The discovery of copper opened up new possibilities for humans. Copper exists in nature in the shape of nuggets. Gold and silver occur in the same shape, but they are very rare. Copper on the other hand is widely distributed and readily available.
Copper can easily be worked into different shapes. This was the reason why copper was preferred by the early humans. It was easy to make tools and weapons out of copper and they lasted longer than those made out of stone. They were much lighter than the stone toots as well. Moreover, copper tools could be sharpened again and again, so that they remained as good as new.
Early humans started with learning to extract copper from ores. Later their technology advanced; they began mixing copper with zinc to create an alloy called bronze, thus ushering a period known as the Bronze Age.
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