Ancient Egypt

The Impact of Civilisation on Medical Developments

The Nile Gives Birth to a New Civilisation

• (A) THE DELTA North of Memphis, the Nile divided into channels, to form a delta. Much of this land was swampy, but the rest was good for farming.

(B) OASIS The Western Desert had a few places where enough water was available for crops to be grown. These were called oases.

(C) THE EASTERN DESERT The Eastern Desert had no oases but it contained valuable minerals, including gold.

(D) THE VALLEY The valley was only 19 km wide but over 5,960 km long.

(E) CATARACTS Ships sailing south were stopped by cataracts (rapids).

• Good Farming Land• Irrigation systems• Complex flood patterns

– Mathematical skills required– Advanced planning required

Producing More than enough Food

(A) HARVEST When the main crops were ready, nearly everyone - men and women, even priests - helped with the harvest.

(B) MUSIC Musicians played while work went on in the fields. At planting time, magic spells were chanted to make the crops grow.

(C) WINNOWING Women scooped the grain up with wooden trays, letting the chaff blow away while the heavier grain fell to the ground.

(D) TAXES Farmers paid part of their crop as taxes. Scribes kept careful records of the amounts.

(E) CATTLE Young boys helped to look after the livestock. A man's wealth could be judged by the cattle he owned. Farmers also owned sheep, goats, and donkeys.

• Surplus Food Produced– Store for future use– Trade for other goods– Not everyone needs to farm

• New trades and specialities develop

Trading the Surplus• (A) MERCHANT SHIP

Small boats were made of bundles of reeds tied together. Larger ships were built of wood. This one sailed through the dangerous Red Sea.

(B) CARGOShips had no deck, except for short sections at each end, and the crew stowed cargo in the open hold. The ship had oars and one large sail.

(C) THE LAND OF PUNTShips that sailed to Punt were carried across the desert in pieces and built on the shore of the Red Sea. Punt was probably in eastern Africa, but nobody knows exactly where.

• New Products and Ideas can be imported• Makes money which can be invested

– Cities– To please the Gods

Craftsmen(A) POTTERY Pots of many shapes and sizes were made from local clay. It was shaped by hand in a mold made of stiff sand, given a glaze, and hardened in fire.

(B) GOLD The Egyptians had plenty of gold, mostly from mines in Nubia. Jewellery and gold-plated objects were made. Statues and even a king's coffin were made of solid gold. (C) SANDALS The shoemaker's trade was simple, because the only shoes people wore were sandals, made of leather or papyrus reed. Usually they went barefoot.

(D) WOOD CARVING This man is making a wooden animal. Most woodworking tools, such as saws and chisels, have not changed much since.

New jobs available for talented craftsmenSurplus food Production allows for their wages to be paidNew Products and Skills Develop

Some with medical application!

A New Hierarchy Develops• Agricultural and

Trading opportunities allow New Hierarchy to be formed– Elite/Aristocracy

• Pay wages to others to work for them

• Life of leisure– Free time to think

• New ideas• New Inventions• New Skills

Hieroglyphics• Development of

Writing• Papyrus• Pictographs• Allows ideas to be

transferred– Can spread throughout

Egypt– Can be passed down

through generations

Sophisticated Civilisation

(A) RAISING STONE BLOCKSOne of the hardest jobs was moving the heavy stone blocks into place. The builders made huge ramps of earth and dragged the stones up the ramps with ropes.

(B) SUPERVISORSOfficials, who were probably priests, directed the gangs of workmen.

(C) SHAPING THE STONEEach stone was carefully measured and shaped to fit into place.

(D) ACCIDENTSMany workmen were killed or injured, crushed by the heavy stone blocks.

• Large Scale projects were now feasible– Planning– Writing and Mathematics– New Tools

• Public Works projects

Towns and Cities Develop

• Craftsmen, traders, labourers find it easier and more convenient to live in towns and cities.

• Urban economy and lifestyle develops

• Medical threats to an urban population?

Hygienic Lifestyle

• Personal Hygiene– Very important

• Public Works allow for – Drain Systems– Water Delivery

systems– Bathing

Who were the Medical Care Givers?

“It is seven days from yesterday since I saw my love,And Sickness has crept over me,My limbs have become heavy,I cannot feel my own body.If the Master-Physicians come to meI gain no comfort from their remedies.And the priest-magicians have no cures, My sickness is not diagnosed.My love is better by far for me than any remedies.She is more important than all the books of medicine.”

Egyptian Love Poem c1500 BC

Religion

• Very Important

• Temples

• Priests– Alternative medical

care from master physicians

• Charms– Still used extensively

Imphotep• Master Physicians

– can be afforded by the very wealthy

• Pharoah Zozer’s Physician– Adviser– Architect on some Pyramids– Healer

• c2600 BC• Becomes God of Medicine

– For Greeks and Egyptians– c500 BC

The Nile Theory• Attempt to Explain how the Body

works and why people get sick• Related to their Natural

Environment and their understanding of how the world works

– River Nile• Channels (River)

– Mixture of Blood and Air– Flows from the centre to

extremeties• Disease

– Caused by blockages of the channels

• Caused by rotting food • Letting off gases• Prevents normal flow

• A Rational Explanation

Ebers and Smith Papyri• Smith Papyrus

– C1700 BC (but refers to Imphotep’s era)– Surgical treatments for wounds

• Ebers Papyrus– C1500 BC– 110 Pages– Treatments for diseases– Herbal Remedies– Remedies used by Gods

Medical Kit• 1) knives; (2) drill; (3) saw; (4)

forceps or pincers; (5) censer; (6) hooks; (7) bags tied with string; (8, 10) beaked vessel; (11) vase with burning incense; (12) Horus eyes; (13) scales; (14) pot with flowers of Upper and Lower Egypt; (15) pot on pedestal; (16) graduated cubit or papyrus scroll without side knot (or a case holding reed scalpels); (17) shears; (18) spoons.

The Afterlife?

• Elaborate death ritual• Embalming Procedure

– Directed by Priests

• Uses sophisticated tools and techniques

• HOWEVER– It is not a medical

procedure• He is already dead!

Mummification• (A) ANUBIS

The priest in charge of the mummification wore the mask of Anubis (the god of the dead).

(B) INCENSE A priest stands by, holding sweet-smelling incense.

(C) WRAPPING THE BODY The body, or mummy, was wrapped in layers of linen before being placed in the coffin.

(D) NATRON Natron, a kind of soda, was placed in the body to dry it out before it was wrapped in linen.

(E) SOAKING THE BANDAGES Sometimes, linen strips were soaked in plaster so they would harden when dry.

Excessive respect for the Dead body

Will hinder medical developments for many years

Sacred Body does not allow for exploration or experimentation.

Dissection Forbidden

Legacy of Egypt

• Greece and Rome conquer Egypt

• Greece and Rome respect many of the Egyptian ideas on medicine

• Egyptian Physicians in demand in Ancient Greece

• Role of Alexandria

What was new in Egyptian Medicine?

(compared to Prehistoric Medicine)

What was the same?

What was new in Egyptian Medicine?

(compared to Prehistoric Medicine)

What was the same?

Master Physicians Herbal remedies

Attempt to explain diseases

(Nile Theory)

Role of Gods and Spirits

Can identify parts of the body Little understanding of internal workings of body

Imported new herbs from other civilisations

No idea what actually caused diseases

Metal Instruments Paid for medical care

Some Public Health measures

Hygiene identified

Marking Scheme• Level 0

– General or simplistic Answer (1 Mark)

• Level 1– Specifically answers

question with relevant example or explanation (2 – 3 Marks)

• Level 2– Sophisticated answer

that shows an understanding of the complex forces involved. Good use of relevant examples (4 – 5 Marks)

• Write a simple paragraph explaining how the following affected medicine– Wealth– Trade– Writing– Religion– The Nile and Farming– Which is the most important of the 5?

• List all the kinds of healers mentioned sources 1 to 5 on page 18

• Answer questions 1, 5, 6 and 7 on pages 20/21

• Homework– Activity on page 21– Design an advertisement for one of the

treatments described on pages 20/21