TADHKIRAT AL-KAHHALIN: MEMORANDUM FOR OCULISTS Ottoman Empire, 16th-17th century

TADHKIRAT AL-KAHHALIN: MEMORANDUM FOR OCULISTS
ALI BIN ISSA AL-KAHHAL (D. 1038-39 AD)
Ottoman Empire, 16th-17th century
Arabic manuscript on lined paper. Composed of 142 leaves and 1 flyleaf.
19 lines to the page written in
naskh
script in black ink with significant sentences and words picked out in red ink throughout the manuscript, inner margins ruled in red (
jadwal
), catchwords, occasional commentaries in outer margins.
Several stamps of a previous owner: '
Paul Sbath collection 1924'
, manuscript n. 1077.
On the catalogue of the Sbath Collection the manuscript is described as follows:
'Book of Ophthalmology by Ali ibn Isa, a renowned Christian physician of the 11th century. It is the first Arabic book written on this subject. The work is divided into three parts: the first deals with the structure of the eye and its anatomy, in 21 chapters. The second including the visible diseases affecting the eyes, in 73 chapters. The third, with their hidden diseases, in 27 chapters. These parts are subdivided into chapters, and in each chapter the author sets out the causes of the disease and its remedies' In
Bibliothèque des Manuscrits Paul Sbath
Prêtre Syrien d'Alep,
Cat. Vol. I, II, Cairo, H. Friedrich and Co., 1928, p.162.
Brown leather binding with flap impressed with central lobed medallion decorated with interlaced palmettes.
ʻAli ibn ʻIsa al-Kahhal lived in Baghdad, practiced medicine and taught at the
‘
Adudi Bimaristan hospital. In the Latin-speaking world, he became known as Jesu Oculist. In this fundamental treatise, he provided detailed descriptions of over 130 eye diseases, organizing them according to their anatomical location. The manuscript is arranged into three main sections, each subdivided into numerous parts offering clear and concise explanations. It concludes with an alphabetical glossary of remedies for eye conditions. This work had a significant impact on both Arab and European oculists, was translated into Latin in the 15th century, and continued to be studied and translated well into the 20th century.
21cm x 15cm (folio)
For related examples on the subject:
Bodleian Library, Oxford (MS. Bodl. Or. 584; and MS. Ouseley Add. 83); Library of Congress, Washington D.C. (2021667380).
For further reference on the subject: Brockelmann, GAL I 483.
Condition: First page is loose. Tears and water damage at the top. Detached from the spine.