Royal Physicians and Healers in the Neo-Assyrian Period: Medical Practices and Religious Healing Methods

The Assyrian State was a significant civilization located in northern Mesopotamia, which developed greatly over approximately 1,400 years between 2000 BCE and 600 BCE. The Assyrians inherited the knowledge of the Sumerian civilization and, influenced by Babylonian and Egyptian cultures, reached an advanced level in the fields of science and art. The widespread use of writing has allowed detailed information about the Assyrian Kingdom to survive to the present day. Various written sources, such as royal campaigns, daily correspondence, religious texts, and commercial documents, provide valuable insights into Assyrian society and governance. As a state policy, the Assyrians placed great importance on education and established schools in their palaces. These schools provided education in religion, history, mathematics, and medicine. Medicine, in particular, held a special place in Assyrian culture. The library of Assyrian King Ashurbanipal contained an extensive section dedicated to medical topics. This medical encyclopedia, consisting of more than ten thousand lines, included comprehensive information on diagnosis and treatment methods. Many documents from the reigns of Esarhaddon and his son Ashurbanipal provide evidence of four prominent doctors or healers who served in the palace. These scholars—Marduk-šakin-šumi, Adad-šumu-usur, Urad-nanaya, and Nabu-našir—diagnosed diseases and developed treatment methods. They also acted as diviners, advising the kings and contributing to palace administration. These scientists lived centuries before the famous Greek philosopher and physician Hippocrates and conducted significant studies that contributed to modern medicine. Royal Physicians and Healers in the Neo-Assyrian Period: An Understanding of Medical Practices and Religious Healing Methods The examination of 389 letters in the Assyrian State archives has provided important insights into the roles of doctors in the palace, their medical practices, and their scientific approaches. Physicians in the Assyrian Kingdom sought to understand the causes of diseases, applied various herbal treatments, and developed diagnostic methods. These efforts represented a crucial step in the advancement of medicine.