The Edwin Smith Medical Papyrus
The Edwin Smith Medical Papyrus is the first known medical document dating from the 17th century B.C. However, it is thought to have been based on earlier documents, possibly by the 27th century B.C. medical writer and architect Imhotep, among others, since the papyrus appears to be a compilation of work based on the writing of multiple authors.
The Edwin Smith Papyrus provides information on trauma surgery and even a wrinkle cream. Although it contains some ‘magical’ elements, the papyrus also contains practical, rational procedures. One of the treatments is for wounds, using honey against infection, which is still in use today all these centuries later since honey has been proven to be antibacterial.
The document starts with reports of injuries to the head, and works down the body with treatments to the neck, arms, and torso. Treatments include closing the wounds with sutures, preventing infection with honey and mouldy bread, and stopping the flow of blood with raw meat. Immobilisation was often advised for head and spinal cord injuries, which is still in practice today. The use of the magic was evident in only one of the cases, involving an incantation against pestilence.
There are also very ancient anatomical observations, the type of knowledge that was unknown to the western world until the Belgian, Andreas Vesalius, conducted his dissections on apes in the 1500s, and published On the Workings of the Human Body. But in the Edwin Smith Papyrus there are descriptions of exquisite detail regarding the cranial sutures, the meninges, the external surface of the brain, the cerebrospinal fludi, and the intracranial pulsations. It also shows that the internal organs were recognised, and that the blood vessels were known to be connected to the heart. Other vessels are described that carry air (the bronchus), or mucus (the lymph system). It is really amazing to consider that this information was available unknown hundreds, if not thousands, of years before it was known in the West.
The Papyrus was purchased by a private citizen, Edwin Smith from a dealer in Egypt in 1862 as a personal possession, which he then left to his daughter when he died. She donated it to the New York Historical Society who had it translated in 1930. With it the understanding of the history of medicine was revolutionised. Today the document is at the New York Academy of Medicine and is displayed occasionally at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
The contents of this amazing find are now available to read online and contain case histories of 48 trauma injuries, with the description of the physical examination, the treatment undertaken, and the patients’ prognosis. You can find and read them for yourself at http://www.touregypt.net/edwinsmithsurgical.htm