Category: Daily Life in the Past

By Tim Lambert Prehistoric Houses Ice age humans lived in caves some of the time but they also made tents from mammoth skins. Mammoth bones were used as supports. They wore boots, trousers, and anoraks made from animal skins. When the ice age ended a new way of life began. By 8,000 BC people in… Continue reading A Brief History of Houses

By Tim Lambert Housework in Pre-Industrial England In Pre-Industrial Europe housework was much harder work than it is today. Many people simply had hard earth floors, which tended to become dusty and required regular sweeping. Until the 18th century carpets were a luxury and they were often hung over tables rather than put on the… Continue reading A Brief History of Housework

By Tim Lambert Inventions in the Ancient World The Egyptians invented the sailing ship about 3,100 BC. The wheel was invented in Sumer (Iraq) in about 3,400 BC. It may have been invented first as the potter’s wheel and later used for transport. The first carts and chariots had solid wheels and oxen or asses… Continue reading A Brief History of Inventions

By Tim Lambert Life Expectancy Before the Industrial Revolution We do not know exactly what average life expectancy at birth was in the past (before the 19th century we can only give rough estimates). However, historians think it was about 35 years in the Middle Ages or the 16th Century. However, that does not mean… Continue reading A Brief History of Life Expectancy

By Tim Lambert Early Marriage Marriage occurred in all eras of history and all cultures. Polygamy (a man having more than one wife) was first mentioned in the Old Testament in Genesis. A man named Lamech married two women (Genesis 4:19). Later King David and King Solomon had many wives. Almost everybody in Ancient Israel… Continue reading A Brief History of Marriage

By Tim Lambert Mathematics in the Ancient World Prehistoric people must have used simple arithmetic. However, when people became civilized mathematics became far more important. Proper record-keeping was essential. In Iraq, a people called the Sumerians counted in sets of 60. We still divide hours into 60 minutes and minutes into 60 seconds. We also… Continue reading A Brief History of Mathematics

By Tim Lambert The Month of May The month of May is probably named after Maia the Roman goddess who caused plants to grow. In the past Mayday was a day of rejoicing. It meant the return of warm weather and long summer evenings. In the past winters must have been much harder than they… Continue reading A Brief History of Mayday

By Tim Lambert Measurement of Distance and Weight People have always measured things. It was necessary to measure distances, and lengths and to weigh things. Today we take measurements for granted but for our ancestors making exact measurements was difficult. The earliest and most obvious way of measuring things was using parts of the human… Continue reading A Brief History of Measurement

By Tim Lambert MEDICINE IN THE ANCIENT WORLD Medicine among Primitive Peoples The first evidence of surgery is skulls from the Stone Age. Some adults had holes cut in their skulls. At least sometimes people survived the ‘operation’ because the bone grew back. We do not know the purpose of the ‘operation’. Perhaps it was… Continue reading A Brief History of Medicine

By Tim Lambert In the Old Testament, a menstruating woman was regarded as ‘unclean’ for a period of 7 days. (Leviticus 15:19-30). The Bible also mentions a menstrual cloth (Isiah 30:22). In the Ancient World menstrual cloths were the usual way of dealing with menstruation. In the early 5th century AD, a woman named Hypatia… Continue reading A Brief History of Menstruation