第13章 古埃及——奇特的尼罗河文明(4)

埃及人相信，每个人都是由身体和精神两个部分组成。除了身体，每个人都有一个影子、一个人格或灵魂，一个生命力和一个名字。他们认为，思想和情感的来源不是大脑而是心灵，人死亡之后精神部分从身体里释放出来可以随意移动，但他们需要身体（或替代品，如雕像）作为一个永久的家。释放灵魂的最终目的是成为“受福的逝者”。

Fine ceramics and high technology ofglass

Even before the Old Kingdom， the ancient Egyptians had developed a glassy material known as faience， which they treated as a type of artificial semi-precious stone. Faience is a non-clay ceramic made of silica， small amounts of lime and soda， and a colorant， typically copper. The material was used to make beads， tiles， figurines， and small wares. By a related technique， the ancient Egyptians produced a pigment known as Egyptian Blue， also called blue frit， which is produced by fusing silica， copper， lime， and an alkali such as natron. The product can be ground up and used as a pigment.

The ancient Egyptians could fabricate a wide variety of objects from glass with great skill， but it is not clear whether they developed the process independently. It is also unclear whether they made their own raw glass or merely imported pre-made ingots， which they melted and finished. However， they did have technical expertise in making objects， as well as adding trace elements to control the color of the finished glass. A range of colors could be produced， including yellow， red， green， blue， purple， and white， and the glass could be made either transparent or opaque.

精美的陶瓷和高超的玻璃技术

甚至在旧王国时期之前，古埃及人已经开发出了一种玻璃材料，它们被称为彩陶，被人们视为一种人造的半宝石。彩陶是由硅石、少量石灰和纯碱混制，通常是用铜的着色剂制成的非黏土，这种材料被用来制造玻璃粉、瓷砖、雕像和小商品。通过相关技术，古埃及人制作出来一种被称为埃及蓝的颜料，又称蓝玻璃，这是将硅、铜、石灰和碱融合生产而成的，该产品可磨碎用作颜料。

古埃及人具有高超的技术，可以用玻璃制造出各种各样的物体，但目前尚不清楚他们当时的制作过程是不是独立的，也不知道他们自己的毛坯玻璃是制造的还是进口的预制锭，他们只是融化成品而已。然而，他们有着专业的制造技术，还懂得加入微量元素控制玻璃成品的色彩，从而生产出包括黄、红、绿、蓝、紫、白等一系列颜色的玻璃制品，这些玻璃可以制成透明的，也可以制成不透明的。

Ancient Egyptian medicine：The health

wisdom against misfortunes and mishaps

The medical problems of the ancient Egyptians stemmed directly from their environment. Living and working close to the Nile brought hazards from malaria and debilitating schistosomiasis parasites， which caused liver and intestinal damage. Dangerous wildlife such as crocodiles and hippos were also a common threat. The lifelong labors of farming and building put stress on the spine and joints， and traumatic injuries from construction and warfare all took a significant toll on the body. The grit and sand from stone-ground flour abraded teeth， leaving them susceptible to abscesses （though caries were rare）. The diets of the wealthy were rich in sugars， which promoted periodontal disease. Despite the flattering physiques portrayed on tomb walls， the overweight mummies of many of the upper class show the effects of a life of overindulgence. Adult life expectancy was about 35 for men and 30 for women， but about one-third of the population died in infancy.

Ancient Egyptian physicians were renowned in the ancient Near East for their healing skills， and some， such as Imhotep， remained famous long after their deaths. Herodotus remarked that there was a high degree of specialization among Egyptian physicians， with some treating only the head or the stomach， while others were eye-doctors and dentists. Training of physicians took place at the "House of Life" institution. Medical papyri show empirical knowledge of anatomy， injuries， and practical treatments.