The Northern Hemisphere ice sheet is ephemeral before the onset of extensive glaciation over Greenland that occurs in the late Pliocene around three hundred thousand years ago.

The formation of an Arctic ice cap is signaled by an abrupt shift in oxygen isotope ratios and ice-rafted cobbles in the North Atlantic and North Pacific ocean beds.

Mid-latitude glaciation is probably underway before the end of the epoch.

The global cooling that occurs during the Pliocene may have spurred on the disappearance of forests and the spread of grasslands and savannas.

The Clactonian flint tool industry develop at sites such as Barnfield Pit in Kent during the period of relatively warm climate from around three hundred thousand to two hundred thousand years ago.

The period produces a rich and widespread distribution of sites by Paleolithic standards.

Clactonian tools are made by Homo erectus rather than modern humans.

Uncertainty over the relationship between the Clactonian and Acheulean industries is still unresolved.

As in Africa, fossils that seem to represent subspecies of Homo sapiens have been found in Central Europe at Vértesszőlős (about three hundred and fifty thousand years old), ...

...Steinheim (two hundred and fifty thousand to three hundred and fifty thousand years old), ...

...Biache, and ...

...Swanscombe.

The Swanscombe fossil from southern England, the skull of an adult female with heavy brow ridges and a large projecting face.

Identified as Homo heidelbergensis, the Swanscombe skull dates to the Hoxnian Interglacial of four hundred thousand years ago, and since this follows the extreme Anglian ice age which drove humans out of the British Isles, the Swanscombe people must represent a re-colonization.

It is among these and similar finds in Africa that the line of distinction between Homo erectus and Homo sapiens becomes dim, for one species is apparently grading imperceptibly into its successor.

The earliest evidence of the presence of human ancestors in the southern Balkans, dated to around 270,000 BCE, is to be found in the Petralona cave, in the Greek province of Macedonia.

The fossil, the skull of an adult female, has heavy browbridges, and a large projecting face.

This specimen is similar to those found on other fossil skulls from about the same time period in Europe, including the partial skull from Steinheim in southern Germany, and the skull from Swanscombe cave in southern England.

These archaic Homo sapiens represent the early stages of Homo sapiens evolution in Europe.

Homo erectus (a species of human best known from finely made handaxes and other butchery tools found at locations like Isimila and …

…Kalambo Falls in eastern Africa, sites dating to more than two hundred thousand years ago) has proven to be a more effective forager than its predecessor, with the ability to kill even large animals with fire-hardened wooden spears.

According to conventional theory, these archaic humans, who settled in all parts of Africa, evolved gradually toward modern forms, their skulls becoming more rounded, skeletons less robust, and molar teeth smaller.

H. ergaster is thought to be the first hominin to vocalize.

As H. heidelbergensis developed, more sophisticated culture proceeded from this point.

Prehistory of the Netherlands: A Landscape Shaped by Water

The prehistory of the region that is now the Netherlands was largely shaped by the sea and rivers, which continuously shifted the low-lying geography over millennia. The dynamic interplay of water and land influenced human settlement patterns, with early inhabitants gravitating toward higher ground as the landscape evolved.

Early Human Presence: Neanderthal Traces near Maastricht

• The oldest known human traces in the region belong to Neanderthals, whose presence dates back approximately 250,000 years.
• These remains have been discovered in higher, more stable soils near Maastricht, an area less affected by the flood-prone terrain of the lowlands.
• The Neanderthals likely adapted to a changing environment, utilizing the resources of rivers and forests for survival.

A Landscape in Constant Flux

Throughout prehistory, the region’s geological and climatic changes played a crucial role in shaping early habitation:

• Glacial and interglacial periods altered sea levels, periodically expanding and contracting habitable land.
• The Rhine, Meuse, and Scheldt rivers created fertile but unstable floodplains, influencing settlement choices.
• Rising sea levels and sediment deposits led to the formation of peat bogs and coastal dunes, features that would later define the Dutch landscape.

These early environmental factors set the stage for the later development of prehistoric cultures, as humans adapted to a land in flux, balancing the challenges of water management with the rich resources provided by the rivers and coastlines.