Archaeologists found in Polystylo fortress in Thrace the skull of a Byzantine warrior, whose jaw appears to have been broken and stitched with golden stitches.
The warrior was beheaded at the age of 40 in the 14th century AD, 650 years ago, probably after the fortress was taken by Ottoman Turks, however it seems his jaw had broken in two 10 years prior to his death, and was stitched with wires of gold by a very competent doctor. Moreover, it seems the doctor was following instructions written by Hippocrates in 500 BC.
The warrior had unsurprisingly developed dental tartar in the spot close to the stiching of the jaw. The injury must have happened due to a violent fall from a horse, a spear from an enemy or even some form of gunpowder projectile.
It seems neither this injury nor the apparently frightening surgery that followed was enough for this hardened warrior, who was out and about fighting 10 years later.
Photos by chief archaeologist Anagnostis P. Agelarakis.
















