Bandages through history
From neolithic broken bones to ancient Egyptian scraps, bandages have been a tool human’s have used for millennia. Healed broken bones and flax fibers fashioned into a wrapping have been found in archaeological sites dating to 36,000 years ago (Davis 64 & Broughton et al. 6S). Wound care is documented in ancient Egyptian papyri, dating to 1600 BCE: honey, grease, and lint were used to create a bandage (James 10). There are thousands of examples throughout human history of wound care which include a fabric wrapping of some sort. Even in ancient stories that have survived to today, there are reference to bandages. Homer’s the Iliad depicts the events of the Trojan War (est. 1300 BCE), in which many characters are injured and bandaged. Pottery from ancient Greece (500 BCE) illustrates the events of this story. One example is when Patroclus is injured and Achilles cares for his wounds by bandaging them (Junker 1&2). These examples highlight the continuity in how bandages were made and used. From ancient times to present day, not much has changed in their design. Many different iterations and variations have been created but their core materials and applications of use have remained mostly consistent.
Achilles bandages Patroklos' arm. Red-Figure Kylix. Ca. 500 BCE. (cc) 2016. Photo: Egisto Sani (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0).
Illustration of scraping lint. "LINT AND CHARPIE: IT’S NOT YOUR DRYER LINT" by Virginia Mescher.
A main material for absorption like cotton or flax is fashioned into a square or rectangle to be applied to a wound. Historically, flax fibers were favoured for wound dressings because of the abundance of the plant at the time. The cultivation of flax plants can be traced to the civilizations of Mesopotamia around 5,000 or 4,000 years ago. The success of growing this plant resulted in it being adopted by surrounding cultures and flax ended up spreading globally over time (Davis 65).
One of the more modern uses of flax for wound care is the dressing called “lint and charpie” (Davis 66). This was the practice of scraping flax fibers, or sometimes linen, to create a fluffier ‘lint-like’ fabric for better absorption. This dressing was phased out by the time of the American Civil War (Stephens 2026). By the 1800s cotton became a more favoured material due to the change in agricultural practices (Davis 67). Bandage fabrics would be created from woven cotton and then cut to the desired shape and size.
The nineteenth century saw a surge of technological inventions thanks to the recent industrial revolution providing new ways to power production. One of these technological leaps was by Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen in 1895 when he discovered how to collect and analyze X-ray photographs. This led to a boom in the success of medical treatments as it allowed for medical professionals to look in a patient’s body without invasive procedures (Panchbhai pars 1&24). This invention subsequently resulted in the hospital’s ability to combat the issue of retained surgical sponges. A retained surgical sponge is when a sponge is lost within the body of the patient during or after surgery (Bani-Hani et al. 109). Before X-ray the technique to avoid retained sponges, surgical staff counted dressings before and after procedures. This process was proven to be imperfect, and retained sponges were a regular concern during surgeries. The invention of the X-ray led to radiopaque material being used in sponges to help reduce the number of retained surgical sponges. Radiopaque marked sponges are still regularly used to today (Bani-Hani).
Radiopaque marker for surgical sponge patent. Carl E. Fabian.World Intellectual Property Organization, Internal Bureau. 2007
X-ray detectable surgical sponge. Derma Sciences Inc. Photo: Anastasia Parkinson.
Many more bandage variations were created in the twentieth century due to an increasing state of global conflict. The World Wars brought many new inventions to the medical field. One of these variations was the tube bandage, which was a weaved fabric in the shape of a tube. Different sizes allowed for different areas to be covered. The function of the tube was to be cut to a desired length and put over the wound area, often called a ‘cot’. (Stephen, Beveridge, & Power 2026) This design allowed for an easier coverage of areas like fingers, toes, or limbs, which could be wrapped with more protection. Created in the 1950s as a reaction to the second World War’s, and the need for more medical innovation in response to new forms of violence.
At the beginning of the 21st century, we see another shift, this time towards single-use products. Many of the tools used by medical professionals are now single-use and prepackaged to reduce time and labour and to ensure sterile equipment. This shift did result in an increase in better care for patients but also resulted in an increase in plastic waste (Cho, Yoora et al. 1).
Tube Bandage for fingers. Photo: Amazon.com/Tubular-Dressing-Retainer-Breathable-Applicator/
X-ray detectable sponges and package. Derma Sciences Inc. Photo: Anastasia Parkinson