
LIBYA: An analysis of 2,000-year-old skulls from the Garamantian civilization of the central Sahara revealed holes that had begun to heal—indicative of trephination, a form of cranial surgery. The earliest evidence of this practice— from 13,000 years ago—also comes from the Sahara, but it is otherwise rare in North Africa outside Egypt. The surgically altered crania are the first evidence of Garamantian medical practices.
(International Journal of Osteoarchaeology)