The ancient stone age, the oldest or Palaeolithic goes back at least 2 million years ago with a type of human not like us. Homo sapiens, or us, appears about 150,000 years ago. We entered Europe about 45,000 years ago as we originated in Africa about 60,000 years ago with a single family in an African valley. That's called the Upper Palaeolithic age.
The end of the last Ice Age was 13,000 years ago. That's the time of adapting to agriculture and was known as the Mesolithic age. People were living in what is now Ireland at Mount Sandel 9,000 years ago. They found the oldest houses in the whole of the Isles there. It was round like a large tent 5.5 metres in diameter. There was inside a large square hole for a central hearth, and outside were pits, probably for storage. It was probably used as a base camp. There were hundreds of salmon bones, hazelnuts and seeds of water lilies, wild pear and crab apple. Remains of young pigs were found. Everything they needed was within a 2 hr. walk.
At this time the islands of Britain were connected to continental Europe. Ice had been retreating 4,000 before, about 13,000 years ago. The weather was not stationery. The earth wobbled and there was a strong cold snap 11,000 years ago or so forcing people back down south again clearing the Islands of people. The sea froze down to northern Spain and northern Europe became barren and cold tundra. This phase, the Younger Dryas, lasted for about 1,000 years and then the earth warmed up quickly, and homans reentered northern Euope. They saw herds of reindeer and wild horses on the open plains again. Mount Sandel had trees.
9,500 years ago, in about the time of 7,000BCE, the temperature was the same or higher than it is today. Ice had melted and the sea rose. Ireland was isolated from the rest of the Isles around 8,500 years ago. That's why there are no snakes, lizards or even moles in Ireland.
Of the mtdna, or female dna, U1 goes back 50,000 years. Female dna goes back much further and has not mutated as much as the male or Ydna and is what can be retreived from bone findings.
Resource: Dr. Spencer Wells-60,000 years, etc.
Reference: Saxons, Vikings, and Celts : The genetic roots of Britain and Ireland by Bryan Sykes
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