The dawn of dentistry in the late upper Paleolithic: An early case of pathological intervention at Riparo Fredian

Abstract

The results are consistent with tool-assisted manipulation to remove necrotic or infected pulp in vivo and the subsequent use of a composite, organic filling. Fredian 5 confirms the practice of dentistry-specifically, a pathology-induced intervention-among Late Pleistocene hunter-gatherers. As such, it appears that fundamental perceptions of biomedical knowledge and practice were in place long before the socioeconomic changes associated with the transition to food production in the Neolithic.

Exploring late Paleolithic and Mesolithic diet in the Eastern Alpine region of Italy through multiple proxies

“…Several physical and chemical factors are involved in tissue reduction, depending on food choice, environmental setting (El Zaatari & Hublin, 2014; Fiorenza, 2015; Kullmer et al, 2009; Lussi, 2006) and endogenous organismic biology (Grippo et al, 2004; Lussi, 2006). There are also other variables responsible for the specific appearance of dental wear patterns such as asymmetry of the masticatory system (Kimoto et al, 2000; Molnar & Molnar, 1990; Oxilia et al, 2018), bruxism (Sameera et al, 2017) para‐masticatory activities (Fiorenza & Kullmer, 2013, 2015) dental treatment (Oxilia et al, 2015; Oxilia et al, 2017) and food processing methods (Metcalf et al, 2014).…”

“…Reconstructing prehistoric human diet has always been a key goal of the research into past human behavior. Different proxies and methods have been integrated to obtain a comprehensive overview of prehistoric human dietary strategies and for understanding cultural responses to climate and environmental constraints: isotopic analysis (e.g., Drucker & Bocherens, 2004; Lugli et al, 2019, Wißing et al, 2019); lithic and osseous technology (e.g., Arrighi et al, 2019; Caricola et al, 2018; Collina et al, 2020; Marciani et al, 2019; Semenov, 1964; Stout, 2011); faunal remains (i.e., quantification of faunal remains and analysis of bone surface modifications; Gaudzinski‐Windheuser & Kindler, 2012); and dental remains (i.e., formal assessment of paramasticatory and masticatory activities; Arnaud et al, 2016; Been et al, 2017; Fiorenza et al, 2015; Fiorenza, Benazzi, & Kullmer, 2011; Margherita et al, 2016; Margherita et al, 2017; Oxilia et al, 2015; Oxilia et al, 2017; Riga et al, 2018). In particular, dental wear, dental pathologies and, when preserved, prehistoric dental calculus have shown to be pivotal in obtaining data on diet, cultural habits, and health status (Cristiani et al, 2018; El Zaatari & Hublin, 2014; Fiorenza, 2015; Fiorenza, Benazzi, Oxilia, & Kullmer, 2018; Fiorenza & Kullmer, 2013, 2015; Grippo, Simring, & Schreiner, 2004; Henry, Hudson, & Piperno, 2009; Lussi, 2006; Metcalf, Ursell, & Knight, 2014; Molnar & Molnar, 1990; Oxilia et al, 2018; Radini, Buckley, Nikita, Copeland, & Hardy, 2017; Sameera, Singh, & Nitya, 2017; Sorrentino et al, 2018; Warinner et al, 2014; Weyrich et al, 2017).…”

Late Neandertals in central Italy. High-resolution chronicles from Grotta dei Santi (Monte Argentario - Tuscany)

“…Bone surfaces were studied using a HiroxKH-7700 3D digital microscope, that enables in-depth observations and both at low and high magnification (e.g. Arrighi et al, 2016;Oxilia et al, 2017); 3D images were obtained by the Auto Multi Focus tool, which stacks up to one hundred pictures shot at different focus levels. Metric parameters as defined by Bello and Soligo (2008) and Boschin and Crezzini (2012) were collected on amedian cross section of each identified cut-mark and carnivore tooth mark, as already tested in previous papers (Boschin and Crezzini, 2012;Crezzini et al, 2014;Moretti et al, 2015).…”

Letter to the editor: Reply to Hardy & Buckley: Earliest evidence of bitumen from Homo sp. teeth is from El Sidro'n

“…Letter to the editor: Reply to Hardy & Buckley: Earliest evidence of bitumen from Homo sp. teeth is from El Sidron In our recent article (Oxilia et al, 2017), we report the presence of antemortem modifications to both I 1 pulp chambers from a single individual (Fredian 5) from the Epigravettian context of Riparo Fredian (Tuscany, Italy). The analysis included the direct dating of the Fredian 5 in addition to microscopic, microCT, and residue analyses of the internal and external surfaces of the modified I 1 s. After a detailed differential diagnosis, we conclude that our results are "consistent with tool-assisted manipulation to remove necrotic or infected pulp in vivo and the subsequent use of a composite, organic filling.…”