ABSTRACT
In the medicine of the Alexandrian epoch he became identified with Hermes Trismegistus, the master of the ancient mysteries. The kings of the ancient dynasties also appear to have been closely connected with the practice-of medicine. The sources for the history of Egyptian medicine are found in a number of medical papyri, the three most important of which are: the Ebers Papyrus, the Brugsch Papyrus, and the Edwin Smith Papyrus. The Egyptian concept of life differs from that of Assyro-Babylonia in that, while the latter regarded the liver as the centre of the blood supply and the seat of life, the Egyptian found the most important and most characteristic vital function in respiration. In the field of hygiene Egyptian medicine reached a high degree of progress and it may be stated that there existed a true social medicine, even if in rudimentary form.
