D E PA R T M E N T
TH E
OF
I N TE R I OR
U S GEOGRAPHI CAL AND GEOLOGI CAL SURVEY OF THE ROCKY MOUNTAI N REGI ON
.
.
J
W
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.
P OW E LL
1N
C
H A R GE
O N
P R E H I ST
TR E PH I N I N G
RI C
AN D
C R AN I A L A M U LE TS
B Y
R OB E R T
E
ACT
[ F R OM
LE TC H E R M R C 8 E NG
.
A S ST
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S U R GE ON
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B
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ARM Y
C ON T R I B U T I ON S T O N OR T H A M E R I C A N E T H N OLOGY V OL v
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]
I
L I ST OF I L L U S T R A T I ON S
.
C ai u hibiti g u gi al t p hi i g
III C a ia ho wi g ff t f f atu ad d i a
IV 7 V t
f k ull h o w i g fi
b
t ok
t f a
V
C a i u hibi ti g ff t f al y u gi al t phi i g
VI
C ai u hibi ti g both u gi al ad po t o t m t phi
VI I
l h I
a k ul l f o P u
V III
I t u t f t p hi i g u d by th Kabyl
IX
C ai u ati fi iall y t ph i d by M Cha p i o ie
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A N D G S U E VE Y
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PR E H I S TOR I C
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T R E I H I N I N G.
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ON PREHI STORI C TREPHI NI NG AND CRANI AL AMULETS
.
BY
R OB E R T F L E T C H E R
.
Sin c e the p ubl ication of Profe sso r Bro c as interesting arti cle on C ra
1
ni al Am ul e ts an d Prehisto ric Trephining in 18 7 7 no connecte d acco unt
has b ee n atte mpte d so far as the w rit e r kno w s of the additi o nal dis co v
eri e s w hi ch have b ee n reporte d These are scatte re d thro ugh the jo urn als
on anthro polo gy an d it w o ul d see m th at are vi e w of the w hole s ubj e ct
co m m e n cing w ith as um m ary o f Bro c a s observati o ns an d arg um ents an d
bringing togeth e r s ubsequent dis c overi e s w o ul d not only be of i n te re st in
its el f but might re s ult in m ore careful obse rvati on leading perhaps to dis
co v er ie s o f asimi l a
r c usto m in America
The fi r st co m m unicati o n upon th e s ubject of cranial am ul ets an d w hich
led to th e discovery o f e vi dence of prehisto ric trephinin g was m ade in
August 18 7 3 by M Pruni eres at the me e ting at Lyons o f the Fren c h
Asso ciati o n for th e Ad van ce m e nt of S c ience M Prun i ere s is w ell know n
fo r his re s e arche s in connectio n w it h the d o l m e ns of La Loz ere H e
s so c i a
e xhibite d to the a
tion a pi ece of bo ne of an o vo id sh ape 5 0 m illi
m e ters by 38 in its tw o di a
nd
Se
e
Pl
t
e
I
fi
a
Th
e
t
w
o
m e ters
a
1
s
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fa
ce s w ere un to uched but the e dge s had b ee n be vel e d an d m ost carefull y
s dis c o ve red in th e inte rior of a sk ull th e entir e sid e o f
polish e d It w a
’
w hi c h ha
d be e n c ut a
wa
y but it wa
rt of this sk ull ; th e difl eren ce
s no t a pa
S u l at ép a a
ti o d
fl
t l
d i
a ul tt
al é p qu é lith iqu p a Paul B a
Al
R
Pai 1877
P ai 187 7 i 1 4 2 ; 193-225 A l C o g e d ath p t
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B ud ap s t 187 6 101 192
acais pou l a a m t d es sci
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187 3,
Pai
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6
TR E P H I N I N G
P R E H I S TOR I O
.
n d density of struct ure sho w ing beyond ad o ubt th a
in color thickness a
t
it had form ed part of an o ther crani um
At v ario us times simil ar pieces o f b o ne w ere discovered in s o me o f
w hich holes ha
d bee n drilled or gro oves cut a
s if fo r the p urpose o f s us
pen ding the fragments from the person The n ame o f rondel l e s has
gen eral ly been applie d to the s e fragments altho ugh some arch a
eologists
accepting the theory of M Pruni eres h ave ter m ed them a
m ulets
Pl
te
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The us e o f am ule ts as is w ell kno w n comes do w n from the very ear
liest period an d M Pr uni eres w as of Opinion th at the extreme c are besto w ed
in polishing these fragm ents tog ethe r w ith the fact th at n o other purpose
co uld be divined for them w as suffi cient evidence as to th e use for w hich
they w ere intended The l atter re as on it m ust be admitted is not strikingly
convinci n g
As e arly as 18 68 M Pr uni eres di scovered in al ar ge d olmen near
Aig ui eres ask ull of w hich a l arge p art of the side had been remo ved
This operation had evidently been effected by acutting or saw ing pro cess
a
lthough one portio n o f the edge appe ared smooth an d polished M any
rondelle s w ere discovered in the s ame spot an d M Pr uni eres formed the
theory th at they w ere pieces removed in co n verti n g ask ull into adri n king
To drin k from the sk ull of a dead enemy w as are fi ned e njoyment
cup
n o t excl usivel y practiced in th e Walh all ao f the Norsemen Livy te lls us
8
th at th e G auls celebrated their victories in th at m anner an d M Pr uni eres
s upposed th
at the sk ul l a
n d fr a
gme n ts w hich he had unearthed w ere relics
r c us to m H e m ade kno w n his vie w s to the P ari s Society of
o f a si m il a
Anthropology in
nying his com m unic ation w ith specimens
accomp a
ted sk ulls an d rondelles
o f perfora
These pie ces w ere e x amined by Professor Broc aw ho at onc e observed
that the smooth or polished condition of p arts of the edges of th e rondelles
b ig i a
l
a
d f o
A up
ah u a k l l w a h u d by M E R " i k i 1880 f o a a
f th
t y
a B ookvi ll F a k li C o u ty I di a a F o i t i a d f o th di t i t
o T h ba had b
ov d ad bot hth i id
utu
it w a
i d t l y th k ull f ay o u g p
i di a
Tw
a
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ll h ol had b d ill d
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Plat f a i v ol i p 25 7
296
B ul l S d a t h p d Pai 1874
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18 205
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U
R VE Y
P R E H I S T OR I C TR E
.
ve rn o f L H o m m o -M o r t (LaL o s ers )
f ro m the ca
tura
T w o -third s n a
l s ize (Prun i em u
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S ur gi ca
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phi
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ha
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p
PH I N I N G
er fo r m ed
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Pl
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B RO C A
F LET C H E B J
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0N W H A T B A S E D
C ON C L U S I O N S
—
7
s d ue n o t to a
rti fi ci al po lishing but to
n d o f the secti o n s o f the sk ul l w a
a
tural cicatriz ation w hich m ust ne cessarily h ave taken pl ac e
aprocess o f n a
d uring life a
rs before de ath (Plate II )
n d indeed m any ye a
After ex amin atio n Of a great m any other sp e cimens Broc a fi n ally
s the res ult Of his investiga
tions "
anno unced tw o concl usions a
f
u
w
a
a
e
a
s
rgic
l
oper
t
ion
s
sometimes
per
ormed
a
1 In the n e olithic a
g
in intern al m al adie s w hichconsisted in m aking an Ope n
fo r the c ure o f cert a
ing in the sk ull This w as almost if not q uite excl usi v ely practi ced on
yo ung children an d is to be term e d p r ehis to r ic s urg ical tr ep hin ing
II The sk ulls Of those w ho s ur vived this Operation w ere s upposed to
possess s o m e rem arkable q ualities an d w he n the o w ners died am ulets or
rondelles con sisting o f p o rtions Of the sk ull w ere caref ully cut o ut By
preference the po r tion sh o uld contain asegment o f the origin al aperture
5
This w as p o s thum o us tr ep hining
A concise ac co unt m ust be given of the e vidence upon w hich these
concl usions w ere based
To the practiced eye there is no diffi c ulty w h atever in distinguishing
betw een asection o f b o ne w hic hhas not been follo w ed by an y reparative
process an d one in w hi ch th at pro cess has g one on to completi o n In
the fi rst case the edges ar e sh arp th e cells Of the diplo e ar e Open an d the
action Of the cutting i n strument is se e n in the s uc cessiv e cuts by w hich the
operation has be e n per form ed It is not un co mmon to fi n d scratches on the
s urfac e Of the bone in dicating w here the to ol had slipped aw ay from the
i n tended incision (Pl at e I fi g
When c icatrization Of atrephi n ed or fractured sk ull has been perf e cte d
the e dges present arounded ivory like s urface due to the n e w oss e o us tiss ue
n d upo n the edge s o f th e o ut e r and
d eposited in the cells o f the diplo e a
inn er tables
B ut while it is e a
sy to discrimin ate be tw een apost m or tem in cision an d
one lon g since h e a
led it w o uld be very d i ffi c ult to d ecide th at the incision
m ight not h a
ve been m ade d uring li fe but shortly before death The pro
cess Of rep air in bone is m uch slo w er th an in softer tiss ues an d it has been
s uggeste d that the c ases of s o called posth umo us tr ephining w ere re ally
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P R E H I S T OR I O T R E P H I N I N
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a e s in which th e Operation had res ulted fatally in av e ry short tim e an d
before any process of repair had commen ced To this it m ay be replied
that no ex am ples h av e hitherto been found of sk ulls or ron delles w here the
ll a
r e either enti rely fresh o r long
s e ction w as in p r o cess of cicatriz ation ; a
s ince h e a
led It w o ul d b e unre as onabl e to s uppose th at thes e operations
w e re entirely s uc ce ssful o r else immed i a
tely fatal Th e Operation in its elf
is not v e ry dangerous to life as ha
ny ex periments on
s bee n sho w n by m a
ani m a
ls Its m ortality a
l me as ure in cases o f fract ure of the
s a surgic a
sk ull is due to the ser io us inj ury to th e brain for w hich it b e com e s us ees
sary to e mploy it
A m ore convincing reply is th at in the gre ater numb e r of th e trep hined
skulls i n question the two sectio ns co ex is t; aportion exhibiting the ro unded
ivo r y s urface o f an cient cicatri zation the rest of th e section b eing absolutely
fresh (Se e Pl ates I V an d VI )
The s uggesti on th at thes e apertures w ere the result of blow s from
pon s m ust be at once dismissed N O w eapon Of that day or this co uld
w ea
produce such Open ings w i th their w ell de fi n ed b e veled edges The blo w s
Of ston e ham m ers o r axes res ulted gen erally in n e crosis or d eath Of the
bone an d Oft en in disrupti on o r b ulging o f the inner table of the sk ull for
so m e distance from th e seat o f inj ury Some excelle n t e xamples of th e
co n sequences Of such formidable inj uries ar e to be seen in an article by D r
F W Langdon d es cribing the crani ain aprehistoric ce m e te ry at M adison
ville Ohio T he accomp anying pl ate (Plate III) copied by D r L angdon s
permission w ell illustr ates the striking diff erence b et w e e n th e re sults of
blo w s follo w ed by n ecr o s is of the bon e an d the condition s ucc ee ding the
Op e rati on of trephining
The apertures m ade by the a
lled surgical trephining do not diff er
o ca
greatly in size ; they ar e n early alw ays elliptical seldom round an d extend
from 35 to 5 0 millimeters in l ength by 6 to 10 milli m eters in breadth Th e
edges ar e very Oblique at the e x pense of the o uter table of the sk ull The
Operation appears to h av e been performed upon al l parts of th e head
So
o
h o w v w hi h wil l b f d t l at h o w t hat thi a t i o
t di o
i
f B o a wa a
th
t
w pi g
d i v ill p h i t i
l ot By F W Lagdo M D J u
Th M a
t y ; a t h pol og i a
al f th C i i a
ti S
Na
t Hi t i
O t 188 1 250 25 3
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G AN D G S
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F E E /I I ) T OR / C TR E I I I I N I N G. PI
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Ill
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FIG 2
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p
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Pe r
f ag
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or
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m en t o
c usi n
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o
f pai
f t he l e t
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f t he i n te r n a
l ta
bl e w i c
e x te n s i v e s in use s
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i ts
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F I G 2 R e s ul t
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a
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an g l e
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f i nj ur y to r i
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Na
(L a
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ABNO
R M A L CRA N I A L
AP E
RT U R E S
9
.
e x cepting th e fore head but in the greater n um be r of instan c e s one o f the
parietal bones has be e n the chosen site There is a v e ry interesting sk ul l
n e de V a
urea
in the M usée Broca [cr a
l
w hich in additi o n to a large
depression in th e frontal bon e presents a rem ark able instan ce of trephin ing
l tw o thirds of th at bone h aving disappeared Part Of this
o n the occipita
opening is due to the surgical operation the elliptical edges ab o ut hal f Of
the original aperture exhibiting the ch aracteristic i vory lik e surface of ci ca
tr iz a
tio n w hile the rem a
in der has been rem oved by post morte m tr ephining
s an a
In no instan ce ha
rtifi cial Openi ng been obser ved e xcepti ng w here
the bone w as covered by the hairy scalp an d th at the purpose w a
s to a voi d
noticeable disfi gurement seems aj ustifi able concl usion It is als o another
rgument against possible origin fro m w o un ds in battle a
s in s uch cases
a
the forehead w a
rt most li abl e to be inj ured
s the p a
Bro castate s that the Operation m ust have been per form ed j ust as fr s
q uentl y o n the female as o n the m ale
It is necessary to inquire what other causes m ay ac co unt for abnorm al
cran ial aperture s
I The re a
r e congeni tal de fi ciencies
These ar e generally fo und in
the par ietal bones an d are nearly al ways sym m etr ical being fo und in both
s bee n so m etim e s Obser v ed thro ug h
bones A single congenital apert ure ha
s taken place
in an d meninges ha
In s uch c ases
w hich hernia o f the bra
th e edges ar e everte d and sho w am o re or less dise ased conditi on
II D is e ase o f the bone may prod uce openi ngs which m ay afterw ards
becom e cic atrized and thus rese m ble the apertures in q uestion ; but disease
l w ays e x tends beyond the limits Of the perforation produced
o f the bone a
A clos e exam in ation of these tr ephined neolithic
a
n d leaves indelibl e trac e s
sk ulls sho w s a perfectly so und con dition of the bone in the v icinity of th e
pert ure i n al l cases
a
III Traum atic so urces h av e be e n already disc ussed an d dismissed
E ven the ca
v alry saber Of to d ay co ul d n o t prod uce s uch results It does
Le io o u d l ho
p é hi to iq u
F a t Al g e i p a J ul L B ao Pai
188 1 4 (th e ) p 47
f t ph i i g i
w i th
ti o
k
o
th i B o aw a
I
i ta
A v y
ak abl i ta
d i a f th bo
u i a
f th
t d t t h So iété d a th p l g i by M Pa o t i
a iu w a o
188 1
A d
i p ti o
li w i ll b fo u d f ath
f th
,
.
,
,
,
.
,
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,
8
-
,
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8
s
°
se
,
9
se
n
se o
.
ns
s
e
e sc r
ss e
se s
.
,
r
e
’
m m e
r
s
r
r
e en
n ce
e
en
r e,
r
e
es
r
n.
r s.
.
c
n es o
n o
s m
en
s
e cr
e re
n
c
m
er
.
s c m m
e
n
re m
n c
r
e
r
e
o
er o n .
ns
e
re
n ce o
c
’
n
n n
ro
o o
n
e
c n n ec
.
n
rr
,
n
1O
PR E
H I S TO R I C T R E P H I N I N G
.
occasion ally cut o ff aslice o f th e crani um but it certainly co uld not cut
rietal bones (See Pl ate IV )
o ut rondelles f ro m the p a
s w o uld be p r od uced by r ude w ea
C ontused w o unds s uch a
pons p r o
duce necrosis or death of the bone an d w here healin g ta
kes place i rr eg ular
pert ur e s rem ain entirely unlike the res ult of asurgical Operation
a
The rep arative process in w o unds of the crani um in the ad ult is one
of e xtrem e slo w ness A n osteitis or in fl ammation o f the bone is set up
The v ascular
w hi ch exten ds to some distance from the edges of the w o und
can alic ul i of the tw o tables become dilated and it is often ye ars before
they recover their normal caliber B ut in the sk ulls under disc ussio n in
nces th e e dges of the aperture m ade by s urgical trephining exhi bit
ll insta
a
dj ustment of the p arts This is the c ase in yo ung as
the most perfe ct re a
n
nia
a
in
one
inst
c e p artic ularly th at of aw o m an o f less
s in o l d cra
w ell a
;
th an tw enty fi ve years of ag e the w isdom teeth bein g still in process of
development th e traces of the traum atic in fl amm ation have as completely
disappeare d as in the sk ulls o f very old persons This led Brocato believe
that th e operation m ust h ave been per formed at avery e arly ag e an d other
observations te nd to con fi rm th at theor y Altho ugh th e Operation of tre
n
s n o t avery d a
u
ted
ngero
s
ted
n
i
a
s before sta
i
n e w hen uncomplic a
i
o
h
g
p
by inj ury to the brain yet it w o uld be unre aso n able to s uppose th at it w as
never fatal If someti m es fatal w e should expect to fi n d sk ulls e xhibiting
rtial rec uperative process B ut w ith on e exception n o
e evidence o f p a
th
s uch relics have been disc o vered ; the e dges of the open ings a
r e either
bsolutely cic atrized
absol utely f resh indicating p o st morte m w ork or a
indi cating th at the op eration had been perfor m ed m any years before the
d eath o f the s ubject Wh at then became of the fail ures "
If th e operation w as performed only on young childre n th en the rapid
decay of their tender bones w o uld answ er th e q uestion In dol m ens co n
taining al arge n umber o f ad ult crani a it is usual to fi n d nothi n g but mere
n d in the c a
se of tre phined sk ulls the thin
debr is of the bones of childre n a
e dges of the apert ures w o uld o ff er favorable points for the chem ic al an d
physical agency o f ero sion
It is unnecess ary to rel ate all the observations an d argum ents w hich led
Brocato the concl usion t hat prehistoric trephining w as perf ormed m ainly
,
.
.
,
,
,
,
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,
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,
,
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,
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,
,
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,
-
,
,
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,
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,
,
,
,
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,
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,
-
,
,
,
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,
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,
,
,
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,
U
.
S
.
C
.
A N D G S U E VE V
.
'
Pl
P A E I I /S I U R I C
‘
.
.
V
.
la
l o r bi ta
a l i n o ; E l e t ex te rn a
l o r bita
l ao h y s is
p o h y si s ; F r i gh t e x te rn a
-c b-d
T he s a
o s t m o r tem se cti o n s
a-b the ci catr iz ed e d ge o f s ur gica
gittal suture i n s tead o f
l tre h in in g ; a
bro ken
f o ll o win g the l in e C D ha
Two thi rd s n a
tura
l s ize
s be en d r i ven o ve r to the l e ft
(B ro ca)
n i um
C ra
.
f
ro m
C ibo ur n io s
,
—
,
.
A -B ,
m ed i n
p
f
,
,
.
,
p
p
pp
,
.
.
,
,
n
r cn a
a
D I FF E RE N T M E T H OD S
T R E PH I N I N G
OF
11
.
entirely upon the yo ung child but one especi ally striking an d
i n g e n ious ill ustration w hich he fo unded upon a crani um disco vere d by
Pr uni eres in the dolm en o f C i bo ur n io s m ust be rel ated
It is w ell kno w n that the s utures o f the sk ull tend to beco m e fi rmly
united w ith the a
dv ance of E rs In the yo ung child the rem ains of the
s utural me m brane still exist an d asep aration is e asy In the accomp any
ing draw ing it w ill be perceived th at the left p arietal bone has b een Operated
nd the resistance o f the a
rch on that si de being thereby diminished
upo n a
the right p arie tal has encro ached consi derably over the medi an line in the
fter gro w th indic a
process o f a
ting the yo uthof the s ubj e ct at the time o f
the operati on (Pl ate V )
As regards the general h ar m le ssness of the operation there is avie w
ssing w hich has not been considered before
w hich m ust be s uggested in p a
in this connection an d that is th e rel ation o f rac e to traum atism In other
w ords the c a
p acity to be a
r w o unds or s urgical op e ratio n s o r the contrary
dependent n o t on individ ual but on race ch aracte ristics Long ag o Velpe au
s aid th at French fl e sh an d E ngli sh fl esh w ere quit e diff erent an d opera
tions that w ere generally s uccessful in the o n e w ere freq uen tly fatal in
the other T he s ubject is o f immense extent req uiring cOp io us observa
ich should incl ude toleration o f child beari n g befor e an y concl u
tions w h
sions can be reached It w ill be seen presently that the Arab tribes w ho
practice trephining reg ard it as al m ost w itho ut danger It is possible th at
race is to be regarded as afactor in the calc ul ation o f the res ults o f tre
if
t
no
,
,
.
a
.
,
.
,
,
,
,
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,
,
,
,
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,
,
,
,
.
,
.
,
.
,
,
.
.
i
n in
h
g
p
.
So m e acco unt m ust n o w be given of the probable m anner of pro ceed
in g in prehistoric trephining
T here a
r e three processes by w hich a
n Opening in the cra
ni um can b e
me thodically prod uce d by ro tatory move m ent by c uttin g an d by scraping
The most perfect ex ample o f the fi r st n amed method is in the use o f
the m odern trephine w hich consists o f asteel cylinder w ith s aw teeth an d
l pin to guide its fi rst motion ; the w hole being w orked by across
acentra
ndle like that o f agimlet This instr um ent c uts o ut acirc ul ar piece of
ha
bone leaving acorresponding aperture w ith p e r p en dicul ar edg e s T he fi rst
t es b a
ck to the e arly day s o f Gre ek s urgery ; 0
f o r m o f the trephine d a
.
,
—
,
,
.
-
-
,
.
/
,
.
12
P R E H I S TOR I O T R E PH I N I N
G
.
in l y to
ta
more than 5 00 year s before the C hristian era W hile o f w i n e s
ave been know n in the neolithic a
n o instr um ent of this kin d co uld h
t
e
e
g y
n op e ning by terebra
tion co ul d h ave been obtaine d w ith an y pointe d tool
a
M Pruni eres says th at the shepherds o f L aLoz ere practice it to this day to
relie ve sheep of the staggers The he ad of th e an im al is held bet w een the
knees o f the Operator w ho fi xes the point of his large sheath knife in the
skull an d by rotation of the handle betw een his hands ahole is sp e edily pro
A similar practice prevails in Germ any according to V e cken
duced
stedt the o p e ration being performe d by the shepherds in Ord e r to b urst
B ut a
a blad der in the inside o f the he ad o f the sheep
l l s uc h Openings
rly perpendic ul ar e dg es while the s urgi cal
a
r e necessarily ro und w i th ne a
trephining o f prehistoric times is characterized by ellipti cal Openi n gs an d
by obliquely be vele d edge s
As regards the second method by cutting no do ubt fl int s aw s m ight
h ave b ee n employe d for the purpose but it w o uld hav e been i m possible to
produce the e ve n ellipsis w ith its bro ad bevel in s uch am anner A polyg
onal sh ap e d aperture co uld only have res ulted
There rem ai n s the process by scrapin g In so m e of the So uth Sea
Isl an ds trephining is practiced in this m anner an d indeed the e x foli ative
trepan of modern s urgery pro vi des for asimil ar process Brocapresented
to the Society of Anthropology of Paris in 18 7 6 so m e sk ulls upon w h ich
he had hi m self p rod uce d precise co unterparts of neolithic trephining by
1
pi n g w ith apiece of broken glass
The apertures w ere elliptical th e
s c ra
long axis being in the direction of the to and fro m otion o f the scraper an d
the edges w ere broadl y beveled I t might seem at fi rst that t his m ust
hav e been a very slo w an d barb aro us operation but w hen it is remembered
th at the e v idence points s trongly t o the belief that tr ephining w as prac ti ced
t e x tent disappears It took
up on th
e very yo ung th
e objection to agre a
Brocanearly an ho ur to p roduce the opening in a hard ad ult crani um but
in achild s sk ull it r e quire d but fo ur m in utes to attain the sam e result
Ag ai n in J uly 18 7 7 Bro ca presented to the sam e society th e sk ull of a
d performed the Operation of tre
tw o months o l d p uppy upon which he ha
h
nd a
s
a
u
t
n in
t
piece
o
f
i
gnon
ltho
gh
e fl int w a
fl
h
i
w
i
h
n t fro m C ro M a
a
g
p
Bull S d a th p d Pai 187 6
i 5 12
6
,
.
,
,
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.
,
"
“
.
-
,
,
.
“
,
"
.
,
,
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,
,
,
,
,
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.
.
,
,
,
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,
,
0
.
,
-
-
,
,
,
.
,
,
,
,
.
,
’
.
,
,
,
’
,
,
W
.
oc
’
.
n
ro
.
o
r s,
,
,
s r
.
,
x
,
.
U
.
S
.
G A XVD ( i S
.
.
U
R VE Y
f
I R E I I I S / OA I C
’
.
ro m C ibo urn io s
n ium
A -B
C ra
T wo -thir ds n a
tura
l s ize
(B ro ca)
.
.
a
tr ized
ci c
edge
fr o m
a
l tre phin in g
s ur g i c
’
.
B -C , A -D ,
p
o s t m o r te m
sectio n s .
14
P
R E H I S TO R I C TR E P H I N I N G
.
groo ve cut a ro und t hem app arently fo r the p urpose of s us p endin g t hem fr o m
the neck (Plate I F ig
r
s to the
u
It n o w rem ains to g ive some acc o unt of Brocas theory a
p
pos e o f this s urgical and post mortem trephi n ing H e rejected the theo ry
that the s urgical operation in early life w as performed o n acc o unt o f fracture
or disease of the bone nothing w hatever in the relics se e m ing to indic ate
such co nditions H e w as at one ti m e disposed to think that the Operation
n d th a
t it indi cated initi ation into
ha
d areligio us or s uperstiti o us motive a
some sacred order ; but the extent of the discoveries o f trephined sk ulls
s m e n w ere s ubjected to the opera
c t that w omen a
s w ell a
ti on
n d the fa
a
obliged him to give up th at v ie w H is concl usion w as that in al l prob ability
s a c ure fo r conv ul sions si m ple or epileptic
th e Operation w a
s perf ormed a
Trep hining as ac urative tre atment for epilepsy ha
been
pr
a
cticed
some
s
t extensively in o ur o w n d ay but it is n o w entirely ab ando ned except
wh a
in cas es o f traum atic epilepsy w hen the m anifestation of th e disorder has
b e en coi n cident w ith an inj ury to the sk ull In s uch cas es remo val of de
r ly indic a
presse d fra
gments o f bone is cle a
ted an d has in m any instances
b e en follo w ed by entire disappearance of the epileptic fi ts
In the curio us storeho use of absurdi ties w hich o ur a
nci e nt M ateri a
Medic ae x hi bits po w dered bone fro m the h um an skull as w ell a
s po w dered
s unfa
iling re m edies for epilepsy Sometimes the b o ne
m um my fi gur e a
lcined an d the supplem en tary o ssicles of th e sk ull kno w n as
s to be ca
wa
n a w ere in high rep ute for this p urpose
I n old w orks the
o s s aWo r m ia
n ordinary n a
n tiep il ecticum w a
s a
title of a
me for aWorm i an bone
s a
For m any ages epileptics w ere belie ved to be possessed of devils an d
to be fi t subjects for exorci sm W hen in obedience to spell o r potent co m
nd the evil spirit left the s ufferer o r in o ther w o rds w hen the fi t w as
m a
over it w a
s made
There is a
s thro ugh the open mo uth that the e x it w a
n block book representing the w ell know n in ci
cut in ac urio us old Germ a
de n t o f the epileptic of the N e w Tes tament The mo uth o f the m a
n is
p ain f ully distended an d the horned head o f asm all i m p is visible emerging
from his throat Th e herd o f sw ine uncon s ci o us of the impending c ata
s
tropho are w atching the pro ceedin g It is not diffi c ul t to im agine ho w
ppear to m ake an opening in the sk ull fo r the escape
appropriate it w o uld a
,
,
.
.
I
’
-
.
,
,
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,
,
,
,
,
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,
,
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,
,
,
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,
,
,
,
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,
,
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,
,
,
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,
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,
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,
,
,
,
.
,
-
-
.
,
.
,
,
.
p rin ce s s
.
B E L IE F I N
)
F U T U RE
I S T E N C E IN F E RRE D
EX
15
.
coul d n o t be dislodged by ordin ary e x orcism
It is
t trephining is practiced to this day am ong
m on g others th a
fo r this p urp ose a
the So uth Se aIsl anders an d by some of the Arab tribes o f Algeri a
F ro m these an d simil ar considerations Broc aw as led to believe th at
prehistoric trephini n g w as practiced fo r the relief o f conv ul sion s in infancy
or childhood an d that afragm ent of the sk ull o f aperson w ho had under
nd
gone this operatio n w as w orn as a preventive of the like co m mon a
s t of the
al arm ing disorder H ence the c a
re w ith w hich aportion at lea
ulet
c ut o ut to form the a
cicatrize d border w a
in
the
piece
m
s preserve
d
It m ust be borne in mind th at a pri m itive people w o uld not be likely
to discern an y differe nce ex cept o f degree bet w een the ordin ary convul
sions of childhood an d epilep ti c fi ts The former though alarm ing in
rance a
lly dangero us an d w e can e asily under
r e by no m e ans gener a
appea
stand th at the s urgical operation w o uld ias uch cas es be credited w ith the
u
a
t
a
d
th
t
the
os
I t is tho ught even in o ur o wn enlightene d da
o ur s
p
q
y
d i n s urgica
is occasion ally taken for the p r op ter qua
l as w ell a
l
s m edic a
therapeutics
So far it m ay be s aid th at Brocam ade afair case in favor o f his theory
s o f opinion th a
He wa
t these tre
but he carried his theorizing still further
h
i
n d c orresp o nding am ulets indi c a
a
a
a
n e d sk ulls a
ted
th
t
belief
in
f
t
re
u
u
p
existen ce obtained among these primitive races H is ar gum ent is b a
s ed
upon the dis co very of a
m ulets in the interior of tr e phined c ran i a
Why
he asks w a
s this precio us relic pl a
ced inside the skull at b uri al " Wa
s it
not a talis m an to preserve the de f unct in a future existence against the
evil spirits that had affl icte d him in e arly life " I f so does it not sho w that
afuture existence w a
nti cipated "
s a
When it is rem embered th at only three cases have been observ ed in
o
an e vil spirit
f
13
w hich
.
,
,
.
,
,
,
.
.
,
,
,
.
,
,
,
,
,
,
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,
.
,
,
‘
.
.
"
“
.
,
“
,
,
,
,
"
13
A
cur i
ous cu tom
s
is
re
l at d by Mi
e
A
ss
.
W
kl a d
B uc
.
n
,
h
w hi c
m
po
l
y
a
s
i
b
b
d
u
e
e
s
y
to
o
s m e
l
eg en d
phi i g a a m ed y f fi ts Sh observ d at C an es i
t h sout h f F ace a um b
f do gs w i th o bl o g p a
f
d ad
t h
d l ea
the st u k
th i h a
upo i qui y w a
th
s i f o m d th a
d ogs w re ubj t t fi ts a d th a
d l a
wa
t th
s w orn a a
t the
m as o f p re v
t io
J ou A thr op I s t Lo d o
188 1
i 16
Th i p a
r t f th
ubj
llusi on to th st o y o f the birth f
t m us t
o t b d i m i se d w i th o ut a a
A th
bl y t ol d by L uci a
s i i m i ta
i
t Z eus ufl i g f o m in to l a
I t w i ll b re m m b r d th a
bl p a
i t h h ea
d
l l d upo H e p hm tu t
a
p l i t p hi head w i th a a T h l att u wi l li g l y obeyed
wh
f om t he f at ure d o p e i g p a g ut th Godd ss o f W i s do m
l ad i b ig ht am o ad w i th
p ar i had T h i i s p robabl y th fi s t e o d d i ta ep f hi to i t ph i i g
ry
a
tr a
ce
l
f the be ief i n the
o
o
e
n
n
r
r
en
s
en s ,
e
n
en
s
e
o
e
e s
n n
s
n
n
.
ec
.
n
e
c
s
e
ec
n
n,
s
s
or
re
n
e se
r.
n.
o
es o
o
,
,
x
,
e
e
.
r
re
re
n
e r
on
c
n
e
s,
er
e
n
,
n
s
.
r
e
n
o
'
n
,
n.
c
r
n
r
f t re
o
er o
n
,
n
n
e
n
ay
effi c c
e
r
n
.
n
c
s
s
s
o s
n n
s
r
e
e
e
n
r
O en
o
r c r
e e
n
s
e
e
,
x e.
e
ns
nc
e
c
,
s
r c
er n
s
re
r
er
n
n n
r
.
er
e
n
n
r
n
,
r
n
16
PRE
H I S TO R I C T RE PH I N I N G
.
rondelles w ere disc o vere d in the interior of skulls it m ust be ad
m itte d th a
t this ami able theory rests upon avery slender foundation It
see m s m uch m ore prob able th at their presence in the locality in w hich they
w ere fo un d w a
s due to a
ccidental causes such as the pressure o f roo ts or
the movem e nts of w orm s M o r till e t an d Pr uni eres both mention fi nding
n ia
sm all bones o f the h and or foot inside of cra
As regards the extent an d range of the reli cs indic ating this singular
custom it m aybe said that in France the department of L aLo z ere ha
s
produced the greate st n umb e r This ho w e ye r is probably due to the vig
re s earches of Pr uni eres and others in that re gion Throughout the
o ro u
s
so uth an d southe ast o f France discoveries of trep hined sk ulls contin ue to
be m ade Br ocastates th at the c us tom certainly pre vaile d thro ugho ut the
en tire neolithic or poli s hed sto n e period as trephined skulls have been
fo un d in the cav ern o f L H o m m e Mort in L aLoz ere w hic hbelongs to the
earliest p art o f that ag e an d in the grottoes of Baye belongi n g to its close
Whil e it is not surprising th at no trac e o f th e c usto m should have been
e olithi c or m esolithi c a
disc overe d in the reli cs of the pal a
ges it is certainly
r ed w ith th
rem arkable th at it should have disappea
so
e neolithic a
e
c
m
o
g
l
n o t to o m uch to say th a
u
a
It
is
p
e
rhaps
t
no
thenti
c
instan
c
e
of
the
e te l
p
y
disco very of atrephined skul l fro m the bronze p e riod is on re c ord D oubt
less the r apidly increasing c usto m of incineratio n o f bo di es m ust be regarded
l caus e M de Baye ha
s fo und cra
nial am ulets in tom bs o f a
a
s aprincip a
later epo ch an d in fers that th e cus to m of trephining still pre vailed
This
doe s not ho w ever follo w as th e am ulets m ay h ave been preser ved thro ugh
ny generations
m a
tion al C on gress of Pre histori c Anthro
A t the meeti n g of the Intern a
ussels in 18 7 2 D r G A L a
n e a u re a
Br
g
d
a
paper
entitled
t
l
o g y held a
o
p
s
Sur les cr dn es de Furfooz ; and in the disc ussion w hich follo w ed the mea
n crani aw ere given by M " uatrefages In th e
ur e m en ts of some E sthoni a
plate ill ustrating the l atter one sk ull has an aperture abo ut the center
of the coronal suture w hich strikingly resembles th e beveled edges pro
ea i 121
Bull S d ath p d Pai 187 6
i
l
é
i
t
i
u
l
i
é
t
d
a
h
u
o
l
p
h
o
q
C
o
p
d
i
a
d
a
t
h
t
t
a
i
t
é
C
p
g
g
g
187 2 B u ll
B u ll
187 3 558
u a
t
io
w hich
,
,
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,
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,
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r s,
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es,
e e
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es
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m
e re n
,
ses
S PE C I M E N S
e nu )
m
.
D I SC OV E RE D
F RA N C E
IN
17
.
by trephining No allusi o n w a
de to it the s ubject at th a
t tim e
s ma
not h aving been brought to light
As early as 18 75 a tre phined sk ull w a
s fo un d in at um ul us a
t Bo ugon
r Niort in the so uth of France w hich w as described by M B abert de
n ea
In his speci m en the open ings had been m ade n ear the top of the
J uil l é
sk ull an d the edges w ere p e rfe ctly cicatrized
At the meeting of the Asso ci ation fo r the Ad vance m e nt of Science h eld
at Nante s M C h auve t pres ente d a cranial am ulet fo und in atum ul us in th e
17
forest of Boixe
nk o f the Sein e not far fro m Paris
I n the tertr e Guérin on th e righ t b a
n w ith atrephine d apert ur e w hich
M C ho uquet fo un d the sk ull of an old m a
8
M C ho uque t als o dis c o vered some
ha
d b e en long co m plete ly c i catrized
specimens of both surgi c a
l an d posth um o us trephining in am o und near
s disposed to think
te d bones H e w a
Ec uelles w hi c h co ntained inci n era
e
that thes e r elics belonged to the bronze a
g
In 18 7 7 M Pruni eres prese nte d to the Paris so ciety tw o adm irable
speci m ens in one of w hich the ap ert ure thoro ughly cicatrized was in the
"
o ccipital bone a little to the right of the m edian lin e nu un us ual posi ti o n
M G ussies disco v ere d atr ephined skull at E ntre R oche n e ar Bord eaux
eolithic
in a burial pl ace w hich he tho ught to b e p al a
Further researches
ho w eve r by M C hauvet assign e d it to the neolithi c p e ri o d a polish e d stone
m
ax e and si m ilar re li cs having be e n dis co ve re d there
S o m e other do ubtful
l m o l ithic p e ri o d have be en anno un c ed
cas es of trephin e d sk ulls fr o m the p a
uthenti ca
te d sp ec im e ns hav e been d is co vere d w hich ar e o f
but n o w e ll a
earli er da
tathan th e polish e d ston e a
e
g
s pre s e nte d t o th e Par is society in 1 8 7 8
An intere sting s p e ci m e n wa
22
by M Guég an
It w as fo und in adol m en at Etang l aVill e an d e xhibited
d uced
,
.
.
,
,
,
.
,
.
16
.
,
.
,
.
,
,
,
,
.
1
.
.
,
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,
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.
.
,
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,
—
,
.
,
.
,
.
,
,
,
.
,
.
,
-
.
,
‘5
ri
ppo t d l aco m m iss io d o s t um ul i d o Bo ugo s ui vi d u etude s u l at ep aatio p
p ati ulie sur l o crAn e t ep an é que p ossede l am uses d N iort PaB ab t d J uil lé
Ra
qu
r
n,
r
r
c
’
p e
e
r
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r
r
n
er
o
n
.
his to
re
Ni
o
rt,
.
"
Pai
n
e
r
e , ct e n
187 5
,
.
.
,
r s,
Ass
o
n ca
i se
f ra
c.
1876, 85 4
"
ll
Bu
l9I
bid
.
,
,
55 1
m
"
I bid
M id
.
a
’
.
187 6,
’0 1M
l
va
a
n ce m en t
P
r is , 187 7 ,
p de a
s6r , x i , 27 9
n thro
.
.
.
.
,
1877 ,
,
187 8,
2
d es
sci e n ces .
C o pt
m
.
So c d
.
po ur
’
P
'‘
l
a x i i 12
sea i 198
se
,
,
,
,
.
.
i
13
1
x
i
6
sea
,
,
.
e ren
du d e
la
sess
.
,
n tes , 187 5 ,
Na
l8
P
RE H I S T O R I C
T R E PI I I N IN
G
.
e
n
in c o m plete trephining by r acla
or
scr
a
pi
g
This
modi
c
tion
of
the
fi
a
g
process of trephini n g c onsisted in removing the o uter table of th e sk ull by
scrapi n g le avi n g the in n er or vit r eo us table intact Al together some tw enty
speci m ens of the kind h av e been colle cted What the o bject was of this
incomplete Op e r atibn it is di ffi c ult to divine Possibly the m a
l ady w as
reli e ved and the further proc ess rendere d unnece ss ary
In 1603 there w as p ublished in Ly ons abook w hi ch is n o w excessively
rare Its title w as " T r aicté d e l ép il ep s ie m al adie v ul gairement appel ée n u
pays de Provence la g o utette aux pe tits enfan ts Par J ehan T ax il
The w riter eviden tly c onfo unded co n v uls ions w ith epilepsy the l atter dise as e
not attacking little childr en rarely indeed developing itself be fore the te n th
ye ar The remedy he prescri bes is scraping aw ay aportion o f the o uter
table o f the sk ull Som e times the inner table al s o w as re m ov e d by the
exfoli ative trep an This re prod uction of a prehistoric us age m ay pe r h aps
be cited as ac urio us instance o f atavism in s urgery
In 18 7 8 M Pruni eres m ade some extensive re se arches in the c ave r ns
of Be aumes C h audes (LaLoz ere ) an d fo und more th an sixty speci m ens of
trephined sk ulls and crani al am ul e ts In three o f th e se there w as ev idence
of the Operation having been t w ice p e r formed o n the s am e s ubject
In 1880 M M auvoisi n fo und in som e arti fi ci al grottoes near Baye sev
eral crani ao f the neolithic ag e o f w hich t wo exhibited cicatrized o p e nings
d been m a
de in the us ua
l m anner
U p on one of them p o st m ort e m sections ha
A recent an d very i n tere sti n g contr ib ution to o ur k n o wl e dge of the
s ubject is to be fo un d in apap e r re ad be fore the Paris Society of Anthro
5
n i um fo un d in agrotto of th
rro
It
describ
e s acr a
t
e n eo
o l o g y by M P a
p
t Bray s ur S eine (M a
rne ) T he fron tal an d both p ar ie tal
l ithic period a
b o nes exhibit the cons eq ue nces of extensive dis eas e D epre s sions exist s m h
M P arrot s ay s by press ing the th um b into soft
a
s w o uld be prod uced
p utty On the left p arietal asm al l isl and of undiseased bon e stands up in
st T ire bo n e
e ce n te r o f the depressed portion formi n g astrong contr a
th
187 8
é
i 211
d a t h p d P ai
B ull S
,
.
,
.
.
'
.
.
’
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,
,
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.
,
,
,
,
.
,
,
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.
.
.
-
,
.
“3
.
.
,
"“
-
2
.
.
-
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.
,
,
,
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.
'
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oc
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l m
fi
9“
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ro
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i v,
l
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,
r s,
e
i i i , 10
,
s r .,
.
,
a
.
o
n s un e g r tto
sq ue e ttes ,
104 - 108
.
a
se
1880,
aa ai n c d o
.
n
.
C r dn c t r o uv o d a
u
n
t
r
q
a
w
s
sé r
’
s he s
ha
po l
p
S
Ma
oq ll
-s ur - r i n o
B ra
d o l é p o que d c l a i e rr e p o l i o
y
(
i e r s e t o r n cm e n ts en c ui
ies , p o in co n s e n 08 , c
’
oll
vcc
) a
rn e ,
es .
1 bid
.
,
uuc
188 1,
TR E PH I N I N G
aJ
u n
n m
D I SE A S E O F
F OR
B
ON E
19
.
i h has been subjected to dise ase is excessively thin an d w as broken in
t w o or three pl a
ces in the process of extraction No t race w a
s left of the
coron al s ut ure the d is e ase h aving entirely obli terated it B ut the most
interesting feature w as the e viden ce that surgical trephinin ghad been per"
f ormed a
pparen tly for the relief of the dise ase The openin g m ade invol ved
l an d le ft p arietal bones ; it w a
l ov al sh ape but its
the fro n ta
s of th e us ua
size co uld not be e xactly ascertained as the poste rior portion o f it was lost
in al arge irregular hol e pro d uced no do ubt w hen the sk ul l w a
s re m oved
fro m the e arth The trephining w a
rtly o n so und an d p artly
s perfor m ed p a
o n the dise a
sed bo n e an d the edges of the ape rt ure ( w hat re m ains of the m )
r e pe r fectly c ica
trized so that it is evident th at the p atient long s urv i ved
a
the operation It cannot be held th at the disease w a
s the res ult o f the Opera
tion In the l arge n umber o f trephined sk ulls w hich have be e n examine d
there is no instance o f diseas e of the bone an d in this parti cular case as
M Parrot observes if the disease had res ulted fro m the Operation it w ould
h ave spre ad all around the Opening w hich is not the case as w h at re m ains
perture is in so und bone
o f the a
The disease w hich w a
bly an e xfoli ative osteitis or infl am m ation
s prob a
rrot thinks of traum atic origin There is ade p r es
s M Pa
o f the bone w a
sion on the frontal b o ne w hi ch m ay hav e been cause d by a h atche t stroke
Whether the operation w as pe r form ed to arrest the dise ase or to re m ove
som e o f its symptom s is of co urse a m atte r of c onjecture ; but as the dis
eased bone an d the e dges of th e apert ure had al l be c om e fi rm ly cicatriz e d
it is ce rtain that the pati e nt lived for so m e ye ars after
M Parrot d w ells upo n the importan ce of this disco ve ry as prov ing th at
n d not only
trephining w as employed as atherape utic m ea
s ure in dis e as e a
gin ary causes of evil as in co nv ulsio n s o r epilepsy
fo r the relie f o f im a
It is po ssibl e ho w ever th at the s ubjective sy m ptoms attending s uc h exten
sive di s eas e of the crani um may h ave req uired t he us ual remedy for evictio n
of the s upposed m align ant spirit
In Germ any afe w examples h ave been m e t w ith of prehistoric trephin
ing Prof H Wankel discovered in the grotto of B y tchiskal ai n Bohemi a
the skeleton o f agirl of abo ut tw el ve year s of ag e The sk ull bore un m is
t akable evidence o f s urgical trephining h aving been perfor m ed d uring life
w hc
,
,
.
,
.
'
,
,
,
,
,
,
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,
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,
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,
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,
,
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,
,
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-
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,
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,
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,
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,
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,
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.
2O
P
RE H I S T O R I C TR E P H I N I N G
.
The apert ure w as on the right side of the frontal bone w as n early circ ul ar
in shape an d about 3 centimeters in di ameter The inner table of the sk ull
e x hibite d no trace w h atever o f infl amm atory process s uch as w o uld inevi
a
n ie d ca
a
n gth
bly h ave accO
ries
or
exostosis
of
the
bone
At
gre
t
le
ta
m
p
Professor Wan kel examines every possible dise ase or inj ury o f the bone
w hich migh t be s upp o sed to a
ccount for the openi n g an d rejects them all
Fr om this argum ent by excl usion he ar r ives at avery fi r m belief th at the
c ase w a
n alogo us to those observed
s o n e of s urgica l trephining precisely a
2
in the crani aof La Loz ere
Abo ut the s am e tim e D r B D udik sent a co m m unic a
tion to the Berl in
l Society anno uncing his dis co very of m any trephined sk ul l s
E thnol o gic a
"
in the oss uari um or Beinh aus at Sedlec in Bohe m i a I n this fam o us bone
heap there ar e pyramids of sk ulls an d tho us ands o f h um an bones Tradi
tion states that they came fr om the old ch urchy ard of Sedlec the soil o f
ving been m ade s acred by ad m ixture w ith earth bro ught from Geth
w hich h a
ne had the property of rapidly dec ay i n g the fl esh an d of preserving the
se m a
bones w ith aw hiteness as of al ab aster The struct ure w hich n o w i n closes
the relics w as erected in 17 09 but all usion s to the Sedl ec bones ar e to be
rly ch r onicl e s A local legend relates th at the pe r forated
fo und in v ery e a
sk ul ls (of w hich th er e ar e agreat m an y ) once belonged to the C isterci an an d
C arth usi an mo n ks w ho w ere kil led w
hen the Hussites un der Z isk a c aptured
the convent o f Sedlec in 14 2 1 D r D udik thinks that the p unctu res ar e
too even an d too free fro m fracture to have been m ade by the spiked cl ubs
rm ed This objection is probably n o t
w ith w hic h Z is kas follo w ers w ere a
The w ri te r r emembers examining ahe ap of s k ul l s of horses
w ell fo unded
in akn acker s y ard the anim als h aving been destroyed w ith apole axe a
w ea
pon very si m ilar to aspik e d cl ub an d th e p unctures w ere in almost al l
instances ro und w ith sh arp edges an d not acco m pan ied by f racture It
seems prob able th at these bones h ave acc um ul ated thro ugh av ery lon g
period o f time but th at they d ate principally from th e year 13 18 w hen
n d persons w ere b uried in
ap estilence ravaged Bohemi aan d thirty tho usa
S edl e c alone
'
W ak l
B i p ii hi t i h S hiid l
l bg h il t
Sti hii h t
it i
ha
uf d
Wu d a
wa
i i 86 95
h h i l i h d u h T p a ati o t tad
M i t t h d ath op G
ll h i W i
187 8
D ud ik
U h t p ai t O ai
i
B i ha
S dl
Z t h f E th
B l 187 8
,
.
,
,
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,
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,
6
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,
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,
,
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,
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,
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,
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,
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,
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’
.
.
’
-
,
,
,
,
,
.
,
,
.
s“
rsc
"
n
e n
e
c
n
rc
s
r
re
n
er
ro
s o r sc
or
n en s
n r e
r
c
n
e
m
en .
n en
e n er
.
m
e n
.
e
n
usc z n
r
e
ese
.
e
en
ec
.
n
sc
sc
er
e
en ,
n
.
r
.
.
n
m e
,
.
,
er
v
.
,
s
c
-
,
,
.
x,
22
P
R E H I S TO R I C
TR E PH I N I N
G
.
those de s cribed by B roca D r L Schneider presented to the sam e s oci e ty
asimil ar ex ample fro m the sk ulls of Str up cic Bohemi a
I n 18 7 5 a
n a
rticle w as p ublished by D r R Wie der sheim en titled
de l ho fe n er S chii de l fun d in U nterfra
nken
This appear ed
U ebe r den M a
be fo r e attentio n had bee n draw n to the s ubject o f prehistoric trephining
tes is acrani um w ith an Opening in the left p arietal
but in one of the pl a
bone prese n ting arem ark ably strong resembl ance to the accepted form of
s urgical Operation
At ameetin g of the Itali an Society of An thropology held in 18 7 8 Pro
h
z z aex ibited ap a
m a
é
fo ssor M a
n te a
pier
ch
mod
e l of aR ussi a
n
sk
l
t
k
e
l
u
a
n
g
n o fl w hich presented an ex a
t B o g da
mple of s urgic al tre
from at um ul us a
n do ub tedly performed d uri n g life
h
n in
u
Posteriorly
second
i
w
a
s
a
g
p
aperture of post m orte m origin
M N ico l ucci discovered in atum ul us in Italy arondelle fro m the
occipital bone highly pol ished on both sides but no tre phi n ed sk ulls h ave
t coun try
a
s yet been discovered in th a
In D enm ark atrephined sk ul l w as fo und in adol men at Bo rreby an d
rdt in adol m en of the stone ag e at
another w as di s covered by M E n gelh a
Noes in the isl and of Falster
Broca received from General Faidherbe some casts of sk ulls from
n excellent exam ple o f s ur i
R okni a Al ge r i a o n e o f w hich proved to be a
g
th another spe cimen has been rec ei ved from
l trephining Since his de a
ca
Rok n i a w hich is deposited in the M us ée Broc a In this s kull the openi n g
l beveled elliptic al sh ape an d 13 millimeters in di ameter is
o f the us ua
bove the left extern al orbital apoph y sis There is n o evidence of repair on
a
t it w o uld see m that the operation w as fatal ; but as the
the edges so th a
entire inn e r table o f the sk ull has disappe ared from erosion M Le Baro n
s uggests th at the cic atr ized edges m ay h ave met w ith asimil ar fate
So far no discoveri e s of trephined crani ah ave been m ade in Gre at Britain ;
B li
l l h f il A th op
G
t i
V ha d l d
t p a i t S hiid l
G i bi h
U b
ui t
i
i
u
S tii k
h ib a
S hiid l w l h a i t p a
K
h
B l in 187 9 64 67
30
.
.
.
81
,
.
.
.
,
,
“
,
,
32
.
,
,
'
,
.
33
-
.
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,
,
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,
,
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,
34
.
,
,
,
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,
—
,
,
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,
,
,
.
35
.
3°
er
n er t
,
,
I bi d
.
.
n r e
re
er
e
—
no c
.
hv
hi i
d
v o
h op
ll a
Le io o
ns
1
’
r
e
p
'
dc Na
i
da
s
e n sc
c
e
o
en s e n
er
.
s e n em
n
c
er
.
e ,
e c
n er
er
e
n e n
ese
sc
re
r
.
r cs
.
U s he r d ie H r a iste
35'
Ar c i f ii r An t r
3
e
4 36
31
33 Ar c
vo n
e
c
c
.
vo n
.
,
Br
S t ado i
au h w
n ce
r
n sc
un d d i e
e ig ,
S chiid e l
i ii ,
v
1875
an tr opol og ia e tc M il an o 187 8
L e s t r ep a
na
ti o n s p r é l ri s to r i qucs
ss e us es , e tc
,
.
,
,
,
.
.
,
67
.
v iii
vo n
S tr up ci c ( B ii hm
cn
) I
.
te X V , fi g s
(Pl a
,
527
Pai
r s,
.
187 9
.
p
.
7
.
.
1
bid
,
an d
239
.
n
r
c
cr n
.
,
r m rr un
al
CA SE o
n U N C OM
P L E T E D T R E PH I N I N G
23
.
n g the gro w th of i n terest i n the s ubj ect
it m a
ti
s i l l ust r a
e m e n tio n ed a
b
y
th at in Fran ce co un ter feit ro n delles h ave rece n tly bee n p ut upo n the m arket
llery o f the geol ogical sectio n o f the
I n the sple n did prehisto ric ga
n i um q uite un i q ue o f its ki n d
I t prese n ts evi
t L isbo n is acra
m use um a
de n ce of an un co m pleted o peratio n o f trephi n i n g up o n the le ft p arietal bo n e
The groo ve m ad e by som e c utti n g or s aw i n g i n str um en t has n e arly r e ached
the i n tern al table very cle arly defi n i n g the ro n delle w hich m e as ure s 6 ce n
n d from th
tches o n the s urr oun di n g bo n e it
e n um ero us scra
tim e ter s by 2 a
is e vi de n t th at the i n str um e n t fre q ue n tly slipped fro m the g r o o ve iu the pro
ces s Why the piece w as n o t en tirely d etache d it is useless to s urm is e M de
s of o pi n io n th a
t the disco very rather te n ded to disprove Bro c as
M o rtill e t w a
theory th at the o peration w as perform ed by scrapi n g un til ah o l e w as pr o
I t m us t be observed ho w ever th at t here is n o evide n ce to p r o ve
duce d
th at the o peratio n w as perform e d d uri n g life in the cas e in q uesti o n I t is
t it w as an atte m pted p o st m ortem t rephi n i n g ; but e v e n
m o re lik el y th a
if it w ere n o t its occ urre n ce w o uld o n ly stre n gthe n the vie w s expre s sed
el se w here in this paper th at th o ugh prehi sto ric tre p hi n i n g w as pro b ably
perform e d by s crapi n g i n the yo un g s ubject an d th at e x am p les o f this
tma
jority of speci m en s i n o ur m us eum s yet th at it is
m etho d for m the gre a
pro bable from an a
logy th at w hen perform e d o n the ad ult it w as by saw
in g c utti n g or by aseries o f p un c tures
T he cran i um in q uestio n w as foun d in the grotto of C asadaM o uv aat
Pe n iche w hich co n tai n s the rem ai n s of o n e h un dred an d forty perso n s o f
the n eolithic peri od
at can be s ai d to belo n g to
I n A m eric an othi n g ha
s bee n d isc o vered th
prehist o r ic trephi n i n g except the fam o us I n caskull bro ught by Mr S q uier
n d prese n te d by h
im to the Pa
fro m P eru a
ris S o ciety of A n thro p ol ogy
T his relic w hich co n sists o f the face an d fro n tal b o n e is s tate d by M r
v e bee n t a
ke n fro m an I n c acem etery i n the v alley of Y ucay
S q uier to h a
Baths of the I n cas
w ithi n o n e m ile o f the
wN t
i
u l a hé l g i
o
h
i
il
P
g
l
t
t
a
E
a
t
a
C
a
ha B ll S
d a th p
q
p
p
i
1
i
8
8
3
é
2
8
T ép a a
1
1 307
ti
p éhi t iq p a A d M til l t l 1 d 1882
d Pa
but
,
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.
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.
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o
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.
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s or
r
v,
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uo e n
o n
n
u
or
r
,
.
P
18 77
1
.
l
l
a
(
8
v l a d x p l ati
p 456 ; A pp d ix p 57 7 I t i al
p ubl i hed ) f th J u al f th
I n c iden ts
e r u.
0
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e ve r
o
f tr a e
en
.
s
,
o
n
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e
o
rn
on
s
.
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or
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so
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i n tho
r
l aaf th
d e s cr i
n
b
o
ed
An t h r o p o
r
.
ue ,
s or
14 3 14 6
m
r
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-
37
Yo
m m
r s,
o
r
cs s
o
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e
c
o
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I n ca
s
.
o
c
or
e
o c
.
n
.
B y E Ge o r
.
.
r
n s t i t ute o
n
g Sq ui
e
e
f N o w Yo
u
r
kf
n
,
g l aly u iq u p bl i
t s in u
i n th a
l g i al I
u
.
’
c
.
,
er
.
ati o n
o r
ro
N
,
187 1
o
vo
w
l
.
P R E H I S TO R IC T R E P H I N I N G
24
.
The d raw i n g (Plate V I I ) sho w s ho w e n tirely the operation i n this c as e
di ff ers fro m the elliptic Ope n i n gs of the Fre n c h cran i a T he r o un d w hite
spo t i n d icates w here the peri o ste um had bee n re m o ve d by the o perato r ; an d
t his w as d o n e B ro cath o ught ab o ut eight o r te n d ays befo re de ath The
fam o us s urge o n N el ato n w ho also ex am i n ed the b o n e sugges ted fi ftee n
3
A s n o evide n ce o f fra
ct ure w as visible the Fren ch experts w ere o f
d ay s
Opi n i o n t hat the o perati o n w as perform ed to ev ac uate fl uid in the cavity
usible s uggesti o n th a
ta
but D r J P N o tt o f Mo bile offered the very pl a
n s of the Per uvi a
p
o
n s m ight
un ctur e d w o un d s uch a
s the k n o w n w e a
p
i n fl ict m ight h ave n ecessitated the Operatio n The i n cisi o n s appe ar to h ave
been p erfo rm ed w ith ac utti n g i n str um e n t som ethi n g like an e n grave r s
i
n d n o t w ith as a
w
bur n a
n the n of Detroit p ublished adescriptio n
I n 18 7 5 Mr H e n ry Gihn a
o f te n to fiftee n sk ulls obtai n ed fro m m o un ds o n S able R iver L ake H uro n
n d t w o fr a
a
gm e n ts fro m Gre at Mo un d R i ver R o uge
Michigan
A ll of these sk ulls prese n ted a cire n
la
r
perfo rati o n at the v ertex
evide n tly m ade
he say s by bori n g w i th a rude probably sto n e
in s tr unien t v a
ryi n g in si z e i n s o m e i n stan ces hav
in g a d i a
m eter o f o n e thir d o f a
n i n ch ;
i n o thers
o f o n e ha
lf o f an i n ch an d fl ar i n g at the s urface
.
.
,
,
,
.
,
,
3
,
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,
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,
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,
39
.
"
“
"
,
,
“
,
,
,
,
,
-
,
"
,
(fig
.
A t the Detroit m eeti n g o f the A m e rican Ass o ci a
M u m m y p f m d
m
k ll f
da
bl R i
t Sa
tio n fo r the A dv an ce m e n t o f S cien ce Mr Gil m an
k H
(La
) M i hi g a
i
q at
read am o re el aborate p aper o n the s am e s ubject
s fo llo w e d by
an d at the tw e n ty sixth m eeti n g o f the s o ciety this w a
l facts c o n cern i n g artifici al perfo rati o n
an o ther p aper e n titled Ad ditio n a
n wa
M r Gil m a
s very
n cie n t m o un ds i n
n i um i n a
o f th
e cra
p o sitive th at the perfo r ati o n s w ere n o t an alogo us to the prehisto ric trephi n i n g
o bserved in Fran ce T hey w ere m erely h oles b o red after death an d it w as
s uggested by Professor M as o n th at like the Dy aks o f B orn eo the n atives
o
u
er
.
u
m tn m o un
uro n
e
u r e r s ze
e
vo r
,
.
n ; o ne
c
,
e
‘0
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40
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ll
Bu
Am
P
I bid
.
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er
ro c
an t hro p d e
Nat ural is t Sal e m
So c d
.
’
.
,
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,
Am
.
A ss
26t h m
.
Ad v
ee ti n
g
,
.
Pai
r s,
,
1867 ,
'
“ c
2
187 5 , i x , 47 3
Sc ie n c e , 24 th m
s h v i ll
at N a
e,
,
sen
,
i i , 4 03
.
.
g
Sa
l
e e tin
18 77 ,
,
at D e tro it
em
,
,
l
187 5 , S ae m
187 8 , 335 -339
.
,
187 6, 316-33 1
.
U S
.
C
.
A N D G S UR VE Y
P R E H I S T OR I C TR E PH I N I N G, Pl
.
k b g h by M Sq i
ph d at A y M d M
(P h t g a
T he I n cas ul l
o
o
r
ro u
e
t
r
rm
u er
.
e
.
fro
mP
m)
us e u
er u
.
.
.
VI I
.
P E R F O R A TE D
]
m
m
A M E R IC A N OR A N I A
25
.
ight h ave m ad e the p un ctures for the co n ven ien ce o f stri n gin g the sk ulls
s i n va
T his w o ul d explai n why the hole w a
ri ably at apoin t Opposite to the
f o ra
gn um A discovery of Mr Gil m an s ho w ever seem s to thro w
m en m a
so m e d o ubt upo n this theory H e fo un d in am o un d at D e vi l R iver Mich
igan the re mai n s of aperso n evi de n tly of ran k ly i n g upo n his back but
racteristic perforatio n in his sk ull
w ith the ch a
Mr W C H olbrook in an acco un t o f his ex am i n atio n o f so m e I n di an
m o un ds o n R o ck R iver a
says "
t S terlin g
f t h k ull p
f i g ht h u a k l t
O
i
a
id t hi d l
I f u d th
I
ha
T hi p f a
ti
d b
b ut th i f a i l v d i
a
d d u i g li f
t d a i ul a p
i g a
m
.
’
,
.
.
,
,
.
,
,
,
,
,
.
.
,
.
.
,
,
ns
se n e
e
s
r o
c rc
fo r the
ha
d
ed g e s
o m en
o
en n
o
co m m e n ced
n
re m
e
ns o
e s ze o
ci c
to
m e
er
s
a
t ri z e fl
m
e
n
e e o ns
s
s
.
er o r
ne o
.
e s
ee n m
o n
s
r n
e
re
e,
.
state d in w h at part of the sk ull the open i n g was fo un d n o r
s it
a
e
ct
re
t
w hether a
n
vi d e n ces o f fra
u
o r other i nj ury existed so th a
y
stan ds the c ase can n ot be thought to be o n e of trephin i n g but rather o n e
of ap artly healed w
o un d
r a
Before con cl udi n g this revie w o f the evi d en ce so fa
ccum ulated up o n
the s ubject so m e acco un t m ust be given of the m etho d of trephin i n g p rac
tice d in o ur o w n day by so m e se m i b arb aro us tribes w ith the p urpose o f
seei n g w hether it thro w s an y light o n the prehistoric o peratio n
s (Mo n t A ur es ) th
tio n o f the
I n the djebel Ao ur a
e so uthern term i n a
A tl a
i n ran ge in the provi n ce o f C on stan ti n e in A lgeria there
s m o un ta
exists arace of K abyles w ho ar e the desce n dan ts of the B erbers the g e n
ctice of trephi n i n g prev a
ils e x te n
uto chtho n es of A fric a T he pra
uin e a
n s gen era
m o n g other tribes
a
ugh it is by n o m e a
a
ltho
l
a
m o n g the m
s iv el
y
3
byles T w o Fren ch arm y surgeo n s MM L T M arti n an d Am ed ee
o f Ka
Paris h ave give n very full acco un ts o f the m etho d adopte d
It a
ppears that the o peratio n is perform e d fo r fracture Of the sk ull
se o f the b o n e an d fo r viole n t p ai n s
w hether si m ple o r co m po un d fo r dise a
m ed a
t
n
a
a
u
It m a
be
perf
o
r
po
d
e
n either sex a
n d up o n
i n the he a
y
y g
rt o f the sk ull thoughthe p arie tal bo n es seem to be m ost fre q ue n tly
an y pa
Nat u al i t Sal 1877 i 688
A
ti
da A
t ll q
L at ép a a
ll t p ati qué p a l K abyl d l Au é Pa L T M a
tp ll i
ed 1867 x v ii i 5 25 5 35
Al
R p i t
L M
ti
ti
D l at é p a a
é p hal iq u p atiq ué p a l
éd i i dige d l A u (p v i d
tati
ed d l A l g é i
Ga tt
1868 x ii i 25 28
C
Alg
Al
) Pa M l d A éd e Pai
I t is
no
t
,
,
,
,
,
.
,
-
,
.
,
,
,
,
,
.
,
‘
,
.
.
.
.
“
,
.
,
,
,
,
.
,
,
4’
m er
“
n
r
e
.
*4
o ns
Re
p
r
.
n
r i n t.
on
ne
.
cr
er m
r
e
em ,
,
on
n
e
s
on
n
r
.
.
o
x
,
n e,
e
e
.
,
’
ue
e es
-
,
,
‘
c
r.
m
e
e
so
.
,
r
r s.
e
r
e
r
ze
r n
e
,
es
e m
r
m
.
es
es
’
e
s.
r
r
.
-
.
r
.
ec n s
e
’
n
r e,
n es
c
er,
’
o
,
rcss
,
n ce
ro
-
.
o
so ,
26
P R E H I S I OR I O
’ ‘
TR E P H I N I N G
.
chosen M Paris d i d n o t m eet with an y i n stan ces in which the Oper ati o n
n te n or m ore th a
n sixty ye a
rs
ha
d bee n perfor m e d upo n s ubjects of less th a
of a
e
g
r e r ud e a
n d si m ple e n o ugh co n sisti n g o f ara
The i n str um e n ts a
z or a
n d c urv ed elev a
ser pette o n e or tw o saw s so m e straigh t a
tors an d the
m ro d w ith
tor This l atter is am e tal ro d a
s thick a
s ara
br im a o r perfora
n i n ch l o n g but n o t over o n e thir d of th
n eighth of a
m eter
e di a
apoi n t a
n d preve n ts to o de e
pe
n etr a
ti
o
a
n
o f the rod w hich th us form s asho ulder a
p
of the i n str um e n t (S ee Plate V III ) T he poi n t bei n g fixe d in the bo n e
fter re m ov al Of the s calp by acr uci al i n cisio n the ro d is take n betw een
a
n d s Of the Opera
the h a
tor an d by arapid to an d fro m otio n is m ad e to
nd
revolve so th at ap un ct ure is prod uce d This is fol lo w ed by an other a
an other un ti l the fracture or the porti o n of bon e i n te n d ed to be re m o ve d is
s urro un d e d w ith ar o w o f these h oles very close togeth er The saw is use d
n d by m e a
n s of the elev a
to r un the m o ne i n to the other a
to r the fragm e n t
is re m ove d The d e n tated edges ar e sm oothe d ashield is faste n ed over the
pert ure a
ppr opri ate dressi n gs w ith m an y cerem on ies applie d T he
nd a
a
n d is n o t ge n era
tio n is perform e d w ith gr e at slo w n ess a
lly c o m plete d
Opera
I t m ust o n e w oul d thi n k he ex q uisitely p a
i n ful but it is
t o n e sitti n g
a
hel d to be apoi n t of ho n or to exhibit n o evid en ce o f sufferi n g an d if
n d eve n
t a
tie n t sho ul d be so w eak a
s to utter cri es he is jeere d a
the p a
beate n
T he foregoi n g descriptio n o f the m ethod of Operati n g is ta
ke n fro m the
article by M M a
rti n There is adi fferen ce in the pro
ris w ho does n o t m e n tio n
ce d ur e a
s rel a
ted by M Pa
the use o f the bri m ao r o f an y an al ogo us i n strum e n t
H e s ays th at the thebibe c uts o ut a s quare piece o f
b o n e i n cl usive o f the i nj ured p o rtio n w ith asaw li ft
gm e n t w ith the elev ator Great vi ol e n ce is
in g the fra
f
Ka
byl
1 t
m
m u
r t of the o pera
ti on an d a
s o m eti m es use d in this p a
e co m
s in the a
s io n a
portio n of the o uter or i n n er table is occa
l ly fo rce d o ff a
p an yi n g figure ; the bo n e from w hich it w as draw n w as in the possession o f
M Paris
.
.
.
,
,
,
,
,
,
.
,
,
-
,
,
.
.
,
,
-
-
,
.
,
,
.
,
,
.
,
,
,
.
,
,
.
,
,
,
,
,
.
.
.
.
,
.
.
2—
211.
,
,
,
'
ro m
e
.
m
,
,
.
.
rm
cus
a]
TR E P E
K A B Y LE
lN I NG
.
s i n herite d the
The thebibe (Opera
to r) is asort o f s e m i priest w ho ha
right to exer ci s e his fun ctio n ; the o perati o n the i n str um e n ts the dressi n gs
cre d an d the patie n t is hel d in revere n ce after recovery The
l l sa
re a
a
n d of b utter ; the for m er obta
dressi n gs co n sist m ai n ly o f w om a
n s m ilk a
in ed
fro m aw o m an w ho has d uly perfo rm e d her religio us rites Bo th these
i n gre dien ts fi g ure in cere m o n i al Observ an ces in the Orie n t
n
n cl usion a
I t is i m possible to dra
co
s to the res ults of this pro cess
w a
y
T he thebzbes in sist th at it is always s uccessful but A rab
o f trephi n i n g
city is proverbi a
l an d n either M Paris n o r M M arti n gives an y
m e n da
cre de n ce to their sta
te m en ts W he n co m m en ci n g the i n cisio n s the thebzbe s
I f the p a
tien t
se Go d
fo rm ul ais th us pro n o un ced " T ho u wil t r eco ver if i t p lea
r e t o l d " I t wa
s uccum b his fam ily a
s wr i tten
The n atives ho w ever certai n ly r egard the operati on a
s w itho ut d a
n ger
to life an d it is eve n resorte d to as am ean s o f extortion M Paris rel ates
th at tw o m en h avi n g quarrele d o n e stru ck the other abl o w o n the b od y
Som e da
ys after the latter had his head trephi n e d fo r apre
w i th astick
ct ure an d s ue d his en em y for d am a
ges The decepti o n w a
te n d e d fra
s
exp o se d an d b o th p atie n t an d s urgeo n w ere p un ishe d The déeh or price
of bl o o d is ri goro usl y exacte d am on g them every i nj ury eve n afatal o n e
h avi n g its establishe d price M M arti n m e n tio n s th at he has seen m en upon
d been pra
ctice d five o r six ti m es so th a
t their heads
w h o m trephin i n g ha
w ere m o n stro usly disfig ure d
I t is to be born e i n m i n d th a
t in these ca
s es
the operatio n w as perform ed at i n terv als of ti m e for di ff eren t i nj uries
s bee n re ce n tly p ublishe d i n w hich the p a
A rem ark able ca
se ha
tie n t
“5
s tr ephi n e d five ti m es w i thi n five ye a
rs
T he d isea
se of the bo n e fo r
wa
tio n s w ere perform e d origi n ate d in blo w s
w hich these s uccessi ve Opera
receive d in abraw l in 18 7 5 T he l a
ce in 18 80 a
s t trephi n i ng t o o k pl a
nd
s o far appe ars to h ave bee n s uccessful
I n Ota
heite the Operator s arm am en tari um co n sists o f pieces of broke n
gl ass bottl es for scrapi n g or so m eti m es o f fl in ts sh ark s teeth for i n cision s
rk te n d o n s fo r stri n gs w ith w hich to cover the
an d pieces of go urd w ith sh a
open i n g pro d uce d A m issio n a
ry at U vea o n e o f the S outh SeaI slan d s
-
,
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,
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,
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'
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’
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’
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,
A
a
c se o
i x , 2 9-261
5
.
f
re
p
e
ate d tr ep h in in g
,
,
.
45
,
,
.
By
P
.
B M cC utcho n
.
.
N e w Or
l
e
ans M ed
.
S ur
g
.
l
J o urn a, 188 1,
P R E H I S TO R IC T R E PU I N I N G
28
.
gives avery cle ar an d i n tere sti n g acco un t of the m etho d of tr ephi n i n g p r ac
tice d at that spot
H e s ays "
d
t h i l a d f U v a i th L y a
l ty g up A ti
ti
i p f
A v y u p i i g p a
p v ail t h at h ad ah
lg ia v tig a d th
b al aff t i p
d f
u a
a ak i th
i
h
w
la
it h a
h ad
p u f th k ull
th b a
Th
dy i
p
t
l
a
y
p
T
f gl a
i l ah l i
ad i t
a f ull y a d g tl y w i h ap i
i i i
th
ap th a i u
w pi
th i
f a
S
ti
ap i g p at i
t
ab ut t h i
t h k ull d w t t h d u a a
f
th i pa
ti
f t h f i d ad d a
v t th p ia at by a u k i llf ul u g
w i ll b
th
it
qu
b t h al f f th w h u d g th p ati d i f
i th
I th b t f h a d a
p ti ti a d fah i ha b
p al t th at v y f w f t h
f
u t
Y t t h i baba u
l ad ult a w i t h ut th i h l i th a i u
hav a h i gl
t u
a Au t ali a p h a
a
‘8
.
er
re
s
ress
e s
e e
s
n
en
o
e co n se
e
s
e
o
r
re
n
s c
s om
o
,
s
o e
n
e cr
n
cr o
m
n
o
n
o n
,
ro m
s
“
or
am i n fo r m ed th at so m e ti m es a
tte m pt i s m a
de
n a
p lac i n g ap ie ce o f co co an ut she ll un d e r the s cal p
o se
o n,
e
s
n
ee n
so
er
re v
e
er
e o
se
o
s,
e
e
er
n
o r
e
s r
n o
e
er
n
on
en
o
n
r en
e
o
n
c
s m
o e
s s cr
en ce o
o
n
s
m es
on
o n
e
ro m
o
.
e
r se .
n
an i um so e x po se d by
F o r th i s p ur p o se th e y se l e c t av e r y ha
rd a
ble
n d d ur a
p ie ce o f s hell fro m w h ich t he y scrape the so f te r p ar ts an d g n n d q uite s m o o th an d p ut th is as ap l ate
be t ween the s cal p an d s kull F o rm e rl y the treph in e w as s im pl y ash ar k s t o o t h ; n o w ap i ece o f bro ke n
gl ass is fo un d m o re s ui table o r less o bj ect io n able (if w e m ay e v en so q ual if y the act ) T he p art o f the
ll y se lecte d is th at w he re the co ro n al an d sagittal sutures un i te o r al i ttl e abo v e i t upo n
cr a
n ium ge n e r a
the s up p o s i ti o n t h a
t th e re t he f ra
ct ure e x is ts
I
to
co
v
m
e
cr
no
cr o s s
ss un t
om e
e ce .
ro m
.
e sc
en
o
ro
o
ro c e e
ece o
n
eo n , o r
e
o ns
ec
t
o u
s
s u e rs
r
r
n
,
s to
en
s
ns
e
o
n
re m e
e
n.
s
e r ce r e
e s ze o
o
ro m
,
e
o
n
o
n
on
n
c re
e r,
es
e
r
e
m
er
o
er
o n
m
e r o rm e
s
,
s
m
e
ro
r
r
e
.
on
e cr n
e
e n ce
s
e
re o
o
,
e, n e
c
e n scr
nc s o n,
er
o
r s n
r
e
or
e
m
s
er
the m
em
b
r
an e s
o
f t he
cr
.
,
,
’
.
.
,
,
.
T he sem i religi o us ch aracter of al l a
n d everythi n g c o n cern e d i n the
o peratio n am o n gst the K aby l ian tri bes o f A lgeri ais o f speci al i n terest as
it see m s to stre n gthe n by an al ogy the theory th at the s ubjects of p r ehis
toric trephi n i n g ac quire d thereby asacred ch aracter w hichled to the w e ar
m ulets fr o m their sk ulls a
lre ady d escribe d
in g of a
s a
The curi o us s uggestio n ha
d e th at the to n s ure of priests is a
s bee n m a
perpetuatio n of the an cie n t custo m of trephi n i n g T he A bb é M a
rtig n y i n
his Dictio n ary o f C hristian A n ti q uities s ays th at the ol d est C hris ti an
ics an d m an uscripts represe n t S t Peter w ith the ton s ure as am ark o f
m os a
n o w eight sh o ul d
a
a
r o e m i n e n ce over th
other
a
p
o
stles
I
t
is
prob
ble
t
h
t
e
p
be attache d to this fac t The picture galleries of E uro pe abo un d i n Ho ly
Fam ilies w here ton s ure d m on ks o f v ario us ord ers ar e adori n g the i n fan t
na
chro n is m s w hich di d n o t tr o uble the old m asters W e k n o w
C hrist a
too th at Brah m i n priests o f aperi od lon g an teri o r to the C hristi an er a
s to n s ured
This d o es n o t o f co urs e aff ect the q ue s tio n
ar e repre sen te d a
cred c ustom o f
o f the possible origi n of the t o n s ure fro m the s upp o sed s a
trephi n i n g but the m a
tter m ay be safely left as un settled
T he discoveries w hich h ave bee n m a
d e o f late i n m a
ppi n g o ut the
c o n vol ution s of the brai n o r as it is te r m ed the locali z ation of fun ction
h ave le d to the rein trod uc tio n of trephi n i n g fro m ahighly scie n tific stan d
-
,
,
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,
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,
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,
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.
.
—
.
,
,
,
,
,
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,
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,
,
"
z
Ga
.
,
,
Nati v
Lo n d
.
,
e m e d i ci n e
187 4 , i , 50
.
an d
s ur
g yi
er
n
t he So ut
,
h Se aIs lan d s
,
,
by th
e
R e v Sa
m ue l E
.
ll a
.
M ed T i m e s
.
U S 0 A N D G S UR VE Y
.
.
.
.
PR E H I S TOR I C TR E PH I N I N G, Pl I X
.
.
C ra
n i um
p
a
r ti fi c ia
ll y tre hi n ed
by M
.
C hampi
o nn i ere
.
.
im m
C ON C LU S I O N S
un e ]
29
.
poi n t Given in i nj ury o f the head o r abscess of the brai n the fail ure of a
fun cti on the loca
lity of th at fun ctio n bei n g k n o w n there is the pl ace to
trephi n e S o m e very re m ark able results h ave been attai n ed an d the co n
se quen ce is t hat trephi n i n g has agai n beco m e p o p ul ar in Fran ce Broc a
deserves the credit o f bei n g am o n g the first to i n iti ate this m eth od of tre
‘
a
use a
n g uished Fre n ch s urgeo n
m a
T
his
tter
is
referre
d
t
o
bec
disti
n in
h
i
g
p
M L ucas C h am pio n n i ere p ublishe d aw o rk upon the s ubject ab o ut fo ur
ye ars ag o an d in the i n trod ucti o n speaki n g of prehisto ri c trephi n i n g he
ta
kes the gro un d th at the Operatio n w as n o t perfo rm ed by scrapi n g as Broca
supposed but by aseries of pun ctures s uch as h ave bee n d escribe d as pro
48
tor
To prove this he to ok afl i n t w eap o n an d
n o pera
d uce d by the A lgeri a
d rilli n g aseries of holes in ask ull after w ard s r an the m o n e i n to the o ther
tio n s w ere e asil y s m o o thed o ff w ith a
an d rem o ve d the piece T he serra
piece of fl i n t The res ult co ul d n o t be d isti n guish
e d fro m the Ope n i n g pro
dao o d by scrapi n g the bevele d edges bei n g alike (S ee Pl ate I X )
T his is i n gen ious an d surprisi n g ; but w hile it nrust be ad m itte d th at
n
m
n
u
a
a
u
t
n
the perforatio n s m a
h
ve
bee
d
e
by
p
ct
re
e
the
existe
ce
of
a
y
y
l ly trephi n ed the outer ta
r tia
co n siderable n um ber of s krrll s p a
ble o n ly
d
f
f
n
w
a
a
h avi n g been un m istak ably scr a
e
y
o
ers
a
stro
g
pres
m
ptio
u
n
n
i
p
fav o r o f the l atter m eth od
m i tted "
The foll o w i n g c o n cl usio n s m a
be
per
y
rge n um ber of perfo rate d n eoli thic cran i aexhibiti n g cic atri z e d
1 T he l a
e dges es tablishes the existe n ce o f ac usto m of trephin i n g
s perfor m e d o n b th sexes a
tio n w a
n d ge n era
lly
2 T he Opera
n
a
t a
g
early a
e
g
na
logy it w o uld seem to h ave
3 T he p urpose is do ubtful but fro m a
been for the relief of dise ase of brai n i nj ury of sk ull epilepsy o r co n vul
si o n s
4 T he Oper a
tion w as probably perform ed by scrapi n g ; possibly by a
series of pun ctures I t is likel y th at the fi rst w as e m pl oye d for childre n
n d the l a
tter fo r the h ard er sk ulls of ad ults
a
,
.
,
,
,
,
.
7
,
.
-
,
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,
,
,
,
,
,
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,
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,
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,
,
,
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.
.
.
.
,
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,
.
,
,
.
.
.
.
4"
l
ru e "
b
“
M
.
L e g o ues t , t he
g la a it
S in u
l
r
s
d o u tf u w h e th e r i t
ro
a
p
r
a
e
a
p
y
gh t t
ou
fe sso r
o
,
o
f
m
I th in
be d o n e
"
l
y
s ur
t he
ru e
r
i it a
k
l
g y
er
is
at V al d e Grdce f o r m ul a
t es t h i s re m a
rk a
bl e
th a
t y o u s h o ul d a
l w ays tre ph in e w h en y o u are
,
"
n e ; l at ré p a
h i s to r iq ue c t cl i n iq ue s ur l atr epan ati o n d acra
na
t io n guid ée p a
r l es
les Par J ust L ucas-C ham p io n n i ere Par is 187 8
p 12
cer ebra
“
t io ns
m
p
Etude
.
.
,
.
.
.
l
al isa
oc
P R E H I S TOR IC T R E P H I N I N G
3O
.
Posth um ous trephi n i n g co n sisted in rem o vi n g fragm e n ts of the sk ull
ad un d ergo n e s urgica
l trephi n i n g
o h
o f aperso n w h
ch fragm e n t w as to exhibit aporti o n o f the cicatri z e d edge o f the
6 Ea
origi n al operati on ; an d the p urpo se w as prob ably to form an am ulet to
protect fro m the s am e disease o r inj ury for relief of w hich the Operati o n
ha
d bee n per for m e d
r co n fi n es the c us to m
to n eolithic m an o n the
7 T he evide n ce s o fa
co n tin en t of E urope
5
.
.
.
,
,
.
.
.
A DD I T I ON A L
N OT E
.
pri n ted ac urio us disc o very h as bee n m ad e of
s o m ethi n g like post m ortem trephi n i n g in are m o te regi on Dr D y
veli n g i n Y essel an d the A i n o l an ds se n t eight
s bee n tra
bo w s ki w ho ha
A i n o sk ulls t o Mr K o p er n icki w ho Observed i n five o f the m th a
t aresectio n
m en m a
gn um had bee n per fo rm ed in w h at he described as a
o f the fo ra
na
n n er a
system atic m a
l ogo us to the trephi n ed sk ulls of the Fre n ch dol m e n s
m en m a
gn um had been
I n o n e sk ull aporti o n o n ly o f the e d g e o f the fora
n other the a
lve ol ar process had bee n saw n o ff H e s upposed
cut o ut ; in a
th at the p urpose o f the resection w as n o t cere m o n i al but m e dic al an d th at
s are m edy
N o thi n g is k n o wn o f trephi n
s to be used a
th
e excise d b o n e w a
in g a
m o n g the Ain o s
Mr K o p ern icki se n t the descriptio n o f these sk ulls to the E th n ologic al
S ociety of Be rli n a
n d Professor V ircho w re m a
rke d th at there w as n o d o ubt
th at an artifici al re m ov al o f frag m e n ts Of b o n e had take n pl ace ge n erally
'
from the p o sterior an d l ate r al se ctio n s of the bord er o f the fo ram e n m a
g
dj ace n t p arts I n the three A in o sk ulls in his o w n collecti on
n um a
n d the a
n d aN e w B ra
n de n
s to be see n but aGoldi sk ull a
n othi n g o f the ki n d w a
b urg sk ull prese n ted si m il ar lesi o n s H e had s upp o se d the m i athe latter
ca
n a
ttem pt to m ake adri n ki n g cup o f the sk ull it h avi n g
s e to be d ue to a
bee n fo un d in the e arth w itho ut an y o ther p arts of askeleto n an d in the
fro n tal b o n e tw o s m all holes had bee n m ade as if for strin gs The five A i n o
sk ul ls in q uestio n had bee n dug o ut o f graves by Dr D y bo w ski hi m sel f
pplic able to the m H e
s a
an d he di d n o t thi n k the dri n ki n g cup theory w a
"
ble to g ive an y Opi n io n a
s to the obje ct o f these resecti o n s
s un a
wa
l g i B l i 188 l x i ii 19 1 192 S al f t t 3 p 6 a t
Z t h i f f ii E t h
S i n ce the foreg oi n g
“
wa
s
'
"
-
.
.
,
,
,
.
“
"
.
.
,
,
.
.
.
,
,
.
,
,
-
,
,
,
.
,
.
'
-
.
.
“
ei
sc
r
t
r
no
o
c,
e
r
n,
-
,
,
.
ee ,
so ,
oo
-n o
e
,
.
uo
.
32
IN D E X
Pa
ge
p
i n in g
r tr e h
l s i te f a
Pa
r ie ta
l bo n es us ua
9, 25
.
P98
a
n
Ta
xi l, J eh
6.
18
17
T he bi bes
5,
P run ieres
a ages
16
" u tr ef
kE
" uic
.
,
12, 13, 16, 17 , 18
T u
T phi
o ns
re
Sabl R i M
S h id L
ve r ,
c
un ds
a
t
Skul l C
,
al defi ci en ci es o f
o n gen i t
b
p
p
T ph i
n in g o
re
W o un ds
S
y
o c ie t
ds o f
f, f o r disea
se o f
of
b
o ne
r is
f A n thm p o l o gy o f Pa
o f E t n o l o gy o f B er l in
o
o
h
s
e
e r,
e rs
c
n
s,
re
n n
n
.
n s
ee
s
c re
re
o us, o n
A i no
co n fi n e
skul l s
d to
n in g
hi
n eo li t
M et
0
h
o ds o
f
30
c
a
ge
16
11, 12, 13
22
14
s, s, 13, re, 21
7
—
7
o
no
t
dan gero us p er so
8
22
27
20, 21
rs. 27
T phi
U vea
,
re
n in g
in
27, 28
8, 10
9
10
12
18
11
8, 9
21, so
‘
19, 20, 21
6, 9, 12, 17 , 18. 23
S uth S aI l ad T phi i g i
Squi E G
Stagg i h p u d by t phi
S t up iq Sk ul l
r
s
18
ete
10
9
l o ws
I nj ur ies o f , f ro m
ra
Re a
ti ve ro cess o f w o un
pl
24
24
er ,
ne
nco m
28
9
23
o
I
p
f t re hin in g
18
25
Ra
n d ell es
n in g ,
o
Prehisto r ic,
11
a
t
as ym bo l
P o st hum
6
R
R i ve r Ro uge, M o un d s
e
re
26, 27
20
12, 15, 27
W i ed ers heim R
Wom a
n s m il k a
s sur gi ca
l dress i ng
,
’
.
22
27
23
15
12
21
23
so