19 July 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Evidence of Brain Surgery performed 3,000 years ago discovered in the ancient city of Tel Megiddo

Researchers have discovered a rare instance of delicate cranial surgery, possibly the earliest of its kind in the Middle East, in a Late Bronze Age grave at the Megiddo archaeological site in Israel.

For thousands of years, people have practiced cranial trephination, a medical procedure that involves cutting a hole in the skull, according to archaeologists. They’ve turned up evidence that ancient civilizations across the globe, from South America to Africa and beyond, performed the surgery.

In 2016, archaeologists excavated a pair of tombs in the domestic section of a palace in the famous Biblical city Megiddo, uncovering the remains of two brothers, individuals buried together nearly 3,500 years ago.

Now, researchers from the United States and Israel have published the findings of an analysis of their skeletons, revealing a tragic story of two brothers whose wealth was insufficient to save them from an early death.

The findings mark the earliest example of trephination, a surgical procedure of creating a hole in the skull without affecting underlying tissue, the outlet further said. The brothers lived between 1550 BC and 1450 BC.

The remains of two brothers were found in a Bronze Age tomb in the city of Tel Megiddo, Israel. Photo: Journal Plos
The remains of two brothers were found in a Bronze Age tomb in the city of Tel Megiddo, Israel. Photo: Journal Plos

The older brother, who is thought to be between the ages of 20 and 40, had signs of surgery on his skull. The archaeologists said that after cutting off his scalp, a square piece of his skull was removed from his frontal bone using a sharp instrument.

Study lead author Rachel Kalisher is quoted by CNN as saying in a statement, “We have evidence that trephination has been this universal, widespread type of surgery for thousands of years.”

Ms Kalisher said she initially thought the skull fragment had been taken as a DNA sample by colleagues.

“Usually when you study human remains, you’re studying the accumulated change that they experienced throughout their lives, but this was one moment captured,” she added.

The study detailing the discovery has been published in the journal PLOS ONE.

Megiddo, 130 kilometers (80 miles) north of Jerusalem, was a thriving urban center with numerous palaces, fortifications, and temples. Many will recognize it by its Greek name, Armageddon, which is prophesied to be the site of the final battle before the end times.

Cover Photo: Ancient city of Tel Megiddo

Related Articles

Recent excavations at Girsu uncovered innovative civilization-saving technology of Ancient Sumerians

19 November 2023

19 November 2023

In ancient city Girsu, located near the modern city of Nasiriyah in southern Iraq, revealed through a recent excavation by...

Medieval double grave discovered with majestic objects inside the circular ditch

22 August 2022

22 August 2022

An early medieval double grave was discovered in Kirchheim am Neckar Friedrichstrasse, southern Germany, during excavations supervised by the State...

The earliest human remains 11,000-year-old discovered in northern Britain

25 January 2023

25 January 2023

An international team of archaeologists at the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) has discovered 11,000-year-old human remains in the Heaning...

An Interesting Ottoman Tradition Resembling Christmas tree: “NAHIL” OR WISHING TREE

28 December 2022

28 December 2022

Nahıl, a word of Arabic origin, means date palm. This word was later used by the people to mean the...

The 20-million-year-old fossil of a sea creature in the ancient city of Tyana may have been used as a means of payment

22 October 2021

22 October 2021

During the ongoing excavations in the ancient city of Tyana in the Kemerhisar district of Niğde, a 20-million-year-old fossil thought...

Archaeologists Uncover Asini’s Hidden Ancient Port Beneath the Waves of Greece

11 March 2025

11 March 2025

An international team of underwater archaeologists has made a groundbreaking discovery at the submerged site of Asini, near Tolo in...

Xujiayao hominid’s brain in China had the biggest known brain of the time

17 January 2022

17 January 2022

A study showed that the ancient relatives of modern humans in northern China may have had an “Einstein’s brain” at...

Excavations Near Stonehenge Uncover Bronze Age Barrow Cemetery

4 June 2023

4 June 2023

The Cotswold Archeology team excavating at the site of a planned housing development near Salisbury, England, has unearthed a giant...

3 Bronze Shields and Helmet of 2700 Years Old Belonging to Urartians Found in Ayanis Castle

8 September 2024

8 September 2024

Three bronze shields and a bronze helmet dedicated to Haldi, the chief god of the Urartians, were discovered during excavations...

Minoan civilization may have used celestial navigation techniques

3 March 2023

3 March 2023

According to a study done by an American researcher at the University of Wales, ancient civilizations may have used celestial...

A new temple was discovered in the ancient Thracian city of Perperikon

17 August 2022

17 August 2022

Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) reports that archaeologists have discovered a new temple at Perperikon. Perperikon, an archaeological complex located at...

12,000-Year-Old rock art may depict extinct giants of the ice age

13 March 2022

13 March 2022

South America was filled with ice age animals more than 12,000 years ago, including car-sized ground sloths, elephantine herbivores, and...

Ruins of the 700-year-old wharf, possibly used by royalty, found in Oslo

6 March 2023

6 March 2023

An excavation by NIKU archaeologists in Oslo’s seaside neighborhood of Bjørvika has uncovered the remains of a long section of...

Archaeologists find the earliest evidence Maya sacred calendar in the Guatemalan pyramid

14 April 2022

14 April 2022

Archaeologists identified two plaster fragments depicting a date that the Maya civilization called ‘7 deer’ and was part of the...

The ruins of a thousand-year-old Buddhist Temple will be opened to the public in Kyrgyzstan

13 September 2022

13 September 2022

The unearthed remains of an ancient Buddhist temple in Kyrgyzstan will open to the public in mid-September as part of...