How Neolithic farming sowed the seeds of modern inequality 10,000 years ago

The prehistoric shift towards cultivation began our preoccupation with hierarchy and growth - and even changed how we perceive the passage of time

Most people regard hierarchy in human societies as inevitable, a natural part of who we are. Yet this belief contradicts much of the 200,000-year history of Homo sapiens.

In fact, our ancestors have for the most part been "fiercely egalitarian", intolerant of any form of inequality. While hunter-gatherers accepted that people had different skills, abilities and attributes, they aggressively rejected efforts to institutionalise them into any form of hierarchy.