Collection of treatises and excerpts mostly by the Yemeni mathematician Jamāl al-Dīn Abū ‘Abd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad ‘Umar al-Khuzā‘ī (جمال الدين أبو عبد الله محمد بن أحمد بن عمر الخزاعي, fl. 13th century, see King, 'A Medieval Arabic Report on Algebra Before al-Khwārizmī' and idem,
Mathematical Astronomy in Medieval Yemen, appendix, no. 3) and related to algebra and inheritance calculations.Contents:(1) al-Khuzā‘ī, Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad (الخزاعي، محمد بن أحمد),
Sharḥ al-mukhtaṣar fī al-jabr wa-al-muqābalah(شرح المختصر في الجبر والمقابلة; ff. 1r-124v);(2) al-Khuzā‘ī, Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad (الخزاعي، محمد بن أحمد),
Kitāb al-inshā’ fī ‘ilm al-jabr wa-al-muqābalah(كتاب الإنشاء في علم الجبر والمقابلة; ff. 125v-130v);(3) al-Khuzā‘ī, Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad (الخزاعي، محمد بن أحمد), Excerpt on magic squares (ff. 130v-132v).Codex; ff. iii+133+iMaterial: Western laid paperDimensions: 302 x 200 mm leaf [200 x 115 mm written]Foliation: India Office Library foliation stamped in black inkRuling:
Misṭarah; 35 lines per page; vertical spacing 18 lines per 10 cmScript:
NaskhInk: Black ink, with rubricated headings and diagrams and overlinings in redDecoration: NoneBinding: Purple cloth India Office bindingCondition: Extensive insect damage especially towards ends of volume, but little damage to text block; f. 1 mutilated, but with minimal loss of text; ff. 1-6 severly trimmed; ff. 131 and 132 are guardedMarginalia: Numerous by many handsSeals: front flyleaf iii and ff. 2r and 132v
Astronomical handbook with tables composed at Merv (مرو) by the astronomer, mathematician and physicist Abū Manṣūr (also known as Abū al-Fatḥ) ‘Abd al-Raḥmān al-Khāzinī (أبو منصور/أبو الفتح عبد الرحمن الخازني) around 1120 and dedicated to the Seljuk sultan Sanjar ibn Malikshāh (سنجر بن ملكشاه, reg. 1118-57).The manuscript is defective at the beginning and the folios are out of order. David Pingree ('A Preliminary Assessment of the Problems of Editing the Zīj al-Sanjarī of al-Khazini' [London: Al-Furqān Islamic Heritage Foundation, 1420/1999], on pp. 106 and 109) suggests the following as the correct folio sequence: ff. 57-62, 7-8, 2, 1, 3-6, 9-56, 63-69, 71-75, 77, 79, 70, 76, 78, 81, 97, 82-96, 98, 104-107, 102, 99, 103, 108-109, 100, 138-139, 110-123, 127, 126, 124-125, 128-134, 156, 155, 140-148, 135, 149-154, 101, 137, 136 and 157. Maqālah Nine is defective at the end, Maqālah Ten is missing and the Separate Maqālah is defective at the beginning (see table of
maqālātbelow).A table of contents is found on ff. 2v, 1 and 3r (in that order), and the text is divided into eleven treatises (مقالات), each subdivided into sections (أقسام), chapters (أبواب) and parts (فصول).Treatise titles according to the table of contents:Maqālah One: Epochs (المقالة الأولى في التواريخ, ff. 3v-13r);Maqālah Two: Introductions (المقالة الثانية في المقدمات, ff. 13r-16v);Maqālah Three: Ascendants (المقالة الثالثة في الطوالع, ff. 16v-26r);Maqālah Four: Mean Motion of Planets (المقالة الرابعة في أوساط الكواكب, ff. 26v-34r);Maqālah Five: Stations, Latitudes and Motion (المقالة الخامسة في القوائم والعروض والمسير, ff. 34r-38r);Maqālah Six: Parallax (المقالة السادسة في اختلافات المناظر , ff. 38r-42v);Maqālah Seven: Conjunctions (المقالة السابعة في الاتصالات, ff. 42v-45r);Maqālah Eight: Eclipses (المقالة الثامنة في الكسوفات, ff. 45r-52v);Maqālah Nine: Sighting and Rising (المقالة التاسعة في الرؤية والتشريق, ff. 52v-62v, defective at end);Maqālah Ten: Conversions of Years (المقالة العاشرة في تحاويل السنين, missing);Seperate Maqālah: Unusual Works (المقالة المفروزة لأعمال غريبة, ff. 63r-68r, defective at beginning).The eleven treatises of the text (ff. 1r-68r) are followed by tables (ff. 68v-157v). An overview of the contents of these tables is found in Kennedy, 'A Survey of Islamic Astronomical Tables' (1956), on pp. 159-61.The copy was completed in 20 Jumādá II 620/21 July 1223 by Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad ibn Sālim al-Maqdisī or al-Muqaddasī (محمد بن أحمد بن سالم المقدسي, see f. 157, foot of table).Begins (f. 57r, lines 1-2, defective at beginning):صعود الكوبك في فلكه وهبوطه وعمق الأجرام السماوية والثاني يعرف بها أقطار الكواكب بعضها إلى بعض والثالثيعرف بها مقدار أصابع الكسوف من قطب النير المنكسف.Colophon (f. 157r, foot of table):آخر الزيج المعتبر السنجريوفرغ من كتابة محمد بن أحمد بن سالم المقدسي في يوم الخميس العشرين من جمادى الآخرة سنة عشرين وستمائة للهجرةوالحمد لله رب العالمين وصلى الله على سيدنا محمد وسلم تسليمًا كثير (!) وحسبنا الله ونعم الوكيلText on back page (f. 157v, lines 1-3 [top of page mutilated, probably 1 line missing]):[الجـ]ـداول المضافة إليه وجدت (؟)الأصل المنقول منه وهي من تصنيف مصنّف الزيجومصنّف الشيخ الخازني رحمه الله عليهCodex; ff. i+157+iiMaterial: Eastern laid paperDimensions: 320 x 230 mm leaf [220 x 170 mm written on pages with text; 260 x 178 mm frames on pages with tables]Foliation: Eastern Arabic foliation in black ink; British Museum foliation in pencilRuling:
Misṭarah(?); 19 lines per page; vertical spacing 9 lines per 10 cmScript:
Naskh; the scribe is Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad ibn Sālim al-Maqdisī or al-Muqaddasī (محمد بن أحمد بن سالم المقدسي, see f. 157, foot of table)Ink: Black, red, green and blueBinding: British Museum bindingCondition: Many folios mutilated and repaired; extensive iron-gall ink corrosionMarginalia: Very few, but see f. 69vSeals: None
Astronomical handbook (زيج) by the Yemenī astronomer Muḥammad ibn Abī Bakr al-Kawāshī (محمد بن أبي بكر الكواشي, fl. 13th century, see King,
Mathematical Astronomy in Medieval Yemen[1982], p. 27). The text is dedicated to the Rasūlid ruler of Yemen al-Malik al-Muẓaffar Yūsuf (I) ibn ‘Umar (الملك المظفر يوسف بن عمر, reg. 1250-95, see f. 1v, lines 8-9), to whom the authorship of the treatise is sometimes erroneously attributed (e.g. Kâtib Çelebi,
Keşf-el-zunun, vol. 1, p. 519).The manuscript is defective at the beginning. The title can be found on f. 2r, lines 7-8.The treatise is divided into three books (فنون), each divided into chapters (أبواب) and further subdivided into sections (فصول). A table of contents is found on ff. 2r-3r.Book One: The necessary prolegomena and introduction to the foundations upon which the principals are built (الفن الأول في التوطئة المحتاج إليها وتمهيد القواعد التي تبنى الأصول عليها, ff. 2v-20v);Book Two: Explanation of using the treatises and elucidation of the methods stipulated by the ancients (الفن الثاني في بيان العمل بالرسائل وإيضاح الطرق التي نصّت عليها الأوائل, ff. 20v-89r);Book Three: How the tables are laid out and making their purposes accessible to the user (الفن الثالث في كيفية وضع الجداول وتقريب غرضها من يد المتناول, ff. 89v-139v).The first two books are introductory while Book Three is composed almost entirely of tables. Further diagrams and tables are found in the first two books on ff.5r, 7r-8r, 19r, 23r, 24r, 26r-28r, 29v-30v, 32r, 33r, 34r, 42r, 44r, 45r, 51v-52r, 56v, 73v, 76v.Begins (f. 1r, lines 1-4, folio mutilated towards edge):ومغازيهم وأسفارهم وما يتأهبون له من لقاء عدو أو تجهيز جيش يرصدونالأوقات ويختارون لهم الطوالع ثم لا يخالفونهم في وقت يعينـ [...] ولا [...]في طالع يستخرجونه فالقوم يجرون لسوء بختهم على المثل المستعمل الشعير [...]ويذم ...Ends (f. 139v, lines 11-13):... ثم تقوم بعد الزيادة والنقصان بتلك التعاديليخرج مقومها على ما بيناه وبالله التوفيقوصلى الله على سيدنا محمد وآله وصحبه أجمعينCodex; ff. ii+139+iiMaterial: Eastern laid paperDimensions: 235 x 160 mm leaf [180 x 130 mm text frame]Foliation: Eastern Arabic foliation in brown ink, British Museum foliation in pencilRuling:
Misṭarah; 15 lines per page; vertical spacing 9 lines per 10 cmScript:
NaskhInk: Brown ink, with numerals, punctuation, some overlining and some elements in tables and diagrams in redDecoration: All pages framed in redBinding: British Museum binding with leather spineCondition: One or more folios missing from beginning, most folios mutilated and repaired at edge with little loss of text, insect damage from f. 43 towards back of volume most repaired with silk net or paperMarginalia: Numerous, by many handsSeals: f. iii-v (first end flyleaf)
Commentary by ‘Abd al-‘Alī ibn Muḥammad ibn Ḥusayn al-Birjandī (عبد العلي بن محمد بن حسين البرجندي, d. 923/1525 or 26) on the
Kitāb al-tadhkirah fī al-hay’ah(كتاب التذكرة في الهيئة; see British Library, MS Or. 11209) a treatise on the astronomical system presented in the
Almagestof Ptolemy (Claudius Ptolemaeus; c 90-c 168) by Naṣīr al-Dīn Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad al-Ṭūsī (نصير الدين محمد بن محمد الطوسي; d. 1274). Al-Birjandī completed his commentary in Rabī‘ I 913/July or August 1507 (see author's colophon, f. 393v, lines 22-23, transcribed below).Since the commentary follows the structure of the text commented upon, it is divided into four books (أبواب) each subdivided into chapters (فصول):Book One: What Must Be Presented (الباب الأول فيما يجب تقديمه, ff. 6r-45v [2 chapters]);Book Two: The Arrangement of the Heavenly Bodies (الباب الثاني في هيئة الأجرام العلوية, ff. 45v-272r [14 chapters]);Book Three: The Arrangement of the Earth and What Pertains to it on Account of the Different Positions of the Heavenly Bodies (الباب الثالث في هيئة الأرض وما يلزمها بحسب اختلاف أوضاع العلويات, ff. 272r-362v [12 chapters]);Book Four: Knowing the Measure of the Distances and the Heavenly Bodies (الباب الرابع في معرفة مقادير الأبعاد والأجرام, ff. 362v-394r [7 chapters]).The text contains numerous diagrams including one of the so-called 'Tusi couple' (f. 212v [Book Two, Chapter Eleven]), which demonstrates how linear motion can result from circular motion. This chapter was translated into Sanskrit in the 18th century (Takanori and Pingree,
Arabic Astronomy in Sanskrit[Leiden: E. J. Brill, 2002]).This copy was completed on Morning of Sunday 30 Sha‘bān 1097/22 July 1686 at Qom by Muḥammad Yūsuf ibn Muḥammad ‘Alī ibn ‘Abd al-Raḥmān (محمد يوسف بن محمد على بن عبد الرحمن, see colophon, f. 394r, lines 2-6, transcribed below). In two notes next to the colophon, the copyist complains of the difficulties he faced in producing a correct copy of the text, specifically that although he collated his copy as best he could, he was unable to find a correct copy for the collation. Nevertheless, he believes that he has produced the most correct copy in Qom (وظني أنه لم تكن في تلك البلدة نسخة أصح من نسختي والله أعلم, see collation note next to colophon, f. 394r).A scrap of Western laid paper containing verses and calligraphic inscriptions seemingly unrelated to al-Birjandī's text is found inserted between ff. 49 and 50. A scrap of purple Western (?) laid paper containing calculations concerning measurements in cubits (ذراع) has been pasted to f. 273r.Begins (f. 2v, lines 2-4):الحمد لله الذي خلق السموات والأرض وجعل الظلمات والنور وبسط علىبساط الساهرة بميامن قدرته الباهرة الظل والحرور زين بحكمته السماءالدنيا بزينة الكواكب ونور وجه الغبراء بأنوار النجوم الثواقب ...Ends (f. 393v, line 21-394r, line 1):... وقد اتفق جفاف القلم علن تأليفه وترتيبما أودعت فيه وترصيفه في شهر ربيع الأول من السنة الثالثة عشر المنيفة علىالتسعمائة من الهجرة وأنا المتوسل إلى الله تعالى وبنبي الثقلين عبدالعلي بن محمد حسين أصلح الله شأنه وصانه عما شانه آمين رب العالمينCopyist's colophon (f. 394r, lines 2-11):نمقه العبد المحتاج إلى رحمة ربه الرحمن محمد يوسف بن محمد علىبن عبد الرحمن في بلدة قم صانها الله عما شانه وقد تمتنميقه صبيحة يوم الأحد سلخ شهر شعبان المعظم من شهورالسنة السابعة من العشر الأخير من المائة الأولىمن الألف الثاني من الهجرة النبويةالمصطفوية على هاجرها ألف ألفتحية وعلى آله خير الورىالورى سحيةما كرر النهاروالعشيةCodex; ff. i+394+iiMaterial: Eastern laid paperDimensions: 247 x 130 mm leaf [175 x 65 mm written]Foliation: British Museum foliation in pencilRuling: No ruling visible; 23 lines per page; vertical spacing 13 lines per 10 cmScript:
Naskh; the scribe is Muḥammad Yūsuf ibn Muḥammad ‘Alī ibn ‘Abd al-Raḥmān (محمد يوسف بن محمد على بن عبد الرحمن, see colophon, f. 394r, lines 2-3)Ink: Black ink, with rubricated section headings and overlinings in redBinding: Plain brown leather Islamic binding without envelope flapCondition: Excellent; very minor water damageMarginalia: Corrections and notes by hand of copyist and othersSeals: ff. 1v, 394r, 394v and back flysheet iii-v
Excerpt from a text discussing the construction (إملاء) of magic squares (عدد الوفق) by Jamāl al-Dīn Abū ‘Abd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad ‘Umar al-Khuzā‘ī (جمال الدين أبو عبد الله محمد بن أحمد بن عمر الخزاعي). The treatise from which this text is an excerpt may be al-Khuzā‘ī's
Introduction to Arithmetic for All New Secretaries(مقدمة في الحساب لعامة أحداث الكتاب; see Rosenfeld and Ekmeleddin,
Mathematicians, Astronomers, and Other Scholars of Islamic Civilization and Their Works (7th-19th c.), p. 211, no. 604, text M1 and King,
Mathematical Astronomy in Medieval Yemen, appendix A, no. 3.2, p. 55) or his
Gems of Arithmetic(جواهر الحساب; see King,
Mathematical Astronomy in Medieval Yemen, appendix A, no. 3.3, p. 55).The copy of the excerpt was completed on 2 Jumādá I 1036/19 January 1627.This exterpt is followed by shorter excerpts and notes (فوائد) mostly related to inheritence calculations from various sources.Begins (f. 130v, lines 17-19)ومما أملأه الفقيه محمد بن أحمد الخزاعي في عدد الوفق قال ونرسمه بصورة تأتلف منأعداد محمولة لأشكال موضوعة فكل شكل ينكسر بقدر مربع جانبه موضوعات في كل موضوع محموللها من العدد لأعلى الترتيب إلا الشكل الفرد ...Colophon of excerpt on magic squares (f. 131r, lines 16-17):... تم الإملاء بحمد لله ومنهبتأريخ 2 شهر جمادى الأولى سنة 1036 والحمد لله وحده وصلى الله على من لا نبي بعده وآله وصحبه وسلمEnds (f. 132v, lines 8-11):شخص مات وخلف خمسة عشر ذكورًا فورث خمسة النصف وخمسة الثلث وخسمة السدس والجواب والله أعلمأن يكون عشرة لأم فيرثوا الثلث فيصير لكل خمسة السدس وخمسة من هؤلاء العشرة بنواعم والخمسة الباقينبنواعم أيضًا فيرهوا الثلثين فيصير مع الخمسة بني العم الذين هم أخوة لأم الثلث مع السدس المتقدم فيصير معهم النصفويرثوا مع الخمسة بني العم الذين ليسوا بإخوة لأم الثلث وللخمسة الأخوة للأم فقط السدس والله أعلمFf. 130v-132v
Abstract: "A manuscript commentary on the AlmagestAbstract: the classical 2nd-century mathematical and astronomical treatise on the apparent motions of the stars and planetary pathsAbstract: probably prepared by Mirza Qazi bin Kashif al-Din al-Yazdi (d. 1664/5 CE)Abstract: Sheikh al-Islam and son of a physician to Shah 'Abbas I."
Binding: The volume is bound in a European binding of pasteboards covered with brown leather. The covers have frames formed of two gold fillets. There are five cords on the spine, with two gold fillets either side of each cord. The pastedowns are modern and are blank except for annotations of the manuscript number and a bookplate for St John’s College and E Libris Coll. Di. Jo. Bapt. Oxon. on the back pastedown.Contents note: Annotations by John Greaves (1602-1652), Savilian Professor of Astronomy (1643-8), fols. 12a/b, 13a, 15a.Contents note: Contents described on fol. iii b: Collatio Mensium Arabicorum, Cophticorum, Græcorum, & Judaicorum. Vide pag. 1. ubi habes hunc titulum doctissimi ipsius Pocockij a later hand has crossed out the last two words, and written in pencil: Gul. Laudi manuscriptum. Nec non Tabulæ quædam Astronomicæ. Omnia imperfecta. In margine passim occurrunt Notæ Viri eruditissimi Joan. Grauij, Prof. Astronom. Sauil.Contents note: In item 1, it is evident from numbers placed on each table that there were originally 23, though tables 5–6, 14–15, and 20–1 are now missing and two tables carry the number ‘9’. Ff. 10a/b, 11a and 17b are blank except for frames formed of two black-inked lines.Dimensions: 21.3 × 13.9 (text area 17 × 10.2) cm.Hand: Both items written in a variable (small to medium) Arabic naskh using black and red inks. The text area has not been ruled, but the tables are divided into rows and columns. The texts are written in tables whose cells are delineated by red- and black-inked lines; occasionally there is writing around the perimeter of the table.Layout: The text area has not been ruled, but the tables are divided into rows and columns. The texts are written in tables whose cells are delineated by red and black inked lines; occasionally there is writing around the perimeter of the table. Lines per page vary.Origin note: "No copyist's signature or date(s) or place(s) of copying."Record origin: "Descriptions abbreviated from Emilie Savage-SmithRecord origin: A descriptive Catalogue of Oriental Manuscripts at St John's CollegeRecord origin: Oxford (Oxford: Oxford University PressRecord origin: 2005)Record origin: Entries. Nos. 4 and 10Record origin: pp. 19-22Record origin: 41-2."
A collection of anonymous astrological and magical treatises. Also bound together with this manuscript is a lithographed copy of Kitāb fī al-tamām wa-al-kamāl by Abū Maʻshar. This book is in two parts, the first dealing with horoscopes of men and their signs the second with women. Each part has 12 sections.