Unprecedented Discovery: Archive of Ancient Human Brains Challenges History

Soft tissue preservation in the geological record is relatively rare, and, except where deliberate intervention halts the process of decay (like embalming or freezing), the survival of entire organs is particularly unusual. The spontaneous preservation of the brain in the absence of any other soft tissues – that is, the brain’s survival amongst otherwise skeletonized remains – has historically been regarded as a ‘one-of-a-kind’ phenomenon.