Wiedza o sercu w najwcześniejszych kulturach piśmiennych
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.4467/2543702XSHS.26.017.22706Słowa kluczowe:
starożytna cywilizacja, Mezopotamia, pismo klinowe, anatomia, ŠA3, serce, historia medycyny, język sumeryjski, język akadyjskiAbstrakt
Kilka starożytnych cywilizacji przypisywało sercu szczególny status. Niemniej jednak trudno ustalić, co wiedziano o anatomii i funkcji serca, ponieważ zachowane artefakty stanowią niepełne odzwierciedlenie wiedzy starożytnych.
Pismo klinowe jest jednym z najstarszych systemów pisma na świecie i opiera się częściowo na logogramach, które przypominają swoje desygnaty i zdają się przedstawiać rzeczywiste przedmioty i byty.
W niniejszym artykule omawiamy celowe podobieństwo między jedną z form znaku klinowego ŠA3, który był zapisywany jako romb z czterema równymi komorami, a czterokomorowym sercem u ssaków.
Jako punkt odniesienia w naszej analizie wskazujemy, że anatomia może być podstawą wczesnego pisma w starożytnym języku chińskim oraz że pewna szczegółowa wiedza o sercu istniała w starożytnym Egipcie i Mezoameryce przed jej podbojem.
Tłumaczenie starożytnego pisma klinowego z Mezopotamii ujawnia dość szczegółową wiedzę anatomiczną o wnętrznościach owiec, ponieważ wygląd tych wnętrzności interpretowano jako znaki wróżebne. W odniesieniu do serca owcy używano wielu terminów, ale ich anatomiczne znaczenie jest w dużej mierze niejasne.
Z kolei ludzkie serce było określane jednym terminem jako pojedyncza jednostka. W okresie około 2000 r. p.n.e., znak ŠA3 zapisywano jako romb z czterema komorami i jest on regularnie interpretowany i tłumaczony jako „serce”. Jednakże w całej jego historii ani forma znaku klinowego ŠA3, ani powiązane z nim terminy, zarówno w języku sumeryjskim, jak i akadyjskim, nie ograniczały się do interpretacji „serce”. Wnioskujemy, że starożytni skrybowie i specjaliści z Mezopotamii mogli dostrzec podobieństwo między ŠA3 a sercem, podczas gdy obecnie nie ma dowodów na to, że ŠA3 miał reprezentować ten narząd.
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