Editing Beeswax (section)

==Historical uses==
[[Image:Candles Oberflacht.jpg|thumb|upright|Beeswax candles, [[Alamannic]] graveyard ([[Seitingen-Oberflacht|Oberflacht, Germany]]), 6th/7th century AD]]
[[File:Beeswax as Dental Filling on a Neolithic Human Tooth - Journal.pone.0044904.g001.png|upright|thumb|Beeswax as Neolithic dental filling]]
Beeswax was among the first plastics to be used, alongside other natural polymers such as [[gutta-percha]], [[Horn (anatomy)|horn]], [[tortoiseshell]], and [[shellac]]. For thousands of years, beeswax has had a wide variety of applications; it has been found in the tombs of Egypt, in wrecked Viking ships, and in Roman ruins. Beeswax never goes bad and can be heated and reused. Historically, it has been used:

* As candles - the oldest intact beeswax candles north of the Alps were found in the [[Alamannic]] graveyard of [[Seitingen-Oberflacht|Oberflacht, Germany]], dating to 6th/7th century AD
* In the manufacture of cosmetics
* As a modelling material in the [[lost-wax casting]] process, or ''cire perdue''<ref name=Condon>{{cite journal |first=L. O. K. |last=Congdon |year=1985 |title=Water-Casting Concave-Convex Wax Models for Cire Perdue Bronze Mirrors |journal=American Journal of Archaeology |volume=89 |issue=3 |pages=511–515 |jstor=504365 |doi=10.2307/504365 |s2cid=193028590 }}</ref>
* For [[wax tablet]]s used for a variety of writing purposes
* In [[encaustic painting]]s such as the [[Fayum mummy portraits]]<ref>[http://www.egyptologyonline.com/mummy_portraits.htm Egyptology online] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070808184841/http://www.egyptologyonline.com/mummy_portraits.htm |date=2007-08-08 }}</ref>
* In [[Bowyer|bow making]]
* To strengthen and preserve [[sewing]] thread, cordage, shoe laces, etc.
* As a component of [[sealing wax]]
* To strengthen and to forestall splitting and cracking of wind instrument reeds 
* To form the mouthpieces of a [[didgeridoo]], and the frets on the [[Philippine]] ''[[kutiyapi]]'' – a type of boat [[lute]]
* As a sealant or [[lubricant]] for [[bullet]]s in cap and ball [[firearms]]
* To stabilize the military explosive [[Torpex]] – before being replaced by a petroleum-based product
* In producing Javanese ''[[batik]]''<ref>Ormeling, F. J. 1956. ''The Timor problem: a geographical interpretation of an underdeveloped island''. Groningen and The Hague: J. B. Wolters and Martinus Nijhoff.</ref>
* As an ancient form of dental tooth filling<ref>{{cite web |url=http://lightyears.blogs.cnn.com/2012/09/19/oldest-tooth-filling-may-have-been-found/ |title=Oldest tooth filling may have been found – Light Years – CNN.com Blogs |publisher=Lightyears.blogs.cnn.com |access-date=2013-07-05 |archive-date=2019-12-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191215065453/http://lightyears.blogs.cnn.com/2012/09/19/oldest-tooth-filling-may-have-been-found/ |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.kidzdentalcare.com/dont-use-your-teeth/ |title=Don't Use Your Teeth |access-date=2013-12-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131214001627/http://www.kidzdentalcare.com/dont-use-your-teeth/ |archive-date=2013-12-14 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* As the joint filler in the slate bed of pool and billiard tables.