The beauty and symmetry of these types of things is amazing. It takes a certain degree of civilization (existence above mere survival) to be able to envision such things, or to fashion objects merely for their emotional pleasing value. I see shows where ravens collect shiny objects, and marvel that they have the free time to do something that does not contribute to their physical survival and species furtherance. (ps: I've cooked with pork neck bones, but they've always been smoked. I never really payed attention to the remnants.)
Prehistoric donuts: Unusual rings are a novel type of Bronze Age cereal-based product (link) "This study focuses on the fragmentary charred remains of three ring-shaped objects, each around three centimeters across. Analysis confirms that they are made of dough derived from barley and wheat". "The authors were able to determine that the dough was made from fine quality flour and then most likely shaped from wet cereal mixture and dried without baking. This time-consuming preparation process differs from other foods known from the site, leading the authors to suggest that these cereal rings may not have been made for eating".
"Richard Wrangham’s 2009 book, Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human, pursued a very different hypothesis. Based on archaeological evidence, he made the case that our ancestors mastered fire much earlier than most of us had believed—perhaps closer to 2 million rather than 800,000 years ago—which changed everything for them. In particular, cooking made possible a much more diverse diet, by allowing the consumption of fruits, leaves, and other plant foods with toxic potential when eaten raw. It made meat, too, safer and easier to digest". "As a major bonus, fire extended the day into the night. Given how important we know conversations and stories told around the fire are to human hunter-gatherers, it’s easy to see how this process could have accelerated the evolution of language—an essential ingredient for less physically aggressive interactions".
Interesting point. I would never have thought of fire as being an accelerator/enabler of language development.
"Remember when you laughed at the Paleo Diet, then changed your mind once you realized it was the perfect excuse to eat two dozen slices of bacon, half a dozen pork sausages, and eight sunnyside eggs every morning? Yeah, that diet is awesome. But if you’re going to eat breakfast like a troglodyte, might as well drink your coffee like one, too, and the Caveman Mug is exactly the drinkware to embrace your neanderthal lifestyle with". Cave man Mug
What Did Prehistoric People Wear? 5,300-Year-Old Otzi the Iceman Was Wearing Clothing from Five Separate Animal Species "The best example of a complete set of prehistoric clothes is that found on Ötzi the Iceman found in the Alps in 1991, which is 5300 years old. His clothing and equipment were made from hides, bones, antlers and feathers of six different animal species and the leaves, wood and fiber of 17 different trees. His upper clothing was tied with a belt. His legs were covered with two separate leather stocking-like leggings which were made of several pieces of goat hide and attached to his belt. Shoes that he had were made of animal skins like brown bear hide, deer leather and calf leather and filled with hay. Coat that he wore was made of strips of goat skin that were sewed on the inside with thread made of animal sinews. On his head was 20cm tall hat made of bear fur which had leather chin straps. Cape that was on his back was made of long stalks grass".