Disentangling Cro-Magnon: The dental and alveolar remains

Abstract The dental and alveolar remains of the Upper Paleolithic early modern humans from the Abri de Cro-Magnon (Dordogne, France) are described and reassessed, building on descriptions since their discovery in 1868. There are four individuals represented; two (Cro-Magnon (CM) 4253 and 4254) are portions of numbered skulls (Cro-Magnon 1 and 2) and two (Cro-Magnon 4256 and 4257/58) are unassociated but likely deriving from Cro-Magnon 3 and 4. CM 4253 exhibits advanced periodontal lesions, likely secondary to tooth wear, CM 4256 has moderate alveolar resorption, but the others show little alveolar pathology. CM 4253, 4256 and 4257 have premolar rotation, and CM 4257/58 had impacted M3s. The CM 4254 molars are average in size for the Late Pleistocene, but those of CM 4257/58 are at or beyond the upper limits of known ranges of Upper Paleolithic variation. Only the dental dimensions of the CM 4257/58 molars are exceptional for earlier Upper Paleolithic humans.