Dated over 2,000 years old this skull is an extreme example of binding and elongation. Cranial binding is the shaping of the skull, when a child is very young, usually an infant. This wrapping is often done with rope or cloth by itself or against a wooden board. This results in the misshaping, flattening (see our cradle-board skull, BC-222) or in this case elongation. This wrapping, or binding is thought to be the oldest form of
body modifications, dating back 9,000 years. This particular skull is from Peru, but this practiced has occurred in other regions as well.
For other fantastic cast of bones, see: Link (via Jaf Project)
Really neat! Other unusual bone casts caused by bones fusing can be seen at: http://www.kirchersociety.org/blog/?p=415
It looks kind of like I imagined the Finn from William Gibson's Sprawl stories--he was once described as having a skull that appeared adapted for high-speed burrowing, IIRC.
Other unusual bone casts caused by bones fusing can be seen at: http://www.kirchersociety.org/blog/?p=415