ABSTRACT
The finding of skulls with openings has intrigued mankind since Broca showed that many were made during life. By 1985, 1,500 ancient trepanned skulls had been reported and papers on this subject, of which there are now more than one thousand, are scattered throughout clinical, archaeological, anthropological, ethnological and historical writings. In this chapter we consider the definitions, epochs, geography, surgical techniques and rationale of this ancient procedure.
