A late Bronze Age tomb of two brothers at an archaeological site in Meggido (Israel) has unveiled a surprise: the oldest known cranial surgery in the Middle East. Although it was excavated in 2016, in the domestic section of a palace in the famous biblical city, it is now that researchers from institutions in the US and Israel have published analyzes of the skeletons, revealing a tragic story of two brothers whose wealth was not it was enough to save them from an untimely death. The conclusions are collected in the journal ‘PLOS One’.
Located 80 kilometers north of Jerusalem, the city of Megiddo was around 1500 BC. C. a prosperous urban center that consisted of multiple palaces, fortifications and temples. Many will know it better by its Greek name, Armageddon, prophesied as the site of the final battle before the end of time.
These two brothers lived there, who were found in a place in the palace reserved for the elites, among rich ceramics and other valuable objects, for which the authors believe that they were people with a lot of power, or even royalty. Analyzes of the size and development of the bones indicate that one lived into his teens (at most, his twenties), while the other, who underwent the fatal surgery, outlived his brother, dying in his 20s. 40 years. In fact, thanks to the way the bones were placed, investigators know that the child’s remains show signs of having been removed and reburied.
Although each of the brothers’ bodies shows signs of having suffered from an infectious disease (which the authors suggest could be tuberculosis or leprosy, although one cannot tell from the bones alone), the skull of the older of the two clearly shows the marks of a procedure known as trephination, which involves cutting or scraping the skull of a living patient to expose the brain. The reason is not clear: it could have been for purely superstitious intentions or to relieve the build-up of pressure in the brain.
However, whatever the intention was, it was ultimately unsuccessful. The crisscrossing of cut marks that line the square opening in the front of his skull show no signs of healing, suggesting that the man, who is believed to have been between the ages of 20 and 40 when he died, passed away shortly after he died. they split open his skull.
Other examples of ancient trephinations
It is not the first time that millennial surgeries of this type have been found: there are examples in North Africa, up to the Neolithic Mediterranean and central Europe. The methods are just as diverse, from circular boreholes to square ‘hatches’, including elliptical cavities.
However, there are only a few dozen other examples of trephination in the entire Middle East, and none of them date back multiple millennia to these skeletons. The finding helps to complete a more global picture of how and why ancient cultures could have carried out such a risky surgical act.
“You have to be in a pretty terrible place to have a hole punched in your head,” says lead author Rachel Kalisher, an archaeologist at Brown University in the United States. “I’m interested in what we can learn by examining the scientific literature on each example of trepanning in antiquity, comparing and contrasting the circumstances of each person who underwent the surgery.”
Being rich did not save them from death
Despite belonging to the upper classes of society and having access to this type of treatment, it is unlikely that the brothers had a comfortable life. Both skeletons showed signs of sustained iron deficiency in infancy, which may have affected their development.
The older brother also had an extra line on his skull where the plates met, as well as an extra molar, indicative of a rare genetic condition called displasia cleidocraneal (the same disease that the actor suffers Gaten Matarazzo, known for the series ‘Stranger Things’). In addition, the bones had scars consistent with an infectious disease, most likely tuberculosis or leprosy.
It is difficult to say if each individual succumbed to their infection, or even if it contributed to the need for cranial surgery. Although their lives were tragically cut short, it’s clear that whoever cared for them took drastic measures to keep them around for as long as possible. “In ancient times, there was a lot more tolerance and a lot more care than people might think,” says Kalisher. “We have evidence, literally from the time of the Neanderthals, that people looked out for each other, even in difficult circumstances. I’m not saying it was all smiles and fun: there were divisions based on gender and class. But in the past, people were still people.”