Ancient Egyptian Medicine: The Contribution of Twenty-first Century Science

Preserved human remains from ancient Egypt provide an unparalleled opportunity for studies in the history of disease and medical practices. Egyptian medical papyri describe physiological concepts, disease diagnoses and prescribed treatments which include both 'irrational' (magical) and 'rational' (surgical and pharmaceutical) procedures. Many previous studies of Egyptian medicine have concluded that 'irrational' methods predominated, but this perception is increasingly challenged by results from scientific studies of ancient human remains (including autopsy, radiology, endoscopy, palaeohistology and immunological and molecular analyses), and plant materials. This paper demonstrates the significant contribution being made by multidisciplinary studies to our understanding of disease occurrence and medical treatments in ancient Egypt, and considers the feasibility of developing epidemiological comparisons of ancient and modern data sets that will provide acceptable historical contexts for contemporary disease studies.