Evidence of hardening of the arteries was found in 3,000-year-old Egyptian mummies.
The discovery proves that heart disease and stroke are not merely a modern phenomenon.
They afflicted people in ancient times too - and may have been a major health concern for the Egyptian pharaohs.
Arteries become hardened and narrowed as a result of atherosclerosis, the process that causes scaly deposits to build up on blood vessel walls.
In the end they can become so constricted that blood is prevented from reaching the heart or brain. The result can be a heart attack or stroke.
Heart disease is often associated with modern western lifestyles, especially lack of exercise and consumption of too much fatty food.
But it seems ancient Egyptians of high social rank had similar problems.
Scientists began their study by looking at the mummy of Pharaoh Merenptah, who lived from 1213 to 1203 BC, in Cairo's Museum of Egyptian Antiquities. An inscription on the mummy said that when the pharaoh died aged 60 he was afflicted by diseased arteries, arthritis and dental decay.
Intrigued, the US and Egyptian experts got permission to examine 20 mummies at the museum with a CT scanner similar to those used in hospitals.
A CT, or computerised tomography, scan produces 3D X-ray images that can show damage to internal organs.
The researchers found that nine of 16 mummies with identifiable arteries or hearts left after thousands of years of preservation had evidence of atherosclerosis.
Hard calcified deposits were seen either in the walls of arteries or along the path an artery would have taken. In some individuals, up to six different arteries were affected.
Prof. Gregory Thomas, from the University of California at Irvine, one of the scientists leading the study, said: "Atherosclerosis is ubiquitous among modern day humans and, despite differences in ancient and modern lifestyles, we found that it was rather common in ancient Egyptians of high socioeconomic status living as much as three millennia ago.
"The findings suggest that we may have to look beyond modern risk factors to fully understand the disease."
The findings were reported yesterday in the Journal of the American Medical Association. They were also being presented today at the Scientific Sessions of the American Heart Association in Orlando, Florida.
Analysis of the mummies' bones allowed the experts to estimate their age.
Of those who had died when they were older than 45, seven out of eight had suffered hardened arteries. In contrast only two of eight of those who died at an earlier age had evidence of artery disease.
Calcification was seen in both male and female mummies.
The most ancient atherosclerosis victim was Lady Rai, who died at the young age of 30 or 40 in about the year 1530 BC, and had been nursemaid to Queen Ahmose Nefertiri. Lady Rai lived 300 years before the time of Moses and 200 years prior to the reign of one of the most famous pharaohs, King Tutankhamun.
All the mummies whose identities could be determined were high ranking individuals serving the court of the Pharaoh or having the status of priest or priestess.
It was impossible to determine what kind of diet the dead Egyptians had. However, it is known that people at that time often consumed meat in the form of beef, duck or goose.
"While we do not know whether atherosclerosis caused the demise of any of the mummies in the study, we can confirm that the disease was present in many," said Prof. Thomas.