A Neolithic dental clinic
At a Neolithic graveyard site in modern-day Pakistan, archaeologists uncovered the first known evidence of dentistry. The discovery at Mehrgarh shows that as far back as 9,000 years ago, people drilled teeth to treat decay. Researchers analyzing bodies from the burial ground found eleven drilled molar crowns belonging to nine different adults. The work was not decorative; the holes were on molars that were not easily visible, suggesting a therapeutic purpose.
The procedures were performed on living individuals. Evidence of tooth wear after the drilling shows the patients continued to use their teeth. The prehistoric dentists used flint drill bits, likely powered by a bow, similar to tools used for making beads. Experiments have shown that this method could create a hole in a human tooth in about a minute. The tiny, precise holes measure between 1.3 and 3.2 millimeters in diameter. This technique predates the next-oldest evidence of dentistry, found in Denmark, by over 4,000 years.