Earliest evidence of amputation found in Indonesia

The earliest evidence ever of surgical amputation has been discovered in an Indonesian cave.

Researchers found the buried 31,000-year-old body of a young person that shows evidence of leg amputation, BBC News reports.

The find pushes back the origin of this complicated surgery by more than 24,000 years.

After the procedure the person was cared for by their ancient community for years until their death, archaeologists say.

Dr Melandri Vlok, who examined the body, said it was "quite clear" surgery had been carried out.

A detailed examination of the ancient body, details of which are published in the journal Nature, revealed that the operation took place when the person was a child. Growth and healing of their leg bone suggest they recovered and lived for another six to nine years, probably dying in their late teens or early twenties.

The grave itself was excavated in a cave called Liang Tebo, in East Kalimantan, Indonesian Borneo, a place that has some of the world's earliest rock art.

One of the three researchers who found and excavated the grave, Dr Tim Maloney from Griffith University in Australia, said he was simultaneously "excited and terrified" to reveal the ancient bones.