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http://en.wikipedia.o rg/wiki/Ancient_Egyptian_medicine

Ancient Egyptian medicine

T he medicine of the ancient Egyptians is some of t he oldest document ed. From t he beginnings of t he civilizat ion in t he c. 33rd cent ury BC unt il t he Persian invasion of 525 BC, Egypt ian medical pract ice went largely unchanged but was highly advanced f or it s t ime, including simple non-invasive surgery, set t ing of bones and an ext ensive set of pharmacopoeia. Egypt ian medical t hought inf luenced lat er t radit ions, including t he Greeks.

Contents
[hide]
The Edwin Smith Papyrus documents ancient Egyptian medicine, including the diagnosis and treatment of injuries.

Sources of information[edit]

Unt il t he 19t h cent ury, t he main sources of inf ormat ion about ancient Egypt ian medicine were writ ings f rom lat er in ant iquit y. Homer c. 800 BC remarked in t he Odyssey : " In Egypt, the men are more skilled in medicine than any of human kind" and "the Egyptians were skilled in medicine more than any other art". T he Greek hist orian Herodot us visit ed Egypt around 440 BC and wrot e ext ensively of his observat ions of t heir medicinal pract ices. Pliny t he Elder also wrot e f avourably of t hem in hist orical review. Hippocrat es (t he "f at her of medicine"), Herophilos, Erasist rat us and lat er Galen st udied at t he t emple of Amenhot ep, and acknowledged t he cont ribut ion of ancient Egypt ian medicine t o Greek medicine. In 1822, t he t ranslat ion of t he Roset t a st one f inally allowed t he t ranslat ion of ancient Egypt ian hieroglyphic inscript ions and papyri, including many relat ed t o medical mat t ers (Egypt ian medical papyri). T he result ant int erest in Egypt ology in t he 19t h cent ury led t o t he discovery of several set s of ext ensive ancient medical document s, including t he Ebers papyrus, t he Edwin Smit h Papyrus, t he Hearst Papyrus, t he London Medical Papyrus and ot hers dat ing back as f ar as 2900 BC. T he Edwin Smit h Papyrus is a t ext book on surgery and det ails anat omical observat ions and

Ebers Papyrus treatment for cancer: recounting a " tumor against the god Xenus" , it recommends " do thou nothing there against"

t he "examinat ion, diagnosis, t reat ment , and prognosis" of numerous ailment s.[1] It was probably writ t en around 1600 BC, but is regarded as a copy of several earlier t ext s. Medical inf ormat ion in it dat es f rom as early as 3000 BC.[2] Imhot ep in t he 3rd dynast y is credit ed as t he original aut hor of t he papyrus t ext , and f ounder of ancient Egypt ian medicine. T he earliest known surgery was perf ormed in Egypt around 2750 BC. T he Ebers papyrus c. 1550 BC is f ull of incant at ions and f oul applicat ions meant t o t urn away diseasecausing demons, and also includes 877 prescript ions.[3] It may also cont ain t he earliest document ed awareness of t umors, if t he poorly underst ood ancient medical t erminology has been correct ly int erpret ed. Ot her inf ormat ion comes f rom t he images t hat of t en adorn t he walls of Egypt ian t ombs and t he t ranslat ion of t he accompanying inscript ions. Advances in modern medical t echnology also cont ribut ed t o t he underst anding of ancient Egypt ian medicine. Paleopat hologist s were able t o use XRays and lat er CAT Scans t o view t he bones and organs of mummies. Elect ron microscopes, mass spect romet ry and various f orensic t echniques allowed scient ist s unique glimpses of t he st at e of healt h in Egypt 4000 years ago. Ot her document s as t he Edwin Smit h papyrus (1550 BC), Hearst papyrus (1450 BC), and Berlin papyrus (1200 BC) also provide valuable insight int o ancient Egypt ian medicine. T he Edwin Smit h papyrus f or example ment ioned research met hods, t he making of a diagnosis of t he pat ient , and t he set t ing of a t reat ment . It is t hus viewed as a learning manual. Treat ment s consist ed of ailment s made f rom i.e. animal, veget able or f ruit subst ances or minerals.[4]

Nutrition[edit]

Fundament ally when considering t he healt h of any cult ure nut rit ion must be discussed. T he Ancient Egypt ians were at least part ially aware of t he import ance of diet , bot h in balance and moderat ion.[5] Owing t o Egypt 's great endowment of f ert ile land, f ood product ion was never a major issue alt hough of course no mat t er how bount eous t he land, paupers and st arvat ion st ill exist . T he main crops f or most of ancient Egypt ian hist ory were emmer wheat and barley. Consumed in t he f orm of loaves which were produced in a variet y of t ypes t hrough baking and f erment at ion, wit h yeast great ly enriching t he nut rit ional value of t he product , one f armer's crop could support an est imat ed t went y adult s. Barley was also used in beer. Veget ables and f ruit s of many t ypes were widely grown. Oil was produced f rom t he linseed plant and t here was a limit ed select ions of spices and herbs. Meat (sheep, goat s, pigs, wild game) was regularly available t o at least t he upper classes and f ish were widely consumed, alt hough t here is evidence of prohibit ions during cert ain periods against cert ain t ypes of animal product s; Herodot us wrot e of t he pig as being 'unclean'. Of f erings t o King Unas (c. 24942345 BC) were recorded as ...milk, t hree kinds of beer, f ive kinds of wine, t en loaves, f our of bread, t en of cakes f our meat s, dif f erent cut s, joint s, roast , spleen, limb, breast , quail, goose, pigeon, f igs, t en ot her f ruit s, t hree kinds of corn, barley, spelt , f ive kinds of oil, and f resh plant s... It is clear t hat t he Egypt ian diet was not lacking f or t he upper classes and t hat even t he lower classes may have had some select ion (Nunn, 2002).

Practices[edit]
Medical knowledge in ancient Egypt had an excellent reput at ion, and rulers of ot her empires would ask t he Egypt ian pharaoh t o send t hem t heir best physician t o t reat t heir loved ones.[6] Egypt ians had some knowledge of human anat omy. For example, in t he classic mummif icat ion process, mummif iers knew how t o insert a long hooked implement t hrough a nost ril, breaking t he t hin bone of t he brain case and remove t he brain. T hey also must have had a general idea of t he locat ion in t he body cavit y of t he inner organs, which t hey removed t hrough a small incision in t he lef t groin. But whet her t his knowledge was passed on t o t he pract it ioners of medicine is unknown and does not seem t o have had any impact on t heir medical t heories. Egypt ian physicians were aware of t he exist ence of t he pulse and of a connect ion bet ween pulse and heart . T he aut hor of t he Smit h Papyrus even had a vague idea of a cardiac syst em, alt hough not of blood circulat ion and he was unable, or deemed it unimport ant , t o dist inguish bet ween blood vessels, t endons, and nerves. T hey developed t heir t heory of "channels" t hat carried air, wat er and blood t o t he body by analogies wit h t he River Nile; if it became blocked, crops became unhealt hy and t hey applied t his principle t o t he body: If a person was unwell, t hey would use laxat ives t o unblock t he "channels".[7] Quit e a f ew medical pract ices were ef f ect ive, such as many of t he surgical procedures given in t he Edwin Smit h papyrus. Most ly, t he physicians' advice f or st aying healt hy was t o wash and shave t he body, including under t he arms, and t his may have prevent ed inf ect ions. T hey also advised pat ient s t o look af t er t heir diet , and avoid f oods such as raw f ish or ot her animals considered t o be unclean. Many pract ices were inef f ect ive or harmf ul. Michael D. Parkins says t hat 72% of 260 medical prescript ions in t he Hearst Papyrus had no known curat ive element s,[8] and many cont ained animal dung which cont ains product s of f erment at ion and molds, some of t hem having curat ive propert ies,[citation
needed] but also bact eria posing a grave t hreat of inf ect ion.

Surgery[edit]
T he oldest met al (Bronze [9] or copper[10][11]) surgical t ools [12] in t he world were discovered in t he t omb of Qar. Surgery was a common pract ice among physicians as t reat ment f or physical injuries. T he Egypt ian physicians recognized t hree cat egories of injuries; t reat able, cont est able, and unt reat able ailment s. Treat able ailment s t he surgeons would quickly set t o right . Cont est able ailment s were t hose where t he vict im could presumably survive wit hout t reat ment , so pat ient s assumed t o be in t his cat egory were observed and if t hey survived t hen surgical at t empt s could be made t o f ix t he problem wit h t hem. T hey used knives, hooks, drills, f orceps, pincers, scales, spoons, saws and a vase wit h burning incense.[13] Circumcision of males was t he norm, as st at ed by Herodot us in his Hist ories.[14] T hough it s perf ormance as a procedure was rarely ment ioned, t he uncircumcised nat ure of ot her cult ures was f requent ly not ed, t he uncircumcised nat ure of t he Liberians was f requent ly ref erenced and milit ary campaigns brought back uncircumcised phalli as t rophies, which suggest s novelt y. However, ot her records describe init iat es int o t he religious orders as involving circumcision which would imply t hat t he pract ice was special and not widespread. T he only known depict ion of t he procedure, in t he T he Tomb of t he Physician, burial place of Ankh-Mahor at Saqquarra, shows adolescent s or adult s, not babies. Female circumcision may have been pract iced, alt hough t he single ref erence t o it in ancient t ext s may be a mist ranslat ion.[5] Prost het ics, such as art if icial t oes and eyeballs, were also used; t ypically, t hey served lit t le more t han decorat ive purposes. In preparat ion f or burial, missing body part s would be replaced (but t hese do not appear as if t hey would have been usef ul, or even at t achable) bef ore deat h.[5]

T he ext ensive use of surgery, mummif icat ion pract ices, and aut opsy as a religious exercise gave Egypt ians a vast knowledge of t he body's morphology, and even a considerable underst anding of organ f unct ions. T he f unct ion of most major organs was correct ly presumedf or example, blood was correct ly guessed t o be a t ranspirat ion medium f or vit alit y and wast e which is not t oo f ar f rom it s act ual role in carrying oxygen and removing carbon dioxidewit h t he except ion of t he heart and brain whose f unct ions were swit ched.

Dentistry[edit]
Dent ist ry was an import ant f ield, as an independent prof ession it dat ed f rom t he early 3rd millennium BC, alt hough it may not have never been prominent . T he Egypt ian diet was high in abrasives (such as sand lef t over f rom grinding grain and bit s of rocks in which t he way bread was prepared) and so t he condit ion of t heir t eet h was quit e poor, alt hough archaeologist s have not ed a st eady decrease in severit y and incidence of worn t eet h t hroughout 4000 BC t o 1000 AD, probably due t o improved grain grinding t echniques.[15] All Egypt ian remains have set s of t eet h in quit e poor st at es. Dent al disease could even be f at al, such as f or Djedmaat esankh, a musician f rom T hebes, who died around t he age of t hirt y f ive f rom ext ensive dent al disease and a large inf ect ed cyst . If an individual's t eet h escaped being worn down, cavit ies were rare, due t o t he rarit y of sweet eners. Dent al t reat ment was inf ect ive and t he best suf f erers could hope f or was t he quick loss of an inf ect ed t oot h. T he Inst ruct ion of Ankhsheshonq cont ains t he maxim "T here is no t oot h t hat rot s yet st ays in place".[5] No records document t he hast ening of t his process and no t ools suit ed f or t he ext ract ion of t eet h have been f ound, t hough some remains show sign of f orced t oot h removal.[15] Replacement t eet h have been f ound, alt hough it is not clear whet her t hey are just post -mort em cosmet ics. Ext reme pain might have been medicat ed wit h opium.[5]

Magic and religion[edit]

Magic and religion were an int egral part of everyday lif e in ancient Egypt . Evil gods and demons were t hought t o be responsible f or many ailment s, so of t en t he t reat ment s involved a supernat ural element , such as beginning t reat ment wit h an appeal t o a deit y. T here does not appear t o have exist ed a clear dist inct ion bet ween what nowadays one would consider t he very dist inct callings of priest and physician. T he healers, many of t hem priest s of Sekhmet , of t en used incant at ions and magic as part of t reat ment . T he widespread belief in magic and religion may have result ed in a powerf ul placebo ef f ect ; t hat is, t he perceived validit y of t he cure may have cont ribut ed t o it s ef f ect iveness. T he impact of t he emphasis on magic is seen in t he select ion of remedies or ingredient s f or t hem. Ingredient s were somet imes select ed seemingly because t hey were derived f rom a subst ance, plant or animal t hat had charact erist ics which in some way corresponded t o t he sympt oms of t he pat ient . T his is known as t he principle of simila similibus ("similar wit h similar") and is f ound t hroughout t he hist ory of medicine up t o t he modern pract ice of homeopat hy. T hus an ost rich egg is included in t he t reat ment of a broken skull, and an amulet port raying a hedgehog might be used against baldness. Amulet s in general were very popular, t hey were worn f or many magical purposes. Healt h relat ed amulet s are classif ied as homeopoet ic, phylact ic and t heophoric. Homeopoet ic amulet s port ray an animal or part of an animal, f rom which t he wearer hopes t o gain posit ive at t ribut es like st rengt h or speed. Phylact ic amulet s prot ect ed against harmf ul gods and demons. T he f amous Eye of Horus was of t en used on a phylact ic amulet . T heophoric amulet s represent ed Egypt ian gods; one represent ed t he girdle of Isis and was int ended t o st em t he f low of blood at miscarriage. T hey were of t en made of bone, hanging f rom a leat her st rap.

Doctors and other healers[edit]

T he ancient Egypt ian word f or doct or is "wabau". T his t it le has a long hist ory. T he earliest recorded physician in t he world, HesyRa, pract iced in ancient Egypt . He was Chief of Dent ist s and Physicians t o King Djoser, who ruled in t he 27t h cent ury BC.[16] T he lady Peseshet (2400 BC) may be t he f irst recorded f emale doct or: she was possibly t he mot her of Akhet hot ep, and on a st ela dedicat ed t o her in his t omb she is ref erred t o as imy-r swnwt, which has been t ranslat ed as Lady Overseer of t he Lady Physicians (swnwt is t he f eminine of swnw).
This wood and leather prosthetic toe was used by an amputee to T here were many ranks and specializat ions in t he f ield of facilitate walking medicine. Royalt y employed t heir own swnw, even t heir own specialist s. T here were inspect ors of doct ors, overseers and chief doct ors. Known ancient Egypt ian specialist s are opht halmologist , gast roent erologist , proct ologist , dent ist , "doct or who supervises but chers" and an unspecif ied "inspect or of liquids". T he ancient Egypt ian t erm f or proct ologist , neru phuyt, lit erally t ranslat es as "shepherd of t he anus".

Inst it ut ions, so called Houses of Life, are known t o have been est ablished in ancient Egypt since t he 1st Dynast y and may have had medical f unct ions, being at t imes associat ed in inscript ions wit h physicians, such as Pef t auawyneit and Wedjahorresnet living in t he middle of t he 1st millennium BC.[17] By t he t ime of t he 19t h Dynast y t heir employees enjoyed such benef it s as medical insurance, pensions and sick leave.[16]

Table of Ancient Egyptian Physicians[edit]

Physician Name Imhot ep

Other names Egypt ian -m- t p *j-imt ap meaning "t he one who comes in peace, is wit h peace", Immut ef , Im-hot ep, or Ii-emHot ep; called Imut hes ()

Kings service & Dating Djoser circa 26502600 BC

T itles

Medical practice Gender Site

Medical legacy

Non medical legacy Imhot ep was one of t he chief of f icials of t he Pharaoh Djoser and Egypt ologist s ascribe t o him t he designed t he Pyramid of Djoser (t he St ep Pyramid) at Saqqara in Egypt in 2630 2611 BC. He may have been responsible f or t he f irst known use of columns t o support a building. T he Egypt ian hist orian Manet ho credit ed him wit h invent ing t he met hod of a st onedressed building during Djoser's reign. Wooden panel set of Hesy-Ra

Burial site Probably Saqqara

Chancellor of M t he King of Egypt , Doct or, First in line af t er t he King of Upper Egypt , Administ rat or of t he Great Palace, Heredit ary nobleman, High Priest of Heliopolis, Builder, Chief Carpent er, Chief Sculpt or, and Maker of Vases in Chief .

Memphis aut hor of Edwin Smit h papyrus. Two t housand years af t er his deat h, Imhot ep's st at us was raised t o t hat of a deit y of medicine and healing.

Hesy-Ra

re-hesy, Hesire, Hesira

Djoser ca. 2670 BC

Chief of Dent ist s and Physicians and Chief of t he King's Scribes, Elder of t he qedhet ep; f at her of Min, Fashioner of t he cult image of Mehyt , king's acquaint ance, Overseer of t he royal scribes; Great one of t he 10 of Upper Egypt t he Chief Physician

N/A

possibly t he f irst known Physician in hist ory

buried in an elaborat e t omb at Saqqara

Merit -Pt ah

Beloved of t he god Pt ah

ca. 2700 BC

N/A

possibly t he f irst known f emale Physician and scient ist in hist ory

Her image in a t omb in Saqqara

N/A

Pent hu

N/A

Akhet at en T he sealbearer M ca. 1350 of t he King of BC Lower Egypt , t he sole companion, t he at t endant of t he Lord of t he Two Lands, t he f avorit e of t he good god, king's scribe, t he king's subordinat e, First servant of t he At en in t he mansion of t he At en in Akhet at en, Chief of physicians, and chamberlain Fourt h Dynast y of Egypt ca. 2500 lady overseer of t he f emale physicians F

At en

Chief Vizier t o king Physician t o Akhenat en, but may have survived t he upheavals of t he end of t he Amarna period, and served under Ay, af t er being Vizier under Tut ankhamun

Amarna Tomb 5

Peseshet

N/A

N/A

?Midwif e, 2nd earliest known f emale physician in ancient Egypt T he oldest

A personal st ela at Akhet het ep her son's t omb

N/A

Qar

N/A

Sixt h

T he royal

N/A

His mummy in

He died at t he

dynast y of Egypt ca. 23502180 BC

physician

Bronze or copper surgical t ool in t he world

t he limest one sarcophagus and 22 bronze st at ues of dif f erent deit ies and st at uet t e of Imhot ep t he physician Ushabt i of t he Head of Physician Psamt ik-seneb, phot o in relief of Ankh-ef -enSekhmet Ent ert ained by a Harpist

age of f if t y years and was buried in his t omb at Saqqara, which was re-used several t imes

Psamt ikseneb may King Psamt ik be healt hy

Twent ysixt h Dynast y of Egypt ca. 664525 BC

T he Head of Physicians, t he scorpion charmer, chief physician and chief dent ist (wr b ) of Psamt ik Seneb, an admiral of t he royal f leet

N/A

N/A

His t omb discovered at Heliopolis in 1931/32 AD

Udjahorresnet

WedjahorResne or UdjahorResnet

00

T he Head of M Physicians, supervisor of t he medical schools -t he 'Houses of lif e'; t he prince, t he royal chancellor, t he unique companion, t he prophet of t he one who lives wit h t hem, t he chief physician, t he one t ruly known and loved by t he king, t he scribe, t he inspect or of t he scribes of t he dedet court , t he f irst among t he great scribes of t he prison, t he direct or of t he palace, t he admiral of t he royal navy of t he king of Upper and Lower Egypt Khnemibre [Amasis], t he admiral of t he royal navy of t he king of Upper and Lower Egypt , Ankhkaenre [Psammet ichus III], head of t he province of Sais Pef t uneit T he Head of M Physicians, chief physician of Upper and Lower Egypt , leader of Aegean f oreign (t roops) and admiral of t he royal f leet

N/A

WedjahorResne composed Cambyses' new royal name, Mesut i-Ra ('born of Ra')

His t it les are preserved on a beaut if ul st at ue(Vat ican inv.196)

His t omb [18] has been discovered in 1995 at Abusir[19][20][21]

Harsiese son of Ramose

00

f rom Amasis t o Darius I

N/A

N/A

ment ioned in Saqqara [20] Inst ruct ions of Chasheshonqy (P. BM 10508) as t he source of t he plot t hat led t o t he imprisonment of t he unf ort unat e Onchsheshonqy (P. BM. 10508 col. 1 t o 3) A naophorous st at ue of t he chief physician Pet uaneit h (Louvre A 93), he rest ored t he t emple of Abydos N/A

Pet uaneit h

N/A

Sait e T he Chief period physician during t he reign of Amasis [20]

N/A

N/A

Iwt i

N/A

19t h dynast y ca, 2500 BC

T he Chief physician

N/A

N/A

He had a st at ue at Lieden[22]

N/A

Table of Ancient Egyptian medical papyri[edit]

Papyrus Name Edwin Smit h Papyrus

Other names Edwin Smit h Surgical Papyrus

Dating

Language

Medical specialties T he oldest known surgical t reat ise on t rauma

Contents

Scribe/Author

Date & place of discovery Luxor, Egypt bef ore 1862

place of preserving

siz e

image File:Edwin Smit h Papyrus v2.jpg

dat es t o Hierat ic Dynast ies 16-17 of t he Second Int ermediat e Period in Ancient Egypt , ca. 1500 BC but believed t o be a copy f rom Old Kingdom, 3000-2500 BC

T he vast At t ribut ed by majorit y of t he some t o papyrus is Imhot ep concerned wit h t rauma and surgery, wit h short sect ions on gynaecology and cosmet ics on t he verso. On t he rect o side, t here are 48 cases of injury. T he verso side consist s of eight magic spells and f ive prescript ions. T he oldest known surgical t reat ise on t rauma T he scroll N/A cont ains some 700 magical f ormulas and remedies, chapt ers on cont racept ion, diagnosis of pregnancy and ot her gynecological mat t ers, int est inal disease and parasit es, eye and skin problems, dent ist ry and t he surgical t reat ment of abscesses and t umors, boneset t ing and burns T he t ext is divided int o t hirt y-f our sect ions t hat deals wit h women's healt h gynaecological diseases, f ert ilit y, pregnancy, cont racept ion, et c. T he lat er Berlin Papyrus and t he Ramesseum Papyrus IV cover much of t he same ground, of t en giving ident ical prescript ions A collect ion of ancient Egypt ian medical document s in part s III, IV, and V, and writ t en in vert ical columns t hat mainly dealt wit h ailment s, diseases, t he st ruct ure of t he body, and supposed N/A

New York a scroll 4.68 Academy m in lengt h. of Medicine T he rect o (f ront side) has 377 lines in 17 columns, while t he verso (backside) has 92 lines in f ive columns

Ebers Papyrus

Papyrus Ebers

c. 1550 BC but believed t o be a copy f rom earlier t ext s of 3400 BC

Hierat ic

Medicine, Obest it rics &gynecology & Surgery

Assassif dist rict of t he T heban necropolis bef ore 1862

Library of Universit y of Leipzig, Germany

a 110-page scroll, which is about 20 met ers long

File:PEbers c41-bc.jpg

Kahun Kahun Gynaecological Papyrus, Papyrus Kahun Medical Papyrus, or UC 32057

ca. 1800 BC

Hierat ic

Medicine, Obest it rics & gynecology, pediat rics and vet erinary medicine

El-Lahun by Flinders Pet rie in 1889

Universit y College London

2 gynecologic papyri &1 vet erinary payrus

File:PKahun LV2.jpg

Ramesseum medical papyri

Ramesseum medical papyri part s III, IV, and V

18t h cent ury BC

Hieroglyphic Medicine, & hierat ic gynecology, opht halmology, rheumat ology & pediat rics

N/A

Ramesseum Oxf ord 3 papyri t emple Ashmoulian (part s III, IV, Museum V)

N/A

remedies used t o heal t hese af f lict ions. namely opht halmologic ailment s, gynaecology, muscles, t endons, and diseases of children Hearst papyrus Hearst Medical Papyrus 18t h Dynast y of Egypt , around t ime of Tut hmosis III ca. 0000 but believed t o have been composed earlier, during t he Middle Kingdom, around 2000 BC 19t h dynast y 1300 BC or ca. 1629 1628 BC Hierat ic Urology, Medicine and bit es 260 paragraphs on 18 columns in 18 pages of medical prescript ions f or problems of urinary syst em, blood, hair, and bit es N/A discovered by an Egypt ian peasant of village of Der-elBallas bef ore 1901 Bancrof t Library, Universit y of Calif ornia 18 pages File:Papyrus Hearst Plat e 2.jpg

London Medical Papyrus

BM EA 10059

Hierat ic

skin complaint s, eye complaint s, bleeding, miscarriage and burns Medical

61 recipes, of which 25 are classif ied as medical t he remainder are of magic discussing general medical cases and bears a great similarit y t o t he Ebers papyrus. Some hist orians believe t hat t his papyrus was used by Galen in his writ ings T he st ruct ure of t he papyrus bears great resemblance t o t hat of t he Kahun and Berlin papyri.

N/A

N/A

Royal inst it ut e of London

File:London Medical Papyrus 15.jpg

Brugsch Papyrus

Pap. Berl. 3038, t he Great er Berlin Papyrus

19t h Hierat ic ? dynast y, and dat ed ca. 1350 - 1200 BC

24 pages (21 t o t he f ront and 3 on t he back)

N/A

Discovered by an Egypt ian in Saqqara bef ore 1827

Berlin Museum

N/A

Carlsberg papyrus

N/A

bet ween t he 19t h and 20t h dynast ies, New Kingdom ; it s st yle relat es it t o t he 12t h dynast y. Some f ragment s dat e back t o ca. 2000 BC, ot hers t he Tebt unis manuscript s dat e back t o ca. 1st cent ury AD

Hierat ic, Demot ic. Hieroglyphs and in Greek

Obest it rics & gynecology, Medicine, Pediat rics & opht halmology

N/A

N/A

N/A

Egypt ological N/A Inst it ut e of t he Universit y of Copenhague

Chest er Beat t y Medical Papyrus

Chest er dat ed Beat t y around 1200 Papyri, BC] Papyrus VI of t he Chest er Beat t y Papyri 46 (Papyrus no. 10686, Brit ish Museum), Chest er Beat t y V BM 10685, VI BM 10686, VII BM 10687, VIII BM 10688, XV BM 10695 47.218.48 och 47.218.85, also known as t he

Herit ic?

Headche, and Anorect al disorders

Magic spells and medical reciepes f or headache & anorect al disease

N/A

st art ed of f as a privat e collect ion by t he scribe Qen-herkhepeshef in t he 19t h Dynast y and passed on down t hrough his f amily unt il t here were placed in a t omb

Deir elMedina (t he workers village) in 1928

Brit ish Museum

N/A

Brooklyn Papyrus

a collect ion Hiert ic?? of papyri which belong t o t he end

deals only wit h snakes and scorpion bit es, and t he

It speaks about remedies t o drive out

a scroll of papyrus divided int o t wo part s wit h

N/A

might originat e f rom a t emple at

Brooklyn Museum in New York

N/A

Brooklyn Medical Papyrus

of t he 30t h dynast y, dat ed t o around 450 BC, or t he beginning of t he Pt olemaic Period. However, it is writ t en wit h t he Middle Kingdom st yle which could suggest it s origin might be f rom t he T hirt eent h dynast y of Egypt ???

f ormulae t o drive out t he poison of such animals

poison f rom snakes, scorpions and t arant ulas. T he st yle of t hese remedies relat es t o t hat of t he Ebers papyrus

some part s missing, it s t ot al lengt h is est imat ed t o 175 27 cm

ancient Heliopolis, discovered bef ore 1885

Berlin Papyrus

Berlin Middle Papyrus 6619 Kingdom

Medicine & Mat hemat ics

t he f irst known N/A document at ion concerning pregnancy t est procedures Holds some medical f ormulae and a list of anat omic names (body and viscera) and about 20 magical f ormulae It most ly deals wit h magical t ext s N/A

N/A

Saqqara in t he early 19t h cent ury AD bef ore 1886 AD

Berlin Museum

N/A

Erman Papyrus [23]

given wit h t he West car papyrus t o Berlin museum

Middle dat ed f rom t he beginning of t he New Kingdom (16t h cent ury BC)

???

Medicine, Magic & Anat omy

N/A

Berlin Museum

N/A

Leiden Papyrus [23]

Rijksmuseum, 18t h-19t h Leiden 1343- dynast ie 1345

???

Medicine, Magic

N/A

N/A

N/A

Rijks museum, Leiden

N/A

See also[edit]
Egypt port al

References[edit]
1. Jump up ^ Edwin Smit h papyrus (Egypt ian medical book). Brit annic.com. Ret rieved on 2011-11-18. 2. Jump up ^ Medicine in Ancient Egypt 1. Arabworldbooks.com. Ret rieved on 2011-11-18. 3. Jump up ^ Pain, St ephanie. (2007). "T he pharaohs' pharmacist s." New Scientist. 15 December 2007, p. 43. 4. Jump up ^ T he Sevent y Great Invent ions of t he Ancient World by Brian M. Fagan 5. ^ Jump up t o: a b c d e Andr Dollinger. Ancient Egypt ian Medicine. December 2002. 6. Jump up ^ A History of Medicine by Plinio Prioreschi, Horat ius Print 1996, p.257f . 7. Jump up ^ What progress did t he Egypt ians make in medical knowledge?. passmoresschool.com 8. Jump up ^ Parkins, Michael D.; J. Szekrenyes (March 2001). "Pharmacological Pract ices of Ancient Egypt ". Proceedings of the 10th Annual History of Medicine . Ret rieved 2010-11-07. 9. Jump up ^ ht t p://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2006/823/he3.ht m 10. Jump up ^ Hidden Treasures Of T he Egypt ian Museum:On Hundred Mast erpieces From T he Cent ennial Exhibit ion, American Univ in Cairo Press, 2002 T he t omb of t he physician Qar Page xx 11. Jump up ^ ht t p://egypt ourism.wordpress.com/t ag/jean-philippe-lauer/ 12. Jump up ^ Jackson, Russell. "Mummy of ancient doct or comes t o light - Scot sman.com News". News.scot sman.com. Ret rieved 2011-03-24. 13. Jump up ^ Greiner, Ryan (2001). "Ancient Egypt ian Medicine". Accessed February 2011. 14. Jump up ^ ht t p://www.gut enberg.org/f iles/2131/2131-h/2131-h.ht m 15. ^ Jump up t o: a b John Francis Nunn. Ancient Egypt ian Medicine. Universit y of Oklahoma Press, 1996. 16. ^ Jump up t o: a b Arabworldbook.com: Medicine in Ancient Egypt . Arabworldbooks.com. Ret rieved on 2011-11-18. 17. Jump up ^ Digit al Egypt f or Universit ies (Universit y College of London websit e) "Knowledge and product ion: t he House of Lif e". Digit alegypt .ucl.ac.uk. Ret rieved on 2011-11-18. 18. Jump up ^ ht t p://egypt ologie.f f .cuni.cz/?req=doc:vedzahor&lang=en

19. Jump up ^ ht t p://egypt ianaemporium.wordpress.com/2012/07/04/dispelling-t he-myt h-herodot uscambyses-and-egypt ian-religion-1/ 20. ^ Jump up t o: a b c ht t p://www.academia.edu/1562920/T he_Emergence_of _a_Medit erranean_Power_T he_Sait e_Perio d 21. Jump up ^ ht t p://www.livius.org/w/wedjahorresne/wedjahorresne.ht m 22. Jump up ^ ht t p://www.jst or.org/discover/10.2307/20772830? uid=3737928&uid=2134&uid=380554583&uid=2&uid=70&uid=3&uid=380554573&uid=60&purchaset ype=art icle&accessType=none&sid=21102533664267&showMyJst orPss=f alse&seq=1&showAcc ess=f alse 23. ^ Jump up t o: a b ht t p://www.aams.org.au/cont ent s.php? subdir=library/hist ory/&f ilename=pharonic_egypt

Further reading[edit]
English Ancient Egypt ian Medicine, John F. Nunn, 1996 T he Great est Benef it t o Mankind: A medical Hist ory of Humanit y, Roy Port er, 1997 A Hist ory of Medicine, Lois N. Magner, 1992 Medicine in t he Days of t he Pharaohs, Bruno Halioua, Bernard Ziskind, M. B. DeBevoise (Translat or), 200 Pharmacological pract ices of ancient Egypt , Michael D. Parkins, 10t h Annual Proceedings of t he Hist ory of Medicine Days, 2001 Pain, St ephanie. (2007). "T he pharaohs' pharmacist s." New Scientist. 15 December 2007, pp. 4043 French Ange Pierre Leca, La Mdecine gypt ienne au t emps des Pharaons, d. Dacost a, Paris, 1992 (ISBN 2-851-28-029-5) T hierry Bardinet , Les papyrus mdicaux de l'gypt e pharaonique, d. Fayard, Paris, 1995 (ISBN 2213-59280-2) Histoire de la mdecine en Egypte ancienne, Paris, 2013- (ht t p://medecineegypt e.canalblog.com/) Richard-Alain Jean, propos des objet s gypt iens conservs du muse dHist oire de la Mdecine, d. Universit Ren Descart es Paris V, coll. Muse d'Hist oire de la Mdecine de Paris, Paris, 1999 (ISBN 2-9508470-3-X) Richard-Alain Jean, La chirurgie en gypt e ancienne. propos des inst rument s mdicochirurgicaux mt alliques gypt iens conservs au muse du Louvre, Edit ions Cybele, Paris, 2012 (ISBN 978-2-915840-29-2) Richard-Alain Jean, Anne-Marie Loyret t e, propos des t ext es mdicaux des Papyrus du Ramesseum nos III et IV, I : la reproduct ion, in S.H. Auf rre (d.), Encyclopdie religieuse de lUnivers vgt al (ERUV II), Mont pellier, 2001, pp. 537564 (ISBN 2-84269-502-6) Richard-Alain Jean, Anne-Marie Loyret t e, propos des t ext es mdicaux des Papyrus du Ramesseum nos III et IV, I : la cont racept ion, in S.H. Auf rre (d.), Encyclopdie religieuse de lUnivers vgt al (ERUV II), Mont pellier, 2001, pp. 564592 (ISBN 2-84269-502-6) Bruno Halioua, La mdecine au t emps des Pharaons, d. Liana Levi, coll. Hist oire lieu, Paris, 2002 (ISBN 2-867-46-306-8) Richard-Alain Jean, Anne-Marie Loyret t e, propos des t ext es mdicaux des Papyrus du Ramesseum nos III et IV, I : la gyncologie (1), in S.H. Auf rre (d.), Encyclopdie religieuse de lUnivers vgt al (ERUV III), Mont pellier, 2005, pp. 351487 (ISBN 2-84269-695-6) Richard-Alain Jean, Anne-Marie Loyret t e, La mre, lenf ant et le lait en gypt e Ancienne. Tradit ions mdico-religieuses. Une t ude de snologie gypt ienne, S.H. Auf rre (d.), d. LHarmat t an, coll. Kubaba Srie Ant iquit Universit de Paris 1, Pant hon Sorbonne, Paris, 2010 (ISBN 978-2-296-13096-8) German Wolf hart West endorf , Handburch der alt gypt ischen Medizin, d. Brill, coll. HdO, Leiden, 1999 (Band 1 : ISBN 90-04-11320-7, Band II : ISBN 90-04-11321-5)

External links[edit]
[show] Ancient Egyptian medicine