In Synchrony with the Heavens: Instruments of Mass Calculation (Studies X-XVIII)
Author: David A. King
Publisher:
Published: 2004
Total Pages:
ISBN-13: 9789004122338
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In Synchrony with the Heavens, Volume 2 Instruments of Mass Calculation
Author: David King
Publisher: BRILL
Published: 2005-06-01
Total Pages: 1142
ISBN-13: 9047406753
DOWNLOAD EBOOKThis is the first investigation of one of the main interests of astronomy in Islamic civilization, namely, timekeeping by the sun and stars and the regulation of the astronomically-defined times of Muslim prayer. The study is based on over 500 medieval astronomical manuscripts first identified by the author, now preserved in libraries all over the world and originally from the entire Islamic world from the Maghrib to Central Asia and the Yemen. The materials presented provide new insights into the early development of the prayer ritual in Islam. They also call into question the popular notion that religion could not inspire serious scientific activity. Only one of the hundreds of astronomical tables discussed here was known in medieval Europe, which is one reason why the entire corpus has remained unknown until the present. A second volume, also to be published by Brill, deals with astronomical instruments for timekeeping and other computing devices.
Islamic Astronomy and Geography
Author: David A. King
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2022-02-13
Total Pages: 357
ISBN-13: 1000585158
DOWNLOAD EBOOKThis volume of 12 studies, mainly published during the past 15 years, begins with an overview of the Islamic astronomy covering not only sophisticated mathematical astronomy and instrumentation but also simple folk astronomy, and the ways in which astronomy was used in the service of religion. It continues with discussions of the importance of Islamic instruments and scientific manuscript illustrations. Three studies deal with the regional schools that developed in Islamic astronomy, in this case, Egypt and the Maghrib. Another focuses on a curious astrological table for calculating the length of life of any individual. The notion of the world centred on the sacred Kaaba in Mecca inspired both astronomers and proponents of folk astronomy to propose methods for finding the qibla, or sacred direction towards the Kaaba; their activities are surveyed here. The interaction between the mathematical and folk traditions in astronomy is then illustrated by an 11th-century text on the qibla in Transoxania. The last three studies deal with an account of the geodetic measurements sponsored by the Caliph al-Ma'mûn in the 9th century; a world-map in the tradition of the 11th-century polymath al-Bîrûnî, alas corrupted by careless copying; and a table of geographical coordinates from 15th-century Egypt.
New Perspectives on the History of Islamic Science
Author: Muzaffar Iqbal
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2017-05-15
Total Pages: 581
ISBN-13: 1351914774
DOWNLOAD EBOOKRecent studies in the history of Islamic science based on the discovery and study of new primary texts and instruments have substantially revised the views of nineteenth-century historians of science. This volume presents some of these ground-breaking studies as well as articles which shed new light on the ongoing academic debate surrounding the question of the decline of Islamic scientific tradition.
A Bridge to the Sky
Author: Glaire Anderson
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 2024-01-25
Total Pages: 249
ISBN-13: 019091324X
DOWNLOAD EBOOKA Bridge to the Sky explores the close connections between science, arts, and visual culture as they developed in the medieval Islamic lands. It presents a significant study of the career of 'Abbas Ibn Firnas, (d. 887), the most celebrated 'scientist' and polymath of early Islamic Spain, best known for conducting an experiment that has been celebrated as a milestone in the history of human flight.
Herbal Medicine in Yemen
Author:
Publisher: BRILL
Published: 2012-08-27
Total Pages: 267
ISBN-13: 9004232079
DOWNLOAD EBOOKTraditional medical lore along with its practitioners – druggists and healers – survives in Yemen today. Owing to the country's rich biodiversity, the main body of the medicines is plant-based. This book features fourteen scholars from Europe, North America and the Middle East (three of them from Yemen) who represent both humanities and natural sciences. They address the topic of herbal medicines and their multifaceted applications within traditional Yemeni society across boundaries of disciplines, such as Islamic studies, history, social anthropology, pharmacy and agriculture. The approaches are based on textual analysis, empirical research and laboratory experiment. Both historical and contemporary issues are covered. Contributors include: Mohammed Al-Duais, Jacques Fleurentin, Amin Al-Hakimi, Ingrid Hehmeyer, Gottfried Jetschke, Efraim Lev, Ulrike Lindequist, Miranda Morris, Ester Muchawsky-Schnapper, Frédéric Pelat, Mikhail Rodionov, Petra Schmidl, Daniel Martin Varisco and Anhar Ya’ni.
A Descriptive Catalogue of Indian Astronomical Instruments
Author: Sreeramula Rajeswara Sarma
Publisher: tredition
Published: 2019-03-28
Total Pages: 618
ISBN-13: 3748227833
DOWNLOAD EBOOKThe large masonry instruments designed by Sawai Jai Singh and erected in his five observatories in the early eighteenth century mark the culmination of a long process of development in astronomical instrumentation. But what kind of astronomical instruments were used in India before Jai Singh's time? Sanskrit texts on astronomy describe the construction and use of several types of instruments. Are any of these extant in museums? Such questions led me to an exploration of nearly a hundred museums and private collections in India, Europe and USA for about a quarter century. The present catalogue is the outcome of this exploration. This catalogue describes each instrument in the context of the related extant specimens, while laying special emphasis on the interplay between Sanskrit and Islamic traditions of instrumentation. Therefore, each instrument type is organized in a separate section identified by the letters of the alphabet. These sections begin with introductory essays on the history of the instrument type and its varieties, followed by a full technical description of every specimen, with art historical notes. Moreover, all engraved data are reproduced and interpreted as far as possible. In some 4300 pages, it contains 600 entries, with introductory essays and long extracts from two important Sanskrit texts, namely Mahendra Sūri's Yantrarāja and Padmanābha's Dhruvabhramādhikāra, along with English translations. Following a suggestion that a shorter version of the Catalogue, consisting of all the introductory essays and appendices, but excluding the catalogue proper, would be easier for the general reader to handle, this Abridged Version has been prepared. The pagination here remains the same as in the Catalogue. Those who wish to read about individual instruments can always consult the Catalogue.
Prognostication in the Medieval World
Author: Matthias Heiduk
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
Published: 2020-11-09
Total Pages: 1116
ISBN-13: 3110498472
DOWNLOAD EBOOKTwo opposing views of the future in the Middle Ages dominate recent historical scholarship. According to one opinion, medieval societies were expecting the near end of the world and therefore had no concept of the future. According to the other opinion, the expectation of the near end created a drive to change the world for the better and thus for innovation. Close inspection of the history of prognostication reveals the continuous attempts and multifold methods to recognize and interpret God’s will, the prodigies of nature, and the patterns of time. That proves, on the one hand, the constant human uncertainty facing the contingencies of the future. On the other hand, it demonstrates the firm believe during the Middle Ages in a future which could be shaped and even manipulated. The handbook provides the first overview of current historical research on medieval prognostication. It considers the entangled influences and transmissions between Christian, Jewish, Islamic, and non-monotheistic societies during the period from a wide range of perspectives. An international team of 63 renowned authors from about a dozen different academic disciplines contributed to this comprehensive overview.
Writing As Intermediary
Author: Korn, Lorenz
Publisher: University of Bamberg Press
Published: 2022-12-20
Total Pages: 350
ISBN-13: 3863098625
DOWNLOAD EBOOKAstrolabes in Medieval Cultures
Author:
Publisher: BRILL
Published: 2019-01-28
Total Pages: 516
ISBN-13: 9004387862
DOWNLOAD EBOOKFirst published as a special issue of the journal Medieval Encounters (vol. 23, 2017), this volume, edited by Josefina Rodríguez-Arribas, Charles Burnett, Silke Ackermann, and Ryan Szpiech, brings together fifteen studies on various aspects of the astrolabe in medieval cultures. The astrolabe, developed in antiquity and elaborated throughout the Middle Ages, was used for calculation, teaching, and observation, and also served astrological and medical purposes. It was the most popular and prestigious of the mathematical instruments, and was found equally among practitioners of various sciences and arts as among princes in royal courts. By considering sources and instruments from Muslim, Christian, and Jewish contexts, this volume provides state-of-the-art research on the history and use of the astrolabe throughout the Middle Ages. Contributors are Silke Ackermann, Emilia Calvo, John Davis, Laura Fernández Fernández, Miquel Forcada, Azucena Hernández, David A. King, Taro Mimura, Günther Oestmann, Josefina Rodríguez-Arribas, Sreeramula Rajeswara Sarma, Petra G. Schmidl, Giorgio Strano, Flora Vafea, and Johannes Thomann.
