Palla Ákos szerk.: Az Országos Orvostörténeti Könyvtár közleményei 36. (Budapest, 1965)

N. P. Makletsova, V. V. Guinzburg, D. G. Rokhlin (Leningrád): Trepanation in Fossil Skulls found in the USSR Territory

layer covering the diploë connects lamina externa with lamina interna. The skulls are dated as follows: 1 skull belongs to the mesolithic epoch (the Ukraine, Vasilyevka 3, Dniepropetrovsk district), 2 skulls to the neolithic epoch (the Ukraine, Dniepropetrovsk district), 3 skulls are dated the III —I century B. C. (Volgograd district), 1 skull belongs to the V—VIII century A. D. (Eski-Kermen, the Crimea) and I could not be dated. The seize of the osseous apertures varies, sometimes being very considerable. Skull HT62, K-5, 30-A found in the present Rostov district, belongs to man aged 50, who lived in the III —II millennium B. C. (Fig. 1). There is a circular defect about 40 mm x 40 mm in the region of the parietal bones. The sagittal suture must have passed in the middle of the defect. The defect in the external lamina is larger than that in the internal one due to the fact that trepanation was achieved by chopping off bone fragments at an oblique angle hence the bewelled edges. The diploë is covered by a protective plate, thus proving that the man had lived no less than 2—3 years following surgery. The minimum size of the aperture in the H skulls subjected to trepanation in the lifetime of their owners equalled from 1 mm to 2 mm. The skull of a woman (No 6118-87) that had lived in the II—I century B. C. has been found in the Volgograd district (Fig. 2). In the righthand portion of the parietal bone there is a partially made trepanation opening reaching the lambdoid suture. The opening was achieved only in the posterior part of the portion allotted for trepanation and gapes like a cleft. X-ray examination shows encased diploë, hence the operation resulted in complete healing. In 6 instances trepanation holes were of similar size in the external and the internal laminae, while in 5 cases the defect in the external plate was larger (trepanation aperture bevelling brainwards). In 3 cases partial healing is evident; probably the operated upon individuals had lived about a year following surgery. The