Small part of a document in which one of the people mentioned is a physician (al-mutaṭabbib).Condition: Badly torn, slightly rubbed, slightly stainedLayout: 4 lines (recto; verso is blank)
Composite manuscript comprising two codicological units.Contents:(1) al-Qalānisī (القلانسي), Qarābādīn (aqrābādhīn) (قرابادين [أقراباذين]; ff. 1v-110v);(2) Ibn Hubal (ابن هبل), al-Mukhtār fī al-ṭibb (المختار في الطب; ff. 111r-282r).Codex; ff. iv+282+ivPhysical characteristics:Material: Eastern laid paperDimensions: 235 x 170 mm leafFoliation: British Museum foliation in pencilScript:
NaskhBinding: British Museum half-leather bindingCondition: Minor water damageMarginalia: Marginalia by multiple handsSeals: Ff. 110v, 111v and 282r
The manuscript was produced in Egypt as confirmed by the use in the colophon (f. 184v, lines 7-8, transcribed below) of the Coptic date alongside the
hijrīyear. The copy was completed on 28 Hatūr 1393 (of the Coptic era)/28 Ramaḍān 1087/4 December 1676. A small note below the colophon gives the subsequent (collation?) date 18 Ṭūbah [1394] (of the Coptic era)/[29] Dhū al-Qa‘dah 1088/23 January 1678.The manuscript was probably collected by the Scottish surgeon and naturalist Patrick Russell (1726-1805) during his service as physician to the Levant Company factory in Aleppo (1753-71). While in Aleppo, Russell studied the outbreaks of plague in 1760-62, so may have been interested in the recipe (f. 1r) for pills (حبوب), five of which were to be taken in the morning, before breakfast, during plague season (في أيام الوباء). This recipe is said to have been received from Ibn al-Ḥākhām ('son of the Rabbi') Mūsá on 7 Rajab 1138/11 March 1726 (see Custodial History).Contents:(1) al-‘Aynzarbī (العينزربي),
al-Kāfī fī ṣinā‘at al-ṭibb(الكافي في صناعة الطب; ff. 2r-172v);(2) al-Qawṣūnī (القوصوني),
Zād al-masīr fī ʿilāj al-bawāsīr(زاد المسير في علاج البواسير; ff. 173r-185r).Codex; ff. iii+185+ivMaterial: Western laid paper, with
Tre lunewatermarkDimensions: 209 x 150 mm leaf [140 x 95 mm written]Foliation: Eastern Arabic foliation in black ink, British Museum foliation in pencilRuling:
Misṭarah; 23 lines per page; vertical spacing 16 lines per 10 cmScript:
NaskhInk: Black ink, with rubricated headings and overlinings in redBinding: Red leather binding, with stamped medallion, pendants corner and edge pieces; marbled doublures and recto-side of first front and end flyleavesCondition: Minor water damage to lower, outer corner towards front and end of volumeMarginalia: Few; most (all?) by hand of scribeSeals: None
Recipe or preparation instructions, probably halakhic or medical, mentioning sieving, kneading, heat and a period of 10 days.Condition: torn, holes, rubbedLayout: 7 lines (recto); 6 lines (verso)
Unidentified. Contains the word sūmāq, possibly referring to the spice, and mentions honey and raisins, suggesting a medical recipe of some kind.Condition: Badly torn, holes, badly rubbed, stainedLayout: 19 lines (recto); 17 lines (verso)
Recto: Elʿazar b. Tamīm (known as Ibn Raṣṣāṣī) releases Elʿazar b. Benjamin. Dated Nisan 4918 of the Era of Creation (= 1158 CE), with an addendum. Below are marginalia in the hand from verso dealing with medical issues. Verso: draft of a chapter from a medical book or a medical notebook, mentioning for example drinks made from poppies and violets.Condition: torn, holes, rubbed, fadedLayout: 15 lines + marginalia (recto); 21 lines (verso)
Recto: Elʿazar b. Tamīm (known as Ibn Raṣṣāṣī) releases Elʿazar b. Benjamin. Dated Nisan 4918 of the Era of Creation (= 1158 CE), with an addendum. Verso: draft of a chapter from a medical book or a medical notebook, dealing with neoplasms.Condition: holes, rubbed, fadedLayout: 16 lines + marginalia (recto); 20 lines (verso)