MainDiscussionMonitoringOutlineParticipantsProject organizationAssessmentResourcesShowcase

This page outlines content within the scope of WikiProject Archaeology.

The Discipline

edit

Core elements

edit
Click on "►" below to display subcategories:

Archaeological methods and practice

edit

Subfields

edit

Survey and site discovery

edit

Archaeological science

edit

Dating

Archaeological approaches

edit

By location

edit

By time period

edit

History and theory

edit

The archaeological record

edit

Features

edit
Main article: Feature

Artifacts

edit
Main article: Artifact

Other concepts

edit

Archaeologists

edit

Education, Institutions and Organisations

edit


Lists

edit

Also a sub-category

The past

edit

The organization of knowledge about the past can be done in two primary ways: by regions or by periods - space or time. The chronological content is organized going backward in time as one reads down: older periods appear below more recent ones as they do in archaeological texts and in the ground due to stratification. This page is designed to provide an overall picture of both those approaches. It classifies content (or its lack) on Wikipedia not necessarily our state of knowledge as it is.

Notes

  • As of April 2013 coverage of the archaeological past was arguably too Eurocentric, particularly for major synthetic articles, templates and timelines. This needs addressing as it is an example of systemic bias.
  • Frameworks for thinking about space and time are varied and often argued about! The intention here is to use the most pragmatic and accepted frameworks that facilitates the organisation of articles

Archaeology by Period

edit

Main article: List of archaeological periods -

Historic Archaeology

edit

Note

  • Archaeologists now work on everything up to the present day (see: Contemporary archaeology). Articles need organising to reflect this and to not just reflect Anglo-American historic periods.

Prehistoric Archaeology

edit
Synoptic table
edit

This table synthesises and organises the archaeological content on Wikipedia by continent or region and by period at a very general level. Where possible it should link to the highest-level synthetic articles or lists. If there are glaring omissions in the selection of synthetic articles "Redlinks" may be created. This table uses Before Present (eg, 'Present' = AD1950 the radiocarbon dating definition) as a step toward culturally neutral chronology.

An Overview of the global past to 1000 BP
Prehistoric Europe
Prehistoric Africa
Prehistoric Asia
Prehistoric Americas
Prehistoric Oceania
Period & Climate Europe North Africa,
West Africa and Sahara
Central Africa,
South and East Africa
Middle East South Asia, and
Central Asia
East Asia and South-East Asia North America (now Canada and the United States) Central and South America Australia, the Philippines and Austronesian peoples
1000 Before Present (BP)



(Middle Ages) (Caliphate) (Sahelian kingdoms) Mapungubwe (Caliphate) (Middle Kingdoms) (Song Dynasty) End of the Woodland period beginning of the Post-archaic period
1500 BP



2000 BP (approximately 0 Before Christ)



Iron Age (Ancient North Africa) Bantu expansion (Classical Antiquity) (Iron Age India) (Han Dynasty) Hopewell tradition
2500 BP



3000 BP




Urnfield culture

Bronze Age

Copper Age in Niger


Bantu expansion
Late Bronze Age
Early Iron Age
development of
Indian Iron Age
Chinese Bronze Age Beginning of the Woodland period
3500 BP



4000 BP




Bell beaker
Chalcolithic
corded ware
domestication of the horse
Neolithic of Tichit

Tenerean
Middle Bronze Age (Sumer) Indus Valley civilisation

writing
Chinese Neolithic
of Longshan
4500 BP



5000 BP




Yamna culture,
enclosed villages
first megaliths
Chalcolithic
of Central Europe
Beginning of the Hunter-gatherer art
of South Africa
Early Bronze Age Regionalization Era
5500 BP



6000 BP




Samara culture

Lower Neolithic
Danubian Neolithic

Mediterranean
and Egyptian Neolithic
Beginning of Neolithic in East Africa Uruk period
Chalcolithic
(copper metallurgy)
Mehrgarh Neolithic
of Yang-Shao
rice-growing (?)
6500 BP



7000 BP




Cardial and Linear Pottery
(agriculture, stock-rearing, Pottery)

Starčevo and Vinča culture
agriculture, stock-rearing (pigs, bovine, sheep)
Neolithic of the Sahara/Sahel

Ubaid period
ceramic Cyprus

Mehrgarh[bhirana] haryana Hongshan culture of Northeast Asia (c. 4700 BC/6700 BP)

8000 BP




Tardenoisian cultures
(gathering of legumes)
Neolithic (Greece and the Eastern Mediterranean )
Sesklo and Choirokoitia
Neolithic with ceramic
Ubaid period
MehrgarhBhirrana (India) Neolithic of northern China

9000 BP




Sauveterrian cultures

Komornica culture
Wiltonian Pre-ceramic B
Pre-ceramic A
Neolithic in Turkey
(wheat, barley)
hunter gatherers
of Jōmon (ancient Japan)
10,000 BP




Ahrensburg culture,
Azilian and Asiloid cultures (northern Spain, southern France)

Capsian Goats domestication Zagros in Iran

First towns Near East at Aşıklı Höyük and Jericho
Hoabinhian of Southeast Asia
11,000 BP




Backed point culture (Federmesser)

Mezine (Ukraine)

Magosian

Natufian

Kandivili
12,000 BP Holocene began
glacial ended (12,000 BP)

Magdalenian
Solutrean
Epigravettian
Hamburg culture

Ibero-Maurisian
Mushabian
Sebilian
Lupemban culture



Kebarian
Athlitian


Beginning of Neolithic religion at Göbekli Tepe (Southeastern Turkey)
Bhimbetka rock paintings south Asia pre-Jōmon ceramic (Japan)
20,000 BP
glacial at its coldest (20,000 BP)




Gravettian (France)

Pavlovian

Aurignacian (art)

Kostienki (western Russia)


Antelian

Aurignacian (art)
Sơn Vi culture (northern Vietnam)
30,000 BP

Châtelperronian
Homo neanderthalensis, Homo sapiens

Aurignacian (art)
Szeletian (Hungary)



Aterian


Stillbay






Balangoda Culture[bhimbetka rock paintings]
Angara Culture


Sen-Doki
40,000 BP
Beginning of the Upper Paleolithic in Europe and Late Stone Age in Africa
First spread of Anatomically Modern Humans competing with established Homo neanderthalensis
Chatelperronian technology
Anatomically Modern Humans
Mousterian technology
Anatomically Modern Humans
Mousterian technology
First spread of Anatomically Modern Humans
Mousterian technology
'First spread of Anatomically Modern Humans
Mousterian technology
First spread of Anatomically Modern Humans
Mousterian technology
50,000 BP
Homo neanderthalensis
Mousterian technology
Anatomically Modern Humans
Mousterian technology
Anatomically Modern Humans
Mousterian technology
Anatomically Modern Humans
Mousterian technology
Homo erectus
Acheulean and Oldowan-derived chopper technology (see Movius Line)
Homo erectus
Oldowan-derived chopper technology
80,000 BP
More complex stone tools - not added as terminology is debated
Homo neanderthalensis
Mousterian technology
First spread of Anatomically Modern Humans
Mousterian technology
Anatomically Modern Humans
Mousterian technology
Howiesons Poort
Anatomically Modern Humans
Mousterian technology
Homo erectus
Acheulean and Oldowan-derived chopper technology (see Movius Line)
Homo erectus
Oldowan-derived chopper technology
100,000 BP
Modern humans spread out from Africa
Last glacial period (major Ice Age) begins (110,000,000 BP)
Homo neanderthalensis
Mousterian and Clactonian technology
Homo neanderthalensis
Mousterian technology
Established Anatomically Modern Humans
Mousterian technology
First spread of Anatomically Modern Humans
Mousterian technology
Homo erectus
Acheulean and Oldowan-derived chopper technology (see Movius Line)
Homo erectus
Oldowan-derived chopper technology
200,000 BP
Earliest solid evidence for use of fire
Homo neanderthalensis
Clactonian technology
Archaic Homo Sapiens
Acheulean technology
Definite rise of Anatomically Modern Humans
Acheulean technology

Homo neanderthalensis
Acheulean
Homo erectus
Acheulean and Oldowan-derived chopper technology (see Movius Line)
Homo erectus
Oldowan-derived chopper technology
300,000 BP
The beginning of the Middle Paleolithic in Europe and Middle Stone Age in Africa
Homo neanderthalensis
Acheulian and Clactonian technology
Archaic Homo Sapiens developing
Acheulean technology
Archaic Homo Sapiens developing
Acheulean technology
Homo ergaster and Homo neanderthalensis
Acheulean technology
Homo erectus
Acheulean and Oldowan-derived chopper technology (see Movius Line)
Homo erectus
Oldowan-derived chopper technology
400,000 BP
The first of our species
Homo heidelbergensis and Homo neanderthalensis
Acheulean and Levallois technology
Homo heidelbergensis
Acheulean technology
Likely rise of Homo Sapiens (based on genetic evidence)
Acheulean technology
Homo ergaster and Homo neanderthalensis
Acheulean technology
Homo erectus
Acheulean and Oldowan-derived chopper technology (see Movius Line)
Homo erectus
Oldowan-derived chopper technology
600,000 BP Homo heidelbergensis
Acheulean technology
Homo antecessor
Acheulean technology
Homo heidelbergensis and Homo antecessor
Acheulean technology
Homo ergaster
Acheulean technology
Homo erectus
Acheulean and Oldowan-derived chopper technology (see Movius Line)
Homo erectus
Oldowan-derived chopper technology
1,000,000 BP Homo ergaster
Oldowan technology
Homo ergaster
Oldowan technology
Homo antecessor
Acheulean technology
Last Australopithecines
Homo ergaster
Acheulean technology
Homo erectus
Acheulean and Oldowan-derived chopper technology (see Movius line
Homo erectus
Oldowan-derived chopper technology
1,500,000 BP
The first steps out of Africa and more advanced tools
Oldowan technology but no fossil preservation Homo habilis, Homo ergaster
The first Acheulean technology
Australopithecines
Homo ergaster and/or erectus with Oldowan technology Homo ergaster and/or erectus with Oldowan technology
2,000,000 BP Homo habilis
First appearances of Homo ergaster and/or erectus
Australopithecines
Oldowan technology
Possible independent evolution of Homo erectus
2,500,000 BP
The first stone tools
The beginning of the Pleistocene
First appearance of Homo habilis and possiblyHomo rudolfensis
Australopithecines
The earliest Oldowan technology
Period & Climate Prehistoric Europe North Africa,
West Africa and Sahara
Central Africa,
South and East Africa
Middle East South Asia, and
Central Asia
East Asia and South-East Asia North America (now Canada and the United States) Central and South America Australia, the Philippines and Austronesian peoples
Prehistoric Europe
Prehistoric Africa
Prehistoric Asia
Prehistoric Americas
Prehistoric Oceania
An Overview of the global past to 1000 BP

Periods and stages in archaeology – also a sub-category'

Archaeology by region

edit

Also a sub-category