Neanderthal Tooth Shows 60,000-Year-Old Dental Drilling, Earliest Known Intentional Intervention
Updated
Updated · ScienceAlert · May 13
Neanderthal Tooth Shows 60,000-Year-Old Dental Drilling, Earliest Known Intentional Intervention
13 articles · Updated · ScienceAlert · May 13
A 60,000-year-old Neanderthal molar from Russia's Chagyrskaya Cave bears a deep cavity that researchers say was deliberately drilled to treat a severe infection, amounting to a prehistoric root-canal-like procedure.
Microscope analysis found linear marks from a rotating motion and three overlapping depressions, evidence the team said cannot be explained by decay, breakage or accident alone.
Jasperoid points available at the site were the likely tools; experiments with replicas drilled fresh and old human teeth and reproduced similar traces when used with a careful rotating motion.
The finding, published in PLOS One, would make the tooth the earliest known evidence of intentional dental intervention, surpassing previous Homo sapiens examples and adding to evidence of Neanderthal technical skill and cognitive flexibility.
How did humanity leap from a 60,000-year-old stone drill to painless, AI-guided dental surgery?
What prehistoric medicines did Neanderthals use to survive the world's first, excruciating root canal?
Did Neanderthal society have specialized 'dentists' for this agonizing, hour-long procedure?
59,000-Year-Old Neanderthal Dental Surgery Reveals Earliest Evidence of Advanced Medical Care
Overview
A groundbreaking archaeological discovery in Chagyrskaya Cave, Siberia, revealed a 59,000-year-old Neanderthal molar with clear evidence of deliberate dental drilling. This is the earliest known instance of invasive dental treatment, showing that Neanderthals performed the oldest dental surgery ever found. The finding pushes back the record for such medical interventions by over 40,000 years and reshapes our understanding of ancient medical practices. It highlights Neanderthals’ advanced problem-solving skills and challenges old stereotypes, showing they were capable of complex care and innovation long before previously believed.