The Oath of Asaph
Authors: FRED ROSNER
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (1965)

Medical History1 August 1965The Oath of AsaphFRED ROSNER, M.D., SUSSMAN MUNTNER, M.D.FRED ROSNER, M.D., SUSSMAN MUNTNER, M.D.Author, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-63-2-317 SectionsAboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail ExcerptThe oldest Hebrew medical manuscript is a work ascribed to Asaph Judaeus or Asaph ben Berachiah, an ancient Jewish physician. Although Asaph is described under various names including Asaph Harofe (Asaph the physician), Asaph HeChakam (Asaph the wise man), Asaph HaYarhoni (Asaph the Astronomer), and Asaph HaYehudi (Asaph the Jew), little is known about his life. In fact the major general medical historical texts, including Diepgen, Castiglioni, Haeser, Neuberger, Pagel, Pushman, Sprengel, and many others make no mention of Asaph whatsoever. Historical dictionaries of medicine such as Eloy's and Dezeimeri's four and seven volume works, respectively, omit any reference to...References1. GARRISON FH: An Introduction to the History of Medicine. 4th ed. W. B. Saunders, Philadelphia, 1929, p. 147. Google Scholar2. SARTON G: Introduction to the History of Science. Vol. 1. Published for the Carnegie Institution of Washington by The Williams and Wilkins Co., Baltimore, 1927, p. 614. Google Scholar3. MUNTNER S: The antiquity of Assaph the physician and his editorship of the earliest Hebrew book of medicine. Bull. Hist. Med. 25: 101, 1951. MedlineGoogle Scholar4. STEINSCHNEIDER M: Assaf Judaeus. Hebr. Bibliogr. 12: 85, 1872; 17, 114, 1877( 19, 35, 64, 84, 105, 1879. Google Scholar5. VENETIANER L: Asaf Judaeus, der Alteste Medizinische Schriftsteller in Hebraischer Sprache. Strassburg-Trubner, 1916-1917. Google Scholar6. SIMON I: Asaph-Ha-Jehoudi. Lipschutz, Paris, 1933. Google Scholar7. MUNTNER S: Introduction to the Book of Assaph the Physician. Geniza, Jerusalem, 1957. Google Scholar8. LAVASTINE L: Histoire Generale de la Medecine. Vol. 2. Albin-Michel, Paris, 1963, pp. 119-120. Google Scholar9. MUNTNER S: R. Shabtai Donnolo (913-983). Medical Works. 1st ed. Jerusalem, 1949. Google Scholar10. FRIEDENWALD H: Jewish Luminaries in Medical History. Johns Hopkins Press, Baltimore, 1946, pp. 3-4. Google Scholar This content is PDF only. To continue reading please click on the PDF icon. Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAuthors: FRED ROSNER, M.D.; SUSSMAN MUNTNER, M.D.Affiliations: Washington, D. C.,, Jerusalem,From the Neurological and Sensory Disease Service Program, Division of Chronic Diseases, U. S. Public Health Service, Washington, D. C., and Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel.Requests for reprints should be addressed to Fred Rosner, M.D., Maimonides Hospital, 4802 Tenth Ave., Brooklyn, N. Y. 11219. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Metrics Cited bySpirituality and Health in Pandemic Times: Lessons from the Ancient Wisdom‘All men have been considered equal by me’: The attitude of Amatus Lusitanus towards treating gentiles according to his Physician’s OathHuman immunodeficiency virus: confidentiality and disclosure of information to third parties 1 August 1965Volume 63, Issue 2Page: 317-320KeywordsJewish peopleMedical services ePublished: 1 December 2008 Issue Published: 1 August 1965 PDF downloadLoading ...