Ice Age Neanderthals May Have Used Birch Tar as Early Medicine
A black, sticky substance once used to glue tools may also have helped Neanderthals heal their wounds. New research published in PLOS One shows that birch tar – a material frequently found at Neanderthal sites – can inhibit the growth of harmful bacteria, highlighting its potential role in wound care. These findings add to growing evidence that Neanderthals practiced more complex forms of health management than previously thought.
To test its effects, researchers exposed birch tar to a bacteria commonly associated with infections. In several samples, the substance slowed bacterial growth, demonstrating clear antibacterial properties.
“We found that birch tar produced by Neanderthals and early humans had antibacterial properties. This has important implications for how Neanderthals might have mitigated the burden of disease during the last ice age,” the authors said in a press release.
Recreating how Neanderthals made birch tar
Birch tar appears again and again at Neanderthal sites, often stuck to stone tools where it helped bond blades to wooden handles. But its persistence in different places hints at something more than a single use.
To understand how it was made, researchers recreated the substance using methods available tens of thousands of years ago. In one approach, birch bark was heated in a pit to extract the tar. In another, vapors condensed on nearby stone surfaces, leaving behind a usable residue. Both techniques rely on simple materials and controlled heat.
The process is far from simple. Producing even small quantities requires time, attention, and tolerance for the material itself – a dense, syrupy liquid that sticks stubbornly to skin and tools.
“The disorder of birch tar production deserves special mention,” the authors add. “Each stage of production is a sensory experience in itself, and getting rid of the tar after spending hours near the fire has been a challenge every time. »
Learn more: Is there an advantage to having Neanderthal DNA in the human genome?
Birch tar slows down harmful bacteria
Once produced, the tar was tested against Staphylococcusa group of bacteria commonly responsible for skin and wound infections. In several samples, this slowed bacterial growth.
This effect is consistent with documented uses in some indigenous communities in northern Europe and Canada, where birch tar has long been applied to cuts and skin conditions. The material’s properties go beyond adhesion, providing protection in settings where infection would have been a constant risk.
Direct evidence of how Neanderthals applied birch tar to wounds remains limited. Yet its antibacterial activity, combined with archaeological signs of healed wounds and the use of plants, demonstrates a practical knowledge of how natural materials could be used to manage damage to the body.
A versatile substance in Neanderthal life
Birch tar may also have repelled insects or protected exposed skin, adding to its range of uses in daily life.
These overlapping applications contribute to a broader shift in how Neanderthals are understood. Rather than relying on simple, single-use materials, they appear to have worked with substances that fulfilled multiple roles depending on need.
“By bringing together research on indigenous pharmacology and experimental archaeology, we are beginning to understand the medicinal practices of our distant human ancestors and their closest cousins,” the authors write. “Additionally, this study of ‘paleopharmacology’ may contribute to the rediscovery of antibiotic cures as we face an increasingly pressing crisis of antimicrobial resistance.”
As more studies recreate and test ancient materials, substances once considered purely functional are being reconsidered for their broader uses, including their role in early approaches to hygiene, protection and care.
Learn more: The bizarre origins of kissing date back 21 million years to apes – and possibly Neanderthals
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