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cranial deformation

Legendary Iranian king Rostam, depicted in this 7th century CE mural at Panjikent, Sogdia, with an elongated skull in the fashion of the Alchon Huns (Public Domain)

The Huns Used a Grotesque Practice to Unify Their People (Video)

The Huns , infamous invaders of the Roman Empire , employed a unique practice to distinguish and unify their people. Recent archaeological investigations and DNA analyses have shed light on their...
Elongated Skulls in utero - Morton Collection

Elongated Skulls in utero: A Farewell to the Artificial Cranial Deformation Paradigm?

Elongated skulls are usually explained in terms of head-binding or artificial cranial deformation. This paradigm emerged in the first half of the 19th century as a way of explaining unusual skulls...
The cemetery is about 1,000 years old and the skulls were studied in more detail in 2012. (Cristina García / INAH)

What Became of the Coneheads?

Throughout history, many cultures have artificially deformed the skulls of babies in order to achieve a flattened or elongated shape which was often associated with the ruling, or elite classes...
One of the two elongated skulls belongs to a teenage boy who died 1500 years ago and was buried in a pit with two other boys of different genetic background.     Source: © D. Los/Kaducej Ltd / University of Wien

Ancient Alien-Like Heads Discovered in Croatia

Archaeologists digging in Croatia have unearthed three ancient alien-like skeletons and two have artificially elongated skulls. Since 12,000-years-ago in ancient China, all over the ancient world,...
One of the oddly shaped human skulls discovered in northeastern China. Source: Q Wang / Fair Use.

Possibly the Earliest Deliberate Cranial Deformations Found In China

Our ancestors had many practices that we may find inexplicable, one of these being the intentional reshaping of skulls until they were egg-shaped. In China, archaeologists have found elongated skulls...
Some of the skulls found in the Cave of Ancestors in Puyil, Tacotalpa, Tabasco, Mexico.

Pre-Mayan Remains found in Mexican Cave of Ancestors, Some Showing Cranial Deformation

There is a cave in southern Mexico where the distant past, more recent past, and the present intertwine. It is referred to as the Cave of Ancestors, where locals continue to honor their distant...
Why Did Parents in the Chinookan tribe Perform Cranial Deformation on their Babies?

Why Did Parents in the Chinookan tribe Perform Cranial Deformation on their Babies?

Beauty is a fickle thing. Worse than that, it is (as often as not) one of the most painful goals in the realms of the wealthy and elite. In China, the binding of feet was once seen to create...
Bizarre Alien-Like Skull Unearthed in Korea was Naturally Formed

Bizarre Alien-Like Skull Unearthed in Korea was Naturally Formed

Archaeologists have unearthed an elongated skull in a grave belonging to the ancient Silla culture of Korea, which experts say was NOT deliberately flattened through the practice of cranial...
Mark Laplume’s reconstructions

The Story Of Elongated Skulls And The Denied History Of Ancient People: An Interview With Mark Laplume

Mark Laplume is an artist and independent researcher who has been engaged in making reconstruction drawings of ancient people with elongated skulls. I have already had the pleasure of showcasing his...
Elongated skulls in the Carpathian Basin

New study reveal origins of elongated skulls in the Carpathian Basin

New research published this month in the journal Neurosurgical Focus , has sought to unravel the history, origin, and ethnic context of elongated skulls found in the Carpathian Basin, a large basin...
Artistic representations of the Paracas people. Credit: Marcia K. Moore

Initial DNA analysis of Paracas elongated skull released – with incredible results

Paracas is a desert peninsula located within the Pisco Province in the Inca Region, on the south coast of Peru. It is here were Peruvian archaeologist, Julio Tello, made an amazing discovery in 1928...
Mexico's elongated Skulls

The 13 Alien-Like Skulls Found in Mexico‏

When archaeologists excavated the ancient burial site “El Cementerio,” near the Mexican village of Onavas, they made a shocking discovery. They unearthed 25 skulls, 13 of which were elongated and...
Elongated Skull - France

Archaeologists Discover Mysterious Elongated Skulls in France

French archaeologists made a surprising discovery during an excavation in Alsace, France, when they uncovered a substantially elongated skull dating back 1,500 years . The finding prompted the...