children birth_place name spouse image article_title birth_name occupation
son second or third dynasty egypt merit-ptah unknown merit-ptah . jpg merit-ptah
 merit chief physician
merit-ptah

merit ptah -lrb- `` beloved of the god ptah '' ; c. 2700 bce -rrb- was an early physician in ancient egypt .
she is most notable for being the first woman known by name in the history of the field of medicine , and possibly the first named woman in all of science as well .
her picture can be seen on a tomb in the necropolis near the step pyramid of saqqara .
her son , who was a high priest , described her as `` the chief physician . ''
the physician merit ptah should not be confused with merit-ptah , the wife of ramose , the governor of thebes and vizier under akhenaten , who is depicted with her husband in tt55 in sheikh abd el-qurna .
