A wooden toe: Swiss Egyptologists study 3000-year-old prosthesis
June 20, 2017
It is likely to be one of the oldest prosthetic devices in human history: Together with other experts, Egyptologists from the University of Basel have reexamined an artificial wooden big toe. The find is almost 3000 years old and was discovered in a female burial from the necropolis of Sheikh ´Abd el-Qurna close to Luxor. This area is currently being studied using state-of-the-art methods.
The international team investigated the one-of-a-kind prosthesis using modern microscopy, X-ray technology, and computer tomography. They were able to show that the wooden toe was refitted several times to the foot of its owner, a priest's daughter. The researchers also newly classified the used materials and identified the method with which the highly developed prosthesis was produced and utilized. Experts from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo - where the prosthetic device was brought to after it had been found - and the Institute of Evolutionary Medicine at the University of Zurich were also involved in this study.
Read more at:
https://phys.org/news/2017-06-wooden-toe-swiss-egyptologists-year-old.html#jCp