Cour 1 - Sumer-Égypte 2023 BENAISSA

Societies of antiquity
Dr BENAISSA Miloud
Primitive societies
Neolithic period (~ 8500 Befor. JC)

Primitive societies
Sedentary
Disease outbreaks
The need to
survive
The emergence of "the art of healing

The art of healing in primitive
societies:
• Illness identified with a foreign body

(parasite or evil substance)
– Mechanical operations (amputation,

cauterization, trepanning, suction)
– Drug-induced extirpation (purgation, vomiting)

Humerus amputation
societies:



Skulls with healed trepanning
Therapeutic
trepanning with
"controlled"
scarring
societies:



Cauteres
societies:


– Drug-induced extirpation (purgation, vomiting

societies:
• Purely empirical knowledge.
• Use of plant decoctions eg. poppy, valerian,

chamomile.
• Use of animal extracts.

Poppy capsule incised to harvest Red valerian: the roots were
the resin, rich in opiate derivatives used for their calming properties.
with empirically proven analgesic
properties.
Traditional indications for chamomile:Digestive
disorders, insomnia, fever, flu-like aches and pains,
migraines, inflammations, irritations...
The invention of writing in the 4th millennium BC:
• Mesopotamia → cuneiform (3400-3200 BC)
• Egypt → Hieroglyphic (3100 BC)
Middle Ages (5th century AD).

Collection and transmission of therapeutic

"recipes":
– early pharmacopoeias
– pharmaceutical forms (potions, lotions,
ointments)
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia :
• The word "Mesopotamia" is derived from the Greek

Mesopotamíos, from meso "between, in the middle
of" and potamós, "river": designating the country
"between two rivers".
• Mesopotamia is a historic region of the Middle East,

located in the Fertile Crescent between the Tigris
and Euphrates rivers. For the most part, it
corresponds to present-day Iraq.
Historical background
Mesopotamia is one of the first regions in

the world where there was:
– planting of cereals, around 9000 BC.

– domestication of animals, around 8000 BC.
Historical background
The place where the first city-states such

as Ur, Uruk, Sumer and Nippur were
founded in the 4th millennium BC.
The "cradle of civilization

The civilizations
Four great civilizations succeeded one another in

Mesopotamia:
1. Sumerians ~ 4000 BC.
2. The Akkadians: Sargon of Akkad founded the
world's first empire around 2350 BC.
3. The Babylonians: King Hammurabi (1792-1750
BC).
4. The Neobabylonians : Nebuchadnezzar II (604-564
BC)
5. Alexander the Great - 331 BC.
Mesopotamian medicine and
pharmacy
The concept of disease:
Illness is a curse sent by the gods.
Religious context
pharmacy
La médecine/
Healingpharmacie
a sick person may require La magie
practices such as magic and
empirique
empirical medicine/pharmacy,
which may seem different to us, but
are then seen as complementary.
Guérir un
malade
pharmacy
La médecine/
pharmacie La magie
empirique
Guérir un
malade
pharmacy
Various
La médecine/
pharmacie La magie
empirique
Guérir un
malade
pharmacy
Various
La médecine/
pharmacie La magie
additional
empirique
Guérir un
malade
pharmacy
• Long technical lists provide information on

these practices.
• They take the form of sentences describing the

patient's condition and diagnosis, sometimes
followed by the treatment to be prescribed..
Clay tablet with
cuneiform writing
on which
therapeutic recipes
and
recommendations
were compiled.
Tablet with remedies (Mesopotamia) testifying to
the achievements of pharmacy in Sumerian
times
Nippur tablet
• The oldest medical tablet dates back to the end

of the 3rd millennium BC.
• Discovered in 1948 in the ruins of the city of

Nippur.
• A dozen remedies.
Nippur tablet
• This tablet shows that the Sumerian physician

used mineral, animal and vegetable substances:
Sea salt (sodium chloride)

Saltpetre (potassium nitrate)
Clay
Milk
Honey
Snakeskin
Tortoise shell
Nippur tablet
The plant world :

-plants such as myrtle and thyme.
-trees such as willow, fig and date palms:
their seeds, roots, leaves, bark, gums and oils
form the basis of prescriptions.
-Remedies are prepared by decoction and
filtration with excipients such as wine and
various oils.
Nippur tablet
• Alkaline ash:
-Purify ingredients before spraying
-Obtain a soap for external application by
treating fats:
-treatment of fats (olive oil) with alkaline
ash (laurel ash) to obtain a disinfectant
soap.
Diagnostic and prognostic treatises
• Some forty more recent tablets (11th century BC).

• Most come from the ruins of Assurbanipal's
library in Nineveh.
• They correspond to summaries of observations of
patients, with a diagnosis, a prognosis and a
prescription.
• Prognosis = a physician's prediction of the course
of a disease.
• These prescriptions are mostly aimed at

gastrointestinal, dermatological and pulmonary
disorders.
• They take a variety of forms: fumigations,
inhalations, decoctions, etc.
Fumigation = action of exposing certain parts of the body to
smoke or steam.
Inhalation = action of absorbing something through the
respiratory tract.
pharmacy
Various
additional
• Prescriptions are often accompanied

by incantations.
Old Egypt
Historical context
Egyptian civilization
3100 BC 332 av BC
Hieroglyphics Alexander the

Great's conquest of
Egypt
Concept of disease :
• Illness is the physical manifestation of a

supernatural force "taking possession" of
the patient's body:
• E.g. an enemy with magical power,
disgruntled deceased angry deity, etc.),
Concept of disease ::
• Illness is the cause of death.

• The body is a necessary element for
eternal life.
The art of healing
Lead-based Egyptian blush to prevent ophthalmia
Kohl case and blush stick Medicinal bottle
The great medical papyri
Medical papyri are ancient Egyptian texts

written on papyrus scrolls that give us
valuable information about the medical
knowledge and practices of ancient Egypt.
The great medical papyri
Several papyri are available:

-Smith papyrus
-Ebers papyrus
Smith Papyrus
• The Smith Papyrus is one of the oldest medical

texts known today (~ 1600 BC).
• It is the most sophisticated book of medicine in
existence on papyrus (not based on magic).
• The 17-page papyrus deals mainly with surgical
pathology, diagnosis and treatment..
Smith Papyrus
This text shows that the Egyptians

knew about the heart, liver, spleen,
ureters and bladder, and that they knew
that blood vessels were connected to
the heart.
Ebers papyrus
• The papyrus comprises 110 pages, making

it the longest medical papyrus.
• It covers a wide range of subjects, including
dermatology, digestive diseases, trauma,
gynecological ailments and dental care.
Ebers papyrus
• Examples of remedies:
-Asthma: a mixture of herbs heated on a brick
so that the patient can breathe in the fumes.
–Gastric disorders: cow's milk, grains and
honey.
-Bowel evacuation: sweet clover, dates.
Ebers papyrus
Medical treatise with therapeutic recipes and remedies (Egypt, circa

1552 BC)
Ancient Egyptian remedies
• Egyptian pharmacopoeia was based on the

application of 3 types of substances:
• Mineral substances: arsenic sulfide, brick, clay,
earth, granite, mud.
2. Substances of plant origin:

Laxatives: sycamore fruit (Ficus Aegyptae),
castor oil and aloe.
Brewer's yeast for intestinal and skin disorders
(contains vitamin B).
Sycamore fruit
Ricin
Aloe
2. Substances of plant origin:Laxatives:

- sycamore fruit (Ficus Aegyptae), castor oil and
aloe.
- Brewer's yeast for intestinal and skin
disorders (contains vitamin B).
3. Substances of animal origin:

-like the often-mentioned honey, which had
softening and antiseptic properties, or liver
extracts (rich in vitamin A) for the treatment of
eye diseases.
Ancient China
Traditional Chinese
Pharmacopoeia
-It plays an important role in Chinese

medicine.
-Indian hemp and opium are used as
anaesthetics, arsenic for skin diseases
and mercury for syphilis.
-Sulfur is used to treat scabies.
Traditional Chinese
Pharmacopoeia
• Pungent-flavored plants (camphor and ginger)

are recommended to tone the heart, while bitter-
flavored plants (mugwort, verbena) calm it.
• The products are used in decoctions, potions

and infusions.
Ancient India
Antique India
• In India, Ayur-
Veda, or Ayurvedic
medicine, is based
on 2 sets of texts
written in Sanskrit:
Antique India
1. The Book of Charaka: said to have been

written around 300 BC from older
manuscripts. It cites 500 plants of
therapeutic interest.
L’Inde Antique
2. Sushruta's book, whose date of

publication is unknown, is officially a
surgical work comprising 184 chapters
describing various diseases, as well as
700 medicinal plants, 64 mineral
preparations and 57 preparations based
on animal substances.
La médecine/pharmacie dans les
sociétés antiques:
• The aim was to find remedies to heal and relieve

(empirical pharmacy). However, these remedies
were most often dispensed in a "magico-mystical"
context by priests, magicians and others.
• The religious period in the history of pharmacy.

Merci pour votre attention!

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Societies of antiquity

Neolithic period (~ 8500 Befor. JC)

The emergence of "the art of healing

• Illness identified with a foreign body

– Mechanical operations (amputation,

– Drug-induced extirpation (purgation, vomiting)

• Illness identified with a foreign body

– Mechanical operations (amputation,

– Drug-induced extirpation (purgation, vomiting)

• Illness identified with a foreign body

– Mechanical operations (amputation,

– Drug-induced extirpation (purgation, vomiting)

• Illness identified with a foreign body

– Mechanical operations (amputation,

– Drug-induced extirpation (purgation, vomiting

• Purely empirical knowledge.

• Use of plant decoctions eg. poppy, valerian,

• Use of animal extracts.

The invention of writing in the 4th millennium BC:

• Mesopotamia → cuneiform (3400-3200 BC)

• Egypt → Hieroglyphic (3100 BC)

Middle Ages (5th century AD).

Collection and transmission of therapeutic

• The word "Mesopotamia" is derived from the Greek

• Mesopotamia is a historic region of the Middle East,

Mesopotamia is one of the first regions in

– planting of cereals, around 9000 BC.

The place where the first city-states such

The "cradle of civilization

Four great civilizations succeeded one another in

The concept of disease:

Illness is a curse sent by the gods.

• Long technical lists provide information on

• They take the form of sentences describing the

• The oldest medical tablet dates back to the end

• Discovered in 1948 in the ruins of the city of

• This tablet shows that the Sumerian physician

Sea salt (sodium chloride)

The plant world :

• Some forty more recent tablets (11th century BC).

• These prescriptions are mostly aimed at

• Prescriptions are often accompanied

Hieroglyphics Alexander the

• Illness is the physical manifestation of a

• Illness is the cause of death.

Medical papyri are ancient Egyptian texts

Several papyri are available:

• The Smith Papyrus is one of the oldest medical

This text shows that the Egyptians

• The papyrus comprises 110 pages, making

Medical treatise with therapeutic recipes and remedies (Egypt, circa

• Egyptian pharmacopoeia was based on the

2. Substances of plant origin:

2. Substances of plant origin:Laxatives:

3. Substances of animal origin:

-It plays an important role in Chinese

• Pungent-flavored plants (camphor and ginger)

• The products are used in decoctions, potions

1. The Book of Charaka: said to have been