منهاج البيان فيما يستعمله الإنسان Minhāj al-bayān fīmā yastaʿmiluhū al-insān ابن جزلة، يحيى ابن عيسى Ibn Jazlah, Yaḥyá ibn ʿĪsá

Content

Alphabetically arranged handbook on pharmacology by Abū ‘Alī Yahyá ibn ‘Īsá (أبو علي يحيى ابن عيسى), known as Ibn Jazlah (ابن جزلة; d. 493/1100), composed for the Abbasid Caliph al-Muqtadi bi-Amr Allāh (المقتدي بأمر الله; reg. 1075-94). This copy was completed in Rajab 489 (June-July 1096) by Hibat Allāh ibn al-Ḥasan (هبة الله بن الحسن; see colophon Section at the end of a manuscript text. , f. 239v, lines 10-11, transcribed below). This copyist may have been the father of the famous Nestorian physician of Baghdad Sa‘īd ibn Hibat Allāh ibn al-Ḥasan (or al-Ḥusayn; سعيد بن هبة الله بن الحسن or الحسين; d. 1101), although the date of his son's death at almost 100 years of age makes this unlikely. Perhaps he was another member of the same family.

Regardless of the identity of the scribe, the copy was made during the lifetime of the author and was checked by recitation (see note on f. 13r: بلغت القراءة ['the recitation was completed']) in the presence of the author or another certified to teach the text. The perceived quality of the text is also evidenced by the four inscriptions, amongst the numerous owners' inscriptions on f. 239v, stating that owners of other copies of this text collated (قابل and عارض) their own copies against this one. The title page (f. 1r) contains annotations by many hands, including a long note on gynaecology below the title in the middle of the page.

Begins (f. 1v, lines 2-4):

الحمد لله الذي ظهرت بدائع مصنوعاته وبهرت غرائب مبتدعاته ودل بظواهر

[صنعتـ]ـه على لطيف حكمته وأنعم على الخلائق بضروب نعمه وعم البرايا بأنواع النبات

[والثما]ر المختلفة المنافع والبحار تسقى بماء واحد ونفضّل بعضها على بعض في الأكل

Ends (f. 239v, lines 4-5):

ينتون هو الثافسيا أي صمغ السداب الجبلى وهو حار

يابس يسهل البلغم وقد اسثوفي ذكره وشرحه في باب الثاء ولله الحمد

Colophon Section at the end of a manuscript text. (f. 239v, lines 6-11):

تم كتاب منهاج البيان فيما يستعمله

الإنسان ولله الحمد والمنّة وصلى الله على

سيدنا محمد النبي المصطفى وآله الطيبين الطاهرين

وعباده الصالحين وأنبيائه المرسلين وسلم تسليمًا

كتبه هبة الله بن الحسن ووافق الفراغ

في رجب سنة تسع وثمانين وأربع مائة

Extent and format

Codex A collection of pages, usually gathered into quires, and bound between covers. ; ff. i+239+i

Physical characteristics

Material: Paper

Dimensions: 230 x 172 mm leaf [184 x 126 mm written]

Foliation: British Museum foliation in pencil; earlier Arabic foliation and quire Collection of papers folded in half and stitched together to form a gathering of folios. marks visible on some folios

Ruling: Misṭarah ; 21-24 lines per page; vertical spacing approximately 13 lines per 10 cm

Script: Naskh

Ink: Black ink, with rubricated section (باب) headings

Binding: Bound between card boards covered in marbled paper with marbled paper doublures

Condition: Minor waterstains towards head; ff. 1-2 and 239 hacve been damaged around the edges and repaired

Marginalia: Numerous short corrections and occasional longer marginal notes; many notes on f. 1r; ownership inscriptions and on f. 239v

Written in

Arabic in Arabic script

Type

Manuscript

Access & Reference

Original held at

British Library: Oriental Manuscripts

Access conditions

Unrestricted

Archive reference

Or 7499

History of this record

Date(s)

Rajab 489 (AH, Hijri qamari)

Provenance

Numerous owners' inscriptions and collation notes, some dated (f. 239v)

Immediate source of acquisition

Purchased from I.E. Gejou, 7 May 1910

Related material

Subjects

Medicine, ArabMedicine, MedievalPharmacology--Early works to 1800

People & organisations

Yaḥyá ibn 'Īsá Ibn Jazlah

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منهاج البيان فيما يستعمله الإنسان Minhāj al-bayān fīmā yastaʿmiluhū al-insān ابن جزلة، يحيى ابن عيسى Ibn Jazlah, Yaḥyá ibn ʿĪsá, British Library: Oriental Manuscripts, Or 7499, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/node/9477> [accessed 11 December 2024]

Link to this record

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