The 25,000-Year-Old Teeth That Just Rewrote The History Of Human Drug Use

Based on the state of the molars — third molars present and worn, indicating full maturity — and other skeletal indicators, the researchers estimated an age at death of around 35 years.

This is consistent with the age structure of prehistoric hunter-gatherer populations, where reaching the mid-thirties represented substantial survival.

This person had lived long enough to develop the distinctive dental wear that told the story.

The dating of the deposit — 25,000 to 16,000 years ago — is established by multiple methods applied to the excavation levels at Leang Bulu Bettue.

Radiocarbon dating, optically stimulated luminescence dating, and stratigraphic analysis have been applied to the cave’s deposits in prior excavations at the site.