Neanderthals were a species of hominins adapted to Ice Age Europe and Siberia. Mounting archaeological evidence shows they buried their dead, tended to injured companions and possessed considerable cognitive sophistication.
A 59,000-year-old molar described in PLOS ONE in 2026 by Alisa Zubova, Lydia Zotkina and Ksenia Kolobova of the Russian Academy of Sciences—found in 2016 in Chagyrskaya Cave in the Russian Altai Mountains—shows clear evidence of intentional drilling with a sharp jasper tool to remove infected tissue. Markings show repeated rotational motion and the patient survived the procedure (the drill site was later worn smooth by chewing). This pushes back the earliest evidence of dentistry by some 45,000 years before modern humans engaged in such activities, and suggests Neanderthals had fine motor control and causal reasoning—the ability to endure immediate pain to reduce the chance of death.
Stamp out philately.