Modern research carried out at the borders of the natural and human sciences makes it possible to find out what people of past eras were ill with and to understand how diseases influenced the course of world history.

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In 1899-1905, in a cave near the city of Krapina (Croatia), anthropologist Karl Goryanovich-Kramberger unearthed more than 900 bones of Neanderthals who lived 120-100 thousand years ago. Not a single complete skeleton or evidence of intentional burial has survived here. This suggested that the Krapina Neanderthals practiced cannibalism. And the presence of gracile and massive individuals among the Krapina Neanderthals gave rise in the first half of the 20th century to the hypothesis that they were an independent species of fossil man. Currently, the site is attributed to the Mousterian Neanderthals. Some bones from the Krapina cave were marked with traces of bone pathology. Currently, they are stored in a specialized museum.

While studying these skeletons, anthropologist David Fryer (University of Kansas) discovered the world's oldest bone tumor. Previously, such tumors older than the Bronze Age were not known in paleopathology. The tumor was discovered in the costal bones belonging to an incomplete skeleton, which did not make it possible to determine whether it was fatal for this person and whether it was secondary or primary. The uniqueness of the discovery is also determined by the fact that in both primates and humans, such tumors are very rare. Macroscopic analysis determined that the bones belonged to an adult male. The radiograph showed the process of destruction of bone tissue with significant damage to the periosteum, trabeculae, filled in healthy people with collagen tissue and bone marrow, were destroyed. X-ray microtomography determined the size of the tumor (24 by 16 mm) and ruled out other pathological causes such as traumatic tumor or osteomyelitis.

The discovery of David Fryer allows us to understand the mechanism of carcinogenesis. Several theories coexist in modern oncology. One of them assigns a leading role in the appearance of malignant neoplasms to carcinogens and substantiates the growth of oncological diseases with environmental factors. The discovery of cancer in Neanderthals living in an ecologically clean environment suggests that this cause is not the main reason for the occurrence of oncology. An explanation may be the genetic theory, which describes cancer as the result of genetic abnormalities that cause cell regeneration. The Neanderthal populations of Europe, and especially those of the periglacial zone, genetically represented rather small number of isolates. Under such conditions, they quickly accumulated lethal anomalies, including oncological ones. A cancer patient from Krapina may indicate the beginning of such a process. At the same time, scientists believe that the disappearance of the Neanderthal as a biological species was the result of the summing effect of many factors, and none of them (demographic, biological, genetic, social, food) can be absolutized.

Bone pathology caused by tuberculosis

Muriel Masson of the University of Edinburgh and her colleagues at the University of Szeged published an osteological and biomolecular study of skeletons from the necropolis of the Neolithic site Hódmezővásárhely-Gorzsa (Tisza culture, 4970-4550 BC). Currently, there are quite a few publications that fix the presence of tuberculosis in prehistoric people who lived in various regions of the Earth, but most of these works are based on macroscopic, rather than biomolecular studies. A rare exception is the study of skeletons from Atlit-Yam. Masson's article largely fills the existing gap. Based on studies of living people and skeletons of people who died in the 19th-20th centuries, it is known that pulmonary pathology caused by tuberculosis manifests itself in the form of symmetrical neoplasms on the bones (Marie-Bamberger syndrome). Such neoplasms were noted on all 70 examined skeletons discovered at the Hódmezővásárhely-Gorzsa settlement, which means that the entire village was ill with tuberculosis. To check whether these neoplasms were caused by tuberculosis, a comprehensive study of the skeleton was carried out with the most striking macroscopic signs of tuberculosis. It was the skeleton of a man 19-20 years old and about 165 cm tall. Such a height can serve as an indirect indication of early or intrauterine infection. In macroscopic analysis, pathology was observed in his skull, chest, spine, upper and lower extremities. Samples weighing about 55 mg of bone tissue were taken from his lower leg, ribs and spine. After identifying the DNA of the mycobacterium of the causative agent of tuberculosis, an analysis was carried out that revealed the presence of traces of mycocerous and mycolipenic acids in the bone, as well as the lipid biomarker HGO-53.

Muriel Masson's research reveals the negative side of the Neolithic revolution in Europe, which consisted in the long-term residence of the same community of people in a limited area. The oldest evidence of tuberculosis is the skeletons of a 25-year-old woman and her one-year-old child, found in the now flooded settlement of Atlit-Yam (Israel, VII millennium BC). They revealed characteristic elements of mycobacteria DNA and mycoline biomarkers of the cell wall. Tuberculosis was also found in the mummies of pre-dynastic Egypt (4th millennium BC). However, most often it was diagnosed in the early medieval period, for example, in the Merovingian villages of Le Ruth de Vigne (Northern France, 500-700 AD) and Czarna Wielka (Poland, ca. 600 AD). The presence of tuberculosis in pre-Columbian America, for example, in the classical Maya (300-900 AD) and in the Tikoman culture, formative period (II-I millennium BC), suggests that infection occurred in the Paleolithic. Large ungulates served as a source of tuberculosis, and recent studies have identified tuberculosis in bison killed by Paleolithic hunters who lived 17,000 years ago in Wyoming. Before the Neolithic revolution, tuberculosis did not have the character of an epidemic. Infection with tuberculosis in the Paleolithic or Mesolithic led to the extinction of a clan or a large family, respectively, but with the advent of large settlements, the entire village could eventually die out from one patient.

Skeletons with lesions of tuberculosis

Paleomedicine data allow us to say that tuberculosis has become a significant problem for Europe in the Neolithic-Bronze Age. It was revealed during a macroscopic examination in women 15 and 30 years old from the Arena Candide cave (Liguria, ca. 3750 BC), in a man from Mierzanowice (Poland, ca. 3000 BC), as well as in Germany and Hungary (Alsónyék-Bátaszék, 5th millennium BC and Vésztő-Mágor, 4th millennium BC). Among the unfavorable factors that contributed to the development of tuberculosis in Europe are the damper and colder climate of the Balkan-Danube region compared to the Middle East and the poor adaptability of the Neolithic population that came to Europe from Asia Minor. We also note that the transition to a productive economy was associated with significant genetic changes in populations, such as the emergence of the ability to digest milk and dairy products, which led to a significant decrease in immunity. All these factors held back the spread of the Neolithic revolution to the west and north. The northwestern wave of migrations of the Balkan-Danubian Neolithic (linear-band ceramics culture) was mainly represented by individual farms, consisting of one (rarely several) large-family farms. The settlements of the northeastern wave of the Balkan-Danubian Neolithic (Tripolye-Kukuteni culture) in the first phase of its development were rather insignificant. The appearance of large proto-cities, such as the Maidanets settlement, was due to the need for defense against Indo-European migration. None of these settlements contained more than one archaeological layer (that is, did not last more than 40-50 years) and was always blocked by fire. It is possible that extinction from tuberculosis was the reason for the termination of life in the settlement, and the ritual burning of the settlement was a preventive measure aimed at stopping the spread of the disease. Since tuberculosis is tenacious and cumulative, it is likely that the movement of the Neolithic "frontier" in Europe was caused not only by overpopulation, but also by the desire to leave the infected settlements for new, healthier lands, but the settlers also carried tuberculosis with them.

Leprosy (leprosy) is considered one of the oldest diseases. In Medieval Europe, it caused damage comparable to plague epidemics. And, unlike the plague, leprosy has not yet been defeated - every year 200 thousand people fall ill with it in the world. The first reliable mention of leprosy occurs in the Vedas, written around 600 BC, although some scholars suggest that it was known to both the Egyptians (Ebers Papyrus, 1550 BC) and the authors of the Old Testament (VII -VI century BC). A study of the oldest skeleton with traces of leprosy was published in 2009 by a group of scientists led by anthropologist Gwen Robbins from the University of Appalachia (North Carolina). The skeleton was found during the excavations of the Balathal settlement (3700-1200 BC), either a former Harappan colony or under significant Harappan influence (ceramics, copper implements, crafts, architecture, weapons). The burial dates back to 2000 BC. The difference between this burial and other burials of the settlement is that it was made in a mountain of ash left from the burning of dry manure. Ethnographic data show that those who died of leprosy in some regions of India were not cremated after death, but were buried in similar heaps, which were burned much later than the burial. Such burials are known in Northwest India and the Southern Deccan from the Neolithic to the early Iron Age (800-500 BC). In the Iron Age they are synchronous with the megalithic monuments. Thus, we are talking about the continuity of the cultural tradition of attitude towards the corpses of lepers, which suggests that leprosy appeared earlier than the end of the 3rd millennium BC.

This is also supported by comparative genomics, which revealed two areas of leprosy (East Africa and South Asia), each of which corresponds to a specific pathogen genotype: the Asian strain (type I) differs significantly from the African strain (type II). At the same time, the African strain is much more variable, and this suggests that the causative agent of the disease originated in East Africa about 40 thousand years ago, penetrated from there to South Asia, and further to Europe (type III). From Europe, type III came to West Africa (where it mutated into type IV) and America. The timing of leprosy migration to Asia is debatable. Some scientists suggest that it occurred during the late Pleistocene settlement of the Cro-Magnon, others tend to date the migration of leprosy to Asia to the Eneolithic time, when trade routes were formed between Egypt, Mesopotamia, Central Asia (Turan), Arabia (Dilmun and Magan) and India (Meluhkha).

The time of the existence of this common ancestor was dated to the border of the III and II millennium BC, that is, approximately the time that the burial of the leper from Balathal is dated. Comparison of East Asian strains of leprosy with American strains showed significant differences: East Asian strains are type II, while American strains were introduced by European colonists (type III) and slaves from West Africa (type IV). This means that leprosy did not participate in the Paleolithic settlement of the Americas.

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Chronic diseases were known in ancient Egypt. In the Ebers Medical Papyrus, dated to the 16th century. BC e., contains descriptions of pathologies of the gastrointestinal tract, cardiovascular, genitourinary and respiratory systems. There is also mention of neoplasms. The Ebers Papyrus calls them incurable.

In general, the set of chronic diseases that people of Antiquity and the Middle Ages suffered from was not much different from modern ailments. Another thing is that modern medicine successfully copes with many of them. And those diseases that used to mean suffering and death are now completely curable.

It would be wrong to say that people of antiquity and the Middle Ages were completely unaware of chronic diseases due to the short life expectancy that was associated with difficult living conditions and epidemics of deadly infections. Of course, this factor played a role. At the same time, chronic diseases were quite common. With a low level of development of medicine, they often led to disability and death.

Chronic diseases were known in ancient Egypt. In the Ebers Medical Papyrus, dated to the 16th century. BC e., contains descriptions of pathologies of the gastrointestinal tract, cardiovascular, genitourinary and respiratory systems.

The ancient Greek physician Hippocrates (460 - 370 BC) devoted his work "On the Sacred Disease" to one of the most common chronic neurological diseases - epilepsy. In those days, it was believed that it was caused by the divine will. People with epilepsy were credited with supernatural powers. Hippocrates sought to rationally explain its occurrence. He wrote: "The disease called sacred is no more sacred than the rest, but has natural causes." Hippocrates believed that epilepsy attacks were provoked by the sun, winds and cold, which changed the consistency of the brain. Also in his work, Hippocrates gave a description of the symptoms of bronchial and cardiac asthma. He did not consider them as independent diseases. Asthmatic suffocation was regarded by him as part of an epileptic attack.

Attitudes towards epilepsy changed with the advent of the Middle Ages. The Christian church considered it, along with psychosis and schizophrenia, a manifestation of diabolical possession. This opinion was laid down during the decline of the Roman Empire. Archbishop of Constantinople John Chrysostom (347 - 407), in a letter to the hermit Stagirius, who was considered possessed by demons, indicated several signs of demonic possession, reminiscent of the symptoms of epilepsy. He wrote "about writhing in the hands, about the curvature of the eyes, about the foam on the lips, about the terrible and slurred voice, shaking of the body, prolonged fainting." A similar description of possession is contained in the writings of Bishop Cyril of Alexandria (376-444).

For the treatment of epilepsy, as well as other nervous and mental disorders, the church in the Middle Ages used its own methods of treatment, designed to expel demons from a person - holy water, special prayers and pilgrimage to sacred places. Of course, they did not lead to recovery.

Physicians of Antiquity and the Middle Ages were familiar with such a disease as diabetes. It was first described by an ancient Roman physician of the 2nd century BC. Aretaeus of Cappadocia. He pointed to symptoms such as frequent urination and unquenchable thirst. Areteus wrote: "The fluid does not remain in the body, using it as a ladder in order to leave it as soon as possible." The name of the disease was given by his contemporary, the Greek physician Demetrios from Apamania. It comes from the word "diabaino" - "I pass through." Diabetes has been treated for centuries with herbal medicines and exercise. But such methods were unproductive. Many patients died. At the same time, among them were mainly people with type 1 diabetes, that is, insulin-dependent.

Another disease well known to the people of the past was rheumatism. Hippocrates described it in sufficient detail. He believed that the disease was caused by a special poisonous fluid "coming from the brain and spreading to the bones and joints." From the Greek word "rheuma", which means "flow, flow", the modern name of the disease came from. It was first used by an ancient Roman physician of the 2nd century BC. Claudius Galen. For a long time, rheumatism was called any damage to the joints. For the first time he singled it out as a separate disease in the 17th century. Guillaume de Baillou (1538 - 1616), personal physician of the French king Henry IV. He emphasized that joint pathologies can be the result of damage to the whole organism.

Various skin diseases were widespread. In his writings, Hippocrates actively used the term “psora”, which was common at that time, which means “itch” in translation. It meant a number of dermatological diseases, including chronic ones, manifested by tuberosity on the skin, the appearance of a rash, horny scales and spots. These included eczema, lichen, fungal infections, leprosy and lupus. Hippocrates explained their occurrence as a violation of the balance of fluids in the body. Later, Claudius Galen in his works classified skin diseases by localization. He singled out diseases of the scalp, hands and feet. To refer to pathologies characterized by the growth of scales on the skin and severe itching, Galen introduced the term "psoriasis", derived from the Greek word used by Hippocrates.

In the Middle Ages, chronic dermatological diseases did not differ. They were often identified with severe infections similar in symptoms. Psoriasis and eczema were considered among the manifestations of leprosy. In this regard, patients were isolated from society in leper colonies. They needed to carry a bell or rattle with them to notify other people of their approach.

In medieval treatises, a disease called "noli me tangere" (translated from Latin - "do not touch me") is repeatedly mentioned. The term referred to a range of pathologies, including lupus, various types of warts, and skin tumors. All of them were considered incurable.

Despite the difficulty in distinguishing between dermatological diseases, medieval physicians managed to contribute to the accumulation of knowledge about skin diseases. The French surgeon Guy de Chauliac (1298 - 1368), who served as papal physician during the Captivity of Avignon, classified five types of ringworm. His research was considered the only true one until the 19th century.

Separately, it should be said about venereal diseases. Before the large-scale epidemic of syphilis at the end of the 15th - the first half of the 16th centuries. one of the most common diseases was gonorrhea. It is mentioned in the Old Testament Book of Leviticus. Disease was seen as a source of ritual impurity. At the same time, sanitary measures were described to prevent infection of others: “And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: declare to the children of Israel and say to them: if anyone has a discharge from his body, then he is unclean from his discharge. And this is the law of his uncleanness from his outflow: when his outflow flows out of his body, and when his outflow is delayed in his body, it is his uncleanness; every bed on which the one with the issue lies is unclean, and every thing on which the one with the issue sits is unclean; and whoever touches his bed must wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean until evening; whoever sits on any thing on which one who has a discharge sits, he must wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean until evening; and whoever touches the body of one that has a discharge, he must wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean until evening.”

Ancient doctors described gonorrhea as an inflammatory process of the urethra with purulent and bloody discharge. According to one version, the ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus died from complications of the disease - a two-week urinary retention caused by a narrowing of the urethra.

The term gonorrhea was coined by Claudius Galen. It is formed from two ancient Greek words, "gonos" - "seed" and "rheo" - "flow". This was due to the fact that the doctors of Antiquity mistakenly considered gonorrhea to be an involuntary flow of sperm.

The disease was well known in the medieval East. Doctors recommended douching the urethra with lead solutions and flushing the bladder with a silver syringe for his treatment.

One of the references to gonorrhea is associated with the Third Crusade. During the siege of Acre (1189 - 1191), symptoms similar to gonorrhea were observed among its participants. In the XII - XIII centuries. signs of the disease were described in their writings by representatives of the Salerno medical school. The Italian surgeon Guglielmo da Saliceto (1210 - 1277) mentioned ulcers of sexual origin.

Realizing the contagiousness of the disease and its relationship with sexual activity, various legislative measures were taken in European countries to combat the infection. In 1161, the English Parliament issued an ordinance to reduce the spread of the "dangerous infirmity of burning." The Bishop of Winchester, who was the owner and patron of London brothels, took his own measures. In 1162, he forbade prostitutes who had "any disease accompanied by burning" to receive visitors. Similar measures were taken in France. King Louis IX the Saint in 1256 issued an ordinance punishing exile for the spread of gonorrhea.

Modern ideas about ancient medicine are based primarily on the fossil remains of prehistoric people and their tools, as well as on the practices of primitive peoples that have survived to the present.

The fossil remains show signs of bone deformation, fractures, osteitis, osteomyelitis, arthritis, rickets, and tuberculosis. For other diseases, there is no reliable information, but it is quite possible that most modern diseases existed in antiquity.

In primitive medicine, disease was based on assumptions about the supernatural influence of sorcerers or evil spirits. Therefore, the treatment was appropriate: magic spells, incantations, chants and various rituals. Evil spirits were scared away by masks and noise. Until now, magical medicine has been practiced in some parts of Australia and central Africa, as well as on the islands of Polynesia.

Magical medicine was the basis for the emergence of the first human profession - quackery. People who were engaged in treatment formed a special social group, shrouded in mystery. It should be noted that with such a great belief in the supernatural, many of the superstitions of the ancients contained an empirical grain. Thus, in particular, the Incas were well aware of the therapeutic properties of mate tea, the stimulating effect of cocoa, as well as the effects of guarana and herbal drugs.

And the North American Indians, despite the use of spells and witchcraft for treatment, at the same time were armed with quite effective healing techniques. So, for example, for fever they used diuretics, purgatives, diaphoretics, a liquid diet, and bloodletting. In case of indigestion, plants with laxative, emetic properties were used, and an enema was also made. The Indians used a total of 144 medicinal substances, of which most are used in modern pharmacology. The Indians were especially skilled in surgery: they put splints on fractures, set dislocations, stitched them, kept wounds clean, used poultices and cauterizations.

The Aztecs also applied splints and also used surgical instruments made of stone. In general, it should be noted that primitive people, who used pointed stones as tools, showed amazing surgical skill. There is evidence that amputations were already performed in antiquity. Quite normal and common were such operations as circumcision, castration and stapling, as well as ... craniotomy.

Skulls with traces of trepanation have been found in Australia, Japan, the Malay Peninsula, and China. Until now, trepanation has been used by some primitive peoples of Algeria, the Caucasus, and also by those who live on the islands of the Pacific Ocean. With the help of trepanation, headaches, epilepsy, and insanity were treated.

The birthplace of the oldest civilizations in the world is Mesopotamia. Despite the fact that some scholars claim that there were no doctors among the Babylonians, this contradicts the archaeological evidence that the Sumero-Akkadian civilization had a fairly high level of medical development. It is likely that Sumerian medicine preceded Egyptian medicine, because the seal of a Sumerian doctor found during excavations has been dated to the millennium BC.

Medicine remained magical, doctors were called "asu" (one who owns water). In Sumerian medicine, a lot of empirical professional knowledge was accumulated. The doctors of this civilization used more than 300 medicines: wood, plant shoots, roots, herbs, seeds, minerals, plant juices. Some of them had a special purpose.

The therapeutic effect of many drugs is beyond doubt. So, for example, massage was advised for stomach pains, enemas - for inflammation. For some diseases, diet, rest and sleep were recommended, as well as cold and hot compresses, poultices. An important role was played by astrology, which was closely associated with the prognosis of diseases. Thus, in most cases, the signs of the disease were listed on the tablets before the indication of the remedy.

According to the evidence that has survived to our time, it is obvious that the civilizations of Mesopotamia suffered from diseases of the eyes, gastrointestinal tract, heart, gallbladder, as well as mental disorders and bone diseases. Doctors constituted a special social stratum, and their activities were regulated by law. Thus, the code of Hammurabi defines severe punishments for improper treatment and lists rewards if the patient was cured.

As for Egyptian medicine, its beginning is shrouded in mystery. The god of wisdom Thoth was considered the author of 6 books on medicine. Unfortunately, none of them survived. The first physician in Egypt was Sekhetienanakh, who cured "the nostrils of the king." More famous was Imhotep, the vizier of Pharaoh Djoser, a famous architect, a great physician. Demigod and patron of medicine.

In Egypt, physicians were also priests. It was a separate caste, and medical schools existed independently of the temples. Egyptian medicine is mostly known from the Ebers and Smith papyri that have come down to us. In addition to medical topics, they contain more than 900 prescriptions and prescriptions. They also contain descriptions of the treatment of bruises and wounds, texts on pediatrics and gynecology.

As long as the doctor adhered to the rules written in the Hermetic Books, no accusation could touch him, even if the patient died. At the slightest deviation from these rules, the doctor was punished with death.

Despite the fairly widespread practice of autopsy and embalming of the dead, the knowledge of physiologists and anatomy among the Egyptians was rather meager. Such a contradiction is explained by the presence of many taboos regarding the dead, as well as the fact that special specialists, and not doctors, were engaged in embalming. At the same time, ideas about diseases were also at a low level and were based, as a rule, on the idea of ​​invading evil spirits. An essential part of healing was magic spells, incantations and chants. In addition to demons, the ingress of harmful substances into the body and the weather were also attributed to the causes of diseases.

At the same time, the diagnosis was carried out at a very high level, the pulse was felt from several places (that is, the Egyptians had ideas about blood circulation). They considered the heart a vital organ, and breathing the most important function. Assistance depended on the severity of the disease. So, in particular, head injuries and fractures were considered fatal and were not treated.
For each disease, their drugs and their exact dosage were prescribed. Some of these remedies are used in our time (saffron, opium, olive and castor oil). Surgical operations were rarely performed, because it was necessary to preserve the body for the afterlife. Therefore, dislocations were set, splints were applied for fractures, but nothing was amputated.
Cleanliness and diet were part of the religious precepts. However, eye diseases, worms, rheumatoid arthritis, and tuberculosis of the spine were quite common in ancient Egypt. At the same time, there is no evidence of the spread of rickets, caries or syphilis.

Egypt was recognized as the birthplace of the first doctors - narrow specialists. There were a lot of doctors in the state, each treated only his own disease: head, eyes, intestines, teeth.

In ancient Hebrew medicine, in comparison with the medical practice of Babylon and Egypt, new methods of treatment and new concepts appeared, in particular, the complete rejection of the magical approach. Both health and sickness are sent by God. The roles of the priest and the doctor were mixed, but this did not prevent the development of medical professionalism. There is little mention of medicine in the Bible, and they mostly refer to the application of ointments and dressings to wounds or splints for fractures.

At the same time, hygiene requirements and disease prevention reach a very high level. Religious ceremonies included washing hands before eating, daily ablutions. Laws were developed in case of skin diseases: wash the clothes of the patient or burn the patient himself to isolate. And the mention of the plague, rats and the description of buboes may indicate that the ancient Jews already noted some connection between the plague and rats.

In ancient Persia, there was no knowledge of anatomy, and the attitude towards diseases was based on magic and religion. The so-called medicine was practiced exclusively by the priests of the god Mazda, and the treatment consisted of prayers, cleansing ceremonies and rituals. Punishments were established for medical errors, and rewards for successful treatment.

There is no exact data about medicine in ancient India, since it is mentioned only in legends. It is known that special spells were used against the demons of diseases.

One of the most famous physicians of ancient India was Sushruta, who left descriptions of more than a hundred surgical instruments, as well as a list of 760 medicinal plants. He also wrote about tuberculosis, plague, malaria, and smallpox. It is generally accepted that it was he who discovered the connection between malaria and mosquitoes and between plague and rats.

Indian medical thought of that period was characterized by a desire for detailed classification. So, for example, in surgery, the direction, type and depth of the incision for each organ is strictly prescribed. Causes of disease included accidents, climate, karma, and overeating.
The diagnosis of each disease was made very carefully, using palpation, examination, listening. Dangerous symptoms were numbered. The treatment was carried out with the use of bloodletting, medicinal plants of leeches, cupping, as well as laxatives and emetics and enemas. Particular attention was paid to adherence to the regimen and diet.

Knowledge of anatomy was very weak. For example, it was believed that blood vessels and nerves start from the navel. At the same time, surgery was developed very well, operations were performed to remove hernias, tonsils, tumors, amputations, stone section, caesarean section. Quite often, plastic surgery of the nose was performed (removal of the nose was a punishment for adultery or revenge).

Hygiene also played a big role. In the laws of Manu, a diet, washings were prescribed. In surgery, various instruments and sutures, ligation of blood vessels were used.

Chinese medicine is also shrouded in legends. Emperor Shen Nong is considered its founder, who described more than 100 medicinal herbs, and also invented the technique of acupuncture.

Initially, Chinese medicine was magical, but in the course of development it has accumulated a lot of empirical knowledge about herbal medicines. The basis of medical theory was the doctrine of the 5 elements and the forces of yin and yang (feminine and masculine).

Chinese doctors did not practice autopsy, but at the same time they knew about blood circulation.

In the diagnosis, the pulse played the main role, it was measured in 11 places using three different pressures. 200 varieties of pulse were known, 26 of which were considered fatal.

The therapy was based on the opposition of yin and yang, the doctrine of signs was very popular (yellow flowers were used to treat jaundice, beans were used to treat kidneys). At the same time, out of more than 2 thousand recipes, some were very valuable and are still used today. So, arsenic was used for skin diseases, iron salts for anemia, mercury for the treatment of syphilis ...

This is only a brief overview of the development of medical thought and practice in the ancient world. It is necessary to mention Ancient Greece and Rome, but you cannot say in a few words about the development of medicine in these states. But the important thing about all this is that in all these civilizations, in the complete absence of the necessary equipment and knowledge, people wanted to know more. It is very sad that in the modern world this desire is gradually atrophying...

Doctors should work under the motto “do no harm,” but history shows that sometimes this is easier said than done. While ancient physicians were remarkably skilled with injuries, illnesses and ailments, they often resorted to some downright heartbreaking methods in an attempt to heal their patients. Learn more about what non-traditional technologies were used by doctors in antiquity.

1. Bloodletting

For thousands of years, doctors have been convinced that all diseases appear in the body due to “bad blood”. Most likely, bloodletting was first used by the ancient Sumerians and Egyptians, but it did not become a common practice until the time of Ancient Greece and Rome. Influential physicians such as Hippocrates and Galen claimed that the human body is filled with four kinds of basic substances, or "juices." These are yellow bile, black bile, mucus and blood, and they must be balanced in order to maintain good health. Therefore, patients with fever or other diseases were diagnosed with excessive amounts of blood. To restore bodily harmony, the doctor simply cut a vein and drained part of the blood into a vessel. Sometimes they used leeches that sucked blood directly from the skin.

Although such practices could easily lead to death due to blood loss, bloodletting was alive in medical practice well into the 19th century. Medieval physicians prescribed it as a treatment for everything from sore throats to the plague, and many barbers offered this service along with cutting and shaving beards. The practice finally fell out of fashion when new research confirmed it was doing more harm than good. Despite this, controlled bloodletting is still used today as a treatment for some rare diseases.

2. Trepanation

The operations that mankind carried out in ancient times are also terrible. 7,000 years ago, mankind around the world was engaged in trepanation - this is the practice of drilling holes in the skull, which were supposed to be a means of treating diseases. Researchers do not know how or why this form of surgery was first developed. According to a common theory, this could have been a form of tribal ritual, or even a method of getting rid of evil spirits that were believed to inhabit the sick and mentally ill. Some scholars argue that these may have been routine surgeries used to treat headaches, epilepsy, abscesses, and blood clots. Trepanned skulls found in Peru suggest that such operations could be done to clean up bone fragments left after a skull fracture. The findings show that many patients were able to survive the operation.

3. Mercury

Mercury is widely known for its toxic properties. However, it was once used as an elixir in local medicine. In ancient Persia and Greece, mercury was considered a useful ointment, and among Chinese alchemists of the second century, liquid mercury and its red sulfide were especially valued for their supposed ability to increase life expectancy and vitality. Some healers promised that by consuming harmful concoctions containing mercury, sulfur, and arsenic, patients could gain eternal life and even be able to walk on water. Even the Chinese emperor Qin Shi Huang fell victim to these advices, who allegedly died from a mercury pill, hoping that it would make him immortal.

From the Renaissance to the early 20th century, mercury was often used as a treatment for sexually transmitted diseases. While some records claim that mercury was successful in fighting infection, patients died from liver and kidney diseases that were triggered by mercury.

4. Manure ointments

The ancient Egyptians had a surprisingly well-organized medical system, where physicians specialized in the treatment of specific diseases. However, the medicines they prescribed were not quite common. Dead mice, lizard blood, moldy bread and mud were often used as dressing ointments, and horse saliva was sometimes used by women as a libido remedy.

But the most disgusting thing is that Egyptian doctors recommended the excrement of people and animals as a panacea for diseases and injuries. According to the Ebers papyrus, before 1500 BC. e. the manure of dogs, gazelles and donkeys was highly valued for its beneficial properties and ability to ward off evil spirits. Although such drugs can lead to tetanus and other infections, they are not completely ineffective. Studies have confirmed that some types of manure contain microflora that has an antibiotic effect.

5 Cannibal Medicines

Suffering from headaches, muscle spasms and stomach ulcers? If you lived in ancient times, then the doctor would most likely advise you an elixir consisting of human flesh, blood and bones. So-called cadaveric medicine has been a common practice for hundreds of years. In Rome, it was believed that epilepsy could be cured with the blood of dead gladiators, and apothecaries of the 12th century always kept a supply of an extract made from mummies that were stolen in Egypt. Meanwhile, in 17th-century England, King Charles II was famous for taking the King's Drops. This restorative kvass was made from a crushed human skull and alcohol.

Medicines of this type were attributed magical properties. Using the remains of the deceased, a person also receives a part of his spirit, and this leads to an increase in vitality and well-being. The type of treatment prescribed tended to correspond to the type of ailment. The skull was used against migraines, and human fat against muscle pain. But getting a "fresh" supply of drugs was a dreadful process. In some cases, the sick person even visited the places of execution, hoping to receive the blood of the murdered person.

6. Wandering uterus

The doctors of ancient Greece believed that the female uterus is a creature that lives on its own mind. The writings of Plato and Hippocrates pointed out that if a woman is celibate for a long time, her uterus, described as an “animal” eager to give birth to children, can shift and wander freely through the body, causing suffocation, convulsions and tantrums. This curious diagnosis eventually caught on even among the Romans and Byzantines.

To prevent such a sad fate, women were advised to marry young and have as many children as they could. But if, nevertheless, the disease could not be avoided, and the uterus “separated and wandered” around the body, doctors prescribed special baths, infusions and massages that were supposed to return it to its place. They could also fumigate the patient's head with sulfur and resin, while rubbing a pleasant-smelling lotion between her thighs - according to the logic of the ancient doctors, the uterus had to "escape" from unpleasant odors and return to its place.

7. Skull treatment

The ancient Babylonians considered most diseases the result of the intervention of demonic forces or punishment from the gods for past transgressions. Their healers had more in common with priests and exorcists. In the very same process of treatment, there were components of magic. For example, if a person gnashed his teeth in a dream, the doctor assumed that this was the ghost of a deceased relative trying to contact him. According to ancient texts, a doctor might recommend sleeping on a human skull for a week to exorcise the spirit. For the treatment to work, the sick person also had to kiss and lick the skull every night.

Mankind has learned to truly cure its diseases not so long ago. In any case, not before the intensive development of science and technology began. This is how it is considered. Meanwhile, professional healing has existed since time immemorial. Modern medicine owes much of its development to the medical art of Sumer and Ancient Greece.

Sumerian copybooks

Desert. Under the scorching rays of the sun, the caravan moves slowly. Exasperated by the heat, the camels tread heavily on the hot sand. Drivers sway wearily on their backs. Two weeks of travel completely exhausted the shaven-headed man in long robes sitting on the first camel. On his side he has a large bag with medicines and tools. This is a doctor ... Perhaps this is what the ambulance of ancient Mesopotamia looked like, “hurrying” to the patient.

However, it was so long ago that the Greek historian Herodotus, who lived in the 5th century BC, spoke of the medical heritage of Mesopotamia as a very primitive form of medicine. Although in the ancient world, Sumerian and Assyro-Babylonian physicians were very famous. Sometimes they even made trips abroad to help high-ranking persons. For example, an Assyrian physician was sent to the seriously ill Egyptian pharaoh Amenhotep III (XV century BC). And in 1300 BC. one of the Babylonian doctors traveled to Asia Minor to treat the king of the Hittites.

Medical knowledge in ancient Mesopotamia was transmitted orally. And only approximately in the middle of the Bronze Age (III-II millennium BC) they began to be written on the tablets in the famous cuneiform. The tablets were made of clay - the only material in this part of the world that was always at hand. The oldest of the medical texts that have come down to us on such an information carrier was discovered by an American archaeological expedition in 1889, during excavations of the Sumerian city of Nippur (160 km from modern Baghdad). The tablet found here, dated to the end of the 3rd millennium BC, is the oldest "pharmacopoeia" in the history of mankind.

In 145 lines, 15 recipes in the Sumerian language fit in. Judging by the text, the healers of Mesopotamia were great connoisseurs of flora and fauna. For medicinal purposes, they used a variety of herbs, roots, seeds (their experts counted about 50 species), vegetables, leaves and fruits of trees. And among the products of animal origin mentioned in the recipes, there are completely exotic ones, for example, mongoose blood, tortoise shell, goat skin, sheep excrement. Ancient healers did not ignore mineral substances (oil, natural resin, table salt). The laconic text of the tablet speaks of the thoroughness with which the doctor approached the treatment of diseases.

Mesopotamian Recipe #12

“Sieve and mix well the crushed tortoise shell, shoots of the leg plant (from which soda is extracted - Approx. Aut.), salt and mustard. Wash the sore spot with strong beer (it was then used exclusively as a remedy - ed.) and hot water. Rub the sore spot with the prepared composition, then rub with vegetable oil and overlay with powdered fir needles.

Unfortunately, the tablet does not contain indications for which ailments this recipe should be used (one must think that this was known to any more or less knowledgeable healer). However, modern doctors, if they wished to use the Sumerian recipes, it would be difficult to get, for example, the blood of a mongoose. With other components, say, the excrement of small ruminants, as well as cattle, the situation is simpler.

Bits of Knowledge

It is clear that in the absence of electron microscopes and computers, the properties of medicinal drugs had to be investigated empirically, that is, through trial and error, as well as using the experience gained by previous generations.

The vital essence of people was then considered, first of all, blood, which was divided into “day blood” (meaning arterial) and “night blood” (venous). Great importance was also attached to the heart, liver, kidneys, intestines, stomach. At the same time, organs such as the bladder and spleen were clearly ignored, and nerves were not distinguished from tendons at all. A certain property was attributed to each organ, and some were endowed with the ability to control mental unrest and mental activity. For example, it was believed that the ears and eyes control attention, the heart controls the mind, the liver controls mood, the stomach is responsible for cunning, the nose for arrogance.

Some scientists suggest that glasses already existed at that time, that is, the properties of ground lenses were known. Apparently, ancient doctors made them for rich and noble patients who suffered from nearsightedness or farsightedness. Evidence of this can serve as a convex lens found in the ruins of the palace on the site of the Assyrian city of Kalhu. This item, made of rock crystal, proved to be an excellent magnifying glass.

Harsh law, but law

Representations of healers about the causes of diseases were divided into several categories. Most often, ailments were associated with a violation of the rules of behavior accepted in society - ritual, moral and other prescriptions. Here, for example, how the conclusion of an ancient doctor could sound: “He approached a married woman. Within three days he will recover and will live. In addition, the influence of various contacts with the environment was taken into account: eating unhealthy food, bathing in dirty water. Religious beliefs (“the hand of God”, “the intrigues of the evil spirit”, etc.) made their contribution.

By the way, none of the medical texts of ancient Mesopotamia mentions operations such as tooth extraction, intravital caesarean section, craniotomy. This, of course, does not mean that operations were not performed in those days. They were mentioned in other documents - collections of laws that have come down to us carved on a basalt pillar two and a half meters high. Some of the provisions directly relate to the activities of doctors. An example of an ancient code is the laws of Hammurabi, the sixth Babylonian king, who ruled in the 18th century BC.

The talion that existed in Mesopotamia (the principle of correspondence between the damage caused and the punishment due for it: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth) turned healing into a rather dangerous occupation. In the event of an unfavorable outcome of treatment, the doctor could be subjected to a rather severe punishment. “If a doctor makes a deep incision with a bronze knife and thereby causes death to him or, removing a thorn with a bronze knife, injures a person’s eyes, then he should cut off his hands,” says one of the laws of Hammurabi. That's it, short and clear.

The harsh laws of Mesopotamia, apparently, not only raised the responsibility of doctors for the health and life of the patient to the proper level, but also regulated their number. One way or another, there were significantly fewer doctors there than magic spellcasters, who also considered themselves involved in medicine. In the library of Ashurbanipal, the Assyrian king of the 7th century BC. (and this ruler created a huge repository of cuneiform texts in the capital of his state, Nineveh), a collection of spells was discovered on 40 clay tablets under the general title "When the caster goes to the sick man's house." Judging by these texts, the art of the spellcaster is akin to modern psychotherapy, but differs from it in the active use of various drugs.

Sometimes, during the ritual, the caster sculpted from clay, resin, wax, dough, or made figurines of evil spirits from wood and burned them to expel the disease. The spellcasters had so many magical texts that, for the convenience of searching, they were grouped into sections (“Release from Enchantment”, “Getting Rid of Evil Spirits”) and even created special catalogs. Usually, even before the start of treatment, the caster made a prognosis, determining the disease and its causes, and if the patient was hopeless, the “healer” left without starting healing. In most cases, the prognosis was unfavorable: “he will die”, “he will not recover”, etc.

Secular medicine of Hellas

Unlike the Sumerian, Babylonian and Assyrian medicines of ancient Greece, free from magic tricks and spells, it was originally secular. However, in every locality there were cult objects and places (trees, water sources, caves and, of course, temples), to which sick Greeks flocked, hoping for healing.

Greek medicine originates in the Crete-Mycenaean era, but the first reliable information about it dates back to the 12th century BC. (period of the Trojan War). Homer's poems describe 141 injuries to the human body (wounds, bruises, suppuration, consequences of poisonous snake bites, etc.). In fact, the first Greek healers who left a mark on history were surgeons who removed enemy arrows from the bodies of soldiers, stopped bleeding, sewed up and bandaged wounds, while using painkillers. In ancient Greece, as well as in Sumer, it was forbidden to dissect the dead, and yet many medical terms from the Iliad and Odyssey entered the anatomical dictionary and are still used by physicians.

During the period of its highest prosperity, that is, in the 5th century BC, in Ancient Greece there were several categories of doctors, including military surgeons, court healers and the so-called periodeuses. The latter did not tie their medical practice to a specific place, but moved from polis to polis, acting at their own peril and risk. Sometimes they worked for several years in one policy as a public doctor, who was usually elected by the people's assembly after a preliminary examination.

The city provided special premises for the work of public doctors hired. Here, the patients were provided mainly with surgical care, the same diseases that did not require surgical intervention were more often treated at home. The office was a large bright room, equipped with copper bathtubs and a variety of medical equipment. I must say that even then doctors used a fairly large set of medical instruments and devices. Among them are jars for ointments, scalpels, various coasters, brushes, ear spoons and probes, scissors, toothbrushes, sponges, bandages, klisters.

The main thing is to believe

Perhaps one of the most interesting methods of treatment in the asclepeions was based on the so-called incubation. He practiced in special rooms - abatons. This was the name of the long covered galleries that stretched along the walls of the temple. No one could enter here without special permission. The patient was introduced into a state of "artificial sleep" (apparently, hypnosis or trance) with the help of a drug or hypnotic influence. Then a real theatrical performance unfolded: the god Asclepius himself appeared in the “operating room” - he was represented by a disguised doctor who performed the operation with his own hands. True, in the enlightened circles of ancient Greece, the attitude towards the ritual was very skeptical. In the temples, secular doctors were “advised”, and even operated on, whose services were resorted to in especially difficult cases.

Although the ancient Greek physicians favored rational methods of treatment, the Greeks, in fact, did not see much difference between secular medicine and healing in the temples. They believed in their gods and their healing power. And the fact that, for example, during celebrations in honor of Dionysius, the god of winemaking, Athenian citizens gladly exposed the most important god Zeus to ridicule, meant absolutely nothing. You could laugh as much as you wanted, you couldn't not believe it. Unbelief was considered impiety, for which a strict Areopagus court punished. Such views, of course, influenced the ethical views of secular doctors. For example, according to the unwritten rules, the doctor was not supposed to start seeing a patient with a discussion of the amount of his remuneration. Sometimes it was even appropriate to treat for free, because a good memory is more important than material values.

Portrait of an authoritative doctor

The Greeks attached great importance to the appearance of the doctor and his behavior in society. “The doctor will have more authority if he is well-looking and well-fed according to his nature, for those who themselves cannot take care of their bodies are considered incapable of taking proper care of others,” we read in one of the ancient medical treatises. The knowledge that was considered indispensable for this profession was not limited to medical science. The doctor was obliged to know the properties of the surrounding nature, winds, water, the laws of sunrise and sunset, since "astronomy has a considerable relation to medical art, because people's diseases change with the seasons."