People have always needed protection from the weather. For most of human history, the Earth's climate has been much colder than it is today. Early humans lived in huts out in the open during summer but moved into caves when the harsh winter weather came. They built stone windbreaks across the entrances. Inside, there were inner huts made of branches and animal bones to provide further protection from the cold. Hunters following herds of game built temporary shelters of branches and leaves in the summer. Families lived in camps of huts made of branches and leaves in the summer. Families lived in camps of huts made of branches and animal skins. Farther north, where there were no caves and few trees, people built huts from mammoths' leg bones and tusks. Wherever they settled, however, it was very important to be near a supply of fresh water.

A PLACE TO SHELTER

At Terra Almata, southern France, hominids (early humans) lived in groups. They established camps made up of several simple shelters, to which they returned year after year. The huts were made of tree branches and weighted down with stones.



SKIN HUTS

Huts at Monte Verde, Chile, were made of wood covered with animal skins. They are the earliest evidence for human-made shelters in the Americas. The remains were preserved in peaty soil, along with other items, such as a wooden bowl and digging sticks.


How to make a Hunter's Home :

You need :

1. Self-hardening clay
2. Cutting board
3. Modeling tool
4. Twigs
5. Ruler
6. Scissors
7. Card
8. Brown and Green acrylic paint
9. Water pot
10. Paintbrushes
11. White glue
12. Glue brush
13. Fake grass or green fabric

1. Roll out lengths of self-hardening clay, and shape them to look like long and short mammoth bones and tusks. Then make some small clay stones in different sizes.	2. Use the modelling tool to shape the ends of the bones. Then use it to make the stones look uneven. Lay the bones and stones on the cutting board to dry.
3. Lay the twigs next to a ruler. Then use a pair of scissors to cut the twigs so that they are about 6 inches long. You will need about eight evenly sized twigs in all.	4. Roll out some more clay and spread it unevenly over a piece of card. Paint the clay a brown-green color to look like soil and grass. Do not leave the base to dry.
5. Push the twigs into the clay base, and arch them over to form a cone-shaped frame. Glue a few stones onto the clay at the base of each of the twigs.	6. Cover the twigs with pieces of fake grass or green fabric. Leave a gap at one side for the entrance. Glue the pieces in place. Take care not to cover up the stones around the base.
7. Neatly glue the long mammoth bones and tusks all over the outside of the hunter's shelter. Fill in any gaps with smaller bones. Leave the hunter's home to dry.

When wood was scarce, the heavy bones of an elephant-like animal called a mammoth were used to weigh down the grass and animal hides that covered the hunter's shelter.