June 20 (UPI) -- Researchers in Switzerland are in the process of analyzing what may be the world's oldest prosthetic device. The 3,000-year-old artificial wooden big toe is offering insights into skills of ancient artisans, as well as the anatomical and medical know how of early physicians. 
 
 The prosthesis is of ancient Egyptian origin. It was recovered from a female burial excavated from the necropolis of Sheikh Abd el-Qurna, situated near Luxor on the West Bank at Thebes in Upper Egypt. 
 
 The natural and aesthetically pleasing appearance showcases both the skills of local Theban artisans and the high expectations of the wearer, who apparently expected a functional prosthetic, as well as a good-looking one. 
 
 Some research has suggested periods of war inspired advancements in prosthetics technology. 
 
 "Then as now, prostheses were collaborative efforts between medics, technologists and artists," Jane Draycott, a researcher at the University of Glasgow, wrote in the Independent. 
 
 Researchers at the University of Basel, with help from scientists at the Institute of Evolutionary Medicine at the University of Zurich and the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, have used an array of imaging technology to create 3D computer models of the remarkable artifact. The images suggest the wooden toe was refitted at least three time to ensure a comfortable and structurally sound fit. 
 
 The prosthetic was found inside a plundered tomb dated to the Early Iron Age. The tomb was carved into a much older burial chamber known as Sheikh Abd el-Qurna, which was a prominent resting place for a small group of elites during the 15th century BC. 
 
 In addition to imaging and modeling ancient artifacts, Base researchers are also building 3D maps of the site's burial chambers in an effort to document the cemeteries development over time. In more recent centuries, many of the rock-cut structures served as dwellings for locals, including early Christian hermits. ||||| The prosthetic toe belonged to an Egyptian priest’s daughter. 
 
 (University of Basel, LHTT / Matjaž Kačičnik) 
 
 Egyptologists from the University of Basel have been studying a 3,000-year-old wooden toe found in a necropolis near Luxor, formerly known as Thebes. 
 
 “This extraordinary piece was a sensational find,” Andrea Loprieno-Gnirs of the university’s department of ancient civilisationsexternal link told swissinfo.ch. She coordinated the archaeological dig in Sheikh ´Abd el-Qurna, whose oldest tombs date back to the early second millennium BC. 
 
 
 
 Fitted with a lace-up leather strap, the shapely prosthetic toe belonged to a priest’s daughter, who was buried with it near royalty in an upper-class tomb. 
 
 
 
 “They often wore sandals, so you can imagine that a well-formed foot was important. The wooden toe shows that she had a certain living standard, and also that there were craftsmen capable of making such prosthetics,” Loprieno-Gnirs said. 
 
 
 
 Using modern microscopy, X-ray technology and computer tomography, researchers could tell that the toe had been refitted several times to ensure the comfort of the wearer, whose big right toe had apparently been amputated. According to Loprieno-Gnirs, scientists are now reviewing whether this was actually the case. No other toes were missing. 
 
 
 
 For this study the University of Basel is collaborating with the Egyptian Museum in Cairo and the Institute of Evolutionary Medicine at the University of Zurich. 
 
 
 
 With funding from the Swiss National Science Foundation, the international Basel team has been studying the cemetery since the end of 2015. 
 
 Old prosthetic toes are rare but not unheard of, said Loprieno-Gnirs, citing another example at the British Museum. Dating back to 600BC, it’s made of cartonnage and has a (missing) inlaid toenail. 
 
 
 
 swissinfo.ch/sm 
 
 Neuer Inhalt Horizontal Line ||||| We are living through an incredibly exciting period for prosthetics. A pioneering brain computer interface that will allow veterans to control artificial body parts with their minds was recently announced by researchers in Virginia in the US. Meanwhile, Newcastle University in the UK is developing limbs which "see" objects in front of them and react at speeds more comparable with the real thing. 
 
 Projects like these are steadily helping people with prostheses to move more naturally and easily than ever before. But what few people appreciate is just how far back this field actually goes. 
 
 If you were thinking a couple of hundred years, or maybe since the medieval era, you wouldn't even be close. Amputations and prostheses date back to ancient times, and saw advances that were heralded as no less life-changing then as they are today. It's a fascinating story of gods, gladiators and the limits of human endurance that adds a whole other dimension to understanding this discipline. 
 
 Prosthetics begins 
 
 Warfare was not kind to the bodies of soldiers in Ancient Greece and Rome. It has been estimated that in Ancient Greece, about 80% of seriously wounded soldiers died on the day of battle. Of the remaining 20%, a third died of their injuries after returning home. It is not easy to make direct comparisons with modern times, but these figures are certainly likely to be much higher. 
 
 Whether survivors in the ancient era were injured in battle by a blade, spear or missile, or in camp by frostbite or trench foot, their arms, legs and extremities were incredibly vulnerable. In Ancient Greece, they benefited from simple surgical amputations as far back as the late fifth or early fourth century BC. The Hippocratic treatise On Joints attests to rudimentary amputations of fingers, toes, hands and feet, but cautions against amputating an entire arm or leg. 
 
 Around the same time, orthopaedic surgery had refined to the point that prostheses were starting to become available as alternatives to staffs, sticks and crutches. We see this in the account of the Graeco-Persian War (499-449BC) by the historian Herodotus, for instance. Herodotus recounts how the Persian diviner Hegesistratus, when imprisoned by the Spartans, amputated part of his own foot to escape his shackles, then procured a wooden replacement. 
 
 Egypt was using similar technology around the same period. Prosthetic toes made from wood or layers of fibre known as cartonnage have been recovered from burial sites, such as the one from a mummy near Luxor pictured below. They show signs of wear and tear, indicating that they were functional rather than purely cosmetic. 
 
 Surgical techniques advanced considerably during the Hellenistic period (323-31BC), the last era before Greek dominance gave way to Rome. These advances were thanks to medical practitioners at the Museion and Library in Alexandria making in-depth anatomy studies by dissecting and even vivisecting criminals sentenced to death. 
 
 False toe on mummy found near Luxor. Credit: Egyptian Museum 
 
 This improved their understanding of the circulatory system and led them to discover that blood vessels could be tied off to prevent bleeding, which meant that amputations could be done slowly and carefully. There was less risk that the patient would die of blood loss, and stumps were now more amenable to prosthesis use. 
 
 It is unlikely to be a coincidence that prostheses advanced at the same time. An artificial leg recovered from a tomb in Capua in southern Italy, dated to the late fourth or early third century BC, had a wooden core covered in bronze sheeting. This was held in place by a leather and bronze belt, which would have made movement easier. 
 
 Another example is the Roman general Marcus Sergius Silus. He lost his right hand during the Second Punic War (218-201BC), which was fought between the Romans and Hannibal of Carthage in latterday Tunisia. But rather than retire, Silus procured an iron hand which he subsequently used to bear his shield, transferring his sword to his left hand instead. 
 
 Then and now 
 
 Surviving examples like these indicate that extremity prostheses were designed, commissioned, and manufactured to an individual's specific preferences. The same artisans that produced personalised armour and weapons likely produced personalised prostheses for wounded veterans. 
 
 Considering the ancient association of disabled people with crafts such as metalwork – epitomised by the Greek god Hephaistos and his Roman counterpart Vulcan – artisans may even have drawn on their own experiences of impairment to inspire their creations. Soldiers like Silus would duly have been able to defy their societies' expectations and continue to play significant roles at moments of historical significance. 
 
 We historians do have to speculate here to some extent: we don't know how soldiers acquired their prostheses, since medical treatises do not mention these procedures. Yet it seems probable that the technology improved due to the horrors of war – just as today's advances are partly a response to the unprecedented levels of multiple traumatic injuries that soldiers suffered in Afghanistan and Iraq. And then as now, prostheses were collaborative efforts between medics, technologists and artists. 
 
 After the ancient era, prostheses barely improved until the 16th century. That was when Ambroise Paré, the royal surgeon to four successive French kings, invented mechanical versions including knees and fingers capable of bending somewhat like the real thing. 
 
 So when we see the latest prostheses giving veterans an incomparable quality of life or helping athletes to achieve amazing things at the Paralympics, it is worth reflecting on the distance travelled. We have been trying to make amends for humanity's worst tendencies for 25 centuries. Long may such advances continue to be a vital consolation. 
 
 Explore further: Major gains still to be made in quality of arm prostheses
– Think losing a toe in ancient Egypt meant you'd be forever without one? Not so, at least in one case. Egyptologists from Switzerland's University of Basel have since 2015 been studying what a press release calls an "ancient Egyptian elite cemetery" near Luxor, and one of its finds was small but big: one of the oldest prosthetic devices ever found, which served to replace the right foot's big toe and was made with incredible skill. The 3,000-year-old prosthesis was discovered in the upper-class tomb of a priest's daughter at plundered burial site Sheikh 'Abd el-Qurna and has now been re-examined. Not only is it attractive and functional, but "the mobility of the prosthetic extension and the robust structure of the belt strap" show it was made by an artisan who was "very familiar" with the human form. At the Conversation, Jane Draycott of the University of Glasgow notes prostheses have also been found in ancient Greece, and advancements in this field likely followed war as soldiers with missing extremities returned home. It isn't clear what happened to the priest's daughter, but researchers believe her toe was amputated and a pricey prosthetic fitted in its place. Using microscopy and X-rays, they determined the wooden toe was actually refitted at least three times, per UPI. It shows "she had a certain living standard," researcher Andrea Loprieno-Gnirs tells Swiss Info. Ancient Egyptians "often wore sandals, so you can imagine that a well-formed foot was important," she adds, calling the prosthetic an "extraordinary" and "sensational find." (These mummy legs might belong to a royal.)