It turns out that already in the stone age primitive people did quite complicated surgical operations. Unique finds made in the XX century, proved that Neanderthals well versed in medicine. Primitive people for a long time considered primitive and cruel. The constant struggle for survival, deprivation and hunger did not have to sentimentality. Only the strongest survive.

Therefore, it is difficult even to imagine that in the stone age people were able to render mutual aid. And, most surprisingly, did the surgery. The average duration of life in a primitive society did not exceed 25 years, so that at the dawn of mankind hardly was the Golden age with the absence of disease. Once originated the science that studies the changes in the bone remains of primitive people in the result of diseases, it was clear that our ancestors were not healthy, not yet spoiled by civilization, as we thought before.

A sensation of discoveries made in the Shanidar cave (Northern Iraq) in 1953-1960, Archaeological expedition under the leadership of R. Soletskiy found 9 male skeletons Neanderthals, who lived 60-30 thousand years BC Particularly impressed scientists skeleton of one netego men. He had damaged the left eye socket (most likely, he did not see the left eye), plus healed fractures of the left foot, mutilated terrible arthritis leg and much erased teeth. Amazingly, he almost had no right hand!

The remains of the Neanderthal man of Shanidar

But the cripple had lost an arm long before his death. So, primitive disabled, doomed to death, managed, based on the life expectancy of these harsh times, to live to a ripe old age. So, it was cared for his people!

Having examined the skeleton, the scientists concluded that the right hand of the poor, obviously crushed in an accident or in a fight with the beast was amputated above the elbow kind of primitive surgeon. The surface chipping bone has a distinctive rounded shape, which is usually after surgery.

Examining the burial, the researchers found that Neanderthals not only able to do surgery, but has used medicinal plants. Soil analysis of the graves revealed in them pollen yarrow, ephedra, Althaea, Senecio - a total of 8 species of medicinal herbs. Pollen not only made it possible to determine which plants are used Neanderthals, but also showed that the ancient people already had some knowledge about the afterlife, they buried the dead, decorating the funeral bed of flowers, the family was left in the tombs useful medicinal plants.

That in the stone age were conducted very real surgical operation, shows and other unique find was made in the end of XX century Near the French village of Ensisheim archaeologists have unearthed 45 ancient tombs with the remains of the 47 people of the stone age. There was discovered the skeleton netego men, skull which with traces of two neat holes at once attracted the attention of researchers.

Both holes were not on the edges of any cracks appeared explicitly in the surgical intervention, not murder or accident. One hole in the front of the forehead was a diameter of about 6 cm, other, in the upper part of the skull, is a couple of inches wider.

"Most of the holes in the skulls usually slightly, - said the participant of excavations, is an archaeologist Sandra Pichler of Freiburgs University in Germany, is difficult for them to judge, they are the result of surgery or simply break the skull. But in our case it is possible to see smooth, rounded edges rather large trepanate, that is, these holes are clearly artificial nature".

It is curious that both underwent bone regeneration: a smaller hole in the forehead was completely covered with a thin layer of bone, and the larger overgrown by approximately two-thirds, that is, nothing shows signs of post-operative infection. So, the man survived the trepanation!

"And so these ancient people was a very good surgeon and some ways to suppress the infection," says Pichler. She and her colleagues believe that it took at least six months, maybe about 2 years to heal such major Russian Academy of Sciences. Both trephination were made at different times, that is, man has successfully operated on twice!

Archaeologists don't know why it took such operations and how they were carried out, although the edges of the holes in the skull, we can assume that the bone is cut and scraped. Stone-age tools fit to perform such operations: flint knives were no less acute than modern scalpels.

"Trepanation done so skillfully that they cannot be called the most ancient, believes Pichler. - The surgeon had to have a long practice. The discovery on one skull traces of two trepanate indirectly confirms it: if there was only one entry, you could say that the surgeon was just lucky. But once the patient survived after the second operation, so the doctor had certain skills and knew what to do."

As writes the famous Czech researcher Miloslav Stingl, surgical instruments ancient Inca treated bronze scalpels various sizes, tweezers, needle, brackets, bronze knives "Toomey", resembling of a kitchen knife-sliced, and the terminals through which local Incan healers would draw the vein to stop the bleeding."

When doctors had the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the so-called Smith papyrus, written in Ancient Egypt in 1700 BC, they were amazed. Was already in that distant time there was a surgical instruments, in particular the special copper needles for sewing wounds.

It is curious that the style of presentation of this ancient medical Handbook was a copy of an earlier related, perhaps, to 2700 B.C. it is Not excluded that priceless document was stored grains medical knowledge antediluvian civilization died during a global cataclysm.

However, the ancient Egyptians themselves actively studied the structure of the human body. Known all over the world famous Egyptian mummies, but in order to successfully conduct the mummification dead pharaohs, and other important people need to know the anatomy and spend most real surgery.

Recently in the history of mummification was opened a new page. It turns out that, before proceeding to the mummification of dead bodies, the ancient Egyptians practiced on the skeletons. Chemical analysis of the skeleton of period of the Ancient Kingdom, the age of which is about 4150 years, gave the clue to the origin of the Egyptian technique of embalming corpses.

The skeleton Go II, who, according to the inscription on the tomb, was engaged in trade and crafts and delivered to the Egyptians valuable breeds of wood, found in Giza in 1914 Almost immediately he acquired one of the museums of Germany. Until the end of the twentieth century, no one knew, were the remains Are embalmed or preserved in such good condition only because of the dry climate of Egypt.

Research biochemist Ulrich Weser from the University of Tubingen clearly showed that the skeleton before burial has been treated. So, the content in bones sodium was 12 times higher than normal. Apparently, the ancient embalmers first separated the flesh from the bones, and then bombarded bones sodium salts to dry them.

"They probably already knew that the flesh decays, - believes the Weser, and therefore decided that it is better to embalm bones". In the analysis of the bones of the Weser rivers managed to find them in a lot antiseptic (antiseptic) components of the typical wood tar.

The highest concentration was substances that are formed during decay in the air firewood from rich resin trees. This means that the preparation for the burial of the skeleton Go II could have something to remind process smoked hams. Skeleton, of course, hardly hung and fumigated with smoke, most likely the right components simply put on the bones.

The embalming of the skeleton Go II was so perfect that even remains intact and active enzyme alkaline phosphatase, who was able to extract from pieces of the clavicle.

Conducted by the German biochemist researches have allowed to find out a lot about the emergence of mummification in Ancient Egypt. Already in the times of the old Kingdom the Egyptians knew a separate stage of the process, which is described by Herodotus.