Egyptian medicine was already highly advanced by 5000 BCE, and its physicians were highly esteemed. During the Neolithic or last phase of the Stone Age, a flourishing civilization had developed on the fertile banks of the Nile, and around 3100 BCE, King Narmer (or Menes) united what had become the kingdoms of Upper and Lower Egypt. Thirty-three pharaonic dynasties followed, conventionally separated by three intermediate periods into three kingdoms: the Old Kingdom (Dynasties Three to Six, 2687–2181 BCE), the Middle Kingdom (Dynasties Eleven to Thirteen, 2130–1649), and the New Kingdom (Dynasties Eighteen to Twenty-Two, 1550–1070).

Imhotep was the most famous of the early Egyptian physicians, chief vizier to Djoser, the first pharaoh of the Third Dynasty of the Old Kingdom (ca. 2780 BCE). After his death, Imhotep became worshiped as the god of medicine in Egypt as well as in Greece, where he was identified with the god of medicine, Asclepius. During the Fourth Dynasty, the pharaohs Khufu, Khafre, and Menkaure built the famous pyramids at Giza. Egypt became prosperous and powerful during the New Kingdom (ca. 1500–1070 BCE) under the eighteenth dynasty, and its rulers included Queen Hatshepsut, the pharaohs Amenhotep and Thutmose, the heretic Akhenaten, and his son Tutankhamun.

During the Nineteenth Dynasty, its third pharaoh, the great Ramses II, fought the Hittites to a standstill at Kadesh in a battle of 60,000 chariots, followed by the first known peace treaty in history, reigned for ninety years, had over one hundred wives and children, suffered from atherosclerosis and “arthritis,” and was perhaps the pharaoh whom Moses confronted (? 1220 BCE). In time, Egyptian medicine became so advanced that in a personal letter, the Hittite monarch Hattusili III asked the reigning pharaoh to send a doctor to enable his sister to become pregnant. However, after the extinction of the Thirty-First Dynasty, Egypt fell under foreign rule. It became part of the Ottoman Empire in 1517 CE, was controlled by Britain during the nineteenth century, and became an independent republic in 1953.

The training of physicians in ancient Egypt was rigorous. It took place in “Houses of Life,” which served as medical schools and libraries, where they learned empirical observation, surgical skills, and pharmacological knowledge intertwined with religious and magical beliefs about the origins and treatment of disease. After graduation they would combine advanced treatments with the use of amulets and incantations designed to appease the gods and repel evil forces. Priests often served as physicians, and temples functioned as centers of healing, where rituals, prayers, and offerings were employed along with more tangible remedies. The belief in an afterlife influenced medical practices, as preservation of the body through mummification was crucial for the deceased’s journey into the next world.

The Egyptians understood that certain herbs, minerals, and animal products had healing properties. They created an extensive pharmacopeia that included honey (recognized for its antibacterial properties), willow bark (containing salicylic acid, similar to aspirin), and garlic (with antimicrobial qualities). Alcohol was used as an anesthetic and copper salts as anti-infective agents. Surgeons performed oral surgeries and amputations, drained abscesses of pus, treated traumatic injuries, set fractures, sutured wounds, trepanned skulls, and drove out evil spirits using magical spells. Herodotus mentions that physicians were highly specialized, some treating only a single disorder; there were dentists, ophthalmologists, gastroenterologists, and many other specialists. Egyptians also acquired a rudimentary knowledge of the circulatory system, centered on the heart and with blood, air, and bodily waste moving within that system. Natron, aloe, alum, beans, castor oil, chicory, comfrey, pomegranate, and saffron were also used, as well as hyena bile and crocodile dung.

The ancient Egyptians wrote on papyrus, a material that was like thick paper. It was made from the Cyperus papyrus plant and also used in the manufacture of ropes, mats, baskets, and even sandals and boats. Cultivated in the Nile delta, its stalk or stem was collected, cut into thin strips, pressed together, and dried to form a smooth thin writing surface that was used over centuries. As graves were robbed, many of these papyri were eventually lost. The surviving ones have been studied at modern universities, notably at the Humboldt University of Berlin. They contain pharmacopeias, encyclopedias, or formularies, addressing many medical disorders.

The first medical papyrus was recovered in 1862 by Edwin Smith, who bought it from an antiquities dealer in Thebes. It may have been a manual of military medicine and was translated in 1920 by the renowned Egyptologist James Henry Breasted, who suggested it had been written by Imhotep during the Third Dynasty under the reign of the pharaoh Djoser in the twenty-sixth century BCE, though now thought more likely to be of seventeenth-century origin. It is fifteen feet long and deals with surgical cases in quite a scientific manner. It covers forty-eight cases of wounds, injuries, and fractures, arranged from the skull and neck down to the thoracolumbar spine. Six reports deal with injuries to the spinal column and spinal cord, and the papyrus contains over 700 medical formulas and diagnostic observations on diseases of the skin, the heart, depression, and surgical techniques, as well as the use of herbs, minerals, and animal products.

A few years later, in 1875, also in Thebes, the German Egyptologist Georg Ebers acquired what became known as the Ebers Papyrus. Dated from c. 1536 BCE, in the reign of Amenhotep I (second king of the 18th Dynasty), it is 110 pages long; lists over 800 plant remedies; and discusses mental diseases, diseases of the heart, and even diabetes, as well as magical spells and incantations, laxatives and liver stimulants, and some plant preparations still in use such as garlic, juniper, cannabis, castor bean, aloe, and mandrake, myrrh, and licorice.

The Kahun Papyrus, discovered in 1889 by Sir William Petrie (1853–1942), is the oldest medical papyrus, dating to the Twelfth Dynasty, c. 1800 BCE. It contains thirty-four sections that deal with specific obstetrical and gynecological problems, fertility, pregnancy, contraception, and diseases of the uterus, their diagnosis, and treatment. All treatments discussed are non-surgical and include suppositories, massage, and the application of scented oils.

Other papyri with medical information are the Hearst Papyrus, which mentions headaches and digestive problems; the Erman Papyrus addressing childbirth and infants’ care; the London Papyrus, of which 25 of its 61 recipes are regarded medical and deal with diseases of the skin, eyes, bleeding, and burns; the Berlin Papyrus of the 21st century, which discusses a pregnancy test; and the Chester Beatty Medical Papyrus dated around 1200 BCE and dedicated to magical incantations against headaches and anorectal ailments. Other papyri mention eye diseases, skin and urinary tract complaints, diseases of muscles and skin, cirrhosis of the liver from schistosomiasis or excessive alcohol intake, and anal diseases. Ancient Egyptians also suffered from infectious diseases such as tuberculosis, worm infections, snake or scorpion bites; poliomyelitis; leprosy, and plague. They also had kidney stones, worms, parasites, and echinococcus infections as well as dental problems, gum inflammation and abscesses, diabetes, and various kinds of cancers. Their remedies were derived from plants, minerals, and animal sources. Malnutrition was common, as were lead poisoning and scurvy.

The climate of Egypt is one of the most amiable ones in the world. The great Sydenham and his successors have long sent their patients to Egypt to escape the unwholesome English weather. Herodotus called Egypt the “gift of the Nile.” This river flows from the high mountains of Ethiopia to the shores of the Mediterranean, past Khartoum, Aswan, Luxor, Giza, Cairo, and Alexandria, where the body of Alexander the Great lies forever hidden, allegedly preserved in honey. By the banks of the Nile Julius Caesar conquered, Antony and Cleopatra died, the Alexandria library was burned down several times, and its precious manuscripts were distributed by its Arab conqueror Amrou on orders of the caliph Omar from Mecca to the city’s 4,000 bathhouses. Also by the banks of the Nile, the great physician-philosopher Maimonides rode his donkey every day from Fustad to attend the Fatimid Sultan at Cairo. Since time immemorial the Nile has seen the people contend with lymphatic filariasis, malaria, schistosomiasis, hepatitis, dengue, and yellow fever. It has lately witnessed the population on its banks grow to 115 million, which may well present a challenge to future generations of Egyptian medical personnel.

Further reading

• AM Metwaly et al. Traditional Ancient Egyptian medicine. Saudi Journal of Biological Sciences. Oct 2021;28(10):5823-32.
• JA Wilson. Medicine in Ancient Egypt. Bulletin of the History of Medicine. Mar 1962;36(2):114-23.
• RK Ritner. Innovations and Adaptations in Ancient Egyptian Medicine. Journal of Near Eastern Studies. Apr 2000;59(2):107-11.
• D Greydanus, J Merrick. Liver and gallbladder: A historical perspective. International Journal of Child Health and Human Development. 2020;13(3):229-61.