Abstract
The term acupuncture comes from Latin acus which means “needle” and pungere which means “prick”.
In China, the practice of acupuncture can perhaps be traced as far back as the first millennium BC and archeological evidence has been identified during the period of the Han dynasty (from 202 BC to 220 AD).
However, this form of acupuncture was different from what it is nowadays because it was using stone, which was not used to pierce the skin, but rather to press on acupuncture points. The first acupuncture needles that have actually been found date back to 600 AD. These needles were made of bronze, copper, tin, gold, or silver. Recent examinations of Ötzi, a 5000-year-old mummy found in the Alps, have identified over fifty tattoos on his body, some of which are located on acupuncture points that would today be used to treat ailments Ötzi was suffering from.
