New-York tribune., 1903-05-17
TREPHINED CR4NI4.
Evidences of Operations on the Skull
IN Prehistoric Times.

Washington May 16.-The collection Of ire
r,h7nad crania presented to the National MI
scum ay DR. Manuel Antonio Muniz for preser-
walton is the largest and most valuable to be
found IL any country.
Or Nuniz was for some time surgeon gen
e-aI Of the army of Peru. and did not present
ms Collection the Bureau Of American
Ethuoioey until after he became entanSled IN
some political matters in 1888, on his return
10 Lima, when his home was sacked and
burned his library ard rich collection de
st-ayed, and he was exiled- OF all the archseo-
logical material brought together during his
years Of labor only the collection OF uephined
cranIa remains, and in order insure its
preservation he had II placed in the National
Museum where il has been examined 10y hun
dreds Of scientific and medical men.
As originally made the collection of tire
1hined crauia was supplemented by the colIat-
--aI objects representing the arts Of the prIm-
live rrephinars. but these were lost. The col
lection comprised something over one thousand
c-aria and contained perhaps the most re-
rrar1able. interesting and valuable evidences OF
primitive sursery in The world.
Iu speaking of the collection in the museum,
Professor NoGee, OF The Bureau OF Ethnology,
vae has given great study 10 the mysteries of
ancient rreihi1ins. said
--h. study Of prehistoric trephiuing Is one
Of very deep interest, and the more il is studied
The more convinced viii one become that il IS
certain thar the aboriglnes possessed advanced
medical knowledge.
-In me ancient villages of both the Old World
and Of this and III even some Of the settle
l1.ents Of the present savages. trephining has
been known and Iractised not only for religious
purposes nu, for surgical purposes
-.TreI. Inning is a fairly common operation in
modern surgery. and essentially it consists in
the removal Of a small section from one Of the
bones OF The skull, usually in the form of d
circular button or rondelle. BY most pract-
TONERS trephining Is regarded as a serious, or
even desperate, operation, and is resorted to
only IL The most dangerous cases Trephinlng
IS occasionally employed IN the treatment OF
disorders among domestic animals, though not
50 much By trained veterinarians as by rude
herdsmen possessing little knowledge Of anato-
my and Jess Of etipIogy, and imbued with ian
tasric notions concerning the effects Of the
operation il is performed on sheep and SWINE
win the notion Of rurturing a supposed bubbLe
beaeat1 the skull, or extracting grub OF worm
from The brain of the animal, and thus reliev-
ing d ulE Esterious disorder.
In sveh cases the operation is commonly per
formed il rude fashion, perhaps with carpen-
ter's cools-a chisel and maIlet and even an
auger sometimes being employed. Not infre-
gUeEtIy the animal survives. Among certain
primitive peoples trephining is practised, some
times aith astonishing frequency. The kabyie'
q nomadic tribe Of Algeria, resort TO uephln-
ing hot only in thaumatic LESSONS Of the head
bur for reuraIgia, vertigo and various other dls-
orders. The operation is performed rudely'
either with such tools OF implements as may be
conveniently at hand, with crude metaIlc
savs, Ue1forators and elevators designed for
The purpose
Ordinarily he aperture which is frequently
large and usually irregular, is closed by plate
though il is often left open and only covered
by the scalp The frequency Of the operation
ind.aates that the mortality cannot be very
high. and one observer saw men who had sur