Abstract
[first paragraph of article] From the banks of the Nile to the shores of the Mediterranean, it is in the land of Egypt where medicine probably started. This is the story of a great period in the history of medicine. But let us start at the beginning. Imhotep, who flourished about 5,000 years ago, is the first person whose name is recorded not for being a king or a conqueror, but for the way he contributed to knowledge 1 . He was a statesman: he advised Pharaoh Zoser. He was an engineer: he built the stepped pyramid of Saqqara, precursor to the many great pyramids to come. But above all he was a physician of talent, who launched the first true medical revolution: that disease was not something to be dealt with by magic, but by science: observation, diagnosis, and treatment. Egyptians would later deify him as the god of medicine.
Highlights
From the banks of the Nile to the Shores of the Mediterranean it is in the land of Egypt, where medicine probably started
The great tradition of ancient Egyptian medicine was maintained for millennia
The Edwin Smith papyrus and the Ebers papyrus both speak of exquisite knowledge and understanding
Summary
From the banks of the Nile to the Shores of the Mediterranean it is in the land of Egypt, where medicine probably started. Imhotep, who flourished about 5,000 years ago, is the first person whose name is recorded not for being a king or a conqueror, but for the way he contributed to knowledge1 He was a statesman: he advised Pharaoh Zoser. The Edwin Smith papyrus is the earliest known medical document, written around 1600 BCE, but is thought to be based on material from as early as 3000 BCE It is an ancient textbook on trauma surgery. In late 4th C BCE Athens the Physician Agnodice was put on trial usually happens with pivotal figures in history, Hippocrates would be a summation of the best of what preceded him, a major contributor himself, and the founder of a school of disciples who followed his teachings His contributions are many, but he is most famous for the Hippocratic Oath still in use in many parts of the western world. Between the decline of splendid Greece and the rise of mighty Rome, there is a glorious period, where in the ancient land of Egypt Alexander the Great would found a new capital of learning and knowledge on the shores of the Mediterranean: Hellenistic Alexandria
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