A day in the life of an ancient Egyptian doctor - Elizabeth Cox

翻译人员: Riley WANG 校对人员: Lipeng Chen

It’s another sweltering morning in Memphis, Egypt.

埃及孟菲斯， 又是酷热难当的一天。

As the sunlight brightens the Nile, Peseshet checks her supplies.

随着阳光照亮尼罗河， 帕瑟珊检查着自己的物品。

Honey,

garlic,

蜂蜜、

大蒜、

cumin,

小茴香、

acacia leaves,

金合欢树叶、

cedar oil.

雪松油。

She’s well stocked with the essentials she needs to treat her patients.

她装备好了用来 治疗病人的各种必需品。

Peseshet is a swnw, or a doctor.

帕瑟珊是一名医生，

In order to become one,

为了成为医生，

she had to train as a scribe

她需要先作为记录官 接受训练，

and study the medical papyri stored at the Per Ankh, the House of Life.

学习生命之屋 Per Ankh 中 纸莎草纸上记录的医学知识。

Now, she teaches her own students there.

现在，她在那里教授其他学生。

Before teaching, Peseshet has a patient to see.

在上课之前，她先要去看一个病人。

One of the workers at the temple construction site has injured his arm.

神庙建筑工地的一个工人 弄伤了自己的手臂。

When Peseshet arrives,

帕瑟珊到达工地时，

the laborer’s arm is clearly broken,

发现这名工人的手臂 显然骨折了，

and worse, the fracture is a sed, with multiple bone fragments.

更糟的是，骨折很严重， 形成了几块小骨头碎片。

Peseshet binds and immobilizes the injury.

帕瑟珊对伤处做了捆绑固定处理。

Her next stop is the House of Life.

她接下来要去生命之屋。

On her way, a woman intercepts Peseshet in the street.

途中，一名妇女叫住帕瑟珊。

The woman’s son has been stung by a scorpion.

因为她的儿子被蝎子蛰伤。

Peseshet has seen many similar stings and knows exactly what to do.

帕瑟珊见过许多相似的蜇伤， 并且很清楚该如何治疗。

She must say an incantation to cast the poison out.

她必须念一种咒语让毒液流出，

She begins to recite the spell,

她开始念诵咒语，

invoking Serqet, patron of physicians and goddess of venomous creatures.

召唤医生庇佑者、 毒物之神塞尔凯特。

Peseshet recites the spell as if she is Serqet.

帕瑟珊念着咒语， 仿佛自己就是塞尔凯特。

This commanding approach has the greatest chance at success.

这种威严的做法有极高的成功率。

After she utters the last line,

在她念诵完最后一行咒语，

she tries to cut the poison out with a knife for good measure.

她试着用小刀划开伤处 让毒液流出。

Peseshet packs up to leave, but the woman has another question.

帕瑟珊收拾行装继续前行， 但这位妇女还有一个问题。

She wants to find out if she is pregnant.

她想要知道自己是否怀有身孕，

Peseshet explains her fail-safe pregnancy test:

帕瑟珊告诉她一种安全的验孕方法：

plant two seeds: one barley, one emmer.

种下两颗种子： 一颗大麦，一颗二粒小麦

Then, urinate on the seeds every day.

每天用尿液浇灌它们，

If the plants grow, she’s pregnant.

如果种子发芽，那么她就怀孕了。

A barley seedling predicts a baby boy,

大麦种子发芽预示着怀有男婴，

while emmer foretells a girl.

二粒小麦发芽则预示着怀有女婴。

Peseshet also recommends a prayer to Hathor, goddess of fertility.

帕瑟珊也建议她 向生育女神哈瑟尔祷告。

When Peseshet finally arrives at the House of Life,

当帕瑟啥最终到达生命之屋，

she runs into the doctor-priest Isesi.

她碰到了祭司医生伊塞西。

She greets Isesi politely, but she thinks priests are very full of themselves.

她礼貌地向伊塞西打招呼， 但她认为祭司们都非常自傲。

She doesn’t envy Isesi’s role as neru pehut,

她并不嫉妒伊塞西，

which directly translates to herdsman of the anus to the royal family,

他直接从牧人转变成 皇家直肠医生，

or, guardian of the royal anus.

也叫做皇家肛门卫士。

Inside, the House of Life is bustling as usual with scribes,

生命之屋里的人 如往常一样步履匆匆，

priests,

包括记录官，祭司，

doctors,

医生，

and students.

和学生们。

Papyri containing all kinds of records, not just medical information,

除了医学，纸莎草文献 也包含其他各类记录，

are stored here.

都存放在生命之屋中。

Peseshet’s son Akhethetep is hard at work copying documents

帕瑟珊的儿子阿克提还特 正在努力抄写文件，

as part of his training to become a scribe.

这是要成为记录官 所要接受的培训之一。

He’s a particularly promising student,

他前程一片大好，

but he was admitted to study because Peseshet is a scribe,

但是他被允许学习 是因为母亲帕瑟珊是一名记录官。

as was her father before her.

而帕瑟珊的父亲也曾任该职。

Without family in the profession,

若没有家人担任此类职位，

it’s very difficult for boys, and impossible for girls,

接受教育对于男生来说 是非常困难的，

对于女生则更是不可能。

to pursue this education.

Peseshet oversees all the female swnws and swnws-in-training in Memphis.

帕瑟珊管理着孟菲斯 所有女性医师和正接受培训的女学生。

The men have their own overseer,

男性医师则有其他监理人员，

as the male doctors won’t answer to a woman.

因为他们不会回答女性提出的问题。

Today, Peseshet teaches anatomy.

今天，帕萨珊教的是解剖学。

She quizzes her students on the metu,

她对学生进行提问，

the body’s vessels that transport blood,

问题是关于身体中运输血液、

air,

urine,

空气、

尿液、

and even bad spirits.

和不良精神的通道。

Peseshet is preparing to leave

帕瑟珊正准备离开时，

when a pale, thin woman accosts her at the door and begs to be examined.

一名苍白瘦弱的女性 上前请求看诊。

The woman has a huge, sore lump under her arm.

这位女性的手臂上 长了一个大大的肿块，

Peseshet probes the growth and finds it cool to the touch

帕瑟珊进行了检查， 发现肿块摸起来是凉的，

and hard like an unripe hemat fruit.

坚硬地像一个尚未熟透的血肿果实。

She has read about ailments like this, but never seen one.

她曾读到过这类病症， 但却并未亲眼见过。

For this tumor there is no treatment, medicine or spell.

没有方法、药物或咒语可以 用来治疗这种肿块。

All the texts give the same advice: do nothing.

所有的文字记载 都给出同样的建议：什么也不做。

After delivering the bad news, Peseshet goes outside.

帕瑟珊告知她这个坏消息， 便走出大门。

She lingers on the steps of the House of Life,

她在生命之屋的台阶处逗留了一会儿，

admiring the city at dusk.

欣赏着黄昏时分的城市，

In spite of all her hard work,

虽然她努力工作，

there will always be patients she can’t help,

但总会有她无能为力的病人，

like the woman with the tumor.

就像刚才那个长有肿块的妇女。

They linger with her, but Peseshet has no time to dwell.

这些病人在她脑海挥之不去， 但她没有时间总想着这些。

In a few short weeks,

因为再过几周，

the Nile’s annual flooding will begin,

每年一次的尼罗河洪水即将开始，

bringing life to the soil for the next year’s harvest

洪水为土壤带来生命， 孕育第二年的丰收，

and a whole new crop of patients.

同时也会带来大批的病患。