Figure 4
From: The first otologic surgery in a skull from El Pendón site (Reinoso, Northern Spain)
Computed tomography scans and details of both temporal bones of the skull under study and some samples of the comparative analysis. Superior: Details of external auditory region on the right (a) and the left (b) temporal bones of the skull under study. It is to be noted the deterioration of the tympanic cavity in both temporal bones due to taphonomic processes. Middle: Present-day skull with mastoidectomy performed by the students of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Valladolid (c) and example of an archaeological skull without any pathology used for comparative analysis (d). Red arrows indicate the external auditory canal. White arrows point to bone erosion in the postero-superior part of the external auditory canal due to the mastoidectomy. Yellow arrows indicate the scutum—thin bony spur that is formed by the superior wall of the external auditory canal and the lateral wall of the tympanic cavity. *Mastoid process. Inferior: Computed tomography (CT) scans of para-sagittal sections at right middle ear level—the arrows point to the middle ear—from the skull under study (e) and from a present-day skull without pathology (f).
