Tikvah
Editors’ Pick

August 19, 2016

An Ancient Medical Practice, from Masada to the Olympics

As cupping helps a swimmer.

Known to Ashkenazi Jews primarily from a Yiddish expression (“as cupping helps a corpse,” describing something not at all helpful), the folk-medicinal practice of cupping has recently received public attention because of its use by the Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps. The treatment can be traced back to ancient Egypt and China, and archaeologists have found evidence that it was used in ancient Israel as well. Megan Sauter writes:

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