Note 3 — Chapter II · ORIENTAL MEDICINE

From the statements just quoted it appears that a certain kind of bronze (an alloy of copper and tin, with the addition perhaps of a little zinc) was used in Assyria, in the manufacture of surgical knives, as early as during the twenty-third century B. C. Dr. Meyer-Steineg, Professor of the History of Medicine in the University of Jena, Germany, assures the writer that knives made of this material are susceptible of being given as keen a cutting edge as are those made of the best of steel. At least one such bronze knife may be seen in the collection of ancient surgical instruments, votive offerings, etc., which he is making for the benefit of the University.