Written in a lively and engaging style, by a medical author and teacher of great renown, this book provides a fascinating and informative introduction to the development of surgery through the ages. It illustrates some of the key advances in surgery from primitive techniques such as trepanning, through some of the gruesome but occasionally successful methods employed by the ancient civilisations, the increasingly sophisticated techniques of the Greeks and Romans, the advances of the Dark Ages and the Renaissance and on to the early pioneers of anaesthesia and antisepsis such as Morton, Lister and Pasteur. Heavily illustrated in colour, The Cambridge Illustrated History of Surgery is the only serious choice for a reader wanting a lively and informative single-volume introduction to surgical history. 'This book would be a welcome addition to the shelves of those wanting a lively and informative introduction to the history of surgery.' Journal of Perioperative Practice '… this is an informative and concise review of the history of surgery and is the best book available in its price range.' European Journal of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery Written in a lively and engaging style, this book provides a fascinating introduction to the development of surgery through the ages. Harold Ellis is Emeritus Professor of Surgery at the University of London, UK.