In Saqqara, in Ankhmahon’s tomb, Visir of the Pharaoh Teti Dynasty (c. 2345 BCE) there is a bas-relief with a representation of circumcision. Below is a papyrus illustrating the operation in vivid color. Have you ever wondered what the oldest illustration of a circumcision looked like? Of course you haven’t, but we’ll tell you anyway. A bas-relief—a type of sculptural technique in which the sculpted elements remain attached to their background—dating back to 2,400 BCE and depicting two men being circumcised was found in an Egyptian tomb built for Ankhmahor, a high-ranking official during the sixth dynasty of Egypt. The...