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Ancient Doctors Used Poison as Anesthesia, and Scientists Found the Proof on 600-Year-Old Surgical Tools

Researchers say Ming Dynasty surgeons knew the toxic compound was dangerous, but used it carefully to numb patients.

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Times might be tough in the world right now, but you should always be happy that you live today and not thousands of years ago. You know, back when medicine was virtually indistinguishable from torture. I recently reported on horrifying ancient medical practices like brutal Neanderthal dentistry. Now we’ve learned that doctors during China’s Ming Dynasty were apparently knocking patients out for surgery using poison.

According to a new study published in the journal Antiquity, researchers discovered the first direct chemical evidence of anesthetic residue on 600-year-old surgical tools found in a Chinese tomb.

The tools belonged to Xia Quan, a Ming Dynasty surgeon whose grave was excavated in the 1970s in Jiangyin........

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