6th-8th century AD. A gilt bronze retractor with keeled prongs, openwork cross above, decorative flat-section handle. See Mylonas, A., Poulakou-Rebelakou E., Androutsos G., Seggas, I., Skouteris C., Papadopoulou, E., Oral and cranio-maxillofacial surgery in Byzantium in Journal of cranio-maxillo-facial surgery: official publication of the European Association for Cranio-Maxillo-Facial Surgery 43(2), June 2013. 14.1 grams, 11.2cm (4 1/2"). From a private Netherlands collection; previously in an old collection since before 1980. The bifurcated instrument has parallels with surgical instruments of the same period from Corinth, preserved in the Corinth Archaeological Museum (American School of Classical Studies"). Surgical practice was considerably advanced from 300 AD, owing to the advances in anatomic knowledge during the Hellenistic period, when dissection of the human body was permitted. Roman surgeons studied in detail the texts of ancient Greek physicians and surgeons, followed the Hippocratic, Hellenistic, and, in the later period, the Galenic traditions, enriching medicine from their wealth of experience. This instrument was probably a rectractor (Greek agkistron) i.e. a surgical instrument designed to hold back muscles or skin during operations including limb amputations.