The First Villages

It took millions of years for the human species to spread across the globe from its origins in East Africa. However, by 10,000 BCE, in the Near East, China and Central America, communities settled for the first time and domesticated animal and plant species, which led to the appearance of the first villages. Despite regional differences, the first village communities seem to have shared a desire to bind their community together, by means of beliefs and rituals, around their ancestors. Human Representation developed in the form of these female figurines that seem to express preoccupations with fertility. The wealth generated by profits from agriculture and livestock supported the birth of the first forms of power.