The Egyptian civilisation is one of the oldest in history and was renowned for its scientific and artistic achievements, and medicine was no exception. The ancient Egyptians were masters in applying and arranging bandages, and they recognized the cardinal signs of infection and inflammation. Egyptian drug therapy can be regarded as having evolved from a system rooted in magic and empirical observation. To illustrate how the Egyptian wound healing methods provided a major stimulus for the development of surgery, we conducted a literature search.