Neanderthals used stone drills to treat cavities 59,000 years ago, tooth suggests
Molar found in Siberia features deep hole that appears to show earliest known evidence of dental treatment
Neanderthals used stone drills to treat cavities almost 60,000 years ago in what is the earliest known evidence of dental treatment.
The single molar, which was unearthed in a cave in southern Siberia, features a deep hole that appears to have been created using a sharp, thin stone tool during the lifetime of the tooth’s owner.
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2026/may/13/neanderthals-stone-drills-treat-cavities-tooth-siberia-dentist">Continue reading...Neanderthal dentistry discovered
- Neanderthals may have drilled out a cavity 59,000 years ago NPR —
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- Neanderthal dentist drilled into decayed tooth almost 60,000 years ago Financial Times —
- Neanderthal Dentists Treated Cavities With Stone Drills. Yes, Really Gizmodo —
- 59,000-year-old Neanderthal tooth may be oldest evidence of dentistry Scientific American —