The First Civilizations

The period before humans left written records is called prehistory. Our knowledge of this period depends on archaeological findings. Although fossil remains of apelike human ancestors have been found that date back millions of years, the first generally accepted humans appeared in Europe and the Near East about thirty-seven thousand years ago and are called Homo sapiens, meaning the "one who thinks."  read more »

Within the last fifty years, Archeology has revolutionized what we know about the remote past of our earth and the people who live on it. Discoveries continue at a rapid pace.

In the 1950s and 1960s no one could have made many of the major statements in this page. Soon enough, our successors will have learned enough that is new to dispute what we say here. Archeology is, at the cutting edge of what we know about our past.