Dermatological Diseases in Animals in Mesopotamian Medical Texts: Garābu, Samānu, and Sikkatu

This study examines the identification, classification, and treatment of animal dermatological diseases within the Mesopotamian medical tradition, with the aim of clarifying the scope and character of ancient veterinary knowledge. Drawing on cuneiform medical, lexical, and incantation texts, the symptom profiles, terminological usage, and therapeutic references associated with three skin diseases —garābu, samānu and sikkatu— are analyzed. The evidence indicates that these conditions were understood not merely as clinical phenomena but were also embedded in ritual and economic contexts. Garābu appears to have been perceived as a treatable skin disease affecting domesticated animals, particularly sheep and cattle, characterized by itching, crusting, and, at times, foul odor, with cedar oil and plant-based remedies used as therapeutic measures. Samānu, by contrast, displays a broad and variable symptom range and is frequently accompanied by exorcist imagery, suggesting that it functioned as a symptom-based category encompassing multiple etiologies rather than a single disease entity. Sikkatu is distinguished by large, raised lesions and presents notable parallels with poxvirus-related infections; references to herbal remedies and (probably) protective stones further imply that it was regarded as amenable to intervention. Overall, the findings indicate that, despite the limited and often fragmentary nature of medical knowledge concerning animals in Mesopotamia, an observation-based and pragmatic approach to veterinary care did exist. This body of knowledge appears to have developed within an intellectual framework that ran parallel to human medicine.