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Prehistoric religion is a general term for the religious beliefs and practices of prehistoric peoples.

Contents 1 Paleolithic 1.1 Timeline 2 Neolithic 3 Bronze Age 3.1 Reconstructions 3.2 Archaeology 3.2.1 Bronze Age Europe 4 See also 5 Notes 6 Sources

Intentional burial, particularly with grave goods may be one of the earliest detectable forms of religious practice since, as Philip Lieberman suggests, it may signify a "concern for the dead that transcends daily life."^[1] Though disputed, evidence suggests that the Neanderthals were the first hominids to intentionally bury the dead, doing so in shallow graves along with stone tools and animal bones.^{[citation needed]} Exemplary sites include Shanidar in Iraq, Kebara Cave in Israel and Krapina in Croatia. Some scholars, however argue that these bodies may have been disposed of for secular reasons.^[2]

The earliest undisputed human burial dates back 100,000 years. Human skeletal remains stained with red ochre were discovered in the Skhul cave at Qafzeh, Israel. A variety of grave goods were present at the site, including the mandible of a wild boar in the arms of one of the skeletons.^[3] It may be that the anatomically modern human emigrants from Africa inhabiting the Middle East during that time, as opposed to the Neanderthals, invented this form of ritualized burial practice.^[3] Middle stone age sites in Africa dating to around the same time frame also show an increased use of red ochre, a pigment thought to have only symbolic value.^[4][5][6] These findings have lead researchers like Lieberman to believe that the religious mind has been in existence for at least 100,000 years.

Other scholars believe that religion only appeared around 50,000 years ago during the transition from the middle to the upper paleolithic. Increasing evidence of burial with grave goods and the appearance of anthropomorphic images and cave paintings may suggest that humans in the upper paleolithic were the first to believe in supernatural beings.^[7] The cave paintings of Chauvet have been dated to 32,000 and those at Lascaux have been dated to 17,000 years ago. At Lascaux the anthropomorphic paintings show depictions of strange beasts such as ones that are half human and half bird. Consequently some have suggested that these are indications of shaministic beliefs.^{[citation needed]}

• 300,000- first (disputed) evidence of intentional burial of the dead. Sites such as at Atapuerca in Spain, bones of over 32 individuals are found in pit within a cave^[8].
• 130,000 ya, - Earliest undisputed evidence for intentional burial. Neanderthals are burying their dead at sites such as Krapina in Croatia^[8].
• 100,000 ya- The oldest ritual burial of modern humans is thought to be from a Qafzeh in Israel. There is a double burial of what is thought to be a mother and child. The bones have been stained with red ochre. By 100,000 years ago anatomically modern humans migrated to the middle east from Africa. However the fossil record of these humans ends after 100kya, leading scholars to believe that population either died out or returned to Africa.^[9][10]
• 100,000 to 50,000 ya- Increased use of red ochre at several Middle Stone Age sites. Red Ochre is thought to have played an important role in ritual.
• 50,000- Humans have evolved the traits associated with modern human behavior. Much of the evidence is from Late Stone Age sites in Africa. Modern human behavior includes abilities such as modern language, abstract thought, symbolism and religion^[10].
• 42,000 ya- Ritual burial of Man at Lake Mungo in Australia. The body is sprinkled with copious amounts of red ochre. this is seen as evidence that the Australians had brought along with them religious rituals from Africa.
• 40,000 ya-Upper Paleolithic begins in Europe. There is an abundance of fossil evidence including elaborate burials of the dead, venus figurines and cave art. Venus figurines are thought to represent fertility goddesses. The cave paintings at chauvet and Lascaux are believed to represent religious thought.
• 11,000 ya- The Neolithic Revolution begins.

There are no extant textual sources from the Neolithic era, the most recent available dating from the Bronze Age, and therefore all statements about any belief systems Neolithic societies may have entertained are glimpsed from archaeology.

The archaeologist Marija Gimbutas has notably put forward views which describe a matriarchal "Old Europe" set of societies dominated by goddess worship, in particular postulating a bird goddess and a bear goddess. Gimbutas considered the Bronze Age Minoan civilization a native continuation of Neolithic Europe, with the labrys and bull worship continuing symbols of matristic power. Gimbutas' views are popularly repeated in feminism, and were syncretized into Neopagan currents such as Wicca.

The early Bronze Age Proto-Indo-European religion (itself reconstructed), and the attested early Semitic gods, are presumed continuations of certain traditions of the late Neolithic.

Hints to the religion of Bronze Age Europe include images of solar barges, frequent appearance of the Sun cross, deposits of bronze axes, and later sickles, so-called moon idols, the conical golden hats, the Nebra skydisk, and burial in tumuli, but also cremation as practised by the Urnfield culture.

The Avanton Gold Cone, ca. 1500-1250 BC.

"fire dogs", dating to the 11th to 9th c. BC, found in the Canton of Zurich, Switzerland, kept at the Swiss National Museum.

"wheel pendants", dating to the second half of the 2nd millennium BC, found in Zürich, kept in the Swiss National Museum, showing the "sun cross" and variant shapes

the Trundholm sun chariot, Nordic Bronze Age, ca. 14th c. BC

• Development of religion
• Anthropology of religion
• Sun worship
• Moon worship
• Fire worship
• Bull worship
• Bear worship
• Horse sacrifice
• Ancestor worship
• sacral king
• Religions of the ancient Near East
• Circular ditches, Goseck circle
• Henge, Stonehenge
• Megalithic tomb, Tumulus
• Urmonotheismus

• Marija Gimbutas, The Goddesses and Gods of Old Europe (1974)
• Marija Gimbutas, The Language of the Goddess, (1989)
• Marija Gimbutas, The Civilization of the Goddess (1991)

v • d • e Paganism and Neo-Paganism
Main concepts	Animism  · Folk religion  · Pantheism  · Polytheism  · Shamanism
Historical Polytheism (paleo-paganism)	Prehistoric religion (Proto-Indo-European  · Semitic)  · Baltic  · Celtic  · Finnish  · Germanic  · Greek (Orphism  · Eleusinian Mysteries)  · Near Eastern (Egyptian  · Assyro-Babylonian)  · Norse  · Roman  · Slavic
Ethnic religions (meso-paganism)	African  · African diasporic  · Eurasian Shamanism  · Native American  · Pacific
Neopagan movements	Baltic  · Celtic  · Finnish  · Germanic (Asatru  · Vanatru  · Theodism  · Fornsed  · Germanic mysticism)  · Greek  · Kemetism  · Neo-druidism  · Slavic  · Unitarian-Universalist  · Wicca
Ritual and mythology	Ancestor worship  · Animal worship  · Ethos  · Folklore  · Hero cult  · Magic and religion  · Myth and ritual  · Mythology  · Orthopraxy  · Religion and mythology  · Ritual  · Sacrifice (Animal  · Human)  · Tradition  · Virtue
Christianization	Christianity and Paganism  · Christianised sites  · Christianized myths and imagery  · Christianised calendar  · Christianised rituals  · Constantinian shift  · Hellenistic religion  · Iconoclasm  · Neoplatonism  · Religio licita  · Roman imperial cult  · Virtuous pagan