May 5, 2024
Dr. El-Shaimaa Abumandour
The Egyptian civilization was one of the earliest civilizations and was totally independent. The ancient Egyptians had to realize and discover their surroundings by themselves. They were not satisfied with only inventing machines and tools to help them in their daily activities; they created luxurious and entertaining equipment to make their lives more comfortable and entertaining.
Edwin Smith Papyrus
Mr. James Henry Breasted, the famous Egyptologist, translated the famous Edwin Smith papyrus in 1930. The renowned papyrus was lying in a tomb in Thebes for over 3.000 years and is considered the oldest medical treatise. It includes the earliest recorded scientific writing about rational observations in medicine. Based on the hieroglyphic text written in the papyrus, which was common around 3.000–2.500 B.C., Breasted suggested that the papyrus could be a copy of an older document and its author could be the well-known Egyptian physician Imhotep. The papyrus shows that ancient Egyptians invented medical surgery tools. It presented various surgical cases of injuries of the head, neck, shoulder, breast, and chest. The papyrus included a list of instruments used during surgeries, such as needles, thread, lint, swabs, bandages, adhesive plaster, surgical stitches for wounds, suturing, and cauterization. Museums worldwide, and the Cairo Museum has a preserved collection of ancient surgical instruments, including scissors, forceps, lancets, hooks, probes, and pincers.
The ancient Egyptians had a sacred proper burial for entering the afterlife. Death without a proper burial was a type of punishment for sins and crimes in the old and middle kingdoms. Hence, the ancient Egyptians were skilled at preserving the bodies of the dead. Mummification was a complicated process; its technique depended on the social level.
Image: Cleopatra Egyptian Tours
Mummification used on royals, wealthy people, and high standards from the new era to the start of the late period, 1.550 to 664 B.C., is considered the most complicated and rigorous mummification technique. The main step in this type of mummification was removing and preserving most of the body’s internal organs. The lungs, stomach, liver, and intestines were preserved separately in Canopic jars. These organs were vital for the dead to eat and breathe in the afterlife. Therefore, they were embalmed and stored in Canopic jars with the decoration of the four animal-headed sons of Horus to protect each organ. This step was changed after 1.000 B.C. The internal organs were wrapped and returned to the body, bound with it, or stored in boxes. Nevertheless, the Canopic jars were placed empty in tombs as a symbol of God’s protection.
The next step was preserving the body by treating it with natron. Natron is a natural compound of salts; the ancient Egyptians used it for different purposes, such as glass making, medicine, agriculture, and the dehydration of mummies. The main source of natron used for mummification was from the northwest desert, specifically Wadi Natrun. Natron helped in drying and preserving bodies from decaying as it worked as a microbial disinfection agent. In ancient Egyptian civilization, the heart was the source of wisdom and emotions, so it was left untouched inside the body. The brain was usually discarded. After forty days, the natron was removed from the body and skin, and the entire body was filled with linen, herbs, sand, chopped straw, etc. Then the body was wrapped with layers of linen bandages covered with resin coating. The mummified body was then decorated with amulets and a mask that covered the mummy’s head. This type of mummification was only affordable for wealthy people and lasted for about seventy days.
The ancient Egyptians cared about their looks and hygiene. Egyptians were the first people to use substances made of different components to keep their teeth and gums clean and protected since 5.000 B.C. The ancient Egyptian powdery toothpaste ingredients included ashes, burned eggshells, ox’s hooves powder, and pumice stone.
The Egyptians were fond of beauty and cosmetics. They used wigs, especially during hot weather, to protect their heads from the sun and keep their scalps clean. Makeup was very trendy in Egyptian civilization. It was invented in 4.000 B.C. Egyptian women and men used to wear eye makeup. It was a black ointment that was known as kohl. The black ointment was made of a black powder mixed with a natural ore of lead called galena. Additionally, Egyptians wore green and blue eyeliner. It was made of malachite and azurite mined in Sinai.
For more reads
Ancient Egyptian Inventions (discoveringegypt.com)
https://www.thecollector.com/ancient-egyptian-inventions
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2989268
https://www.worldhistory.org/article/44/mummification-in-ancient-egypt
https://www.thoughtco.com/what-is-natron-119865
Women of Egypt Network 
