2000-Year-Old Skull Of A Peruvian Warrior Proves That Advanced Surgery Was Done In Ancient Times
A US museum discovered a Peruvian warrior's skull. Based on their observation, it seemed that his skull was combined using metal.
This is one of the world's ancient examples of surgery that's ahead of it's time. The experts at Oklahoma's Museum of Osteology believe that a 2,000-year-old skull in their collection belonged to a man who got injured during a battle.
After returning from battle, the soldier underwent surgery that involved the implantation of a metal piece to fix the fracture. Museum experts speculate that he survived.
A broken skull can cause disability or even death to a person. The observers believe that Peruvian surgeons had no choice but to act, which resulted in a miracle as they were able to set the metal to cover the damaged part.
This piece of evidence proves that even people in ancient times were capable of performing difficult surgeries. Today, we're looking at the photo of the Peruvian warrior's skull shared by the Oklahoma museum on social media.
The museum doesn't have much background on the piece of evidence. However, they concluded that the soldier survived after the surgery.
If you look at the bone closely, you'll see that the metal piece was implanted tightly. Initially, the museum shared that it's part of their private collection.
But finally, it was shared with the public in 2020. Let's take a look at this ground-breaking discovery.
According to the Museum of Osteology, the elongation was made possible by the head binding practice that starts from a young age. It was a tradition that shows the social status of different cultures.
Museum of OsteologyThe owner of this skull survived through a procedure called trephination, which was discovered through bone remodeling. The practice was done by mostly all ancient civilizations for different purposes.
The material used was not poured as molten metal. We do not know the composition of the alloy. The plate was used to help bind the broken bones. Although we can't guarantee anesthesia was used, we do know many natural remedies existed for surgical procedures during this time period.
Museum of OsteologyThis image was shared back when the skull wasn't out for display.
The surgery was successful, the museum experts say. The surgeons tightly fused the metal to the broken bone.
Museum of OsteologyScientists believe that Peruvian surgeons have created an unknown number of advanced surgeries to treat broken skulls.
Skull fractures are among the common injuries in ancient times. This is because people used slingshots and other blunt weapons at the time.
Trephination and other surgeries included scraping of skull fragments without using anesthesia. Tulane University's John Verano explains that the ancient surgeons discovered that it could save lives.
Pieces of evidence also suggest that trephination wasn't a procedure for increasing consciousness or rituals. It is commonly connected to patients with serious head injuries.
The skull exhibited by the Museum of Osteology is among the examples of a Peruvian elongated skull. A study presented in Current Anthropology in 2018 describes skull elongation as a symbol that's likely a sign of privilege.
It was found in Mayas and Huns. Other ancient groups around the world had such a practice too.
