Society for Science & the Public, which publishes Science News, uses cookies to personalize your experience and improve our services. For more information on how we use cookies on our websites, visit our Cookie Policy.
Science Ticker Archaeology

Ancient dental plaque tells tales of Neandertal diet and disease

upper jaw from Neandertal

Calcified dental plaque from the upper jaw of a young Neandertal male from El Sidrón cave in Spain reveals insights into his vegetarian diet and dental health problems.

Paleoanthropology Group MNCN-CSIC

By Helen Thompson

This article is only available to Science News subscribers.

Subscribers, enter your e-mail address to access our archives.

Not a subscriber?

Science News is a nonprofit.

Support us by subscribing now.

More Stories from Science News on Archaeology

  1. Nebelivka site
    Archaeology

    Ancient ‘megasites’ may reshape the history of the first cities

    By Bruce Bower
  2. Neandertal fossils in Shanidar Cave
    Archaeology

    New cave fossils have revived the debate over Neandertal burials

    By Bruce Bower
  3. East asian cooking pot fragments
    Archaeology

    Food residues offer a taste of pottery’s diverse origins in East Asia

    By Bruce Bower
  4. skull of Chan Hol 3 skeleton
    Archaeology

    An ancient skeleton from an underwater Mexican cave sheds light on early Americans

    By Helen Thompson
  5. Aboriginal rock art
    Archaeology

    Wasp nests provide the key to dating 12,000-year-old Aboriginal rock art

    By Bruce Bower
  6. Altai Mountains
    Archaeology

    A Siberian cave contains clues about two epic Neandertal treks

    By Bruce Bower
  7. mummy in CT scanner
    Archaeology

    A 3-D printed vocal tract lets an ancient mummy speak from beyond the grave

    By Maria Temming
  8. Mount Vesuvius boathouse
    Archaeology

    Mount Vesuvius may have suffocated, not vaporized, some victims

    By Erin Garcia de Jesus

From the Nature Index

Paid Content