EGYPTIAN SCIENCE 



to its human prototype. If the figure were bruised 

 or beaten, some accident would overtake its double ; 

 if the image were placed over a fire, the human being 

 would fall into a fever, and so on. But, of course, 

 such mysterious evils as these would be met and com- 

 bated by equally mysterious processes; and so it was 

 that the entire art of medicine was closely linked with 

 magical practices. It was not, indeed, held, according 

 to Maspero, that the magical spells of enemies were the 

 sole sources of human ailments, but one could never 

 be sure to what extent such spells entered into the 

 affliction; and so closely were the human activities 

 associated in the mind of the Egyptian with one form 

 or another of occult influences that purely physical 

 conditions were at a discount. In the later times, at 

 any rate, the physician was usually a priest, and there 

 was a close association between the material and 

 spiritual phases of therapeutics. Erman 4 tells us 

 that the following formula had to be recited at the 

 preparation of all medicaments: "That Isis might 

 make free, make free. That Isis might make Horus 

 free from all evil that his brother Set had done to him 

 when he slew his father, Osiris. O Isis, great enchant- 

 ress, free me, release me from all evil red things, from 

 the fever of the god, and the fever of the goddess, from 

 death and death from pain, and the pain which comes 

 over me ; as thou hast freed, as thou hast released thy 

 son Horus, whilst I enter into the fire and come forth 

 from the water," etc. Again, when the invalid took 

 the medicine, an incantation had to be said which be- 

 gan thus : ' ' Come remedy, come drive it out of my heart, 

 out of these Jimbs strong in magic power with the 



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