Las Ciencias: El Camino Hacia El Conocimiento Práctico (PDF)

# Las ciencias. El camino hacia el conocimiento práctico ## Alquimistas y médicos It is not likely that the knowledge of the Egyptians on chemistry went beyond simple practical domains of metallurgy, cosmetics and leather treatment. In any case, this must be added to the chance discovery of fermen...

# Las ciencias. El camino hacia el conocimiento práctico ## Alquimistas y médicos It is not likely that the knowledge of the Egyptians on chemistry went beyond simple practical domains of metallurgy, cosmetics and leather treatment. In any case, this must be added to the chance discovery of fermentation which allowed the transformation of beer into the most widespread drink in Egypt and Mesopotamia. However, it was in the Alexandrian era when experimental chemistry became increasingly widespread and its successes, paradoxically, lacking solid principles on which to rely, continued to be attributed to a magical or religious legacy. The first ideas and principles of a "scientific" nature came from the distinction between matter and form -a distinction which Aristotle would later take on as his own. The former referred to that which is permanent and could exist by itself. Form, in contrast, is accidental and can manifest in many ways. Without much scientific knowledge, copper could be subjected to treatments resulting in black mass, or copper sulfide, thus losing what the Egyptians considered its condition or its metallic "matter". Manipulating it repeatedly, they could get it back to its "original" form, though not necessarily, as it could combine with other metals, creating different alloys. Of course, this transmutation of metals was pure alchemical speculation. With all these operations, the alchemist was mimicking the work of the gods, who were, after all, the ones who determined the growth of plants and the transformations in nature. It was, therefore, necessary to have divine inspiration manifested through heat, the same one that could provide the sun. Through this star, symbolized in Ra, plants grew, in the same way that a portion of heat was needed for birds to incubate their eggs. ## The People of Egypt, Everyday Life, and Science The relationship was evident: seed, soil, breath of life, and heat. All these elements existed in nature by the will of the gods and man could reproduce them taking advantage of the techniques given by them. In the Ptolemaic world, these teachings were attributed to Thot, identified by the Greeks as Hermes, to Isis, Cleopatra, the last queen of Egypt, and many other mythical and real figures. Speaking of Cleopatra and alchemy, as has happened in the current literature, many authors have sought above all a connection with originality; so too in antiquity, until the Middle Ages, people tried to confer a certain authority on writings by attributing them to legendary, mythical or prestigious figures in history. One of the earliest alchemist writings distributed in the first centuries of our era was called "Dialogue of Cleopatra and the Philosophers". It was taken for granted that the last queen of Egypt was an exceptional alchemist capable of converting metal into gold; hence the work was completed with drawings titled "Manufactura of Gold by Cleopatra". They are probably apocryphal texts. Nevertheless, some people still argue that, considering Cleopatra's character, an educated woman trained in intellectual environments in the most flourishing Alexandria, she did indeed acquire the knowledge attributed to her, making her one of the precursors of modern chemistry. Another prominent aspect involved the supposed life that could come from corrupt elements. Egyptians understood that plants grew healthy and strong thanks to the manure they used. Also, they observed these principles in the fermentation of barley, which gave rise to beer. Thus, it also generated an interest in bringing certain chemical processes to the "laboratory" to run further tests and experiments. However, very little escaped the conclusive influence of the stars, which were seen as the cause of the change in seasons, flood periods and more; therefore, certain tasks related to science in Egypt were attributed to what heaven could produce. In the temples dedicated to Ptah, the patron of the goldsmiths, artisans and priests lived and their professional secrets were attributed to religious-type explanations. So in the last centuries of the pharonic culture, priests managed to gild surfaces, color gold, or increase the weight of gold by mixing it with other heavy metals. Zósimo, renowned Greek alchemist in the 4th century, revealed that he had seen a kiln in Memphis in ancient times, very similar to that used by alchemists of his day. Papyri from the pharonic era have also been found explaining formulas for obtaining various metals and dyes, as well as precious stones. The reality is that most of these recipes are merely forgeries or procedures to lower the value of gold. However, this concept of fraud did not exist in Ancient Egypt, at least not in the sense we give it today, because having more copper in an alloy with gold was simply understood as a loss in the quality of gold. In any case, Egyptian gold could be refined with little success, which, as has been confirmed, often contained significant quantities of silver and copper. On the other hand, Egyptian physicians resorted to empirical knowledge handed down to them by their ancestors. However, the magical-religious element continued to play an important role in practice. Much suggests that scientific medicine was flourishing in the Old Kingdom, then declining at the same time as the social standing of physicians was also lowered. This situation continued until its resurgence many centuries later, during the Alexandrian period. The most important written sources that have survived in this field are the Smith and Ebers papyri. The first was written in early times and can be considered a genuine surgical treatise, starting with head trauma and ending with foot problems. Most of it was lost, but today we know everything about the knowledge Egyptians acquired regarding the head, neck and chest. It can be considered a real manual with 48 case studies in which it explains how to reduce fractures and dislocations, applying splints and suturing wounds, among other issues. It also highlights great care taken in observing and following the evolution of diseases from their earliest manifestations or symptoms until the final determination of the cure. In the Smith papyrus there are no resources for magical or religious procedures, which is why it is considered one of the first scientific texts in history. Not until the 5th century BC did Hippocrates write a treatise with similar characteristics. The Smith papyrus has been attributed, though without strong evidence, to Imhotep, a great sage of the Old Kingdom, who, as we already know, was deified and venerated in his temple in Memphis. The Ebers papyrus is much later. It was initially thought that it may have come from the New Kingdom, although we know that it reproduces aspects of Egyptian medicine from older times. Despite being more modern than the Smith papyrus, it reveals less observation in treatments and remedies, nor in the description of diseases. The cures are the most bizarre and picturesque, surely related to magical doctrines. It was recommended, for example, to use manure to treat ailments, although this must have caused more infections than anything else; goose intestines, chicken eggs, and a variety of plants were also used. These apparent extravagances must have been used as a supplement to home remedies and what the results were with those ailments of less severity and gravity are unknown. Other cures based on honey and milk were also recorded, as a way to fight throat problems, aromatic plant vapors to relieve the respiratory system, castor oil as a laxative, or an adequate diet in cases of tuberculosis. What was most striking, however, was the existence of suppositories, vaginal tampons, or dental fillings, all perfectly documented, so it must be assumed that they were, in fact, used with the sick or for those who needed them. In addition to the Smith and Ebers papyri, other sources have provided abundant evidence of the widespread use of certain magical practices in the treatment of diseases. These were mainly grounded in attributing illnesses to certain entities or hostile forces. As a result, healing came to be the domain of magicians, to the detriment of physicians themselves. To that end, incantations and other specters, as well as charms and exorcisms, were used to ensure the expulsion of the sick body of the malicious entity causing the illness. These are the deeds that ultimately prove the stagnation mentioned earlier. However, papyri have been found which include treatises on general medicine and surgery, in addition to what today would be known as ophthalmology, dentistry or obstetrics, although they provide little more than what is mentioned in the main texts. It is surprising, on the other hand, that the continuous practice of embalming was not used to acquire knowledge of anatomy or physiology consciously. Quite the contrary, they continued with their old magical practices and fantastic explanations about the human body. This meant that they could never acquire a real understanding of certain vital organ functions, such as those of the kidney, or even the heart, whose function in blood distribution they ignored. Today it seems obvious that many of the diseases suffered by the Egyptians had to do with their proximity to swamps and impure waters. This led to epidemics and common medical conditions, such as malaria, as well as respiratory illnesses often linked to parasites such as schistosomiasis, still present in modern Egypt. Foot illnesses must have been prevalent in ancient Egypt, especially if we consider the widespread custom among its inhabitants of walking barefoot. Moreover, we do not know whether or not the practice of circumcision among men was due to hygienic or religious reasons. We know that in late times many priests underwent it for reasons of purity, without specifying what that entailed. Herodotus recalled that the Egyptians adopted circumcision as a form of imitation of the Semites, but this is unproven. In the Old Kingdom it was practiced on adolescents, although not mandatory. There are signs that suggest that there must have been a religious element involved in this practice, especially because of the events that happened during the wars against the Libyans. It was not recorded that Egyptian soldiers cut the genitals of circumcised enemy corpses but they did those of those who were not. The reader will reproach me if I do not mention, speaking of medicine in pharonic Egypt, one of the most well-known stories and narratives in the world, one that tells the story of a doctor in ancient Egypt. Mika Waltari published in 1945 a novel that, according to the author, took more than ten years to write. I refer to "Sinuhe, The Egyptian". Waltari made a great effort to explain Sinuhe's certainty, at a young age, for medicine when he saw the pharaoh ill: "The era was troubled and the great Pharaoh was sick. I saw his wan face when he was brought to the temple for the autumn festival, covered in gold and jewels, motionless as an image, with his head bent under the weight of the double crown. He was suffering, and the physicians could not cure him, so much so that people said that his time had already passed and that soon the heir would succeed him. And yet, this prince was a boy of my age….He spoke a lot and with vivacity because he was a poor boy who had traveled a long way to reach Thebes and had suffered many setbacks and misfortunes during his journey… I am a doctor. I was also ordained as a priest of the first grade in the temple of Amun in Thebes. "1 Despite the popularity achieved by Mika Waltari it seems that the novel-like story of Sinuhe's life is far from reality. The true story of the protagonist should have begun with the death of Amenemhat I, the first monarch of the XII Dynasty, around 1970 BC. The adventures and exploits of the protagonist are mentioned in the papyri that survive from the Late Period. Actually, these are five papyri preserved in Berlin and 17 ostraka. These confirm the position held by Sinuhe in pharonic Egypt. ## The use of metals and glass In any case, Egypt did brilliantly, not so much for its advances in metalworking techniques if we compare it to other cultures of ancient antiquity, despite being ahead of its time in the creation of the first pre-industrial complex. Among the archaeological remains of Memphis a site has been discovered where the complete manufacturing process –from melting to manufacturing– for producing instruments and weapons of excellent quality took place. This system, along with the facilities, was used in some temples for ornamental purposes. In many metal objects, the Egyptians used open molds with simple shapes. But for weapons and tools it was necessary to make them more resistant through the beating process in the heat, as described previously. For other productions such as statuettes, wax was also included. One of the major hurdles to technological advancement was the use of small furnaces. These could only be fueled by charcoal, producing temperatures that were excessively high. In the forges the air from the workers’ lungs had to be blown in to keep the fire going. From the New Kingdom, bellows were used along with conical clay crucibles with a hole at the end, through which the molten metal flowed. It is believed that in very early times during the transition from the Stone Age to the Age of Metal, perhaps by chance, Egyptians discovered glass. They mixed some substances with sand and, eventually, mastered the process, starting with small objects and ending with the manufacture of pieces with a decorative nature. They mixed substances which added color, providing a consistency and shine to their creations that still surprise. The glass manufactured in ancient Egypt consisted primarily of silica, calcium, sodium, and quartz sand. This last substance had to be melted at 1600°C. As it was difficult to achieve these temperatures, an alloy using soda, sodium sulfate, or potassium carbonate had to be used, thus allowing it to be worked at 400°C lower. The liquid glass came out of the crucible and was allowed to cool before it was heated up again and cut into blocks before it was given its final shape. around 1500 BC new coloring and melting techniques emerged and larger objects were created. The process of "combing" –that is, wrapping colored glass threads around a clay goblet, previously heated so as to make the threads stick– gave the goblet different shapes. These were then wrapped with combs to create the desired decorative patterns: zigzags, waves, and so on. It wasn't long before greater consistency and hardness were achieved in the glass using multiple layers, producing objects with double walls. These new techniques were joined by the manufacture of hollow glass. A mixture of clay and sand was submerged in molten glass. When the glass cooled, the mixture was scraped off, giving the glass the desired shape with a polishing process. The most striking glasses, however, were made through a process similar to the previous one. A combination of earth and sand was coated with colored glass threads. When the process was complete, it was heated up again to soften it and achieve greater pliability. Once softened, the walls were smoothed by rubbing them against a stone. While still soft, they could be carved with instruments or wooden seals, with the entire process ending with removal of the earth core. With ever-finer threads and overlapping of many layers, they were able to obtain pieces for mosaics and further refine all glass applications. The Egyptians were extremely practical in their applications of glass and metal working techniques. It has been stressed that speculative science and experiments were not part of the thinking of these people who were mainly driven by the concrete demands of everyday life. Even today, science and technology are among the disciplines that leave scholars, researchers, and historians worldwide with the most questions. We know that the Alexandrian scientists were also concerned with the technical applications of their discoveries. Water clocks and other contraptions were built. However, the most striking invention, which nevertheless did not go beyond the experimental phase, because metalworking was not sufficiently developed, was a steam kettle. A sketch of it still survives and it can be seen how far the Egyptians went in devising theoretical and practical procedures in order to solve their daily tasks. It consisted of a sphere from which pipes extending in opposite directions emerged. When the water within the sphere reached the boiling point, steam would come out through the pipes, spinning the device quickly. However, they would have needed to reach much higher melting temperatures than those attained during those years to precisely shape the metal and, above all, to obtain more effective welds than those used at that time. In any case, at least in terms of design and operating principles, Egyptians developed some extraordinary imagination that, despite being lost for a long time, was recovered centuries later with full recognition for the talent, ingenuity, and inspiration of those who set this process in motion.