Ancient Altai performed complex surgeries 2,500 years ago

A team of Russian researchers has discovered compelling evidence of a highly sophisticated surgical procedure performed nearly 2,500 years ago on a woman from the Pazyryk culture. In this society, people were valued simply for existing and were honored after death.

Using advanced computed tomography (CT), scientists at Novosibirsk State University (NSU) have identified traces of complex jaw reconstruction surgery that challenges current understanding of ancient medicine in Iron Age Siberia.

The discovery was made during a detailed study of a skull recovered from the Upper Kaljin Cemetery-2on the Ukok plateau in the Altai Republic.

The burial site belongs to the Pazyryk culture, civilization of the Scythian era known for its “frozen” graves remarkably well preserved, dating from the 6th to 3rd centuries BC

The exam was performed at NSU’s Nuclear and Innovative Medicine Laboratory using a Philips MX 16 CT scanner. The technology allowed researchers to digitally remove preserved soft tissue that previously obscured the bony structures of the skull.

Second Vladimir Kanygindirector of the NSU Nuclear Medicine Laboratory, CT imaging worked like a “time machine”allowing non-destructive access to anatomical details hidden for millennia.

The scan produced 551 ultra-thin sections (0.75 mm thick), which allowed a accurate 3D skull reconstruction for comprehensive anthropological and medical analysis.

Os study results were extraordinarysay researchers at NSU, and allowed them to identify evidence of a serious trauma that was subjected to a advanced surgical intervention.

The woman had suffered a significant head trauma during your lifetime. The right temporal bone had a depression fracture of approximately 6 to 8 millimeters. The trauma destroyed the joint temporomandibular (ATM) right, dislocated his jaw and tore the ligaments.

An injury of this nature would have left her unable to chew or speak appropriately. Without medical intervention, survival would be unlikely. However, notes , researchers discovered unequivocal evidence of surgery.

were found two narrow, perforated bone canals accurately, each about 1.5 mm in diameter, which fits crossed at right angles in the joint area. One canal passed through the head of the lower jaw and the other passed through the zygomatic process of the temporal bone.

Around these holes, a ring-shaped bony growth indicated healingproving that the procedure was accomplished in life. Even more remarkable was the discovery of traces of elastic organic materialpossibly horsehair or animal tendon, inside the canals.

This material probably functioned as a primitive surgical ligationstabilizing the joint and effectively acting as an early form of prosthetic fixation.

Surgical precision was impressive. The drilling was smooth and controlled, and bone remodeling showed that the patient survived long enough for significant healing to occur.

Further confirmation of his survival came from dental asymmetry. The left side of the mandible presented severe wearchipped molars, and inflammatory changes around the roots — clear signs of prolonged overuse. In contrast, the injured right side showed comparatively better preservation.

This pattern suggests that although the reconstructed joint worked, chewing on the injured side continued to be probably painful. The woman adapted, shifting most of the load to her left side for an extended period of time—possibly months or even years.

The study authors estimate that it would have between 25 and 30 years old at the time of deathwhich represented a mature age in your time.

The Upper Kaljin-2 cemetery was discovered in 1994 by Russian archaeologist Vyacheslav Molodin on the remote Ukok plateau. The site includes several small kurgans (tombs), two of which are intact, which have revealed exceptionally well-preserved artifacts.

The woman’s burial was unusual. Unlike other Pazyryk graves filled with funerary objects, his tomb did not contain significant objectsexcept a traditional wig typical of Pazyryk women.

According to the main author of the study, Natalia Polosmakthe burial itself raises important cultural issues. On the largely treeless Ukok plateau, transporting massive larch trunks to the burial chamber would have been expensive and labor-intensive. At the same time, the absence of grave goods is unusual and unexplained.

“The surgery itself shows that your life was valued“, noted Polosmak. “We don’t know what made her personally important for your community.”

“Each Pazyryk individual probably possessed core competenciessometimes unique: woodworking, sewing, felting, tattooing, healing, storytelling, and many others that we may never understand. In this society, people were valued simply because they exist and were honored after death”, concludes Polosmak.