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A 2026 laboratory study found that experimentally made birch tar inhibited one bacterium associated with wound infections, but not another. That result makes prehistoric wound care a question worth investigating—not proof that Neanderthals used the tar as medicine or that it is safe or effective as a modern treatment.
What did the 2026 study find?
In a peer-reviewed PLOS ONE study published March 18, 2026, Tjaark Siemssen and colleagues tested experimentally produced birch tar against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. The researchers reconstructed archaeological production approaches, including a condensation method and a raised structure, and also used a modern tin method. They assessed the samples with a modified Kirby-Bauer disc-diffusion assay. Read the study.
Some tar samples produced measurable inhibition zones against S. aureus. The paper’s abstract reports results ranging from no effect to 10.5 ± 0.7 mm, with a mean of 7.5 ± 0.17 mm. The strongest sample was made from Betula pendula using a raised structure. None of the samples measurably inhibited E. coli beyond the 6 mm disc itself. The gentamicin positive control produced zones of 22–23 mm against both bacteria.
These measurements describe bacterial growth inhibition in this particular laboratory assay. They are not clinical measures of wound healing or evidence that birch tar works as an antibiotic in people. The authors characterize the effect against S. aureus as moderate; that is their interpretation of the in-vitro result, not a treatment recommendation.
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Does this show Neanderthals used birch tar as medicine?
No. Birch tar is documented as an adhesive in Middle Paleolithic contexts associated with Neanderthals, including use to haft stone tools. That establishes a material use, not a medicinal one. The 2026 experiment used tar made by researchers today and tested its effects in a dish; it did not examine ancient wounds or demonstrate that Neanderthals applied tar to them.
The antibacterial result gives researchers a reason to consider whether tar could have had uses beyond toolmaking. Siemssen told Science News, “Applying it to wounds is something we should consider.” This is a proposal to investigate, not confirmation of prehistoric wound treatment. Read the Science News report.
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What can archaeology tell us about how the glue was made?
Archaeological residues and experimental work support Neanderthal-associated use of birch tar as an adhesive, but they do not by themselves reveal a single production recipe, the maker’s intentions, or a precise level of cognitive complexity.
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Multiple production routes are possible
A 2017 study found that several aceramic methods—methods that do not require pottery—could produce tar suitable for hafting. A 2019 PNAS experiment showed that tar can form when birch bark burns near a vertical or subvertical hard surface, such as a stone. These findings make it harder to infer a specific process from the presence of tar alone. See the 2019 PNAS study.
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Adhesive use does not settle questions about cognition
Experimental literature discusses birch-tar-hafted tools from Campitello, Italy, dated to roughly 200,000 years ago. The 2019 experiment’s authors cautioned that birch tar alone cannot demonstrate modern cognition or complex cultural behavior. The evidence is strongest for the presence and practical use of adhesive technology; claims about exactly how it was produced or what its makers understood require further evidence. Read the 2017 study.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Could birch tar be used to treat wounds today?
The 2026 study does not establish that. It tested antibacterial activity in vitro, not safety or effectiveness in people. Its authors call for further chemical characterization, measurement of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and standardized toxicological testing addressing cytotoxicity and mutagenicity before therapeutic suitability can be assessed.
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The paper estimates that 0.2 g of tar could cover about 100 cm² of skin as a thin layer. That is an estimate of coverage, not evidence that applying tar to skin is safe or that it treats infection. The study supplies no basis for using birch tar on a wound.
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What the evidence supports—and what it does not
| Claim | What the evidence supports | What it does not establish |
|---|---|---|
| Neanderthals used birch tar | Birch tar is documented as an adhesive in Neanderthal-associated tool contexts. | That every tar find was made by Neanderthals or used for the same purpose. |
| Birch tar can inhibit bacteria | Some experimentally made samples inhibited S. aureus in the 2026 disc-diffusion assay. | Inhibition of E. coli in that assay, or effectiveness against infections in people. |
| Neanderthals used it as medicine | The laboratory result makes medicinal use a hypothesis to consider. | That Neanderthals applied tar to wounds or recognized an antibacterial effect. |
| Tar production reveals advanced cognition | Archaeology and experiments show adhesive technology and multiple ways to make tar. | A specific production method, intention, or level of cognition from tar alone. |
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