Trepanation is a surgical procedure commonly performed on the cranium in vivo, which is long known to have prehistoric origins (Prunières, 1874; Broca, 1877; Manouvrier, 1903; Lucas-Championnière, 1912). However, the issue of a reliable diagnosis in archaeological contexts remains problematic, particularly in cases that showed signs of healing. The oldest archaeological cases
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.