How Ancient Humans Occupied Their Time

Axen explained, via stick-figure animation, how ancient humans occupied their time, noting that pre-agricultural society worked half as much as post-agricultural society. According to archeologists, these hunter-gatherers were found to also have better physcial health due to the amount of free time they had available.

Anthropologists studying modern hunter-gatherer societies have found something shocking: adults spent only 15-20 hours per week on survival activities. The rest of the time? They did whatever they wanted. And the archaeological evidence backs this up—skeletal remains show hunter-gatherers were healthier, taller, and stronger than early farmers who came after them.

Ancient Humans Occupation
Lori Dorn
Lori Dorn

Lori is a Laughing Squid Contributing Editor based in New York City who has been writing blog posts for over a decade. She also enjoys making jewelry, playing guitar, taking photos and mixing craft cocktails.