: National Archaeological Museum — https://www.namuseum.gr
The famous Petralona Skull, dated to over 200,000 years old, was discovered here.
It represents one of the oldest human remains in Europe.
Note: The find has been studied internationally and is widely referenced in global academic literature.

Franchthi Cave (Argolid)
Archaeological Program: Franchthi Cave Project — https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/guides/franchthi-cave
Continuous habitation from approximately 38,000 to 3,000 BC.
Provides evidence of settlement patterns, survival strategies, and early seafaring.

Theopetra (Thessaly)
Technologically rich assemblages of stone tools.
Illustrates a transitional phase from a hunter-gatherer economy to early agriculture.

4. Society and Way of Life

Hunters–Gatherers
Groups were small, nomadic, and relied on:

• Hunting large game

• Gathering plant resources

• Living in caves or temporary shelters

General Paleolithic reference:
The Metropolitan Museum of Art (Met) — https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/pale/hd_pale.htm

5. Technology and Stone Tools

Tools included:

• Flakes and points

• Choppers

• Scrapers

• Blades

Changes in tool technology indicate improvements in technique and survival strategies.

Detailed tool catalogue:
Perseus Digital Library — https://www.perseus.tufts.edu

6. Environment & Climatic Impact

The fluctuating climate of the Pleistocene affected:

• Available resources

• Population movements

• The search for new habitation sites

7. Modern Scientific Analysis

Methods used today include:

• Radiocarbon dating

• Paleoclimatology

• Tool archaeometry

• DNA analysis (where available)

8. Conclusions

The Paleolithic Period in Greece:
✔ demonstrates continuous human presence
✔ links Greece to broader European developments
✔ forms the foundation for later Neolithic and cultural evolution

Selected Bibliography & Sources (with active links)

Greek

• C. Doumas, The Prehistory of the Aegean, Kardamitsa Publications

• M. Sakellariou, Paleolithic Greece

English / International

• C. Gamble, The Palaeolithic Societies of Europe

• R. Hosfield, Stone Tools in Archaeology

• Met Museum, Paleolithic Overview — https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/pale/hd_pale.htm

• British Museum, Franchthi Cave Guide — https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/guides/franchthi-cave

• Perseus Project — https://www.perseus.tufts.edu

Images — Sources / References

• Paleolithic stone tools: https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/term/BIOG30757

• Franchthi Cave: https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/guides/franchthi-cave

• Petralona Skull: https://www.namuseum.gr/exhibitions/archaeological-findings/petralona/