Neanderthals may have performed the world’s first dental procedure around 60,000 years ago | Technology News

3 min readNew DelhiMay 14, 2026 05:48 PM Scients have uncovered what may be the earliest known evidence of dentry, but surprisingly, modern humans may not have practised it.
A new study led researchers from the Russian Academy of Sciences suggests Neanderthals carried out a sophicated dental procedure around 59,000 years ago, thousands of years before the earliest previously known example of dentry.
The discovery centres on an ancient molar found in Chagyrskaya Cave in Siberia, Russia. The tooth contains a deep hole in its centre, which researchers believe was deliberately drilled using a sharp stone tool to remove infected tissue and relieve pain.
If confirmed, the finding would push back the hory of dentry more than 40,000 years. The previous oldest evidence of dental treatment came from a human specimen discovered in Italy, dating back roughly 14,000 years.
Using advanced microtomography imaging, researchers examined the tooth in extreme detail and identified microscopic grooves and marks consent with deliberate drilling rather than natural wear or decay.

To better understand how the hole may have been created, the team carried out experiments on modern human teeth using replica stone tools similar to those available to Neanderthals during the Middle Palaeolithic period. According to the researchers, the tests successfully reproduced similar patterns and damage.
The study’s authors say the procedure would have been technically difficult, especially considering it was performed inside the mouth without anaesthesia.Story continues below this ad
Researchers believe the Neanderthal patient likely endured significant pain during the treatment, but the procedure may have successfully reduced pressure and inflammation caused severe tooth decay.
The findings also add to growing evidence that Neanderthals were more socially and intellectually advanced than once believed. Scients increasingly think Neanderthal communities regularly cared for injured and sick members rather than abandoning them.
Lead researcher Dr Aliza Zubova said the discovery was particularly striking because it suggested the individual understood where the pain originated and recognised that removing part of the damaged tissue could help.

The researchers noted that carrying out such a procedure would likely have required patience, precision, and possibly assance from another individual helping to keep the patient still.Story continues below this ad
Beyond its implications for dentry, the study contributes to a broader reassessment of Neanderthals, who were once widely portrayed as primitive compared to Homo sapiens.
xInstead, the evidence increasingly points to a species capable of complex problem-solving, healthcare practices and social cooperation long before modern civilisation emerged.
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