DIYA' AL-DIN ABU MUHAMMAD ʿABDULLAH IBN AHMED AL-MALAQI, KNOWN AS IBN AL-BAYTAR (D.1248 AD), A SECTION FROM KITAB AL-JAMI' LI-MUFRADAT AL-ADWIYAH WA'L-AGHDHIYAH ('THE COMPENDIUM ON SIMPLE DRUGS AND FOODSTUFFS'), PROBABLY EGYPT, LATE MAMLUK/EARLY OTTOMAN, 16TH CENTURY |

Arabic manuscript on polished paper, 277 leaves plus 2 fly-leaves, 27 lines to the page, written in naskh in black ink, important words in red and bordeaux, ruled in red, f.1a with remnants of title page in red, black and blue, in later red stamped morocco binding

In generally good condition, the margin cropped, contemporaneous and later annotations on the margins, stains and minor holes, smudges, the title page fragmentary, the last pages affected by numerous holes and restored, as viewed.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Ibn al-Baytar was one of the foremost botanists in the medieval Islamic period. Born in Malaga, he studied in Seville before travelling to North Africa and Egypt where he became chief herbalist under the Ayyubid ruler al-Malik al-Kamil. He later moved to Damascus to work in the service of al-Malik al-Salih Najm al-Din Ayyub. He died in 1248 AD. Al-Baytar's two most famous texts are the Kitab al-jamiʿ li-mufradat al-adwiyah al-mufradah ('The Ultimate in Materia Medica') and Kitab al-jamiʿ li-mufradat al-adwiyah wa'l-aghdhiyah ('The Compendium on Simple Drugs and Foodstuffs'). The Compendium lists over 1,400 medicaments for various sicknesses and diseases in alphabetical order, collating the knowledge of centuries of different botanical and medical traditions. The present volume begins with the letter sin and an authorship inscription on f.277a records that the manuscript was copied from a copy of a copy of the author’s autograph volume and was commissioned for the library of Ibrahim al-Iskandari al-Tabib.

Another four copies of Kitab al-jami li-mufradat al-adwiyah wa'l-aghdhiyah are in the Bodleian Library, Oxford, whilst a further dated 925 AH/1519 AD is in the British Library (IO Islamic 1142). A copy dated 963 AH/1555-56 AD was sold in these rooms, 3 May 2001, lot 34; an autographed copy was also offered on 25 October 2017, lot 16. See also Brockelmann, GAL I. 492 and S.I 897.