Sanatoriums and nurseries in ancient Egypt

By – Dr Hadeer Obaid.

PhD in ancient Egyptian archaeology.

In the writings of the ancient Egyptians, the word sanatorium was used to refer to a closed square in which patients were completely or partially immersed in the holy water of the lips, or they practised nursery (temple sleep) in the hope that they would see in their sleep one of the gods; Which achieves the lips of the patient and gives the Kin Hebei Shif stone an idea of ​​the beginning of these practices, but it was not confirmed that they happened until recently after the discovery of a clinic in the archaeological area west of the courtyard of the great temple of Hathor in Dendera. The current main building of the temple dates back to the Ptolemaic and Roman eras. The last one is much older.

To the north of that sanatorium, there is a Mamami maternity room or house, and to the south, there is a wall behind which the sacred lake lies. There is no indication that this sanatorium was used to practice normal medicine.

The remains of this mudstone building include several small rooms surrounding a watercourse, and it is believed that they were used in the incubation process. The stream leads to many basins filled with water from the holy lake and are used to submerge parts of the human body or even completely immersion and maximize the effectiveness of this sacred water was passed Above some statues of the goddess of healing.

The dream book, which dates back to the thirteenth century BC, contains a long list of dreams seen by those in mourning, which may be happy or bad. In one of these dreams, the patient says:

I spent the night starring in this front yard, I drank water, and my body spent the whole night swimming in the shadow of your face <
There are no healing statues left in the Temple of Dandara except for some inscriptions on a stone found in one of the small rooms. One of these statues made of black granite was found in Tel Atrib and belonged to Jaddah Hur. Below the statue’s base, there is a small basin in which the water is poured over the statue. As the water passes over the magical writings engraved on it, the dignity and capabilities of these writings are transferred to it. It becomes holy water accompanied by the stupid abilities that are transmitted to the person who uses it.

The sanatorium in the temple of Dendera reveals many of the concepts of divine healing practised by the ancient Greeks and was widespread in their religious culture. The Greek goddess Asclepius was the oldest of the healers, and he assisted his daughter Hygia. The largest of the sacred structures of Asclepius was located in the cities of Epidaurus, Cros, and Pergamon, and in which ritual ceremonies were practised. Disinfection with water.

The practitioners of these rituals slept in groups in sacred wards similar to the small rooms in Dendera, and priests were present to help patients interpret their dreams.