Prehistoric Homosapiens

What do we really know about Prehistoric Man?

The Bible says that God created man in His own image. Where does "prehistoric man" enter the picture? Did this kind of person roam the Earth before God created Adam and Eve?

The idea that there were "prehistoric men" before Adam and Eve comes from those who do not understand the nature of the evidence. These creatures are often creations of men and not of God.

Fortunately many Christian teachers have been instructed by creationists who are better trained than they in this kind of evidence. Few Bible-believing teachers offer this explanation anymore. That there was an earlier race of creatures is mainly held by theistic evolutionists today. They often teach that it was out of this population of hominids that God chose two to be the first humans.

The conclusion that such a race existed is unsatisfactory, as far as the Bible goes. It is also scientifically unacceptable. Scripture teaches that sin came into the world by Adam and that it was sin that resulted in death. St. Paul makes clear that this state of affairs extends to the entire creation. To say that there was an earlier race of hominids living and dying before Adam's creation attacks the redemptive work of the Second Adam. This is because Scripture ties the first and the Second Adams together.

If an earlier race existed, so did death, and so did sin. If Scripture is wrong on the source of sin and its result in death, how do we know it is right in the other things it says about our salvation?

Genesis, taken as literal history, is the perfect basis for St. Paul's words about the first and Second Adam. Genesis mentions neither an earlier race, nor an earlier world. This silence offers no comfort for the "Christian evolutionist." Genesis clearly says that six days after the universe appeared, creatures that were completely and fully human walked the Earth.

Further, Genesis rules out the claim that man was formed from earlier species of animals. Genesis says that man was created from the dust of the earth.

Scriptures' history and message of salvation from sin and its consequences leave no room for an earlier race of hominids. So what about the "scientific evidence"?

There are no scientific facts that compel us to accept the existence of "prehistoric man." Are all the "hominids" that populate the various textbooks and popular science magazines real creatures? Some of them were made by God and some were made up by men.

One of the biggest frauds is" Lucy." The scientific literature says she was about three or so feet tall with a head about the size of a baseball. Yet she has been depicted in some popular modern science magazines as being similar in height to a modern woman. Likewise, she has been pictured as appearing nearly human, with a head perhaps only slightly smaller than ours. These fraudulent depictions were successful in convincing people that man evolved from something ape-like. Lucy is "reconstructed" from bones found at two different sites in the Hadar/Afar region of Africa. One site is called 162, the other is site 333. The sites, from which one "individual" has been built, are not even at the same geological level! Even evolutionists noted in their comments that the bones at site 333 are much like modern humans while the bones from site 162 are not. Other literature shows that the bones of Lucy's skeleton from site 162 are nearly identical to the pygmy chimp.

What would you find if, in a thousand years, you dug up a couple of cemeteries in the ruins of one of our cities? You'd be likely to run into human skeletons as well as the skeletons of animals we live with. A few bones from a human cemetery and a few from a pet cemetery could provide months of entertainment for the creative mind!

Other creatures, like Neanderthal, have been reclassified as Homo sapiens. Creationists have long said that Neanderthal fell into the presently known genetic range of human beings. Many evolutionists now admit that this is true. They have even done studies showing that very normal human beings have bone structures identical to Neanderthal.

The problem, admit evolutionists, lies in the fact that since Neanderthal was supposed to be primitive, he was "reconstructed" with "primitive" features. It was the reconstruction that created the image! We add that the same is true of "Lucy" and the full pantheon of the "hominids" and "primitive humans." Almost none of the "reconstructions" found in the popular magazine and textbooks correspond to the creatures in the scientific literature.

Upon this dishonesty is built the impression that these "creatures" were, in fact, real. It's humbling to realize that the same approach that is used at Disney World to convince Billy that Mickey Mouse is real also convinces him that evolution is truth.

These "evolutionary hominids" are really only dead apes or tinker-toy-like constructions. If they were real, we would expect to find the famed evolutionary progression from more ape-like characteristics to human-like characteristics. Evolutionists claim this progression is there. Just as most used car salesmen won't tell you everything, neither do most evolutionists. They carefully select characteristics that seem to show evolutionary progression. The problem is, they have no objective way of telling whether a characteristic is "modern" or "primitive."

Worse, less-dogmatic evolutionists offer their conclusion that there is a lack of progression. For example, a comparison of the talus (foot) bones of man and apes show that creatures like Homo Habilis and the Olduvai finds have little in common with humans. They are more like orangutans than humans.

A study of the cranial capacities also reveals a vast, unfilled gap. Brain complexity seems to go relative to size. This means that evolutionists are claiming that 60-65 percent of man's 115 brain connections developed in only a few million years! Such a conclusion is too incredible to be accepted.

By every measure there is a gap between humans and hominids and none between apes and hominids. Only one measure has been suggested which claims a close relationship between apes and man. According to Dr. John Gribbin and Dr. Jeremy Cherfas in their book The Monkey Puzzle, there is a 99 percent similarity between humans and apes. However, this work has not been without criticism. Saying that man is 99 percent gorilla is also to say that gorillas are 99 percent man! Even most hard-core evolutionists have trouble with that claim. They would have preferred that Gribbin and Cherfas would have found that there is only a 50-60 percent similarity. That would have fit better with evolutionary theory.

There is absolutely no compelling scientific reason to believe that man is related to any ape-like creature. Many of the claims to the contrary are scientifically unsupported.

Prehistoric people lived in the time period before events were recorded or written down. Woolly mammoths, saber-toothed tigers, and bears were among the prehistoric beasts that also roamed the earth.

The development of writing enabled people to record and save information, thus marking the beginning of their history. That occurred about 5,500 years ago. People before that are labeled as prehistoric.

Evidence of prehistoric people was first discovered in mid-19th century when sharp-edged stone tools and fossilized human bones were found and identified. Since that time, infrequent discoveries of other fossils of prehistoric people have occurred. These usually fragmented remains have provided additional information about early humans and what they looked like.

Anthropologists whose interest is the study of human and cultural development join with archaeologists, zoologists, botanists, geologists, and other scientists to locate and analyze the physical evidence; artifacts such as pottery shards, stone tools, fragmented fossils, and other remains. From these findings, they must base their conjectures about early human life. In addition, new evidence continues to be occasionally discovered, sometimes leading to questioning or disproval of former theories and giving rise to controversial debates.

Scientific record and evidence places the beginning of the genus Homo with the emergence of Humanity from East and Southern Africa. This species is the earliest known record of man that is categorized in the same group as living humans. It was at this point in time that stone tools first appeared. Humanity represents a remarkable change in the comparison of other earlier species believed to be more primitive forms. Up to this point in time, Africa is the only location in the world for human existence.

Humanity appears and spreads throughout North Africa eventually traveling to Eurasia. They were active hunters that lived in small huts and caves, mastered the use of fire and fashioned a variety of stone tools. These stone tools were different from other tools as they were fashioned out of large flakes and occur in greater abundance and variety. This change in tool development is classified as the Acheulian Tradition.

The most famous variety of archaic Homo sapiens is undoubtedly the Neanderthal people. Perhaps no other type of primitive man has been so maligned as that of the Neanderthals and recent discoveries are sending many scientists back to their proverbial drawing boards to rewrite an accurate account of these amazing peoples. Scientists now classify them as a sub-species of Homo sapiens, Homo sapiens neanderthalensis. With the emergence of Neanderthals comes a new, more advanced and specialized tool technology called the Mousterian Tradition.

They populated regions in Europe and the Near East, have existed right up to today in western France. The Neanderthals spread east and south, and they are known in northern Africa and from France through southern Europe, the former southern Soviet states and Iraq. Current evidence shows that despite Neanderthals' stockier build, they share several key features with modern man. There is also clear evidence that they had control of fire, lived in caves or open-air structures of stone and vegetation.

One of the most important artifacts of primitive man is the existence of stone tools. The Paleolithic Period is defined as the time from the first use of stone tools up to the end of the Pleistocene epoch. The Paleolithic Period is divided into three categories, Lower, Middle and Upper Paleolithic Period.

Stone Age Man

During this time people found shelter in caves and left behind very interesting artifacts. Scientists use many clues to help them put pieces of the past together. One thing they must know is the difference between a fossil and an artifact. Fossils are remains of living things (plants, animals, people), not things that were made. Artifacts are remains of things that were made, not remains of living things.

Stone Age Daily Life

Stone Age Man Hunts

People in the stone age hunted many animals as part of their daily lives. They used the meat for food, fur for clothes and to build shelter homes made from the skins. One of the animals that they so would hunt was the Woolly Mammoth. The Woolly Mammoth was bigger than an elephant and could live in very cold places. One hunt for a full grown Mammoth could feed a whole village for an entire winter.

Stone Age Man

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The Stone Age refers to the materials used to make man-made tools. In the Stone Age, man made tools out of stone. “Handy Man” was one of the first hominids to use stone tools. Hunters & Gatherers: The Old Stone Age people were hunters/gatherers. We know this because scientists have found fossils and artifacts, which reveal traces of their life. These people did not plant crops. They gathered wild fruits, nuts, berries, and vegetables.

The Bible does not use the term “caveman” or “Neanderthals,” and according to the Bible there is no such thing as “prehistoric” man. The term “prehistoric” means “belonging to the era before recorded history.” It presupposes that the biblical account is merely a fabrication, because the book of Genesis records events which precede the creation of man (namely, the first five days of creation—man was created on the sixth day). The Bible is clear that Adam and Eve were perfect humans from the time of their creation and did not evolve from lower life forms.

With that said, the Bible does describe a period of traumatic upheaval upon the earth—the flood (Genesis 6-9), during which time civilization was utterly destroyed except for eight people. Humanity was forced to start over. It is in this historical context that some scholars believe men lived in caves and made use of stone tools. These men were not primitive; they were simply destitute. And they certainly were not half ape. The fossil evidence is quite clear: cavemen were human—men who lived in caves.

There are some fossilized ape remains which Darwinian paleo-anthropologists interpret as being some sort of transition between ape and men. Most people seem to think of these interpretations when they imagine cavemen. They picture furry half-men, half-ape creatures crouched in a cave next to a fire, drawing on the walls with their newly developed stone tools. This is a common misconception. And as far as Darwinian paleo-anthropology goes, we should keep in mind that these interpretations reflect a peculiar worldview and are not the result of the evidence. In fact, not only is there major opposition to these interpretations within the academic community, the Darwinists themselves do not entirely agree with each other on the details.

Unfortunately, the popular mainstream view promotes this idea that man and ape both evolved from the same ancestor, but this is certainly not the only plausible interpretation of the available evidence. In fact, the evidence in favor of this particular interpretation is lacking.

When God created Adam and Eve, they were fully developed human beings, capable of communication, society, and development (Genesis 2:19-25; 3:1-20; 4:1-12). It is almost entertaining to consider the lengths evolutionary scientists go to prove the existence of prehistoric cavemen. They find a misshapen tooth in a cave and from that create a misshapen human being who lived in a cave, hunched over like an ape. There is no way that science can prove the existence of cavemen by a fossil. Evolutionary scientists simply have a theory, and then they force the evidence to fit the theory. Adam and Eve were the first human beings ever created and were fully-formed, intelligent, and upright.

Who was Neanderthal man?

The first fossils of Neanderthal man were unearthed in 1856 A.D. Since humans are evolving, which implies that they are improving, Neanderthals look very primitive and apish looking. Early humans looked brutish because he was further back on the evolutionary scale. Modern humans, according to evolution, were more refined. These suppositions do not rest on morphology and hard science; but rather on slanting the data to fit preconceived notions of how some of the first humans were supposed to look.

As any forensic practitioner knows, it is IMPOSSIBLE, from a skeleton (especially one from a Neanderthal man), to identify; extent of hair covering, hair color, nose shape, lip shape, skin color and race. Often it is not even possible to identify the sex of the individual. Consider that most anthropologists only have fragments of bones to work with. It is very easy to see that their presuppositions can influence their findings.

What are the morphological (form and structure) facts about Neanderthal man? Have these facts been properly utilized by those who claim to follow the evolutionary scenario? Is it possible to construct another picture that better fits these facts? Yes. They are fully human, a bona fide member of the Homo sapiens family. He was not an apish creature. These facts and findings coincide with the Biblical record.

Facts from Fossils

The following are recent facts discovered about this class of early humans found through fossil remains in various parts of Europe and the Middle East.

Skeletons have been unearthed with the voice box intact (hyoid bones). The hyoid bones of a Neanderthal man are identical to those we have. They had the ability to speak and were shorter than modern human beings. Although they are shorter than us they are nevertheless powerful. This allowed for a greater attachment of ligament, tendons, and muscles. It also allowed carrying heavier loads with less strain. They also had extremely thick bones. The rest of the skeleton exhibits similar traits.

The average brain size for this early man is larger than the brain of modern humans. According to the evolutionary theory, they should have a smaller braincase. They were extremely muscular and strong. Notice the following quotes:

"One of the most characteristic features of the Neanderthals is the exaggerated massiveness of their trunk and limb bones. All of the preserved bones suggest a strength seldom attained by modern humans. Furthermore, not only is their robustness present among the adult males, as one might expect, but it is also evident in the adult females, adolescents, and even children."

"Neanderthal was far more powerful than modern humans. Whereas archeologist can experimentally duplicate the wear pattern on tools such as were used by people form the Upper Paleolithic, the wear patterns on Neanderthal's tools cannot be duplicated."

"The evidence indicates that Neanderthals were people of incredible power and strength - far superior to all but the most avid bodybuilders of today."

Neanerthol Man (left) compared to modern man

Neanderthals had a flatter skull but it was longer and wider. The mandible was more robust than ours was.

More facts from the Fossil Record

The skull of a Neanderthal was very thick. It had prominent brow ridges. It was flatter, wider, but longer. The longer cranial cavity had an occipital bun or pointed end. This allowed more room for a larger brain. The teeth were larger. The mandible was more massive and did not protrude as much as the modern version.

Culturally, Neanderthal was fully human. He buried his dead. He drew paintings on cave walls. He used fire and tools. He played the flute. He worshipped bears. He was cannibalistic. He cared for the injured and elderly. In essence he did the things that other humans have done down through history. In summary, a Neanderthal was more muscular, more agile, and stronger with a greater bone density than a modern human was. He also had a bigger brain. He would easily overpower most modern day Homo Sapiens. When archeologists describe him, they often use the word "robust." This is a fancy way of saying bigger, thicker, or larger.

Is he in the Bible?

The people who lived before and immediately after the flood lived a very long time! This had a profound physiological effect upon their body systems. This would especially affect the growth of bones. The average age of the people mentioned in Genesis 5 (the ten generations from Adam to Noah) was 857 years. After the flood, from Shem to Abraham (ten generations), the average age was 323. Today the average life expectancy is about 78 years in the United States.

Man's nature had deteriorated. The world was extremely violent (Genesis 6:5, 13). Any fossils bone of the antediluvians would show signs of this violence in the form of broken bones, scars, and healed over bone growths. The Bible says that these men accomplished great deeds and that they were "men of renown." (Genesis 6:4)

The ecological systems of the Earth underwent catastrophic changes with the coming of Noah's flood. These included a restructuring of the atmosphere, changes in the magnetic field (15), great mountain building episodes and volcanic activity (16). It included the start of the ice age(s) (17), the beginning of a meteorological cycle based on rain and wind systems (Genesis 2:5-6, 9:16), and a geological restructuring of the earth with great sedimentary deposition of water borne particles. It also had the deepening of the ocean basins to collect flood waters (Psalm 104:5-9).

The nature of animals was changed. In the Garden of Eden, Adam was able to name all the animals. They apparently had no fear of man. After the flood, this changed. Some animals would kill people because God allowed man to avenge himself on any animal that killed a human (Genesis 9:5). Also the rise of Nimrod was made possible by his skill as a hunter, in other words he made a name for himself, by protecting people from the beast of the earth and their newly acquired ferocious nature (Genesis 10: 8-10).

The Bible says that God was going to destroy not only man but also the Earth (Genesis 6:13). When Noah disembarked from the ark, the world was a completely different world than the one he had been living in.

More facts from the Fossil Record

Femur bones from a Neanderthal (left)
and a modern weightlifter (right)

Are they unique and FULLY human?

What caused the unique facial and skeletal characteristics of a Neanderthal? Evolutionists will tell you that since they are an ancestor of modern humans the morphological differences are due to the evolutionary changes that are constantly remolding our features. Is evolution the only mechanism by which these changes could have been produced? Many scientists disagree with the theory of evolution. If there is a simpler answer, does it not make sense to examine the evidence? Below is a summarization of research, and the research of others, that shows that non-evolutionary factors and forces could have produced their unique anatomical differences.

Neanderthal man was not a combination half-man half-ape. He was fully human and was a full-fledged member of the human family. Although he carried this distinction, there were some slight anatomical differences. These differences are explainable in the context of the events that occurred in the opening chapters of the book of Genesis. This included the events before and after Noah's flood.

Noah's flood was a major catastrophe that affected the earth. As we have seen, these factors affected all of the earth's ecological system. These changes in the ecological system affected the physiological systems of the humans that lived on the earth. Most modern day geologist and evolutionist do not fully comprehend the ramifications of the flood. The vast majority of these scientists follow the uniformitarianism principle as it relates to the events of the earth's prehistory. They believe that the "present is the key to the past." They will only accept as possible what is happening today. Since there are no earth wide floods occurring now there have never been any in the past. They have blinded their eyes to divine revelation. Since no one can prove with certainty what has happened in the past they refuse to consider any other position except their own. The earth's geologic structures and the biological system that we see today are explainable in the context of Biblical revelation.

What were some of the physiological and environmental factors that produced Neanderthal man?

Before we address this topic certain groundwork must be laid. As humans we tend to view things from our own perspective. We consider it normal to die at about 72 years of age. We consider it normal to be in a constant state of battle with various debilitating diseases. We consider it normal to age the way we do. It is normal for us to experience puberty in our teenage years then soon afterward be married. We consider it normal to retire at 65 because our bodies are too old to continue to function. We consider all these things normal because this is the only way of life that we have known.

But consider the facts as outlined in the Bible. Think about how different life would be if we had lived in the world before the flood. It would be normal to have good health. It would be normal to eat foods that actually helped retard or slow the aging process. It would also be normal to go through puberty at around 30 or 40 years of age. What if women could conceive and bear children at the age of 100, or 200, or 300? What would it be like with a well-muscled and healthy body, a body that could do massive amounts of physical work and do this type of work for centuries?

Recent research has shown that Neanderthal men were modern looking individuals.

He was well muscled, extremely strong, and had a well-developed skeleton.
These drawings are taken from the October issue of Science 81.

We need to completely change our Neanderthal thinking. We are on a downward path as a species. This goes contrary to the theory of evolution, but it fits nicely within the framework of biblical knowledge about our ancestry and our current path as a society.

Was he a descendant of ADAM?

What would happen to a human baby that was born into the antediluvian world? Would it age and develop the way babies do today? Neanderthal characteristics were a physiological response to a human being living under the conditions as described in the early chapters of Genesis. We will examine several factors in order to understand his unique morphology.

After the sin of Adam and Eve, death and decay appeared. Where did Adam's descendants get their spouses? The answer is that they intermarried among themselves. This would not have caused any physical problems because there would have been no genetic loading. When a genetic mutation occurs, it is usually recessive. In other words, it does not manifest itself unless matched with another recessive gene from the other parent. Adam's closer descendants did not have these mutated recessive genes. Abraham married his half-sister. This caused no genetic problems. As man progressed, God had to institute marriage laws. By this time, humanity had built up a number of genetic mutations and marriage among close relatives would have caused defects and diseases.

What caused these genetic mutations? Many factors cause mutations. Some include ionizing radiation, non-ionizing radiation, and chemical carcinogens. Atmospheric radiation reaches us from the sun and some naturally occurs in the rocks of the earth. Mutations occur when we eat, absorb, or breathe carcinogens.

What could have lessened Neanderthal mutations in the past? There are many theories. One concerns atmospheric and magnetic changes. According to the proponents of this scenario an increase in the strength of the earth's magnetic field, through its increased shielding effect, would have kept excessive solar radiation from entering the earth's atmosphere. This solar radiation has been implicated in many chromosomal mutations. But the sun is not the only source of radiation. The rocks of the earth give off natural radiation. Radon-222 (Radon for short) is a radioactive decay product of uranium-238 and radum-226. Radon causes cancer in humans. Buried below the surface of the earth is radioactive rock. The flood of Noah cause large-scale massive tectonic activity. There were great earthquakes and volcanoes. This brought the deeply buried radioactive elements to the surface of the earth. After the flood, there was an increase in the background radiation from both the sun and the new volcanic deposits. It is interesting to note that the life span of the people mentioned in the Bible dropped dramatically after the flood. The cause of this drop was due to the increase in the genetic malformations linked to atmospheric and geologic radiation.

Let us now turn our attention to carcinogens. Carcinogens are chemicals that we are expose to that cause cancer. In the pre-flood world, the transport of carcinogens would have occurred at a different rate. The book of Genesis states that the earth at this time did not have a rain-evaporation cycle. The dew process (Genesis 2:6) deposited all of the moisture. This would retard the spread of any chemical. These carcinogens would not have a transport mechanism and would therefore remain outside of the diet of the people before the flood. In recent times, the carcinogenic effect of chemicals has appeared due to chemicals that are concentrated and widespread. After the flood, the meteorological conditions of the earth changed. Rain was now a transport mechanism. This allowed man to ingest more chemicals and trace element than before. These newly ingested carcinogens would have had effects on the rates of cancer and disease. It would also have shortened the life span of people after the flood.

These shortened life spans would have cause vast morphological changes in human and animal anatomical systems as compared to organism that lived longer. Once again, we must consider that God's intention was for humans to live a long time. We are living in a world cursed by God (Genesis 3:17; 5:29). This cursing of the earth affected the production of increased solar and ground radiation, carcinogens, hostile environmental conditions, a change in fauna and therefore lessened nutrition, less oxygen and reduced atmospheric pressure. All of these factors tended to lessen the life span of post diluvium man.

Did he have a LONG life?

Much scientific literature addresses the subject of skeletal and cranial shape changes that would occur as a person aged. This research presents a convincing case that accounts for the unique Neanderthal morphology to the cranium and skeletal features. The main thrust of this research states that as humans age, the skull flattens, it becomes wider, and it lengthens. The cause of pronounced brow ridges is due to the long term and greater pressure that the chewing would place on the teeth and face. Since they were more muscular and heavier boned, the brow ridges grew in order to allow the greater stress to be absorbed. All of these features would occur to modern man if he lived longer and had a heavier musculature like that of a Neanderthal. The first skeletons that were analyzed all show features characteristic with rickets, showing a non-evolutionary explanation for the features of this early human being.

Conclusion

Neanderthal man was a descendant of Adam and Eve. They were larger brained, more muscular, extremely strong, and longer-lived than we do today. We must not let our preconceived notions about supposed prehistoric humans cloud our picture of the proper understanding of this early ancestor. Only when we consider all the facts can we see the complete picture. Neanderthal man was not a product of evolution. All of the evidence, properly understood, supports the Genesis account of the creation of humans.

Stories from the Stone Age - 1of15

Ancient Hebrew History-The First Adam