Planet

Treatise on medicine

This unique book is stored in storehouse of rare books of medical academy of New York – “Treatise on medicine”. It is an Egyptian papyrus storing ideas of wise men, living almost 4000 years ago. Stone monuments of Egypt have survived, but the majority of reed manuscripts are lost. It is an outstanding heritage of culture.
Expert James Breasted who has translated this papyrus in 1920, named it "the most ancient in the world display of really scientific knowledge".
“The treatise on medicine” has been exposed in a museum "Metropolitan" at an exhibition "Medicine of ancient Egypt". Visitors could see also some surgical needles and other medical tools which ancient Egyptian doctors used. 
In the manuscript there are councils about honey application - natural antiseptics - on open wounds, tinctures of the lime bark containing natural anaesthetising substances, chemically similar to aspirin.
Since in XIX century American Devin Smith has bought and has translated the papyrus, it amazes those who read it.
The ancient manuscript is written by black and red ink, more abstract, than familiar pictures-hieroglyphs.
The author has described 48 cases from medical practice.
When it is a question of treatment methods of later time, it is found out, that these methods are more aggressive and harmful and less correspond to today's thinking.