An example of cranial trepanation dating to the Middle Bronze Age from Ebla, Syria.
This paper regards the discovery of a trepanated skull dating back to the end of the Middle Bronze Age II (1650-1600 B.C.). The skull was found in a funeral pit in the Syrian city of Ebla. A rectangular area of the frontal bone measuring approximately 50 by 45 mm was purposely surgically removed through the use of a blade. Deposition of new bone indicates that the subject survived for a long period after the surgery. This skull represents one of the oldest cases of trepanation with a quadrilateral form of incision found in the Near East.
Mogliazza
Silvia
S
Italian Archaeological Expedition at Ebla, Laboratorio di Antropologia, Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici del Lazio, via degli Stabilimenti, 5-00019 Tivoli (RM), Italy. s.mogliazza@libero.it
D005624:Frontal Bone / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D049690:History, Ancient; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011859:Radiography; D013593:Syria; D014207:Trephining / Q000266:history*; D014945:Wound Healing