The antiquity of cranial surgery in Europe and in the Mediterranean basin

Through personal observations and a literature study we have made a synthes is of the most ancient healed trephinations in Europe and in the Mediterran ean basin. Cases of small dimensions that were carried out with simple tech niques are found in the Mesolithic populations from North Africa, Ukraine a nd Portugal. The first Neolithic examples of trephinations are extensive an d have been realised with more sophisticated techniques. This suggests that the development of agriculture was accompanied by the command of new proce dures in the field of surgery. (C) 2001 Academie des sciences / Editions sc ientifiques et medicales Elsevier SAS.