He served as a court physician during the reign of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent. He is the author of *Kitab-ı Fi't-Tıbb El-esnan*, one of the first books in the world—and the first in Turkish—dedicated exclusively to dental diseases. Moses Hamon (or Moşe Hamon, Amon) (1490; Granada, Spain – 1567) was born in Spain as the son of Joseph Hamon. He came to Istanbul with his father and became the physician to Sultan Suleiman I. Described by Judah ibn Verga as a “famous prince and great physician,” Hamon accompanied the sultan on all his campaigns. His knowledge and skill earned him the sultan’s patronage.
Following his father’s death, he became the personal physician of Sultan Selim the Grim and later of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent. By order of Suleiman the Magnificent, he was tasked in 1526 with establishing the health system in Hungary. In the Arabic introduction to his work—written in Turkish using the Ottoman Naqshī script between 1526 and 1551 and dedicated to Suleiman the Magnificent— he describes dental diseases and surgeries in the finest detail; this work, considered one of the four most valuable books in the world, is still housed in the library of the Institute of the History of Medicine at Istanbul University. Starting with their great-grandfather, the Hamon family secured a prominent and trusted position at the palace; Josef and his son Moses, in particular, became favorites of the court through the strong relationships they cultivated and their careers in diplomacy. This tradition and prestige were later carried on by their grandchildren.