Archaeologists have discovered the grave of two Bronze Age brothers who lived during 15th century BC in Israel – and incredibly, one of them appears to have had an early form of brain surgery before he died.
The remains were found during a tomb excavation in Tel Megiddo, and the findings mark the earliest known example of trephination – a type of cranial surgery – found in the ancient Near East.
The men, determined to be brothers during a previous ancient DNA study, lived during the Bronze Age between 1550 BC and 1450 BC.
The older brother is estimated to have been between the age of 21-46, while the younger brother was estimated to be a young adult either in his late teens or early 20s.
The body of the older brother showed evidence of the brain surgery with his scalp cut and a sharp, bevelled-edge instrument used to make four intersecting lines on the frontal bone of the skull – making a 1.2-inch square-shaped hole.