The ANCIENT HISTORY IS DIVIDED INTO
1) PREHISTORY- Not written
2)PROTO HISTORY- eg indus valley civilization
3)HISTORIC AGE- eg vedic period,maurya,gupta etc

PREHISTORIC PERIOD
It is divided into
1) STONE AGE(5LAKH to 3K)
2)COPPER AGE(3k -1800)
3)IRON AGE(800BC -15 A.D)

STONE AGE is divided into a) paleolithic , b) mesolitih c) neolithic

⛏️ Palaeolithic Period or Old Stone Age(5lakh to 10k BC) -

👉 The earliest traces of human existence in India so far discovered go back to the second interglacial period between 4,00,000 and 2,00,000 BC. This is suggested by a large number of primitive stone tools found in the Soan Valley(now in Pakistan) and in south India, chiefly in and around Chennai. In the Indian Sub-continent primitive humans in the Old Stone (Palaeolithic) Age, which lasted till 8,000 BC used tools and implements of stone roughly dressed by chipping, found throughout the country, except the alluvial plains of the Indus, Ganga and Jamuna rivers. Flint was commonly used as it is hard and flakes easily. Tools serve a variety of
purposes, such as skinning of dead animals, cutting their flesh
and splitting bones etc. Humans during this period were essentially food gatherers. They were almost totally dependent on nature for their food supply requirement of game animals and edible plants. In course of time they learnt to control
fire which helped improve living in many ways. They also used the skins of animals, barks of trees and large leaves as clothes. Humans organised themselves in small wandering groups consisting of a few men, women and children.
It was towards the end of the Palaeolithic period that the
Homosapiens first appeared, around 36,000 BC. A significant find of Indian archaeology in recent times is the discovery of a fossil (a skull cap) of a Homo Sapien at Hathnora
in the Narmada valley. It is found in association with the early Palaeolithic tools.

👉Lower (5L -50k)- The temp was very low . Animals were big so big weapons were used

👉 The Middle Palaeolithic(50k -40k)
The tools were identified at Nevasa (Distt. Ahmednagar, Maharashtra) by
H.D. Sankalia for the first time.

👉 the Upper Palaeolithic(40k -10k)-
from Kurnool Caves in Andhra Pradesh.

⛏️ Mesolithic Age or the middle Stone Age(10k -8k)

👉The characteristic tool of this transitional phase are
the microliths, for instance the pointed or crescentic blade.
Some of these were used for killing fast moving animals.
Some were stuck on handles of wood or bone to make tools
such as saws and sickles. Various Mesolithic sites are found
in the Chotanagpur plateau in central India and also south of the river Krishna.This stage reflects a more spocialised and increasingly
efficient food colleetion, leading to the beginning of plant cultivation.

⛏️Neolithic age or new stone age(8k-3k).

👉 Traces of Neolithic communities have survived mostly in the north-western region e.g. the Sulaiman and Kirtar hills, in the Vindhyas in Deccan and the Garo hills in the north-east. Neolithic settlements in Baluchistan seem to be the oldest.
Neolithic or the New Stone Age
This was the food producing stage when humans completely In the new way of life, humans began to domesticate animals and cultivate plants. The dog, goat and sheep were
probably the first to be domesticated. Among plants, wheat and barley, were the earliest cereals grown. As a result, man began to settle down in certain selected areas. This led to the growth of villages and farming communities.
The tools that they needed also changed:
a)a heavy digging stick used for digging the ground , for grinding grain,
b) a sickle used for harvesting
b)an axe- used for cutting and felling trees;
c)a quern and a mortar for grinding grains
d)   various type of pottery to store surplus grain and to hold liquids. They used ochre-coloured pottery.

The wheel was an important discovery.Towards the close of the Neolithic period the use of metals began.