[SunkenCiv]

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[Fred Nerks]

"They had strong bones and good teeth -- much better than ours," said Maria Huaman, 56, as she scrubbed a skull that featured a large hole, possible evidence of a crude form of ancient brain surgery. "I believe that our ancestors led very healthy lives."

Lima Museum.

I see nothing 'crude' about 'ancient brain surgery' the patient obviously survived the operation. What fascinates me is the evidence of several types of skull deformities. Perhaps the deformities were NOT cosmetic as we have been led to believe. We may be looking at a pathology?

[Fred Nerks]

The Archaeology of Disease. LINK.

Excerpt:The most common operation for which there is evidence in the past is trepanation - the removal of a section of skull. Thousands of examples are known. The operation was especially common in the Neolithic in Europe but it has a worldwide distribution dating from all periods. The evidence for survival is the healing and remodelling of bone around the operation site, and the high survival rate from this high-risk operation attests to the skill of prehistoric surgeons. One Peruvian skull had been trepanned no few than seven times.

The purpose of the operation, however, is unclear, although a superstitious mind might have seen it as a cure for schizophrenia, epilepsy or migraine. Its one modern clinical use is for relieving pressure in the skull following head injury, and ancient trepanned skulls have been found showing evidence of prior head injury. It may, therefore, in some cases have been genuinely effective.