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Updated: Dec 25, 2025

Extracting the Cochlea from a Human Temporal Bone: A Cadaveric Protocol
Published on: August 18, 2023
Trepanation in archaic human remains - characteristic features and diagnostic difficulties
Tamara Pavlovic1, Danijela Djonic1, Roger W Byard2
1Laboratory for Anthropology, Institute of Anatomy, School of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia.
Abstract:
Three trepanned skulls originated from a medieval archeological site at St. Pantelejmon Church, located in Serbia, all showing characteristic depressions and perforations of the vault of the skull from trepanning. Trepanation refers to the process of creating a defect in the skull by drilling, cutting or scraping and is one of the oldest known surgical procedures. Anthropological assessment of possible cases of trepanation in archaic material is complicated by a differential diagnosis that includes both congenital/developmental lesions such as parietal fenestrae, and acquired conditions such as trauma, infection and malignancy.
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