MIDDLE EASTERN
MEDICINE About 2000 © the Amorites unified the nations and tribes in the valleys of the Tigris
and Euphrates rivers. They built Babylon, and science and learning flourished under their greatest king, Hammurabi. The Code of Hammurabi, which constitutes wide-ranging laws inscribed on a great stone pillar, includes definitions of the conduct of a physicianÑwhat he may treat, what his fee should beÑand also prescribes punishments for malpractice. The Hebrew civilization developing at about the same time placed strong emphasis on public health and sanitation. It codified these practices in the Pentateuch and Talmud as prescribed by Moses. The practice of
medicine in ancient Israel was one of the duties of the priesthood.