An historical account of physiognomy as found in ancient and medieval Greek and Arab writings is presented. Physiognomy was used to judge the character of slaves to be purchased. The Arab concept of firasa which means insight enabling one to judge others at a glance, is compared to the Einsicht of the Gestaltists. The neobehaviorist theories of the whole-part character of behavior bear some resemblance to the concept of complexio of the medieval physicians. 50 pages are devoted to the translation of a rare 13th century manuscript which is followed by the Arab text. Part 1 deals with the difference between mystical intuition and firasa, the relationship between physiognomy and medicine, the influence of climate and diet on character, and the parallelism between certain human and animal physiognomic types. Part 2 deals with temperaments (reflecting the influence of Hippocrates and Galen), the psychological differences according to the 4 ages of man, the character of noblemen and rich people, and the differences between people from warm and from cold countries. Part 3 deals with the significance of the limbs according to their shape, size, color, etc. Notes and commentaries explain the text; a bibliography of 9 pages, including Arab, Persian, and Latin manuscripts, and Arab, Italian, French, and Latin printed texts of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, as well as the most recent writings, is given