Two artificial big toes from ancient Egypt may be the world's oldest prosthetic body parts, according to new research.
The toes date back more than 2,000 years and were found in the ancient Egyptian city of ThebesOne of the toes, which is mostly made out of wood, was found attached to the foot of a mummy called Tabaketenmut, who lived at some point between 950 and 710 B.C.
The other is made out of linen, glue and plaster, formed into a kind of papier-mache.
A study by Jacqueline Finch, a researcher with the University of Manchester in England, shows these false toes were intended to help the wearer walk and were not simply decorations.
"My findings strongly suggest that both of these designs were capable of functioning as replacements for the lost toe and so could indeed be classed as prosthetic devices," Finch said"If that is the case then it would appear that the first glimmers of this branch of medicine should be firmly laid at the feet of the ancient Egyptians," Finch wrote.
Previously, archaeologists believed that the earliest known prosthesis was a Roman artificial leg made out of bronze, dating back to 300 B.C.,To put her thesis to the test, Finch constructed copies of the two toes.
She then asked people who were missing their big toes to try to walk using the copies while wearing replica sandals of the type favored by ancient Egyptians.
Both volunteers were able to truly walk like an Egyptian.
"The results were extremely surprising in that for at least one of the volunteers, the replica worked amazingly well and produced an amazing amount of movement," Finch said, The big toe supports about 40 percent of a person's weight when walking and helps provide propulsion for each step.
When ancient Egyptians died, they were often buried with reconstructed body parts, in the belief that this would help them in the afterlife.
Finch maintains that these toes were intended for use in this world, as they are more sophisticated than any previously found.
"The wear on the Greville Chester toe and the important design features on the Cairo toe led me to speculate that these toes were perhaps worn by their owners in life and not simply attached to the foot during mummification for religious or ritualistic reasons," Finch said.
The toes date back more than 2,000 years and were found in the ancient Egyptian city of ThebesOne of the toes, which is mostly made out of wood, was found attached to the foot of a mummy called Tabaketenmut, who lived at some point between 950 and 710 B.C.
The other is made out of linen, glue and plaster, formed into a kind of papier-mache.
A study by Jacqueline Finch, a researcher with the University of Manchester in England, shows these false toes were intended to help the wearer walk and were not simply decorations.
"My findings strongly suggest that both of these designs were capable of functioning as replacements for the lost toe and so could indeed be classed as prosthetic devices," Finch said"If that is the case then it would appear that the first glimmers of this branch of medicine should be firmly laid at the feet of the ancient Egyptians," Finch wrote.
Previously, archaeologists believed that the earliest known prosthesis was a Roman artificial leg made out of bronze, dating back to 300 B.C.,To put her thesis to the test, Finch constructed copies of the two toes.
She then asked people who were missing their big toes to try to walk using the copies while wearing replica sandals of the type favored by ancient Egyptians.
Both volunteers were able to truly walk like an Egyptian.
"The results were extremely surprising in that for at least one of the volunteers, the replica worked amazingly well and produced an amazing amount of movement," Finch said, The big toe supports about 40 percent of a person's weight when walking and helps provide propulsion for each step.
When ancient Egyptians died, they were often buried with reconstructed body parts, in the belief that this would help them in the afterlife.
Finch maintains that these toes were intended for use in this world, as they are more sophisticated than any previously found.
"The wear on the Greville Chester toe and the important design features on the Cairo toe led me to speculate that these toes were perhaps worn by their owners in life and not simply attached to the foot during mummification for religious or ritualistic reasons," Finch said.
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