Alternative voices in Babylonian Medicine

Abstract

The usual approach to Babylonian medical writings is to assume a monolithic corpus of data presented in either recipes, lists of drugs, or collections of symptoms for prognosis and diagnosis. Despite the lengthy period of documentation of Babylonian medicine, no attempt has been made to view the acquisition of Akkadian medical knowledge as a dynamic process, which also needed to adapt to changing expectations. The present paper will survey Babylonian medicine while seeking out the cacophony of different voices, ending with the intriguing question: who controls the narrative?