Tales from the Grotto. 50 Stories from the Lives of Ancient People

7 hrs. 40 min.

Popular Science

Language Russian

Author Stanislav Drobyshevsky

Narrator Sergey Moskovsky

Description

It seems that we know very little about the lives of our ancestors—the first people. We have no written evidence of their history, and we can only guess at their everyday life, beliefs, and way of living from rare finds, burials, and settlements.

Is that enough?

As it turns out, yes. Stones and skulls can tell us a great deal about the past: how families lived, how children became adults, how people lured hunting luck, how they discovered new lands, how they domesticated the first animals, and even how they treated teeth. We think that representatives of the Stone Age are infinitely far from us and that we are nothing like them—but thinking that way would be unfair. In Paleolithic people there was far more human in them than we imagine. 50 illustrated stories—about the fact that our ancestors were not only homo, but also truly people.

Contents:

PREFACE
1. “BABIES FROM TAUNGA” THE UNHAPPINESS OF ANCESTORS—THE ANTHROPOLOGISTS’ GOOD FORTUNE (SOUTH AFRICA; 2.7 MLN Y.A.)
2. SK 54 THE PARANTHROPUS’S DIFFICULT FATE (SOUTH AFRICA; 1.8 MLN Y.A.)
3. STW 53 FROM DIRT—TO HOMO (SOUTH AFRICA; 1.8 MLN Y.A.)
4. DMANISI 3444 GRANDMOTHER’S TALES OF THE CAUCASIAN MOUNTAINS (GEORGIA; 1.78 MLN Y.A.)
5. OLDuvAI PYR GOroi (TANZANIA; 1.7 MLN Y.A.)
6. KNM-ER 1808 WHY DOES HONEY IN FACT APPEAL TO HIM SO MUCH? (KENYA; 1.59 MLN Y.A.)
7. TRINIL. SHELLS, VOLCANOES, AND CROCODILES (JAVA; 480 THOUS. Y.A.)
8. FE RZ PLATT. CUT FOR GULLIVER (ENGLAND; 300 THOUS. Y.A.)
9. BROKEN HILL. THE CURSE OF THE LAND (ZAMBIA; 300 THOUS. Y.A.)
10. KRAPINA. GENIUS AND VILLAINY ARE COMPATIBLE (CROATIA; 130 THOUS. Y.A.)
11. KAFZEH 11. ON THE EDGE OF WORLDS (ISRAEL; 100 THOUS. Y.A.)
12. YAVALAPURAM. ETERNAL NIGHT (SOUTH INDIA; 74 THOUS. Y.A.)
13. LIANG BUA 1. DWARFS IN THE WORLD OF GIANTS (FLORES; 60 THOUS. Y.A.)
14. SHANIDAR IV. SAD FLOWERS (IRAQ; 60 THOUS. Y.A.)
15. DRAC HENLOCH. BEAR-HUNTERS (SWITZERLAND; 53 THOUS. Y.A.)
16. SIDRON. WHEN THEY COME—NON-RELATIVES (SPAIN; 49 THOUS. Y.A.)
17. PESHTERA-KU-OASE. SECRETS OF THE BEAR’S HALLS (ROMANIA; 41.5 THOUS. Y.A.)
18. SEN-SEZER. THE LAST TROLLS (FRANCE; 41 THOUS. Y.A.)
19. HOLE FELS. THE FIRST MUSE (GERMANY; 40 THOUS. Y.A.)
20. ZAS KALNAYA VI. GIFTS OF THE SEA (CRIMEA; 39 THOUS. Y.A.)
21. NAZLET HATER 2. THE DAY OF THE MINER (EGYPT; 37.5 THOUS. Y.A.)
22. MARKINA GORA. IT’S HORRIBLE THAT YOU LEFT—DON’T COME BACK EVER (VORONEZH REGION; 37 THOUS. Y.A.)
23. ISTURITZ. THE MAGIC OF FRIENDSHIP (FRANCE; 32 THOUS. Y.A.)
24. SUNGIR. CHILDREN WHO BRING HAPPINESS (VLADIMIR REGION; 31 THOUS. Y.A.)
25. SUNGIR. THE FATAL BLOW (VLADIMIR REGION; 31 THOUS. Y.A.)
26. DOLNI VESTONICE 13–15. A FAMILY POSSESSED BY SPIRITS (CZECHIA; 29 THOUS. Y.A.)
27. SOLUTRE. ON THE HORSE FERRY… (FRANCE; 28.42 THOUS. Y.A.)
28. BRNO II. THE GREAT SHAMAN (CZECHIA; 28 THOUS. Y.A.)
29. ARENE CANDIDE. BEARS ARE AFRAID—DON’T GO INTO THE FOREST (ITALY; 27.9 THOUS. Y.A.)
30. DOLNI VESTONICE 35. MARCO POLO OF THE STONE AGE (CZECHIA; 27 THOUS. Y.A.)
31. SHOVET. THE PATH INTO DARKNESS AMONG STONE STARS (FRANCE; 26 THOUS. Y.A.)
32. MALTA. SWANS THAT BRING LAND (IRKUTSK REGION; 24 THOUS. Y.A.)
33. ZARAYSK. THE BISON MAGIC (MOSCOW REGION; 22 THOUS. Y.A.)
34. MEZIN. A HOUSING QUESTION (UKRAINE; 21.6 THOUS. Y.A.)
35. SPRING CREEK. THE FIRST PEOPLE AND THE LAST GIANTS (AUSTRALIA; 19.8 THOUS. Y.A.)
36. LIANG LEMDUBU. GOODBYE, MY SWEET (COBROADOR ISLAND; 17 THOUS. Y.A.)
37. ISTURITZ. BISON FEELINGS (FRANCE; 16 THOUS. Y.A.)
38. SAINT-GERMAIN-LA-RIVIÈRE. MY CHARM (FRANCE; 15.78 THOUS. Y.A.)
39. CHANSE LADA. THE GUEST BISON (FRANCE; 15 THOUS. Y.A.)
40. MONTAD IER. THE FIRST PHILOSOPHER (FRANCE; 15 THOUS. Y.A.)
41. LORTE. THE MOST AUTUMNAL HAPPINESS (FRANCE; 15 THOUS. Y.A.)
42. MONTESPAN. THE UNDERGROUND HUNT (FRANCE; 14.5 THOUS. Y.A.)
43. TUC D’ODUBÉE. CAVE BISONS (FRANCE; 14 THOUS. Y.A.)
44. RIPARO VILLABRUN A. THE FIRST TOOTH (FRANCE; 14 THOUS. Y.A.)
45. MONTE VERDE II. MUDDY POMPEII (CHILE; 14 THOUS. Y.A.)
46. LE BICHON. THE LAST FIGHT (SWITZERLAND; 13.6 THOUS. Y.A.)
47. ENL INE AND TROIS FRERES. DANCING IN THE DARK (FRANCE; 13 THOUS. Y.A.)
48. HILAZON T A CHTIT. AT THE DAWN OF CIVILIZATION (ISRAEL; 12.2 THOUS. Y.A.)
49. PASO OTERO 5. ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA (ARGENTINA; 12.1 THOUS. Y.A.)
50. EIN MALL AHA. A LADY WITH A LITTLE DOG (ISRAEL; 12 THOUS. Y.A.)
AFTERWORD