The woman of Pritschoena: an example of the German neolithic neurosurgery in Saxony-Anhalt

We present an outstanding example of successful prehistoric double trephination dating between 2700 and 2200 BC, most likely to the Corded Ware culture, at the end of the Neolithic Age. The particularity of this case is the presence of a double trephination, one frontal over the sinus sagittal superior and one parietal right. There is evidence that the patient survived months to years after the operations. The purpose of the procedure is not known. The case confirms the astonishing degree of technical skills reached in Saxony-Anhalt over 4500 years ago without anesthetic, antiseptic, or technologic aids.     

Secondary schools in Napoleonic Italy (1802–14)

Napoleon conceptualized public education, especially at the secondary level, as a tool designed to unify and strengthen the state. In France, he set up forty-five secondary schools, lycées, characterized by uniformity, a hierarchical structure, centralization, state control, and a standardized curriculum. He exported the French education system to his satellite states to help in ‘frenchifying’ them. This article discusses the establishment of secondary schools, licei, in the Republic and Kingdom of Italy (1802–14), exploring educational legislation and its implementation and the Direzione generale di pubblica istruzione that ran public education. The government created a liceo in each of the twenty-four departments. This article studies academic disciplines, teachers, books, student numbers, and other aspects that concerned the functioning of the schools. It assesses the consequences of the educational reforms and argues that the Napoleonic authorities laid the foundations of a modern public secondary school system in Italy.