Medicine in Ancient Assur

Description

Contents Acknowledgements Figures and Tables Abbreviations and Symbols Chapter 1 Introduction 1.1 Colophons 1.2 Mesopotamian Medicine 1.2.1 Magico-medical Healing 1.2.2 The āšipu-/mašmaššu-exorcist 1.2.3 Genres of Texts 1.3 Authorship 1.4 Proof and Possibility 1.5 Scope and Structure Chapter 2 Framework and Background 2.1 Microhistory 2.2 Framework 2.3 Background for Studying Kiṣir-Aššur 2.3.1 The N4 Tablet Collection 2.3.2 Excursus: Discussion of the Term “Library” 2.3.3 The Bāba-šuma-ibni Family 2.3.4 The Attested Training and Career Phases 2.3.5 Other References to Members of the Bāba-šuma-ibni Family 2.4 Quantifying and Contextualizing Kiṣir-Aššur’s Texts Chapter 3 Kiṣir-Aššur’s Magico-Medical Education as šamallû ṣeḫru 3.1 Complex Diagnoses in Kiṣir-Aššur’s šamallû ṣeḫru Texts 3.1.1 Earlier Diagnostic Training 3.2 Principles Understood through Examples 3.3 The Head: BAM 9 3.4.1 BAM 129 3.4.2 BAM 201 3.4.3 RA 40 pl. 116 3.5 Snakes, Scorpions and Horses: A Discussion of RA 15 pl. 76 3.5.1 Snakes and Scorpions: The Obverse 3.5.2 Horse Colic: The Reverse 3.6 Gaining an Understanding of Anatomy and Physiology 3.6.1 Kiṣir-Aššur’s Diagnostic Training and Sa-gig 3.7 Preparation for Other Duties as šamallû ṣeḫru 3.7.1 Kiṣir-Aššur’s šuʾilla-prayers 3.7.2 N4 no. 289: A Substitute for Ereškigal 3.7.3 Activities Unrelated to Healing 3.8 Summary Chapter 4 Training in Anatomy and Physiology as šamallû ṣeḫru 4.1 The Role of Venom in Kiṣir-Aššur’s Anatomical Understanding 4.1.1 Snakes and Scorpions in Mesopotamia 4.1.2 Venom and Physiology 4.1.3 The Physiological Conception of Venom, Bile, and Saliva 4.2 Veterinarian Knowledge in Kiṣir-Aššur’s Education 4.2.1 Horses and Specialists 4.2.2 Kiṣir-Aššur and Veterinarian Knowledge 4.3 Excursus: Animal Variants of Human Illnesses 4.4 Animal and Human Physiology: The Reverse of RA 15 pl. 76 4.4.1 Animal Anatomical Terminology 4.4.2 Human and Equine Physiological Aspects of the Nose 4.4.3 Discussion of the Veterinarian Prescriptions on RA 15 pl. 76 4.5 Summary Chapter 5 Further Apprenticeship: šamallû to mašmaššu ṣeḫru 5.1 The šamallû-phase 5.2 The šamallû mašmaššu ṣeḫru-phase 5.2.1 The Child Calming Incantation N4 no. 24 and Duplicates 5.2.2 Excursus: Paediatricians and Treatments 5.2.3 An Interpretation: Kiṣir-Aššur as Paediatrician? 5.3 The mašmaššu ṣeḫru-phase 5.3.1 Discussion of the mašmašsu ṣeḫru-phase 5.3.2 Excursus: Kiṣir-Aššur’s uʾiltu-tablets 5.4 Excursus: The ša Nabû tuklassu-phrase 5.4.1 Kiṣir-Aššur’s Use of the ša Nabû tuklassu-phrase 5.5 Summary Chapter 6 Kiṣir-Aššur’s mašmaššu-phase 6.1 Texts with Colophons including the Title mašmaššu 6.2 Making House Calls: Discussion of KAR 230 6.2.1 The Incantation of KAR 230 6.2.2 The Ritual and Purpose of KAR 230 6.2.3 The Secrecy Statement of KAR 230 6.2.4 Interpretation of KAR 230 6.2.5 Nabû-bēssunu’s Ritual for Approaching a Patient: KAR 31 6.3 Ritually Protecting the Houses of Clients: Discussion of KAR 298 6.3.1 The Purpose and Content of KAR 298 6.3.2 KAR 298 in the Context of Associated Rituals 6.4 Namburbi-rituals and House Calls: KAL 4 no. 7 and LKA 115 6.4.1 Namburbi-rituals and Ceremonial Supervisors 6.4.2 Namburbi-rituals and House Calls 6.5 Other Technical Literature: CT 37 pl. 24f. 6.6 Summary Chapter 7 Additional Texts that May Belong to the mašmaššu-phase 7.1 Omission and Inclusion of Titles 7.2 Tablets without Kiṣir-Aššur’s Professional Title 7.2.1 Text-internal Features Useful as Allocating Criteria 7.3 Tablets with Broken Colophons 7.3.1 Text-internal Features Useful as Allocating Criteria 7.3.2 Excursus: Inventory Texts from the N4 Collection 7.4 The mašmaššu-phase and Purpose Statements 7.4.1 Kiṣir-Aššur’s Tablets with Purpose Statements 7.4.2 Tablets Copied on Behalf of Kiṣir-Aššur 7.4.3 Purpose Statements and Notes on Breaks 7.5 A Discussion of the Dated Tablet KAR 267 7.6 Other Technical Literature: BAM 307 and ACh Supp. 2 24 7.7 Summary 7.1 Omission and Inclusion of Titles 7.2 Tablets without Kiṣir-Aššur’s Professional Title 7.2.1 Text-internal Features Useful as Allocating Criteria 7.3 Tablets with Broken Colophons 7.3.1 Text-internal Features Useful as Allocating Criteria 7.3.2 Excursus: Inventory Texts from the N4 Collection 7.4 The mašmaššu-phase and Purpose Statements 7.4.1 Kiṣir-Aššur’s Tablets with Purpose Statements 7.4.2 Tablets Copied on Behalf of Kiṣir-Aššur 7.4.3 Purpose Statements and Notes on Breaks 7.5 A Discussion of the Dated Tablet KAR 267 7.6 Other Technical Literature: BAM 307 and ACh Supp. 2 24 7.7 Summary Chapter 8 Kiṣir-Aššur’s mašmaš bīt Aššur-phase 8.1 The Title mašmaš bīt Aššur 8.2 Medical Texts from Kiṣir-Aššur’s mašmaš bīt Aššur-phase 8.3 Tested Prescriptions among the Medical Texts 8.3.1 Meaning of the Phrase “Tested Prescription” 8.3.2 An Example of Kiṣir-Aššur as Investigator of Efficacy? 8.4 Panaceas among the Medical Texts 8.4.1 Excursus: Kiṣir-Aššur’s Possible Multipurpose Medical Incantations 8.5 Ritual Texts from Kiṣir-Aššur’s mašmaš bīt Aššur-phase 8.6 Texts Connected to the Aššur Temple 8.7 Summary Chapter 9 Situating Kiṣir-Aššur’s Knowledge Production 9.1 Kiṣir-Aššur’s Overall Medical Focus 9.2 Numbered Nisḫu-extracts 9.2.1 Extracts and Writing-boards 9.2.2 Extract Series 9.2.3 Numbered and Organized Extracts 9.3 Catch-lines and Duplicate Passages in Kiṣir-Aššur’s Texts in Relation to the Therapeutic Series Ugu 9.3.1 The Therapeutic Series Ugu 9.3.2 The Assur Medical Catalogue (AMC) 9.3.3 The AMC and Kiṣir-Aššur’s Incipits and Catch-lines 9.3.4 Kiṣir-Aššur’s Texts and Nineveh Ugu 9.4 The Exorcist’s Manual (EM) 9.4.1 Kiṣir-Aššur’s Texts in Light of the Exorcist’s Manual 9.5 Kiṣir-Aššur and the Scholarly Traditions in Assur 9.5.1 Texts Derived from Geographical Locations 9.5.2 The Gula Temple Library in Assur 9.5.3 Textual Traditions in Assur 9.5.4 Exchange of Knowledge between Assur and the Nineveh Text Collections 9.6 Summary Chapter 10 Synthesis and Conclusion Appendix 1 Catalogue of Texts Appendix 2 Edition of RA 15 pl. 76 Bibliography Indices