10 Things You Probably Didn't Know About Neolithic - Danubian Civilization
The Danube Valley civilization is one of the oldest civilizations known in Europe. It existed from between 5,500 and 3,500 BC in the Balkans and covered a vast area, in what is now Northern Greece to Slovakia (South to North), and Croatia to Romania (West to East).
During the height of the Danube Valley civilization, it played an important role in south-eastern Europe through the development of copper tools, a writing system, advanced architecture, including two storey houses, and the construction of furniture, such as chairs and tables, all of which occurred while most of Europe was in the middle of the Stone Age. Theydeveloped skills such as spinning, weaving, leather processing, clothes manufacturing, and manipulated wood, clay and stone and they invented the wheel. They had an economic, religious and social structure.
1. The First Writing { Tartaria Tablets - Vinca Culture }
For many years people believed that the earliest known form of writing in the world came from the southern part of Mesopotamia where The Sumerian civilization was (today known as the south-eastern Iraq).
However in 1961, this was to change when a Romanian archaeologist: Nicolae Vlasa made an extraordinary discovery.In Tartaria village, about 30 km from Alba Iulia, in Romania, members of a team led by Nicolae Vlasa unearthed three inscribed clay tablets that were about to change essential theories and beliefs regarding the first known form of writing in the world.
These tablets are dated to around 5500 BC and according to specialists it is considered to be the first(oldest) written messages in the history.
It apparently seems that these clay tablets have been and still are the subject of great controversy in the archaeological world, as some archaeologists are not entirely convinced that these symbols might represent the earliest known form of writing in the world.
Until Vlasa`s discovery, historians considered Sumerian writing (dated at 3300 BC) as being the oldest on earth.
Listen to H. Haarman speaking about The Danube Script { Tartaria Tablets }
2. The First Wheel { Cucuteni - Trypillya Culture }
I was curious, I’ve seen the invention of the wheel down as 3,500 BC years ago in Sumer. But this funky little ceramic toy from the Ukraine seems to be a bit older. I’ve seen claims that there’s proof the Trypillians used the wheel 6,500 years ago. There’s also what appears to be wheel tracks for a cart under a barrow grave in Flintbeck Germany about 3,600 years old, which would make a later invention in Sumer seem unlikely.
Cucuteni-Trypillian (cow-on-wheels) 3950-3650 B.C
Worlds oldest wooden wheel found in Slovenia, about 5,200 years old.Seen below. The wheel was found in April 2002, together with a squared oak axle, in the remains of a pile-dwelling settlement.
Ljubljana Wheel , Slovenia
Having a radius of 70 centimetres (28 in), the wheel is made of ash and oak. The aperture for the 120 centimetres (47 in) long axle is square, which means that the wheel and the axis rotated together
Hidden Histories: The Wheel ( Watch video )
3. Yin Yang Symbol & Swastika
The earliest symbol to represent yin and yang was in I Ching which was written in 1000 BC.
Patterns similar to the taijitu also form part of Celtic, Etruscan, Roman and much earlier Cucuteni-Trypillian culture iconography, sometimes descriptively dubbed "yin yang symbols" in archaeological literature by modern scholars
read more about TAIJITU on wiki : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taijitu
Near to Mezine was found the earliest known example of a swastika-like form, as part of a decorative object, found on an artifact dated to 10,000 BCE. Described as an object carved of the ivory tusks of Mammuthus to resemble an :“Ice age Bird ... with Inscribed Swastikas”
read more about MEZINE on wiki : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mezine
4. Metals & Metalurgy was the real Neolithic Revolution
( Stone vs. Metals) (Copper Age )
The Copper Age, also called the Eneolithic or the Chalcolithic Age, has been traditionally understood as a transitional period between the Neolithic and the Bronze Age, in which a gradual introduction of the metal (native copper) took place, while stone was still the main resource utilized. Recent archaeology has found that the metal was not introduced so gradually and that this entailed significant social changes, such as hierarchical leadership, developments in the type of habitation (larger villages, launching of fortifications), long-distance trade, and copper metallurgy.
Roughly, the Copper Age could be situated chronologically between the 5th and 6th millennium BC in places like the archaeological sites of Majdanpek, Јarmovac and Pločnik (a copper axe from 5500 BC belonging to the Vinča culture). Somewhat later, in 5th millennium BC, metalwork is attested at Rudna Glava mine in Serbia, and at Ai Bunar mine in Bulgaria and the Cucuteni Culture ,Romania . All cultures of the Danube Civilization .
read more about Copper Age : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metallurgy_during_the_Copper_Age_in_Europe
Copper Highlight from New York exhibit at min 6:03 (watch video)
5. Varna Man and the Wealthiest Grave of the 5th Millennium
The Varna culture belongs to the late Chalcolithic of northeastern Bulgaria. It is conventionally dated between 4400-4100 BC. It is contemporary and closely related with Gumelnița in southern Romania, often considered as local variants.
It is characterized by polychrome pottery and rich cemeteries, the most famous of which are Varna Necropolis, the eponymous site, and the Durankulak complex, which comprises the largest prehistoric cemetery in southeastern Europe, with an adjoining coeval Neolithic settlement (published) and an unpublished and incompletely excavated Chalcolithic settlement.
294 graves have been found in the necropolis, many containing sophisticated examples of copper and gold metallurgy, pottery (about 600 pieces, including gold-painted ones), high-quality flint and obsidian blades, beads, and shells. The site was accidentally discovered in October 1972 by excavator operator Raycho Marinov. Research excavation was under the direction of Mihail Lazarov and Ivan Ivanov. About 30% of the estimated necropolis area is still not excavated.
The findings showed that the Varna culture had trade relations with distant lands, possibly including the lower Volga region and the Cyclades, perhaps exporting metal goods and salt from the Provadiya rock salt mine. The copper ore used in the artifacts originated from a Sredna Gora mine near Stara Zagora, and Mediterraneanspondylus shells found in the graves may have served as primitive currency.
read more about Varna Gold on our blog : http://www.neokoolt.com/#!Varna-Gold/c9ze/55a40d4e0cf24f011b5d1ad8
6. Oldest European Cities
Here is a list of towns and cities in Europe that
were founded at least 3000 years ago
7,000 BCE : Choirokoitia (Cyprus)
6,500 BCE : Sesklo (Thessaly, Greece)
6,000 BCE : Starčevo (Serbia)
5,500 BCE : Pločnik (Serbia)
5,000 BCE : Varna (Bulgaria)
5,000 BCE : Hallstatt (Austria)
5,000 BCE : Bratislava (Slovakia)
4,800 BCE : Dimini (Thessaly, Greece)
4,500 BCE : Lerna (Peloponnese, Greece)
4,500 BCE : Glauberg (Hesse, Germany)
4,000 BCE : Plovdiv (Bulgaria)
4,000 BCE : Phaistos (Crete, Greece)
3,900 BCE : Michelsberg (Baden, Germany)
3,800 BCE : Dobrovody (Ukraine)
3,700 BCE : Talianki (Ukraine)
3,700 BCE : Maydanets (Ukraine)
3,250 BCE : Kasenovka (Ukraine)
3,200 BCE : Skara Brae (Scotland)
3,000 BCE : Troy (Turkey)
3,000 BCE : Myrtos Pyrgos (Crete, Greece)
7. The first & only non-slavery civilization ( Old Europe)
Slavery can be traced back to the earliest records, such as the Code of Hammurabi (c. 1760 BC), which refers to it as an established institution. Slavery is rare among hunter-gatherer populations, as it is developed as a system of social stratification. Slavery was known in civilizations as old as Sumer, as well as almost every other ancient civilization . Seems like the Danube Civilization is the only one that created & keept egalitarian peaceful rights for a period of almost 2500 years then they suddenly disappear and the Bronze Age beggins with lots of fighting also named the Dark Age of humanity . they discovered the first assault weapons made out of bronze, A pradox is that bronze is made from copper alloy and almost all the copper in that times was from the cultures of the Danube Valley Civilization ...
read more about history of Slavery on wiki : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_slavery
8. The largest Ceramic Heritage & The Neolithic Renaissance
The Cucuteni-Trypillian culture is aNeolithic–Eneolithic archaeological culture (ca. 4800 to 3000 BC) in Eastern Europe. It extends from the Carpathian Mountains to the Dniester and Dnieper regions, centered on modern-day Moldova and covering substantial parts of western Ukraine and northeastern Romania, encompassing an area of some 350,000 km2(140,000 sq mi), with a diameter of some 500 km
Most Cucuteni-Trypillian pottery was hand coiled from local clay. Long coils of clay were placed in circles to form first the base and then the walls of the vessel. Once the desired shape and height of the finished product was built up the sides would then be smoothed to create a seamless surface. This technique was the earliest form of pottery shaping and the most common in the Neolithic; however, there is some evidence that they also used a primitive type of slow-turning potter's wheel, an innovation that did not become common in Europe until the Iron Age.
In the late period of Cucuteni-Trypillian culture, kilns with a controlled atmosphere were used for pottery production. These kilns were constructed with two separate chambers—the combustion chamber and the filling chamber— separated by a grate. Temperatures in the combustion chamber could reach 1000–1100 °C but were usually maintained at around 900 °C to achieve a uniform and complete firing of vessels.Toward the end of the Cucuteni-Trypillian culture, as copper became more readily available, advances in ceramic technology leveled off as more emphasis was placed on developing metallurgical techniques.
70% of the Neolitic Heritage is atributed to this culture and probably is the most beatiful of all.
Follow CUCUTENI on Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/cucuteni
9. The Thinker of Hamangia ( Hamangia Culture )
In history, there are works of art that have a special place and that almost everyone knows: the golden mask of Tuthankhamun, the Pantheon in Rome, the Mona Lisa in the Louvre, the sunflowers of Van Gogh, … an endless list. Art works from a much older past are barely known to the general public but often they earn to be known. Some have of an extraordinary quality. One of our favourite works in this regard is “The Thinker and the Sitting Woman” thatwere found in Romania and are between 6,600 and 7,000 years old.
The Thinker and the Sitting Woman. Hamangia culture, Romania, 7000 – 6600 years ago.
Both statuettes have a modern look. If we would see them for the first time, without prior knowledge, then we might think that these are very recent works of art, that is not more than 100 years old.
Surprisingly, it is also true that some very old works of art sometimes show style characteristics that were reinvented in the 20th century. Paul Levy wrote about ‘The Thinker and the Sitting Woman’:“Their elongated necks and small heads are compellingly reminiscent of Matisse and the Cubist painters and sculptors, and a curator told me that it is just possible that Brancusi saw them.”
10 . Life in Old Europe ( The Danube Civilization )
and if you didn't heard about Neolithic or Old Europe it's all right .. a lot of people doesn't know very much about this topic , not even europeans . It's a kind of Hidden History . So if you imagine that neolithic people where just some savages your perception is very deformed
These people started the first Society as we know it today , they builded the first city like settlements (proto-cities) they practically invented metallurgy ( the real neolithic revolution) they made the best looking ceramic vessel ever and in very large quantities also they where a paceful comunity and very spiritual ( The Goddess Cult )
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