Ebers Papyrus

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Ebers Papyrus treatment for cancer: recounting a "tumor against the god Xenus," it recommends "do thou nothing there against".[1]

Ebers Papyrus is an preserved medical document from ancient Egypt, traced to about 1550 B.C.E. Longer and more complete than the Edwin Smith Papyrus, and about as old (the Edwin Smith Papyrus is dated to about 1600 B.C.E.), it is a collection of diverse medical texts that offers the most complete record of Egyptian medicine.

Ailments addressed range from crocodile bites to toenail pains. Included are sections on intestinal disease, diabetes mellitus, arthritis, gynecology, burns, contraception, hookworm, and dentistry. The circulatory system is described surprisingly accurately, including the role of the heart and the existence of blood vessels, and there also is a short section on psychiatry, dealing with a condition that would be similar to depression. It even deals with how to rid a house of pests. The Ebers Papyrus offers numerous remedies and magical formulas for the various ailments (WNI 2008).

importance

The Ebers Papyrus was purchased at Luxor (Thebes) in the winter of 1873–74 by Georg Ebers and is now in the library of the University of Leipzig, Germany.

Description

The Ebers Papyrus measures about 20.23 meters in length and 30 centimeters in height (WNI 2008) and comprises 110 pages (Demand 2000). It is much longer than other extant medical papyri from ancient Egypt. The Edwin Smith Papyrus comprises 17 pages (377 lines) on the recto and five pages (92 lines) on the verso (Demand 2000). (Recto refers to the right-hand page and verso to the left-hand page.)

The Ebers Papyrus is dated to about 1552 B.C.E. (WHI 2008) or 1534 B.C.E. (Demand 2000) based on the passage on the verso referring to the 9th year of the reign of Amenhotep I (Demand 2000). However, there is a portion of the papyrus that suggests a considerable earlier origin&mash;a reference to the Lower Egypt Den that would place an origin nearer to the First Dynasty (about 3000 B.C.E.) (Demand 2000). For this reason, some believe it to be a copy of ancient books of the reputed fatehr of medicine, alchemy, and pharmacy, Thoth (3000 B.C.E.). At any rate, the Ebers Papyrus is one of the two oldest preserved medical documents anywhere. Another important medical papyrus is the Brugsch Papyrus (around 1300 B.C.E.).

It is really a somewhat haphazard collection of diverse medical texts, which is organized by paragraphs arranged into blocks addressing particular medical ailments (Demand 2000).

Medical knowledge

The Ebers Papyrus is written in hieratic Egyptian writing and preserves for us the most voluminous record of ancient Egyptian medicine known.

There are paragraphs in the papyrus dealing with magical spells to guard against supernatural intervention on treatment and diagnosis (paragraphs 1-3); disease of the stomach, including intestinal parasites; skin diseases, diseases of the anus (132-164), diseases of the head, treatment of migraines (250), urine flow (261-283); hair (437-476), burns and flesh wounds (482-529), and disorders of the extremities (Demand 2000). Also addressed are diseases of the tongue (697-704), dermatological conditions (708-721), dental conditions (739-750), diseases of the ear, nose and throat (761-781), and gynecological conditions (783-839) (Demand 2000). There are discussions of diagnosing pregnancy, birth control, treatment of tumors, trachoma, and fractures (WNI 2008).

The scroll contains some 700 magical formulas and remedies to cure afflictions (WNI 2008). It contains many incantations meant to turn away disease-causing demons and there is also evidence of a long tradition of empirical practice and observation.

The papyrus contains a "treatise on the heart." It notes that the heart is the center of the blood supply, with vessels attached for every member of the body. The Egyptians seem to have known little about the kidneys and made the heart the meeting point of a number of vessels, which carried all the fluids of the body—blood, tears, urine, and sperm.

Mental disorders are detailed in a chapter of the papyrus called the Book of Hearts. Disorders such as depression and dementia are covered. The descriptions of these disorders suggest that Egyptians conceived of mental and physical diseases in much the same way.

Ebers Papyrus treatment for asthma: a mixture of herbs heated on a brick so that the sufferer could inhale their fumes.

Remedies

Examples of remedies in the Ebers Papyrus include:

Asthma
A mixture of herbs heated on a brick so that the sufferer could inhale their fumes.
Belly
"For the evacuation of the belly: Cow's milk 1; grains 1; honey 1; mash, sift, cook; take in four portions."
Bowels
"To remedy the bowels: Melilot, 1; dates, 1; cook in oil; anoint sick part."
Cancer
Recounting a "tumor against the god Xenus," it recommends "do thou nothing there against".
Clothing
Clothing may be protected from mice and rats by applying cat's fat.
Death
Half an onion and the froth of beer was considered "a delightful remedy against death."

Modern history of the papyrus

Like the Edwin Smith Papyrus, the Ebers Papyrus came into the possession of Edwin Smith in 1862. The source of the papyrus is unknown, but it was said to have been found between the legs of a mummy in the Assassif district of the Theban necropolis.

The papyrus remained in the collection of Edwin Smith until at least 1869 when there appeared, in the catalog of an antiquities dealer, an advertisement for "a large medical papyrus in the possession of Edwin Smith, an American farmer of Luxor." (Breasted 1930)

The Papyrus was purchased in 1872 by the German Egyptologist and novelist Georg Ebers (born in Berlin, 1837), after whom it is named. In 1875, Ebers published a facsimile with an English-Latin vocabulary and introduction, but it was not translated until 1890, by H. Joachim. Ebers retired from his chair of Egyptology at Leipzig on a pension and the papyrus remains in the University of Leipzig library.

See also

References
ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

  • Pommerening, Tanja, "Altägyptische Hohlmasse Metrologisch neu Interpretiert" and relevant phramaceutical and medical knowledge, an abstract, Phillips-Universtat, Marburg, 8-11-2004, taken from "Die Altägyptsche Hohlmasse" in studien zur Altägyptischen Kultur, Beiheft, 10, Hamburg, Buske-Verlag, 2005
  • Scholl, Reinhold, Der Papyrus Ebers. Die größte Buchrolle zur Heilkunde Altägyptens (Schriften aus der Universitätsbibliothek 7), Leipzig 2002; ISBN 3-910108-93-8.


whonamedit.com (WNI). 2008. http://www.whonamedit.com/synd.cfm/443.html Ebers' papyrus


Demand, N. H. 2000. Medicine in Ancient Egypt; Medical papyri. The Ebers Papyrus. Asclepion. Retrieved September 4, 2008.


  1. Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named EBERS-CANCER

External links

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