Did Basket Weaving "Teach" Humans to Count?

Interesting article. It's amazing how much we still don't know about events that are significantly profound to human civilization and that occurred relatively "recently" in terms of the human time line. Don't quote me on this, but I think evidence shows that the weaving of cloth (from wool, flax, animal hairs) and weaving of baskets, etc. (i.e., making wicker-work fences around crops to keep critters out, the making of larger wicker-work fences to keep critters in) probably occurred around the same time. It makes sense that the two skills would have been developed about the same time, as much the same technique in plaiting hair, weaving cloth and weaving a basket or a wicker fence is involved, although different materials are used. This article dates the earliest evidence of basket-making to about 10,000 years ago. I think woman was weaving much earlier than this -- doesn't Venus Willendorf exhibit some evidence of woven hair or wearing a woven head covering? (Check out these close-ups of the Venus of Willendorf we all know and love; see also this article that suggests weaving to make clothing occurred as far back as 26,000 years ago) We probably learned to "weave" (braid) our hair early on, just to keep it out of the way, thousands of years before hair pins (or scissors) were invented. It wouldn't have taken much of a leap to discern that if hair could be woven, so could a lot of other pliable materials... Story from Science Daily Basket Weaving May Have Taught Humans To Count ScienceDaily (June 8, 2009) — Did animals teach us one of the oldest forms of human technology? Did this technology contribute to our ability to count? These are just two of the themes due to be explored at a conference on basketry at the University of East Anglia. The event, which takes place today and tomorrow (June 5-6), is part of Beyond the Basket, a major new research project led by the university exploring the development and use of basketry in human culture over 10,000 years. Basketry has been practised for millennia and ranges from mats for sitting on, containers and traps for hunting, to fencing and barriers for animals or land, partitions and walls - all of which have been central to culture. Beyond the Basket is a two-and-a-half year project funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council as part of its Beyond Text programme. The research will explore the role of basketry in human culture and focus on various parts of the world, both in the past and present, from Europe to Amazonia, central Africa and Papua New Guinea. The aim is to identify the mechanical traditions of making and the ways in which basketry is implicated in wider patterns of understanding, for example the order of society or the design of the universe. It will also show the impact of woven forms on other media, such as pottery, painting, and stone sculpture and architecture, and look at the future of basketry and the solutions it could offer to current issues, whether technical or social. Project leader Sandy Heslop, of the School of World Art and Museology at UEA, said: “Basketry is a worldwide technology and is the interaction between human ingenuity and the environment. It tends to make use of, and therefore has to be adapted to, local conditions in terms of resources and environment. “Without basketry there would be no civilisations. You can’t bring thousands of people together unless you can supply them, you can’t bring in supplies to feed populations without containers. In the early days of civilisations these containers were basketry. “We may think of baskets as humble, but other people and cultures don’t. They have been used for storage, for important religious and ceremonial processes, even for bodies in the form of coffins.” It is about 10,000 years ago that evidence for basketry starts to appear in North America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East. Today its uses and influences are still seen, from the bamboo scaffolding often used in Asia, to contemporary architecture, for example the ‘Boiler Suit’ - the name given to the ‘woven’ steel tiles encasing the boiler room at Guy’s Hospital in London. Mr Heslop said: “Beyond its practical uses, basketry has arguably been even more influential on our lives, since it relies on the relationship of number, pattern and structure. It therefore provides a model for disciplines such as mathematics and engineering and for the organisation of social and political life. “Given the range of uses of basketry the associations of the technology are very varied. Some are aggressive, others protective, some help create social hierarchies others are recreational.” The conference, Beyond the Basket: Construction, Order and Understanding, will look at various themes including: design and production, environmental issues, commercial and historical perspectives, weaving in architecture, and the mathematics of basketry, as well as more anthropological and archaeological topics. Among the speakers will be experts from North and South America, as well as the UK. Beyond the Basket will culminate in an exhibition and accompanying book in 2011. The exhibition will include ancient material recovered by excavation as well as more recent examples of basketry from around the world and will enable people to experience basketry directly. For further information about Beyond the Basket and to view images visit http://projects.beyondtext.ac.uk/beyondthebasket Adapted from materials provided by University of East Anglia, via AlphaGalileo.