diff --git a/etc/DEBUG b/etc/DEBUG
index 25049ad42b4..44f19900c64 100644
--- a/etc/DEBUG
+++ b/etc/DEBUG
@@ -211,16 +211,17 @@ the debugger, but before running it, is the most efficient way of
 making sure control will be returned to the debugger when you need
 that.
 
+There is a default function to give control to the debugger.  It is
+called debugger-trap.  This is a do-nothing primitive, as a convenient
+point to return control to the debugger.  You can invoke interactively
+with "M-x debugger-trap RET".  The src/.gdbinit file in the Emacs source
+distribution sets a breakpoint on this function.
+
 'Fsignal' is a very useful place to put a breakpoint in.  All Lisp
 errors go through there.  If you are only interested in errors that
 would fire the Lisp debugger, breaking at 'maybe_call_debugger' is
 useful.
 
-Another technique for getting control to the debugger is to put a
-breakpoint in some rarely used function.  One such convenient function
-is Fredraw_display, which you can invoke at will interactively with
-"M-x redraw-display RET".
-
 It is also useful to have a guaranteed way to return to the debugger
 at any arbitrary time.  When using X, this is easy: type C-z at the
 window where you are interacting with GDB, and it will stop Emacs just
diff --git a/src/.gdbinit b/src/.gdbinit
index d3bfad59486..0eab7ac9afa 100644
--- a/src/.gdbinit
+++ b/src/.gdbinit
@@ -1314,6 +1314,11 @@ if defined_WINDOWSNT
   end
 end
 
+# Break at default trap function to give control to GDB.
+# Call from Emacs with M-x debugger-trap
+break Fdebugger_trap
+
+
 # Put the Python code at the end of .gdbinit so that if GDB does not
 # support Python, GDB will do all the above initializations before
 # reporting an error.
diff --git a/src/eval.c b/src/eval.c
index 204adb62472..829d6104618 100644
--- a/src/eval.c
+++ b/src/eval.c
@@ -3091,6 +3091,21 @@ FUNCTIONP (Lisp_Object object)
     return false;
 }
 
+DEFUN ("debugger-trap", Fdebugger_trap, Sdebugger_trap, 0, 0, "",
+       doc: /* Trap execution flow and hand over control to GDB.
+The Emacs source file src/.gdbinit uses this via the GDB command
+"break Fdebugger_trap".
+
+This function has no effect.  It is reserved for debugging, and is not
+called by Emacs otherwise.
+
+For Lisp debugging see debug, as well as edebug, in the manual:
+"(elisp) Debugging".  */)
+  (void)
+{
+  return Qnil;
+}
+
 Lisp_Object
 funcall_general (Lisp_Object fun, ptrdiff_t numargs, Lisp_Object *args)
 {
@@ -4617,4 +4632,5 @@ alist of active lexical bindings.  */);
   defsubr (&Sspecial_variable_p);
   DEFSYM (Qfunctionp, "functionp");
   defsubr (&Sfunctionp);
+  defsubr (&Sdebugger_trap);
 }