the weather and soil conditions. Th ey experimented with fer-
tilizers and various types of crops, primarily grains such as
barley and wheat. Early European farmers understood the dif-
fering properties of fl int and other types of stone and used the
ones that best suited their needs. Th ey developed methods for
storing their crops. Techniques for making pottery were con-
tinually refi ned using higher and higher fi ring temperatures.
Th ey learned that allowing fi elds to remain fallow for a pe-
riod of time increased future yields. Herders learned to breed
varieties of cattle that originated in the Near East but had to
adapt to the colder climate of Europe. Animals like cattle that
had previously been used primarily for their meat were har-
nessed for power to pull wagons and plows. Early Europeans
learned that enzymes mixed with milk produce cheese and
that reducing the moisture content of meat, fi sh, fruits, and
vegetables by drying them is a way to preserve them. Th ey
also learned to make underground grain silos that kept grain
from rotting and succumbing to pests by denying oxygen to
the grain. All these activities presume some basic scientifi c
knowledge about how the world works, about the properties
of matter, about measurement and engineering, and the like.
All of them presume, too, a process of trial and error over
time, as agriculturalists tried crops and farming methods,
passing along what they learned to their descendants.
Aiding the development of agriculture was the devel-
opment of metalworking. Like most of the world’s cultures,
ancient European culture evolved from the Stone Age, when
tools were craft ed of stone, to the discovery of metals. Th e
fi rst metal widely used in tool making was copper. Th e Bronze
Age began at diff erent times in diff erent regions when it was
discovered that mixing tin with copper resulted in bronze, a
much more durable metal than copper. At some point dur-
ing the fi ft h millennium b.c.e. it was observed that certain
ores contained copper, which could be smelted and collected
and then pounded into simple forms. Over time, the technol-
ogy for working copper improved to the point where it could
be cast into more complicated shapes. Around 3000 b.c.e. in
southeastern Europe, ancient chemists discovered that adding
about 10 percent tin to a mixture of copper would produce an
entirely new metal, bronze, which revolutionized metallurgy.
Again these discoveries and innovations were the product of
systematic observations that bordered on what might be con-
sidered science.
By about 1100 b.c.e. ancient Europeans entered the Iron
Age, having discovered both that the ground in much of Eu-
rope was rich in iron ore and how to use that ore. Among
the ancient Celts two primary cultures emerged around iron-
working. Th e fi rst was the Hallstatt culture, named aft er a
town near Salzburg, Austria, where extensive mining opera-
tions were conducted beginning in about 1000 b.c.e. About
500 years later, the La Tène culture developed in modern-day
Switzerland. Th ese cultures produced an enormous amount
of iron, and archaeologists have discovered numerous Iron
Age artifacts from this region. Th ese developments indicate
that there were scientifi c advances in mining, separatingmetal from ore, controlling temperatures in furnaces, and
turning iron into useful products. Eventually ironworkers
became chemists of sorts when they discovered that mixing
carbon with iron produced much harder steel.
Th e development of iron led not only to better weap-
ons—the Europeans carried the art of sword making to new
heights—but also to better farming tools such as plows and
harrows. Similarly, the Europeans were adept at building car-
riages and wagons and learned to cover wooden wheels with a
metal band, or tire, that made the wheels more durable.
Medicine and healing were other forms of applied sci-
ence. Th ese activities were oft en associated with magic and
with the ability of some people to understand the will of the
gods. Th e Druids, the priestly class of the ancient Celts, gained
wisdom about the healing power of plants. Th is wisdom was
accumulated over long stretches of time by trial and error, as
well as by making detailed observations about the eff ects of
substances on the human body. Examples include willow tree
bark, which contains a substance that is chemically similar
to the active ingredient in aspirin. Celery and parsley were
also thought to have healing powers. Th ese substances were
probably gathered according to a strict schedule based on the
phases of the moon, in the belief that all the powers of nature
worked hand in hand. In many senses ancient healers worked
like experimental scientists, observing symptoms, trying
herbal treatments, and seeing what seemed to help.
Th e ancient Europeans showed some skill in surgery.
Near Munich, Germany, for instance, archaeologists dis-
covered the tomb of a so-called warrior-surgeon that dates
to about the third or second century b.c.e. and contained a
number of medical and surgical implements: probes, retrac-
tors, and a trepanation saw, used for cutting holes in the skull.
Trepanation was widely used to treat head injuries and psy-
chological disorders, and healers used both saws and drills to
make their holes. A large number of skulls have been found
with neat holes drilled or cut into them. While many people
died during this type of surgery, many others did not, for the
holes in some skulls show evidence of healing. Earlier skel-
etal remains of two people found in Moravia, a region in the
modern-day Czech Republic, show that surgeons operated
successfully on them. In one case they removed a portion of
bone, and in the other case they amputated a limb. In both
cases the surgery took place sometime around 5500 b.c.e. Th e
skeletal remains show that the patients healed and survived
for several years following the surgery.
Little is known about the mathematical inquiries of
the ancient Europeans. What is known has been discovered
from practical applications. For instance, the circular stone
megalithic monuments of the British Isles, including not only
Stonehenge but also the megaliths at Avebury and other sites,
suggest that their builders may have had some understand-
ing of pi, the Greek letter that represents the relationship
between the radius of a circle and its circumference. Th e geo-
metric layout of these sites also suggests that their builders
may have grasped the principle of the Pythagorean theorem936 science: Europe0895-1194_Soc&Culturev4(s-z).i936 936 10/10/07 2:30:29 PM