By: Ali Abu-Dashish, Taarek Refaat
CAIRO, Feb. 7 (SEE)- The Egyptian archaeologist and Cultural Heritage Ambassador Zahi Hawass said that the ancient Egyptian was the first to examine and develop the science of medicine and anatomy in the ancient world.
Hawass added that the process of mummification enabled the ancient Egyptian to understand the anatomy of humans, animals, and birds. This knowledge led to the progress of science and medicine, whether human or veterinary.
He emphasized that archaeological evidence proves that the ancient Egyptian doctor has identified the precise functions of each organ and the nature of its physiology including the heart, lungs, stomach, kidney, liver, pancreas, etc.
The ancient Egyptian physician could operate a mummification process through opening up a few centimeters in the left side of the abdomen and extracting all the organs of the human body.
The excavations carried out in the tombs of the constructors of the pyramids, provided a lot of information about the progress of ancient Egyptian medicine. Surgeons managed to amputate the legs and hands of workers, as well as repair their bones fracture.
"Nearly 4500 years ago, medical teams were present at the construction site of the pyramids of Giza to perform surgeries for workers and architects," he stressed.
He pointed out that several ancient papyri had been discovered, which revealed the achievements of the pharaohs in the medical field, the most famous of which is the papyrus of Edwin Smith named after an American antique dealer. The papyrus is the most prominent in the history of medicine, and it is now part of the collections of the Academy of Sciences in New York.
The papyrus is the world's oldest surgical text dating back to 1600 BC and translated in the 1930s by Henry Henry. The 5 meters long papyrus describes 48 medical operations including wounds and trauma in the head, neck, shoulders, chest, and breast.
Regrettably, the papyrus was found incomplete and archaeologists speculated that the missing part was addressing the rest of the body.
The Kahun Medical Papyrus, which dates back to the reign of King Amenemhat III in 1825 BC, is made up of three sections. it deals with women's health including gynecological diseases, fertility, pregnancy, etc.
Dating back to 3000 BC, the papyrus is also considered one of the oldest in history . The length of the papyrus is 20 meters long, and 30 centimeters in width. It includes 400 medicines and 877 methods for the treatment of various diseases.
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