Dokumen - Pub Arabian Drugs in Medieval Mediterranean Medicine 9780748697816 9780748697823 9781474413183

ZohAr AMAr and E frA iM l Ev
ArAbiAn
Drugs in E A r ly
M E D i E vA l
MEDitErrAnEAn
MEDicinE
E d i n b u r g h S t u d i E S i n C l a S S i C a l i S l a m i C h i S t o r y a n d C u lt u r E
Arabian Drugs in Early Medieval
Mediterranean Medicine
Edinburgh Studies in Classical Islamic History and Culture
Series Editor: Carole Hillenbrand
A particular feature of medieval Islamic civilisation was its wide horizons. In this
respect it differed profoundly from medieval Europe, which from the point of view
of geography, ethnicity and population was much smaller and narrower in its scope
and in its mindset. The Muslims fell heir not only to the Graeco-Roman world
of the Mediterranean, but also to that of the ancient Near East, to the empires
of Assyria, Babylon and the Persians – and beyond that, they were in frequent
contact with India and China to the east and with black Africa to the south. This
intellectual openness can be sensed in many interrelated fields of Muslim thought:
philosophy and theology, medicine and pharmacology, algebra and geometry,
astronomy and astrology, geography and the literature of marvels, ethnology and
sociology. It also impacted powerfully on trade and on the networks that made it
possible. Books in this series reflect this openness and cover a wide range of topics,
periods and geographical areas.
Titles in the series include:
Arabian Drugs in Early Medieval Mediterranean Medicine
Zohar Amar and Efraim Lev
The Medieval Western Maghrib: Cities, Patronage and Power
Amira K. Bennison
Keeping the Peace in Premodern Islam: Diplomacy under the Mamluk Sultanate, 1250–1517
Malika Dekkiche
Queens, Concubines and Eunuchs in Medieval Islam
Taef El-Azhari
Medieval Damascus: Plurality and Diversity in an Arabic Library – The Ashrafīya Library
Catalogue
Konrad Hirschler
The Popularisation of Sufism in Ayyubid and Mamluk Egypt: State and Society, 1173–1325
Nathan Hofer
Defining Anthropomorphism: The Challenge of Islamic Traditionalism
Livnat Holtzman
Lyrics of Life: Sa‘di on Love, Cosmopolitanism and Care of the Self
Fatemeh Keshavarz
A History of the True Balsam of Matarea
Marcus Milwright
Ruling from a Red Canopy: Political Authority in the Medieval Islamic World, From Anatolia to
South Asia
Colin P. Mitchell
Conquered Populations in Early Islam: Non-Arabs, Slaves and the Sons of Slave Mothers
Elizabeth Urban
www.edinburghuniversitypress.com/series/ESCIHC
Arabian Drugs in Early Medieval
Mediterranean Medicine
Zohar Amar and Efraim Lev

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© Zohar Amar and Efraim Lev, 2017
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Published with the support of the University of Edinburgh Scholarly Publishing

Initiatives Fund.
Contents
List of Plates vii

List of Tables ix
Prefacex
Map: The Origin of the Main Medieval Arabian Drugs xiv
1 Introduction 1
Arab Attitude to Science 2
Translation of Greek Science into Arabic 3
Assimilation of Theoretical and Practical Medicine into Arab
Culture5
Persian and Indian Medicine 6
Indian Medicinal Substances 9
Baghdad as an Intercultural Centre and the Triumph of the Galenic
Medical Legacy 10
The Commercial Aspect 13
2 Agricultural and Pharmaceutical Innovations: Milestones in

Research and Case Studies 48
Indian Pharmacology and Galeno-Arab Medicine 49
The ‘Agriculture Revolution’ and the Watson Thesis – Cucurbitaceae
Family as a Model 49
‘Crusader Plants’ 59
Greek Literature and the Physicians of Andalusia as a Model 60
Identification 71
The Suggested Model 72
vi | ara bi a n dr ugs
3‘Arabian’ Substances 82
Drugs, Spices and Industrial Substances 83
Drugs (myrobalan, anacardium, dragon’s blood, tamarind,
bamboo, shampoo ginger, purging cassia) 83
Spices (clove, betel pepper, betel palm, turmeric, galingale,
nutmeg, perfumed cherry; other substances – Indian aconite,
zedoary, purging croton, cassia, berberry, fossil crab, sukk,
tarangabin, sandarus, turpeth, neem, cubeb pepper) 100
Industrial Substances (lacca, teac, sappan wood, warras) 120
Perfumes and Incenses (agarwood, camphor, ambergris,
sandalwood, jasmine, musk, screw pine) 129
Gemstones (corundum, diamond, bezoar-stone) 162
4 Discussion and Conclusions 228
Bibliography237
Index of English Names 275
Index of Arabic Names 283
Index of Scientific Names 289
Plates
Between pages 82 and 83

All images are from the authors’ collection, or were taken by the authors
1 Fruits of two varieties of terminalia trees: yellow (Terminalia citrina)

and black (Terminalia chebula)
2 Fruits of the marking-nut tree (Semecarpus anacardium)
3 Resin and powder made out of dragon’s blood (Dracaena draco)
4 Fruits of tamarind tree (Tamarindus indica)
5 Grains of †abāshīr made of bamboo (Bambusa vulgaris)
6 Fruits of purging cassia (Cassia fistula)
7 Dry flower buds of clove tree (Eugenia caryophyllata)
8 Slices of betel palm nut on leaf of betel-pepper tree (Piper betel)
9 Betel palm nut (Areca catechu)
10 Betel palm tree in Sri Lanka
11 Rhizomes of turmeric (Curcuma longa) and powder made of them
12 Rhizomes of galingale (Alpinia galanga)
13 Fruits and leaf of nutmeg (Myristica fragrans)
14 Nutmeg seeds and peels of seeds (mace)
15 Seeds of perfumed cherry (Prunus mahaleb)
16 Seeds of purging croton (Croton tiglium)
17 Fruits and leaves of cassia (Cassia acutifolia)
18 Fruits of berberry (Berberis vulgaris)
19 Sugary secretion (grain) of the Persian manna plant (Alhagi
maurorum)
20 Grains of sandarus (Callitris quadrivalvis)
21 Fruits of cubeb pepper (Piper cubeba)
viii | a rabi an dr ugs
22 Stick-lacca – secretion of lacca (Laccifer lacca)

23 Wool fleeces dyed with lacca
24 Sawdust of sappan wood (Caesalpinia sappan)
25 Sappan wood hues (on wool fleeces)
26 Wool fleeces dyed with warras (Flemingia grahamiana)
27 Fragments of wood and bottle of agarwood oil (Aquilaria agallocha)
28 Leaves, white crystal cubes and bottle of camphor oil (Cinnamonum
camphora)
29 Sawdust and wood of red sandalwood (Pterocarpus santalinus)
30 Fragments of wood of white sandalwood (Santalum album)
31 Screw pine tree in Zanzibar (Pandanus odoratissimus)
32 Red corundum (ruby)
33 Raw white and transparent corundum
34 Raw blue and purple corundum
35 Raw diamonds
Tables
1.1 Comparison of some of the theoretical characteristics of Greek

and Indian medicine 11
2.1 List of drugs that were not mentioned in Dioscorides and Galen’s
book according to Arabic sources 66
3.1 Leading perfumes and incenses in the pre-Islamic world 132
3.2 Leading perfumes and incenses of the Islamic world 134
3.3 Names of the common gemstones in the Arabic literature 164
3.4 Rates of prices of gemstones in the medieval period 170
4.1 Greek vs Persian/Sanskrit names of drugs in various medical
books230
Preface
F or more than 1,000 years Arab medicine held sway in the ancient world,
from the shores of Spain in the West to China, India and Sri Lanka
(Ceylon) in the East. Arabic medical heritage, in its late practice, was in
fact based on a conglomerate of diverse cultural foundations: Greek, Indian,
Persian, Mesopotamian, Syrian, Egyptian, Slavic, Spanish and North African
(Maghrib).
To our knowledge, no research assessing the relative contribution of
each of these components has been done, yet most scholars seem to agree
that the influence of the Greek medical heritage, on the one hand, and the
Indian medical heritage, on the other, were the cornerstones of Arab medi-
cine. We argue that this process was a ‘melting pot’ in which various scien-
tific and political elements interacted – first, the physicians of the Galenic
school versus those of the Indian and Zoroastrian schools and, later, the Near
Eastern physicians versus the Andalusian ones. Various cultural and religious
elements played a part in this process – stemming from Christians, Jews and
Muslims – but they all shared an ‘Arab’ background and identity and, there-
fore, we are of the opinion that the term Arab Medicine is apposite and more
appropriate in this case than that of Muslim Medicine.
This period is characterised mainly by the dissemination and document-
ing of the Classical knowledge, yet also by innovation and originality. This
co-existence generated a radical transformation in the spiritual and physical
cultures, as well as the daily life in the Middle East, which were conveyed
from there to the West.
Most of the medicinal substances introduced by the Arabs originated in
Southeast Asia; the ways in which they were distributed and assimilated into
the Mediterranean region varied, however. Our research focuses on the main
x
Pref a ce | xi
substances about which sufficient information was accumulated and that

enabled clear-cut identification and assessment of their importance to medi-
eval medicine. The ‘new’ medicinal substances enriched the existing inven-
tory of drugs that was influenced basically by Galenic–Arab pharmacology;
some even came to occupy a pivotal position in the practical medicine of the
medieval period, such as various kinds of myrobalan. Other substances can
be found in our modern-day ‘food basket’ in the form of agricultural crops
(sugar, for example), and various spices (clove and nutmeg, for example).
In our book we mainly address one aspect: the relative impact of the
Greek, versus the Indian, medical heritage on the evolution of Arab medicine
and pharmacology. We investigate this issue from the perspective of materia
medica that, we maintain, is ultimately a reliable indication of the ‘specific
weight’ contributed by each of these medical legacies.
In the first chapter, the introduction, the Arab conquests (territorial
expansion and government policies) are dealt with before contining with
the Arab attitude to science. The translation of Greek science into Arabic
is discussed in the next section, as it is crucial for the understanding of the
assimilation of theoretical and practical medicine into Arab culture. The geo-
political aspect of this process in the early Islamic period is dealt with through
the illustration of Baghdad as an intercultural centre and the pinnacle of the
Galenic medical legacy. Persian and Indian medicines are dealt with later,
followed by discussion on Indian medicinal substances. Next we deal with
the commercial aspect of our story, that is, the ways in which the ‘drugs’ were
introduced, traded and transported from the Orient to the West, starting
with the history of the ‘Indian trade’ from ancient times and continuing with
the medieval Islamic trade (mainly trade routes and commercial centres).
The Mediterranean trade is next to be discussed, elaborating on its history,
including contemporary Byzantine trade, principal trade routes and impor-
tant commercial centres. The chapter concludes with a short description of
the main groups of traders who were active in the medieval East–West trade.
In the first section of Chapter 2 we assess the influence of the legacy of
Indian pharmacology on Galeno-Arab medicine. Later, we present Watson’s
pioneering research, its advantages and disadvantages, how we have ‘improved’
his methodology and our test case of several species of the Cucurbitaceae
family. The following section contains our research dealing with the Crusader
xii | a rabi an dr ugs
plants in the Holy Land, to which we applied our new methodology. The
next section consists of two studies we conducted as part of the research for
the present book. It is here that we introduce the Andalusian scholars Ibn
Juljul and Ibn Rushd, and their writings on ‘the drugs not mentioned’ in
Dioscorides’ and Galen’s books. The concluding section presents the sug-
gested research model with a description of the methodology we used in the
current book.
Chapter 3 deals with the ‘Arabian’ substances. We do not purport to
include in our book all of the new ‘drugs’ that were distributed by the Arabs,
but rather to focus predominantly on those substances that received proper
documentation. Moreover, we did not always have sufficient evidence to deter-
mine whether or not this drug was new! Therefore, we do not present herein
the list presented by Adams at the end of his edition of Paulus Aegineta. Some
of the products of our research have been published in several preliminary
articles, and in our book we strive to present the reader with a solid piece of
updated and thorough research. The historical sources we have used are varied
and plentiful, derived from theoretical and practical medical and pharmaceuti-
cal literature, alchemy and perfumery books, lexicography, accounts and logs
of geographers and travellers, herbal and botanical books, general medieval
encyclopedias, commercial literature and the vast Cairo Genizah manuscripts,
as well as Byzantine and other Western literature, including commercial docu-
ments, the Italian archives and publications of studies.
Most of the entries open with quotations from a contemporary Arabic
source, the purpose of which is to present the spirit of the era to the reader
in a tangible and colourful manner. The reader will be able to get a glimpse
of the material-cultural milieu of the medieval Islamic world and the world
with which they traded: to learn how medieval people saw the world; what
their geographical perception was; how they described other cultures; how
they doubted the origin of the drugs; and the arguments on the origin of
exotic drugs, their production and other aspects. This is the reason why we
have translated the quotations in a free and flowing manner and not in a
linguistically literal, professional one – to avoid detracting from the general,
larger picture by going into the small and petty details.
We start by presenting eight new drugs of ‘Indian’ origin, followed by
seven spices from the same origin that were heavily used in medicine and then
Pref a ce | xiii
continue with short entries of thirteen other medicinal substances. After deal-
ing with four drugs of uncertain identification, we proceed to four industrial
substances, seven kinds of perfumes and incense and conclude with three
gemstones. The book ends with a brief discussion and decisive conclusions.
It is our privilege and pleasure to extend our thanks to the following
entities for their financial support, without which this book could not have
been written or completed: Research Authorities, Faculty of Humanities,
Department of Eretz Israel Studies, University of Haifa, Israel, and the Landy
Foundation, Cambridge, England.
It is with great pleasure that we acknowledge and thank our dear friend
and colleague Mr Avraham Latti for years of collaborative work and brilliant
translations from the early Arabic sources; without him this project could not
have been accomplished.
We would also like to extend our gratitude to Professor Yaakov Lev, who
read a draft of the manuscript and contributed an elegant critique, invaluable
ideas and highly useful remarks; to Dr Yaron Serri for his professional editing
of the Arabic and Hebrew terms and his incredible, never-ending knowledge;
and to Marianne Steinmetz for her wonderful and professional English edit-
ing work.
It was truly a pleasure to work with the team members of Edinburgh
University Press; their kindness and professionalism made our experience a
highly productive and positive one.
The photographs of the ‘drugs’ presented in the book were taken in
Southeast Asia by the authors, and some were displayed at the authors’ scien-
tific and teaching collections at Bar-Ilan University, Israel and the University
of Haifa, Israel (we thank our professional photographer Mr Shahar Cohen).
The plates and maps were drawn by the talented graphic designer of the
Faculty of Humanities, University of Haifa, Israel, Mrs Marina Bugaev.
This book is dedicated to our families, mainly on this occasion to our
spouses Tamar Amar and Dr Michal Lev, and our children: Shaked, Yadin,
Tzur, Mevaseret, Matania, Avigail Amar; and Hagar, Amitay, Avigail and
Ilay Lev.
Zohar Amar Efraim Lev

Neve Tsuf Zichron Yaakov
China
Persia
Mediterranean Sea Persian mannaplant
Iraq Berberry
Perfumed cherry
d
Jasmine
Sin
Bezoar
Egypt Cassia Saudi
Arabia India
GEMSTONES DRUGS SPICES PERFUMES
Warras
Corundum Myrobalan Tamarind Musk
Screw pine
Diamond Anacardium Clove Sandalwood
Dragon’s blood
Fossil crab Indian aconite Betel pepper Agarwood
en Lacca Bamboo Betel palm Camphor
Teak Shampo ginger Turmeric
Yem Purging cassia Zedoary
Sappan wood Galingale
Purging croton Nutmeg
Ambergris
Sri Lanka Trupeth Cubeb pepper
Grains of Paradise
Indian Ocean Indonesia
The Origin of the Main Medieval Arabian Drugs

1
Introduction
F our generations after the death of the Prophet Mohammad, founding

father of Islam, the era of the first Caliphs of the Umayyad dynasty was
characterised principally by conquests and the expansion of the Muslim
domain. With the rise of the Abbasid dynasty (750), the Muslim world con-
trolled immense territories, from India to Spain and from North Africa to
the Arabian Desert. This was the first time since the conquests of Alexander
the Great that such a vast territory was ruled by a single power, the Arabs,
making them a ‘global village’. Different kingdoms and cultures were unified
under the rule of the Arabs, including the two previous great powers, parts of
the Byzantium and the Sasanian Empires. From an economic perspective, the
entire Fertile Crescent was under Arab control.
This situation created uniquely favourable economic conditions for
exchanges of all kinds, since the absence of geo-political barriers allowed
for the improved passage of people, merchandise and knowledge from place
to place. The double taxation system that had been used at the borders was
abolished and even the monetary systems were amalgamated: the dīnār (gold
coin) and the dirham (silver coin) were established as legal tender throughout
the Muslim empire and were accepted and recognised by the international
monetary and economic systems. The Arab rulers’ policy was to retain the previous
administrations of Byzantium and Persia in order to prevent economic disrup-
tions or crises.1 The pinnacle of Arab commerce with the territories of southern
and eastern Asia was during the reign of the Abbasids (ninth to tenth centuries),
which typically reflects the development of the Hindu–Muslim culture.2 The term
‘India’ in the ancient sources referred to vast geographical areas, including the
islands of the Indian Ocean such as Madagascar, Zanzibar and the Maldives, as
well as southern India, Tibet, Sri Lanka (Ceylon), Indonesia and China.3
1
2 | a rabi an dr ugs
Arab Attitude to Science
The general view emerging from research on the subject is that the Arab con-
querors originating from Arabia had either very little theoretical knowledge
in the various scientific disciplines of the time or none at all. Consequently,
their eclectic policy of openness towards study and innovation facilitated the
transfer of knowledge among the various cultures of the conquered popula-
tions or others to whom they were exposed on the territorial fringe of south-
ern and eastern Asia.4 But in a relatively new book, George Saliba presents
precisely the opposite argument. In his opinion, the Arabs had substantial
scientific knowledge prior to the conquests and the translation projects.5
The process of scientific development was extremely advanced by the end
of the expansion era, when Islamic control over the lands was established;
it seems that only then were those who designed government policy free to
promote their spiritual and material cultures, as described by Ibn Khaldūn:
Then God brought Islam, and its adherents gained their incomparable vic-
tory. They deprived the Byzantines (Rūm), as well as all other nations,
of their realms. In the beginning, they were simple (in their ways) and
disregarded the crafts. Eventually, however, the Muslim rule and dynasty
flourished. The Muslims developed a sedentary culture, such as no other
nation had ever possessed. They became versed in many different crafts and
sciences. Then, they desired to study the philosophical disciplines. They had
heard some mention of them by the bishops and priests amongst (their)
Christian subjects, and man’s ability to think has (in any case) aspirations
in the direction of the intellectual sciences.6
This process became particularly evident when the era of the great conquests
ended and Islamic jurisdiction over the lands was consolidated. The transla-
tion of texts from the Classical sources into Arabic encompassed all fields of
science such as philosophy, astronomy, mathematics and medicine.7
As far as we can tell, interest in the sciences, which in the Umayyad
period was relatively limited,8 intensified significantly when the Abbasid
dynasty rose to power.9 Arab historiography credits the improvement in
the various fields of science to the second Abbasid Caliph, Abū Jaʿfar ʿAbd
Allāh ibn Muªammad al-Man‚ūr (754–5), the stabiliser of the dynasty and
i ntroducti on | 3
founder of the capital city of Baghdad. His predilection for disciplines such
as philosophy and astronomy spurred his personal involvement and support
of their advancement.10
It was said that he received a copy of the works of the Greek mathemati-
cian Euclid and several other translated works on the life sciences. When the
Muslim scholars studied them, their desire to obtain more such scientific
works increased dramatically.11 Especially prominent for his contribution
was Caliph al-Maʾmūn (813–33) who had a deep interest in the sciences and
allegedly allocated financial resources for the translation of books written in
Syriac and Greek.12 Al-Maʾmūn sent dozens of translators to the Byzantine
rulers to search for Greek scientific writings, and then paid them to trans-
late these books into Arabic.13 According to other scholars, al-Maʾmūn gave
priceless gifts to the emperors of Byzantium, and in return asked only for
books on philosophy. In this way he acquired the books of Hippocrates,
Aristotle, Plato, Galen and other Classical scholars, which were translated
and studied by the best Arab scholars who gained high prestige; and similarly
by authors and translators of books dealing with religion, grammar, poetry,
science and genealogy.14
Because of his tremendous endeavours, scholars attribute to al-Maʾmūn
the famous translation project entitled Bayt al-Óikma (The House of Wisdom),
although this work had apparently been launched on a modest scale before
his time. The result of all this activity was the popular perception of the
Muslims as the natural successors of the ancient Greeks and as a nation that
advocated truth.15
Translation of Greek Science into Arabic
The translation of science books that took place in Baghdad during the
Abbasid period was not an Arab innovation. The Sasanian model, the ancient
initiative of the kings of Persia to translate books written in Greek, Syriac
and even Indian and Chinese, preceded them.16 The last of such translations
were done by the Christian Nestorians.17 Parts of the medical books that had
been translated originally into Persian were later translated from Persian into
Arabic.18 According to several historical sources, scattered translation works
were done by the Arabs during the Umayyad period. The best known transla-
tor of that period was Māsarjawayh, a Jewish physician of the eighth century,
who wrote an important medical book that is no longer extant.19 The same
scholar translated from Syriac into Arabic the medical book entitled Kunnāsh
fī al-˝ibb (Medical Pandect) written by a seventh-century Christian physi-
cian ʾAhrun al-Qiss, a graduate of the medical school in Alexandria. This
book is thought to have been originally written in Greek.20
In a later period, we hear about Bayt al-Óikma, the above-mentioned
translation project of the Abbasid rulers. According to Balty-Guesdon this
term relates mainly to a meeting place of scholars, whereas the translations
were performed in various venues, not necessarily in Bayt al-Óikma.21 Even
if there are differences of opinion regarding the actual existence of this insti-
tute, no one doubts the activities of the translators. The project lasted for
more than a hundred years; it was probably begun during the reign of Hārūn
al-Rashīd (786–809), and its zenith was during the time of al-Maʾmūn and
al-Mutawakkil (847–61).
Unfortunately, we know very little about its modus operandi – whether
the work was done in one location or in a particular institution. In any event,
it appears that this project clearly employed hundreds of scholars and transla-
tors, mainly Nestorians, who worked on a wide variety of scientific writings
in astronomy, geometry, philosophy, life sciences and medicine. This activity,
however, was limited to the sciences; it did not deal at all with the humani-
ties. Such literature was deemed ‘infected’ with pagan symbols. The nature
of the translation occasionally diverged from a straightforward rendering,
often including extensive commentaries with new notions while, conversely,
pagan perceptions contrary to the monotheistic spirit were amended or even
excised.22 According to Lewicka, the Greek medical concept of a non-meat
diet as a remedy for the sick, which encouraged an ‘anti-vegetarian’ approach
among the medieval Cairenes, may have been inserted into the Arabic–Islamic
medico-culinary corpus by Christian Nestorian physicians. These physicians
were working in Baghdad and Gondēshāpūr in the eighth and ninth centu-
ries, translating the Hippocratic–Galenic medical texts into Arabic.23
The Abbasid establishment devoted enormous efforts to locating and
assembling various and diverse works from all over the Muslim lands and the
outside world: Greek and Latin texts, Syriac manuscripts and even Persian
and Indian books.24 Most scholars agree, however, that the principal activ-
ity in Bayt al-Óikma was in the medical field, that is, translating the great
i ntroducti on | 5
Hippocratic and Galenic corpus from original Greek manuscripts and from
Syriac translations and adaptations.25
The most prominent of all translators were the members of the
Bukhtīshūʿ family, a prominent Nestorian family from Gondēshāpūr, who
had served the Abbasid caliphs for more than 200 years.26 One of the most
famous physicians of this family was Yūªannā ibn Māsawayhi (777–857),
who belonged to the Galenic medical school of thought, and even served
as the head of Bayt al-Óikma.27 His successor, nominated by al-Maʾmūn,
was Óunayn ibn ʾIsªāq (809–73) from al-Óīra (southern Iraq). According
to most scholars, Óunayn himself is responsible for translating and editing
dozens of works. Moreover, he established a group of translators including
his son, ʾIsªāq ibn Óunayn and his nephew Óubaysh ibn al-Óasan, ʿĪsā ibn
ʿAlī and many others.28 Another contemporary author and translator was
Qus†ā ibn Lūqā (820–912), a Christian physician from Óarrān, who wrote
and translated a number of medical and philosophy books,29 and Sābūr ibn
Sahl (d. 869), a Nestorian physician who studied and practised at the hospital
of Gondēshāpūr and was called to Baghdad to serve al-Mutawakkil.30
Assimilation of Theoretical and Practical Medicine into Arab Culture
We have meagre knowledge regarding the Arabs’ attitude towards medi-

cine in the early Islamic period, and what we do know is based mainly
on later historiographical sources.31 It seems that Ibn Khaldūn was the first
Arab writer to criticise traditional Arab medicine, asserting that it was prac-
tised by old Bedouin sheikhs, and was not based on any ‘natural law’ or ‘logi-
cal theory’, such as suiting medicines to the temperament of the patient.32
Traditional medicine was based on supernatural powers such as jinns. In the
Qurʾān, according to Ibn Khaldūn, there is no direct reference to medical
issues.33 Part of this traditional medicine was perpetuated later in a genre
named ˝ibb al-Nabī or al-˝ibb al-Nabawī (based mainly on Hadīth quoted
from Muªammad), although there are signs of influence of later elements of
knowledge and medical practice that became known to the Arabs only after
their conquests.34 Information regarding medicine in the period of the first
Caliphs is also scarce, although from early historical sources we learn that the
Umayyad rulers hired physicians, mainly of Christian origin, and students of
the Galenic school.35
It seems that the Galenic medical legacy was not only passed on directly
to the Arabs after they had completed their conquests and established their
regime but was also conveyed through several channels operating in Persia
during the pre-Islamic period. As previously mentioned, many texts were
translated from Greek into Syriac, and later from Syriac into Arabic, along
with texts that were translated directly from Greek into Arabic.36
According to Budge, it seems that the Syriac medical book he translated
and edited belongs to that period (it was also copied later, in the tenth cen-
tury), and in fact it is the translation of lectures written by a physician who
had studied medicine in the medical school in Alexandria.37
Alongside the Greek legacy, other cultural agents, mainly Indian and
Persian ones, were operating. All signs indicate that the Abbasid translation
project was based on an earlier Sasanian model.38 As mentioned above, Saliba
argues that the Arabs began their translation endeavours before the date
determined in modern historiographic literature.39
Persian and Indian Medicine
According to Arab historiography and numerous modern scholars, most of

the Persian scientific books, unlike those of Greek literature, were lost.40 Ibn
Nadim mentions various books in Persian, including several that deal with
logic and medicine, which were translated into Arabic, and some that were
translated from even earlier sources such as Chinese, Indian and Greek.41
However, it appears that some of these books were not destroyed, and a good
deal of information was even preserved as part of an oral tradition. In any
case, Persian medical texts have barely survived,42 and therefore we have very
little knowledge of Persian and local Mesopotamian medicine apart from the
medical services the Sasanian rulers received from physicians of the Greek
schools, who were considered to be superior.43 An important issue is the ques-
tion of the existence of a hospital in Gondēshāpūr in Southwest Persia with
a medical school adjacent to it. The prevalent notion among scholars was
that Nestorian monks who had been rejected by the formal church moved to
Gondēshāpūr and Nisibis (Nu‚aybīn).44 When the school of Edessa closed
down by order of the Byzantine regime, more Nestorian monks fled to Persia
to find shelter.45 The Nestorians belonged to the Galenic medical school,
and through their missionary work they reached India, Sri Lanka and China,
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where they became exposed to the medical knowledge of southern and east-
ern Asia. According to some sources, Greek and even Indian medical writings
were translated into Persian and Syriac in this region. This was done with the
enthusiastic support of the Persian rulers, similar to the activity of the centre
that was closed down in Alexandria.46 Khusraw I ʾAnūshīrwān (531–79)
was one of the most prominent Persian rulers who supported this activity,
and it was said that he sent his personal physician, named Burzo, to India.
When the doctor returned he brought with him not only games like chess
and draughts and the Book of Kalīla and Dimna, but also medical books that
had been translated into Persian (and later into Arabic) and even a number
of Indian physicians.47 On the nature of the study, Browne writes: ‘Although
the medical teaching of Gondēshāpūr was, in the main Greek, there was, no
doubt, an underlying Persian element, especially in Pharmacology.’48
However, according to the scholars who dispute the accepted view
regarding the existence of a medical centre in Gondēshāpūr in the pre-Islamic
period,49 our knowledge of the nature of ancient Persian medicine remains
scarce and vague.50
In recent years researchers have become increasingly aware of the theme of
‘Indian–Muslim cultural–scientific relations’ and there is evidence regarding
various fields of Arabic science that were based on Sanskrit texts; mathematics
is one example thereof.51 Moreover, Indian literature, mainly in the field of
astronomy, was translated into Arabic at the behest of the Abbasid rulers.52
Under the auspices of the Barmakid viziers (in power during the regime of
Hārūn al-Rashīd and Abū Jaʿfar al-Man‚ūr) the foremost texts of Indian
medical theory – featuring the Ayurveda, the compendium of Sushruta, the
compendium of Charaka and other medical writings translated into Persian
or originally written in Sanskrit – were translated into Arabic.53 Two of the
translators, both of them Indian physicians, deserve mention here: al-Hindī
Ibn Dahn and Manka;54 the latter translated Kitāb al-Sumūm by Shanak from
Hindi into Persian.55
In Baghdad, besides the translation project through which the Arabs
were exposed to various medical theories, translators also encountered practi-
cal medicine. While many of the tarnaslators were physicians of the Greek
school, others, coming from Persia, Egypt and al-Shām, arrived and practised
at the Abbasid court as well.56 Several Indian physicians practised in Baghdad
at the time of the Barmakid viziers.57 One of them, Íāliª ibn Bahla, was
among the greatest scholars of Indian medicine;58 he was active at the time of
Jaʿfar ibn Yaªyā al-Barmakī.59 A hospital based on Ayurvedic medicine was
also operating at that time.60
The affinity of the Barmakid rulers to Indian medicine can be ascribed
originally to the head of the family, Khālid al-Barmakī, who was evidently
the son of a Buddhist priest before he converted to Islam. It was said: ‘Yaªyā
ibn Khālid al-Barmakī sent a man to India, so that he might bring him
the medicinal plants found in that land.’61 The Barmakid family, whose
wealth and generosity were legendary in the Islamic world, in fact ruled the
Abbasid kingdom and controlled its huge administrative apparatus. This was
the primary factor in their influence on the shaping of Arab culture at the
time. They invited philosophers and physicians to Baghdad from India and
imported Indian practical drugs that enriched the inventory of the Greek
materia medica.62 The famous Arab scholar al-JāªiÕ (d. 868–9) writes an
anecdote about medical knowledge, which had been conveyed to him by a
middleman, about a conversation he had with an Indian physician by the
name of Bahla in the times of Hārūn al-Rashīd. Al-JāªiÕ mentions the names
of other Indian scholars who came to Iraq at about the same time as Bahla;
according to Shefer-Mossensohna, and Abou Hershkovitz, some of them
seem to be mythical figures rather than historical ones. Other names, like
Manka, which appear in additional Abbasid sources and in later ones as well,
can be historically verified.63
The historian and Qurʾān commentator al-˝abarī (d. 923) mentions an
Indian doctor being invited to al-Man‚ūr. In one case the caliph’s physicians
were unable to offer a solution for a severe medical condition, and the caliph
had to look elsewhere for a remedy. A nameless Indian physician appeared
and prepared a drug for the caliph; after using it and seeing that the drug was
effective, he highly praised the Indian physician.64
An assessment of the Abbasid translation project reveals the influence
of two main schools of medicine: Greek and Indian, as well as the school
of Persian medicine. As mentioned above, as early as the Sasanian Empire,
contacts with the Greek and, to a certain extent, even with the Indian schools
existed; all of these interactions came to fruition with the translation of Greek,
Syriac and Sanskrit manuscripts.65 The Persian school should be seen as an
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intermediary centre for the transmission of medical knowledge to the Arabs,

and not as their competitor.
Shefer-Mossensohna and Abou Hershkovitz reinterpret medieval Arabic
sources of the eighth and ninth centuries and claim that the interest of the
contemporary Muslims in Asian science was not a transitory and atypical
phenomenon that lacked far-reaching implications. Based on a rereading of
Arabic chronicles and biographical dictionaries, they portray how the rather
brief contact between Abbasid Iraq and India yielded ‘enduring influences’.
They add that two aspects of Muslim medical practice that best demonstrate
the Indian influence were ‘the presence of Indian physicians in Baghdad
in and around the Abbasid’s court, and the emergence of early Muslim
hospitals’.66
Indian Medicinal Substances
The influence of Indian and Persian medicine can be seen in the writings of
some of the most important figures in Arab science, most of whom were also
practitioners, such as Yūªannā ibn Māsawayhi,67 ʿAlī ibn Rabban al-˝abarī
and al-Kindī in the ninth century and al-Rāzī (865–925), al-Bīrūnī (973–
1048), Ibn Sīnā (980–1037) and Ibn Waªshiyya in the tenth century.68 The
great majority of those regarded as being among the most highly acclaimed
Muslim scholars of all times69 were of Persian origin and were given the
sobriquet ‘the physicians of Bilād al-ʿAjamʾ.’70 Consequently, the Persian
physicians, in their Arabian attire, continued to serve as mediators and guard-
ians of part of the Indian medical legacy.71
Detailed below are several physicians, some of whom were listed above:
• ʿAlī ibn Rabban al-˝abarī in his book Firdaws al-Óikma refers to many
Indian medicinal substances,72 and in the last few chapters he even men-
tions complex Indian drugs; several of which bear their Sanskrit names.73
Al-˝abarī notes that his writing is based on the books of ‘the old surgeon’
Sushruta and the physician Charaka.74
• Al-Bīrūnī is considered as one of the most important Muslim scholars.
He specialised in many fields, including history, mathematics, linguis-
tics, philosophy and the life sciences, mainly medicine and pharmacol-
ogy.75 The scientific world of al-Bīrūnī was influenced by both the Indian
10 | ara bi a n dr ugs
and Greek cultures;76 however, in his medical book he mentions many

Persian medicinal substances. In the introduction to his medical book,
for example, he mentions ‘the books of Hindūstān’ in an Indian legend
and while doing so he writes about the medical uses of the Indian aco-
nite (bīsh) among the Indians.77 Al-Bīrūnī also gives the ancient Indian
names of the substances and shows how a few of these names entered the
Arabic language for example: ‚andal – chandal, chandn.78 According to
him, the name Íaydanānī – the term for a seller of perfume and medicinal
substances – was extracted from the name of the sandalwood plant: ‘So
this is how the commodities and the traders of these commodities begin
to be called Íaydanānī, which is undoubtedly associated with sandalwood:
it therefore became Íaydanānī. It is just possible that Persians because
they, like the Indians, were so fond of sandalwood, began to address
sandalwood traders as jindanānīs.’79
• Abū Man‚ūr Muwaffaq of Herāt practised medicine in eastern Iran in
about 970. He travelled to India, and therefore it is not surprising that
his work contains Indian influence. He even writes that ‘in India more
active drugs are to be found than in all the other six parts of the world
together.’80 He occasionally mentions Indian physicians in his writings,
and notes many names of medicinal substances in Persian and Sanskrit.81
According to Laufer, 52 (11 per cent) out of 466 medicinal plants men-
tioned in Muwaffaq’s book are of Indian origin and are rare in Persia.82
Further examples of physicians who mention Persian medicinal sub-

stances in their books of the ninth to tenth centuries AD, and even later, are
presented below.
Baghdad as an Intercultural Centre and the Triumph of the Galenic

Medical Legacy
As noted above, Baghdad was the hub and crossroads through which diverse
intercultural medical legacies passed: those of the Greek, Indian, Persian83
and the local Mesopotamian. In fact, only the Indian medical legacy was an
equivalent alternative, and thus posed a challenge, to the Galenic legacy.84
Moreover, some resemblances between the two medical legacies (theories and
doctrines) can be found (see Table 1.1).85
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Table 1.1 Comparison of some of the theoretical characteristics of Greek

and Indian medicine
Characteristics Greek–Arab medicine Indian medicine (Ayurveda)

Number of elements four – fire, air, water five – fire, air, water, earth and
and earth ether (space)
Quantity of phlegm or the four – white (water), red three – vata (wind), pitta (bile)
powers that balance health and (air), yellow (fire) and and kapha (phlegm)
their relation to the elements black (earth)
Features of the main types four – melancholic, three – vata, pitta and kapha
(temperament) of humans choleric, phlegmatic
and sanguine
The Greek and Indian medical schools practised medicine concurrently,

each working separately to extend its respective influence through the dis-
tribution of its unique medical principles in theory and in practice. This
was actually accomplished by the Abbasid rulers, or more precisely by their
influential courtiers and the scholars they employed, who directed their
medical activities according to personal inclination, family origin and politi-
cal background.
With the ending of the rule of the Barmakid viziers and their expul-
sion by their master Hārūn al-Rashīd in 803, for disloyalty and on other
grounds, their influence faded and they were never heard of again.86 The
importance of the Indian medical school with which they were identi-
fied declined accordingly. And, indeed, at the time of both al-Maʾmūn and
al-Mutawakkil the status of their courtiers and the scholars who supported
the Greek medical school grew stronger and hence also their influence on
the translation project, until eventually the ‘triumph’ of the Galenic school
was accomplished. This school was indisputably adopted by Arab medicine
in later periods, while Indian and Persian medicine were pushed aside87
and their influence remained limited or tainted. To illustrate this, we note
that out of more than 300 physicians recorded in Ibn Abī U‚aybiʿa’s book,
only five are of Indian origin,88 and only twenty-two entries are devoted to
Persian physicians.89 All the others90 listed in the book, whether they prac-
tised in the Classical period or in the author’s own time, in the Byzantine or
Arab domain (Iraq, al-Shām, Spain, North Africa and so forth), belonged to
the Galenic school.
As stated earlier, the ascendancy of the Galenic school derived from

various political interests, mainly those of the chief translators who directed
the Baghdad project and those of the Barmakid period who represented the
Galenic medical school, namely the Syriac Christians. Such translators as
the Bukhtīshūʿ family, Yūªannā ibn Māsawayhi, and Óunayn ibn Isªāq
belonged predominantly to the same social and professional circles and
bequeathed their posts to their relatives or close associates. As mentioned
before, some modern scholars believe that the information about the medical
centre in Gondēshāpūr and its translation project (that are mentioned only
in later sources) is actually a legend invented by the aforementioned Christian
(Nestorian) translators, and directed against physicians from other schools
who were practising in the Abbasid court at that time. These scholars argue
that through this assertion the Nestorians planned to enhance the prestige
of their school and validate its legacy as being more developed and superior
to its main ‘competitor’ – the Indian medical legacy.91 According to this
assumption, the adoption of the Galenic medical school as the official and
exclusive representative of Arab medicine was not only thanks to its superior-
ity or better medical practice than that of the other schools. The triumph of
the Galenic approach may also be explained by additional factors (that we
will discuss later), although it should be noted that it is difficult to determine
what the relevant influence of each factor was.
Besides the medical and learning centres in Persia and Mesopotamia
(Gondēshāpūr and Óarrān), the Galenic legacy had a powerful hold on all
former Byzantine centres in Syria and Alexandria.92 Although some schol-
ars suggest that they were beginning to decline on the eve of the Islamic
conquests,93 these centres seem to have enjoyed special patronage when the
first Arab regime, the Umayyad dynasty, was established in Damascus. The
Arabs were exposed to the Classical culture, and the administrative order was
founded on the intentional continuation of the preceding Byzantine rule.94
Moreover, historical evidence from this period clearly shows partiality of the
Umayyad rulers towards physicians of the Alexandrian medical school.95
Greek texts in this region were more accessible, mainly because the
‘cultural agents’ were Christians, who either possessed these texts or could
easily obtain them from their co-religionists in the neighbouring Byzantine
Empire. The Nestorian translators were well-versed in translating Greek texts
i ntroducti on | 13
into Syriac in the pre-Islamic period96 and in Sasanian Persia;97 hence, the
translation project was not built from scratch. The knowledge, methodol-
ogy, manpower and professional technique for translation – from Greek into
Arabic, or as in many cases from Greek into Syriac and then into Arabic –
were not new.
The theological aspect played an important part as well. Medicine appar-
ently could not be separated from other sciences, such as philosophy, in which
the Arabs clearly preferred the Greek to the Persian and Indian approaches,
which were regarded as contradictory to Islamic monotheism.98 The medical
legacy of the Greeks, first and foremost Hippocrates and later Galen, even
though its ‘leaders’ were pagan, was subjected to ‘purification’ and adoption
by the Christians during the Byzantine period and was, therefore, primed for
its ultimate acceptance by the Arabs.99 Al-Maʾmūn’s well-known opposition
to the Zoroastrians, on the one hand, and his tendency towards the rational
Muʿtazilite theological views, on the other, may be added to this argument.100
The relations between the Greek and the Indian medical traditions should be
seen in a wider context of all branches of ‘Arab’ sciences; this can be learnt
from some works dealing mainly with astronomy,101 mathematics102 and
law.103 And, indeed, Persian and Indian influence, which can be identified
in Greek theoretical frameworks, helped to enhance them, although it seems
that their contribution was minor. For instance, the books of Indian astron-
omy did not replace the Ptolemaic influence that maintained its dominance
over medieval Arab thought.104 Nevertheless, it seems as though there is no
better field than medicine to demonstrate so clearly the relative contribution
of each one of these traditions to the formation of Arab medicine, in both
theory and practice. Despite the dominance of the Galenic medical school,
ultimately it was the school of Indian medicine that succeeded in having a
long-term impact by means of its unique medicinal substances, as we shall see
in the next chapters.
The Commercial Aspect
In general, our book deals mainly with the trends and distribution of medici-
nal substances and other products that emerged from the Islamic conquests
from the seventh to eighth centuries – a process that persisted through to
the tenth to twelfth centuries and even later, having gone through peaks and
troughs. Therefore, the late sources in general reinforce our arguments and
in the cases where they add information it does not change dramatically the
general picture. This is the reason we did not relate to the late sources that
deal with the ‘Arabs’ drugs’.
‘Indian Trade’
Cultural contacts, trade and biological translocations between societies widely

dispersed in areas spanning the Indian Ocean, East Africa, Arabia and South
and Southeast Asia started in early pre-history, becoming dynamic in the
Bronze Age and in the Iron Age. Archaeological evidence shows, for example,
trade and cultural contacts in the southern part of the Red Sea by movement
of obsidian from Neolithic Ethiopia to Yemen, and incense and other goods
that were imported to Egypt in the fourth millennium BC. From about 2000
BC African crops reached southern Asia and crops of Chinese and Indian
origin, and even domesticated animals such as the Zebu (cattle), reached
Yemen and East Africa.105
Commercial contacts between the East (India and the Islands) and the
Mediterranean Basin existed as early as the third millennium BC (the ancient
Egyptian kingdom) and even earlier. These contacts and trade continued
into the Middle Kingdom and the late Pharaonic periods; however, the best
documentation of the Indian Ocean–Red Sea trade is from the Hellenistic–
Roman period.106
The distribution of domesticated plants, mainly for food consumption,
took place in waves throughout the various historical periods. These brand
new crops, introduced to the farms of the Mediterranean Basin, contributed
to diversifying and enriching the local food basket.107 Ancient relations with
the Indian Space were first illustrated circumstantially when, for example,
nard and cinnamon were mentioned in the Bible.108 However, new scien-
tific data from research conducted in the last decade strengthens the claim
that exotic spices from Southeast Asia were used in the Mediterranean Basin
region. For example, in excavations done at the house of a well-to-do family
in Terqa, in the Euphrates, a small jar containing charred cloves was found
(dated 1600 BC).109
Archaeological evidence of cinnamon was also identified inside small
Iron Age flasks (ninth to eleventh centuries BC) in some sites in Israel. The
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analysis proved that cinnamon was the content of the flasks and, therefore, it
is clear proof of trade with Southeast Asia during that period.110 Moreover,
remnants of nutmeg were found at al-Dayr al-Baªrī (sixteenth to fourteenth
centuries BC).111
It seems that the above-mentioned evidence can inform us of a limited
use of these commodities among the Levantine elite. In any case, the evidence
is sporadic and non-consecutive. Such evidence of the use of nutmeg, cinna-
mon and other ‘Indian’ spices and products started to re-emerge and become
more common only after the Islamic conquests.
It is unclear how these sporadic commercial relations existed; we assume
it was through various mediators. The existence of the Kingdom of Sheba on
the Red Sea, for example, enabled long-term commercial ties with the Indian
Space (this term has a wider geographical meaning, and includes, in a later
period, the Islands of the Indian Ocean such as Zanzibar and Madagascar).112
The Arabian Sea corridor led to an early exchange of plant species between
the savannahs of India and Africa and was, according to Fuller, a ‘precursor to
the later pepper route of the spice trade’. Among the first hints of such trade
are corns of black pepper that were found in the nostrils of the mummified
Pharaoh Ramses II (1200 BC).113 Direct commercial ties with this space are
mentioned explicitly in the Old Testament only during the Persian Period
(The Book of Esther 1,1). Analysis of different precious commodities from
the Indian Space, which were well-known in the Middle East, attests to the
existence of indirect commercial dealings between India and the Middle East,
with the nations of southern Arabia acting as mediators. An example of this
is the linkage made in the Bible between the frankincense from Sheba and
the ‘scented cane from a fair country’ (Jeremiah, 6, 20), which is evidently
referring to the Indian Space. In addition, Herodotus (fifth century BC) noted
the Phoenician trade between the Mediterranean and the Red Sea at the time
of Pharaoh Necho (Herodotus, IV, 42);114 the above-mentioned findings
of cinnamon at Iron Age sites on the Mediterranean shore seem to support
Herodotus’ writings.
Several trade routes linked the Mediterranean with the East; the northern
Silk Road to China; and a number of maritime-overland caravan routes: via
Petra (Nabataea) and via Palmira (Syria); and routes connecting Ptolemaic,
Nabatean and Roman ports at the northern end of the Red Sea with the
Indian Ocean.115 Black pepper, for example, was sporadically traded as early
as the Biblical period, probably by traders from Arabia who exchanged
exotic products with tribes of hunters and gatherers from the shores of
the Indian Ocean.116 Pepper was later introduced into the Mediterranean
Basin after the conquests of Alexander the Great, and became available as
part of the diet only during the Roman period, thanks to the improve-
ment of the overland and Red Sea maritime trading routes with East Africa,
the Persian Gulf and the Indian Space.117 Interestingly enough, thanks to
archaeological excavations, we know about the presence of Indian commu-
nities, as well as Roman ones, on the shores of the Red Sea. Two examples
are Brernike118 and Myos Hormos (Qu‚eir al-Qadīm).119 Remnants of black
pepper were found in both Roman and Egyptian trading ports. Moreover, a
pitcher with 7.5 kg of black pepper, dated to the first century AD, was found
in Brernike.120
With the expansion and intensification of overland routes, as well as
the Red Sea maritime route, the communication and commercial relations
between East Africa, the Persian Gulf and the Indian Space improved. As
mentioned above, not only Roman strongholds were established in these
spaces, but also an Indian population existed in various locations on the
shores of the Red Sea; this information may be gleaned from remnants of
Indian jars, ceramic artefacts and vessels. This may be the explanation for the
Indian food stuffs, spices and drugs that were found there.121
The commercial ties between the Abbasid Empire and the East are known
from both Arabic sources and evidence found in archaeological excavations.
These include proof of trade with China122 and India123 during the ninth
century and are a continuation of the Hellenistic–Roman trade.124 This route
is called by some scholars the Persian Gulf–Syrian Desert Route, of which
Baghdad and Ba‚ra were the centres. According to Meloy, the expansion of
Islam across the Indian Ocean was a by-product of commerce and conver-
sion rather than of conquests. The diverse cultures, religions and nations
of this region were somehow united due to the monsoon weather system
that governs the entire ocean. The monsoon winds enable mariners to travel
long distances faster, and more efficiently, using relatively inferior maritime
technology. The regularity of the winds induced extensive points of contact
between the various cultures.125
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The Fatimid Caliphate was formed thanks to economic prosperity in

Egypt, in contrast to the demise of the Abbasid Caliphate that suffered eco-
nomic collapse in Iraq. This process was accompanied by a major emigration
of talented and skilled men, merchants and administrators alike, from Iraq
to Egypt. And, indeed, Egypt became the main transit market between the
Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean world. In this regard we should men-
tion that several scholars, such as Franz-Murphy, suggest that the economic
prosperity of medieval Egypt may have hinged on the Egyptian textile indus-
try of the ninth to the twelfth centuries and not only, or primarily, on the
transit trade of spices and medicinal substances or its ‘passive role in the
East–West trade’.126
Lewis argues that the Fatimids, from a very early stage of their regime,
deliberately attempted to redirect the continental trade routes linking the
Mediterranean and the Asian world, through the Red Sea, in general, and
Aden in particular.127 An interesting explanation for this is presented by
Bramoullé who claims, based on contemporary Arabic sources, that the
Red Sea is an internal sea crossing into territories under Fatimid control.
Moreover, he claims that ‘the Fatimid ardently wanted to increase their
ideological influence in the Muslim world, rather than their power over new
maritime space’.128 Practically, according to Ashtor, ‘the Fatimids made a
great effort to divert the spice trade from the Persian Gulf to the Red Sea and
established commercial bases on the way to India’.129
islamic trade
Islam inherited a rich mercantile legacy from Mesopotamia, Syria and Egypt,
which boasted a long history of commercial activity and international trade.
Shatzmiller defines Islamic trade as ‘comprehensive; it includes both interna-
tional and inter-regional movement of goods by Muslims and non-Muslims
to and from lands under Islamic rule and the use of maritime and overland
routes’.130
Cities such as Alexandria and Damascus flourished due to their strategic
location at the cross-roads of a number of trading routes of the Middle East.
However, from the seventh century new cities that served as commercial
centres had been established (such as Ba‚ra, Fus†ā† and Kūfa). The commer-
cial centres were inhabited as early as the eighth century by Arabs, Persians,
Syrians Jews and local people from the vicinity, who were, as was accurately
described by Abulafia ‘united if not in faith, at least in speech’. Similar to
other Islamic cities, Ba‚ra was a product of ‘mushrooming growth’, that is, a
unique growth rate, from zero to in the region of 200,000 inhabitants in less
than 30 years (seventh century).131
The great economic centres of the Islamic world were tied together by
successful and esteemed merchants, exploiters of the regional diversity of the
Muslim world. Moreover, Abulafia claims that Islam was a civilisation whose
wealth was composed of essential commodities from lands beyond its terri-
tory (Christian Europe, the Spice Islands of Asia and from black Africa). The
international trade through the lands of Islam towards Europe enhanced the
development of the Muslim trade. Actually, the trade of the Muslim world
was carried out not only by Muslims; Jews, Hindus, the Greek Orthodox and
Copts took an active and crucial part in it. The Jewish merchants, for example,
acted as intermediaries between the Muslim empire and Christian Europe.132
Interestingly enough, in many cases the trade on the ‘Indian’ islands was
done as barter; the islanders received iron in exchange for ambergris, and due
to the significant language barriers, the dialogue (or commercial negotiation)
was done by gesticulations.133 In another case clove was traded, along with
other products on islands of the China Sea.134 This phenomenon, which
was called ‘silent trade’, was common among the Arabs.135 In any case, trade
contributed to economic growth by efficient distribution and allocation of
resources, efficient organisation of supply to market demand, the raising of
personal income for traders, labourers and service people and by raising state
income through an increase in taxes that the state could collect. All of these,
according to Shatzmiller, fed a demand for luxury items, brought along the
maritime routes.136
The history of the Islamic trade has been divided by some scholars into
two periods: one of early Islamic trade and the other of the late period or
Primacy of Egypt.137
The first period (650–1000) was characterised by urbanisation of the
Islamic world parallel to the demise of the former Byzantine economy. As
mentioned before, agricultural technologies and crops were introduced and
conveyed from the East to the West, for example, textile technology and
experts from Persia to Egypt and the Maghrib and silk-workers from Syria
i ntroducti on | 19
to southern Spain. Moreover, due to the flourishing trade, industrial centres

were established often far away from the specialised production or centres of
raw materials, organic or inorganic. The combination of local specialisation
and ease of transportation within the Islamic world stimulated both the long-
and short-distance trade of various products, industrial and agriculture alike.
The Islamic economy, and mainly its two centres in Iraq and Egypt, relied
on ‘bimetallic currency’ of gold (dīnār) and silver (dirham).138 Shatzmiller
suggests that in this period the Islamic territories exhibited considerable eco-
nomic growth that was achieved by an interaction of several factors, the
main one being an increased money supply. The regular supply of dirhams
throughout the entire period enabled structural changes to take place in
the three sectors of agriculture, manufacturing and service, and sustained
economic growth throughout. Regions in which these were lacking, such as
Muslim Spain or the Syrian coastline, could not benefit from such growth.139
Several groups of merchants were active in the international trade between
East and West in this period; the activity of some, mainly the Jewish groups
of the Tustaris and the Rādhānites, are described in detail below. These
groups benefited from the presence of Jewish communities along the trad-
ing routes.140 Shatzmiller’s new approach regarding the diagnostic economic
indicators in the period from the seventh to the eleventh centuries attests to
rational and efficient economic institutional behaviours that include:
An increase in monetisation, money supply and circulation; the formation

of credit institutions; the development and elaboration of state fiscal institu-
tions with an efficient system of tax collection; the creation of legal institu-
tions to uphold property rights; limited demographic growth compensated
by the import of slaves and internal migration in sufficient numbers to pro-
vide for a rise in productivity; increased output in the manufacturing sector
as a result of increased division of labour and literacy of the workforce; an
increased volume of trade, efficient markets, commercial techniques and
the development of efficient transaction costs.141
The second period (950–1500) coincides with the political separation of

Shiite Fatimids from the Sunni regime of the Abbasid Caliphate of Baghdad.
The new court that was established in Cairo, its administration and the new
socio-economic bourgeois class created an increasingly growing demand for
luxury products such as perfume, silk and gemstones, bringing wealth to

the traders while the wars of the Fatimids and the huge demand for timber,
pitch, iron and military products brought fortune to the suppliers of these
products. Moreover, the gold that was imported from central Africa and the
silver from Europe also contributed to the economic rise of Egypt. All of the
above, together with the rising European demand for spices and other luxury
products from the East, caused a shift in the trading routes from the Persian
Gulf to the Red Sea during the late tenth century and the eleventh, whereby
Cairo became the new commercial centre of the Islamic world, and of the
East–West trade.142
In any case, our knowledge of the commercial activity of the period from
the tenth century to the thirteenth is based mainly on the Cairo Genizah
documents.143 The Genizah merchants were well-acquainted with the trading
routes between Egypt, Sicily, the Syrian coast and Tunisia. An important
commercial hub at that time was al-Mahdiyya in Tunisia, which was built
as a commercial and political centre in the mid-eleventh century and seized
the local primacy of Qayrawān. Such a large and central port as al-Mahdiyya
made it easy for the Jewish merchants of Fus†ā† to compare price and quality
of goods from a variety of sources. Moreover, according to Abulafia, these
traders were ‘aristocrats of commerce’, and favoured rapid travel on large
boats. On the other hand, Aden was probably chosen as a hub for the India
trade for the same reasons. For various reasons (religion, security and so forth)
the Jews preferred sea and river passage to land travel.144 Goldberg empha-
sises the important role of the ‘Genizah merchants’ in the intra-regional and
international trade of agriculture products and its contribution to the Islamic
economy as well as the central position of Cairo and Fus†ā† in this economy.145
One important aspect of the long-distance trade of that period was the
quality of the products. Al-Dimashqī writes that the best galingale is one with
natural colour, without any decay, moisture or black spots. This comment
suggests that spices such as galingale were sometimes exposed to damage due
to the moisture of the sea while being transported from the East.146
trade routes
There were several routes for Indo–Arabic–European trade; historically,
according to Seland, and as mentioned above, there were two main axes in
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ancient Indian Ocean trade (mainly Roman period first to third centuries):
the Persian Gulf–Syrian Desert and the Red Sea–Nile. Seland argues that
although the Persian Gulf–Syrian Desert route was much shorter geographi-
cally, it took four times longer. In any case it appears that the annual rhythm
of the use of these routes was in ‘response to the ocean winds, desert climate
and river floods’.147
The Persian Gulf–Syrian Desert route extended from India to the Persian
Gulf and from several Gulf ports by land via the Syrian Desert to the Levant,
and from there, on to Europe.148 The traders along this route made use of
ports such as Moscha (present-day Oman),149 Sīrāf on the Persian coast (near
the Straits of Hormuz) that was used for the Arabs’ trade with India and
China,150 as well as the port of Kish situated between Sīrāf and Hormuz.
According to Whitehouse, based on Arabic historical sources as well as
archaeological findings, these ports dominated the marine routes of the Gulf
and the China–India trade, mainly during the eleventh and twelfth centu-
ries.151 Al-ʾI‚†akhrῑ writes that in Sīrāf all of the products that came by sea
were loaded on to ships – ambergris, camphor, gemstones, bamboo, pepper,
agarwood, sandalwood and all kinds of perfumes, spices and drugs – and
from there they were exported to Persia and all other parts of the world.152
The Jewish traveller Benjamin of Tudela, who visited Kish in 1170, describes
its market and the commercial activity there as ‘being the place to which
the Indian merchants and those of the islands bring their commodities …
those from India import great quantities of spices, and the inhabitants of the
islands live by what they earn in their capacity as brokers for both parties. The
island is home to approximately 500 Jews.’153
The Persian Gulf–Syrian Desert route was replaced by the Red Sea–Nile
route. However, equally significant, Kennedy argues, was the slowly changing
nature of trade in the Mediterranean, shifting from combined marine and
land trade with Muslim North Africa to marine trade only, with Christian
Europe. Luxury products of the East, including spices and medicinal sub-
stances, became highly sought-after products, not solely in the Muslim ter-
ritories but also in Western Europe.154
The other Red Sea–Nile marine route155 departed from India and passed
through Aden156 to the Red Sea and was at first, similar to the Byzantine
period, mainly through Clysma (Qulzum; Suez),157 and from there by land to
Cairo. Another option was by using several ports on the Egyptian shores of
the Red Sea such as ʿĪdhāb, which became more important from the eleventh
century onward.158 Ports on the Sudanese shores such as Berenike159 and
Myos Hormos (Qu‚eir al-Qadīm), which were used in the Roman period,
were also used by the Fatimids.160 According to Whitcomb, the archaeologi-
cal artefacts found in the exacavations of Muslim ʿAqaba from the seventh
century to the twelfth, indicate participation in an extensive trade network
connecting Egypt and Syria with Iraq and China.161 Proof of the trade with
China includes old celadon and porcelain objects that were unearthed in
Islamic strata in archaeological excavations in East Africa as well as in Sīrāf
(Iran), Qu‚eir (Sudan) and ʿĪdhāb, Alexandria, Qū‚ and Fus†a† (Egypt).162
According to Shatzmiller, the significance of the Red Sea corridor in the
Roman and Abbasid economies may be viewed as two examples of impe-
rial economies. In terms of maritime trade, the nature of the goods carried
through the Red Sea corridor did not differ very much from those imported
during the Islamic era. These included ‘Chinese live animals, furs and hides,
ivory, pearls, mother of pearl, precious and semiprecious gemstones, lacquered
dye, silk, pepper, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, spikenard, nutmeg, indigo,
cotton and precious woods’. The author adds that, in general, the Roman
Empire favoured overland communication for their armies and transport.163
Two main reasons have been suggested by Shatzmiller for the prolonged
decline in Red Sea corridor trade from Late-Antiquity to the eleventh cen-
tury: ‘demographic decline’ and ‘the disappearance of monetary circulation
in the Mediterranean lands during the three centuries preceding the Islamic
conquest’. The movement of goods and people along the Red Sea corridor
may not have disappeared altogether, especially in comparison to the role it
would assume from the eleventh century onwards. Shatzmiller claims that
the maritime trade did not cease entirely, but its role in the economic growth
of the eighth century to the tenth was relatively minor. That shift followed
a change in ‘the geographical location of resources, manpower, precious
metals, agriculture, manufacturing and markets, from the Mediterranean to
Central Asia.’164
Gil describes in detail several kinds of boats sailing in the open sea
and on the Nile. They sailed chiefly by wind power. However, they were
equipped with oars as well. In general, the boats sailed when the sea was calm
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and the wind was blowing in the desired direction, conditions that in the
western Mediterranean occurred mainly during the summer months until
mid-September.165
The amounts of products and the size of the shipments to Egypt men-
tioned in Genizah sources (mainly of the eleventh to thirteenth) are astonish-
ing. Goitein illustrates this through a letter written by Ma∂mūn, the head
of the Jewish merchants in Aden, in which he describes how he dispatched
a consignment of sixty camel loads of lac to Egypt (3,000 Ra†l = about
7,500 kg), and eight camel loads of pepper (300 Ra†l = 750 kg).166
commercial centres
The trade with India (mainly by Muslims and Jews) in ‘Indian’ products,
including drugs (in the Mediterranean Basin) yielded enormous profits.
Genizah sources of the eleventh and twelfth centuries mention profits of
100 per cent, and similar figures emerge from studies dealing with fifteenth-
century ‘Levant Traders’.167 We would like to briefly present below two of the
important centres of this trade.
The port of Aden, located on Yemeni soil at the southwestern corner of
the Arabian Peninsula, and situated on the fringes of intersecting worlds,
occupied the centre of western Indian Ocean commercial networks in medi-
eval times. According to Margariti, who presents the city and its medieval
commercial activity in her book Aden, the city ‘flourished as a safe haven,
a place where maritime and market risks could be managed, profits max-
imised, and losses mitigated’. And, indeed, from the tenth century onward,
the city served as a major commercial hub on the main axis of the trade
system that linked the Indian Ocean with the Mediterranean.168 According
to al-Muqaddasī, Aden was an important trading post, which consisted of
trade with China. Among the products traded there he mentions ambergris,
as well as fine linens, shields and even slaves and, as he writes, ‘and indeed
so much more that were I to enumerate all of it in detail, the book would
be unnecessarily long’.169 Many products were transported through the port
during the Ayyubid period, among them drugs, spices and perfumes from
the East, including camphor, lacca and tamarind.170 Hundreds of commercial
documents and private letters that were found in the Cairo Genizah, together
with the writings of Muslim travellers and geographers, enabled scholars like
Goitien, Friedman and others to depict the important role of Aden in the
‘India trade’.171
Oman ‘ʿUmān’ was another important trading post; according to
al-Muqaddasī, various products were imported via its port, many of which
were pharmaceutical, perfumes, spices and industrial goods such as aloe,
bamboo, brazilwood, camphor, coconut, lead, musk, onyx, pearls, pepper,
saffron, sandalwood, sandarus, sapphire and teak, as well other products such
as ebony, iron, ivory and silk.172
Mediterranean Trade
The commercial activity of the Mediterranean Sea has been studied by many
scholars interested in the human history of the ‘Great Sea’.173 Stillman claims
that ‘although most Jews throughout the Islamic world were craftsmen and
laborers, there were always Jewish merchants involved in commerce at every
level’.174 On the eve of the Islamic expansion, however, shipping in the
Mediterranean was dominated by the Church, the State, rich merchants and
middle-class entrepreneurs (including Jews). As an example, Khalileh writes
about the ships of the church of Alexandria that sailed to India, Sri Lanka and
Marseilles at the end of the Byzantine supremacy over the Mediterranean.175
And, indeed, we learn from Byzantine sources that Alexandria was an impor-
tant market for aromatics; moreover, government control of the trade of
materia medica in the early Byzantine period was exercised through taxes.
Once the drugs entered the Byzantine Empire, their market prices were regu-
lated as well. According to McCabe, the Price Edict of Diocletian lists more
than 100 medicinal substances (plants, minerals, resins and so forth) as well as
perfumes, incense and dyes such as cardamon, cassia, iris oil, ginger, mastic,
myrrha, myrobalan, pepper, rose-oil and saffron.176 In the sixth century, the
Alexandrian merchant Cosmas describes the suppliers and the markets of
the drugs in the Indian Ocean. For example, he elaborates on pepper vine
cultivation and the harvesting and trade of its fruits. Interestingly enough, he
also writes about the new drugs on the market since Dioscorides’ time, such
as cloves and musk.177
A unique and important insight into the practicality of the medieval
Mediterranean trade is beautifully portrayed by Goldberg, based on roughly
1,500 commercial documents. These consist mainly of letters found in the
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Cairo Genizah collections around the world, which have been studied by
numerous scholars for more than a century. These documents, written mainly
by Jewish merchants, reveal some hidden aspects of this period and its com-
mercial activity. According to Goldberg, Jewish merchants played several
roles in the commercial activity of the tenth-century Islamic Mediterranean;
for example, they packed, processed and delivered typical regional products
from the fields to the markets; they brought products from small towns and
the countryside into the major Mediterranean markets and distributed goods
in the opposite direction, as well; and they also imported products from the
Red Sea and Indian Ocean into the Mediterranean Basin region. The Jewish
merchants had enormous freedom and flexibility in terms of merchandise,
markets, means of transportation and so forth; these were based, according to
Goldberg, on their being in possession of ‘mobile capital’ and on their ‘mon-
etized’ trade. Interestingly enough, no attempts on their part at monopolising
production were detected. Moreover, although the Jewish merchants were
largely in competition with their Muslim counterparts, in many cases they
were their partners. Another feature typical of the Jewish merchants was that
they did not customarily invest in means of transportation such as camels or
ships; nor did they trade in grains. In this way they differed distinctly from
the groups of medieval Italian merchants that operated in the Mediterranean
Basin.178
Mediterranean commerce comprised of an enormous range of
commodities, from everyday necessities to luxury goods; from raw materials
to manufactured products; from the East with its spices, drugs, aromatics,
perfumes, dyes and textiles to Christian Europe with its metals, timbers, min-
erals,179 ceramics, furs, leather and slaves.180 In this context, it is noteworthy
that ‘the house’ of Ibn ʿAwkal (Jewish merchant) (990–1040) handled no
less than eighty-three commodities and their abundant varieties.181 According
to Constable, although a few medieval traders specialised exclusively in one
type of commodity, others dealt with an ‘astonishing array of goods, com-
bining staples with luxuries, and local products with exotic foreign imports
particularly “spices”’. She claims that they ‘saw the wisdom of mixing cargo.
So that if a load of flax were ruined by seawater, the small bag of pearls in
one’s pocket might still save the journey from being an utter loss – or at least
pay one’s passage home.’182
Events that occurred through the eleventh century and mainly the
twelfth, such as the strengthening of the Kārimī merchants and their domina-
tion of the Indian trade, Bedouin raids in Tunisia, the Norman conquest of
Sicily, Crusader wars and increasing power of the Italians, gradually led to the
decline of international Jewish commercial activity and to the Jews’ concen-
tration on the local Egyptian markets. Interestingly enough, other processes
occurred in the same period: the European textile industry evolved and flax
and cotton produced in Egypt were processed in Italy and Sicily and the
cloths were then sold in Egypt and the Middle East. Moreover, the rulers of
Egypt increasingly engaged in commercial activities, mainly the spice trade,
to acquire wealth to defray the cost of their wars.183
According to McCabe the arrival of the European traders (the Rūm) in
Tripoli, for example, had a rapid, radical effect on the market; prices of com-
modities such as flax, pepper, indigo, lac and sal-ammoniac shot up by 20 to
40 per cent.184
As a result of the Crusades (1099–1291) the commercial activity
expanded, mainly thanks to the Italian communes.185 The Levant trade con-
tinued into the thirteenth century and beyond, and even minor cities in
southern Europe were involved.186
Trade in spices (and drugs), which continued well into the fifteenth cen-
tury, yielded profits, as well as high prices. The reasons, according to Ashtor,
were, mainly, the increasing demand in Europe, the fact that the upper and
middle classes had become so accustomed to the consumption of spices that
the Levant traders could raise the price and still sell amply and the high risk
and danger of undertaking commercial activity in the Mamluk period.187 An
interesting insight into the abundance of spices and drugs that were traded
in the early fourteenth-century Mediterranean can be learnt from a list of
spices (from 1310 to 1340), presented in Pegolotti’s book concerning the
practice of commerce that consists of 288 spices.188 An interesting note made
by Constable portrays the period and explains the price of exotic products that
were imported to Europe from the East thus: ‘By the time that spices, porce-
lain, or silk from the Far East arrived in the western Mediterranean – perhaps
given as royal gifts or sold to buyers in Palermo, Cordoba, Fez or Barcelona –
they had probably been on the road for several years and had passed through
many hands (with a mark-up in price along each stage of the way).’189
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trade routes
Medieval Mediterranean trade was conducted on three major trade routes
and axes:
A. Western maritime route connected trading towns of southern Europe,

mainly Italy (that is, Amalfi, Venice and Pisa), with Sicily (mainly Palermo)
and North African ports (that is, Susa, Tripoli and al-Mahdiyya).190
Based on hundreds of commercial documents, mainly letters, Goldberg
claims that in the eleventh century the main routes of Jewish traders from
Alexandria towards the West were to Palermo and Qayrawān.191
B. Eastern maritime route connected Italian port cities mainly with Alexandria
and Fus†ā†, but also with the ports of Ascalon, Sidon and others on the
Syro-Palestinian coast. These routes connected the Christian North with
the Muslim South.192 According to Goldberg, who reconstructed both the
secondary and primary routes (‘trunk routes’) of trade between Egypt and
al-Shām, the ‘trunk routes’ in Egypt were between Fus†ā†, Alexandria and
Tinnīs (ports on the Mediterranean shores). From Tinnīs the trunk routes
to al-Shām included the main ports of Ascalon, Tyre and Tripoli.193
C. Internal Muslim routes connected the trading centres of Muslim Spain,
North Africa and Sicily with Alexandria and Fus†ā† and with the markets
of Palestine and Syria. Although most of these were maritime routes, in
1060 the voyage along the coast of North Africa was replaced by periodic
overland caravans, mainly during the autumn and winter months when
poor sailing conditions existed.194 Since sails were the standard for mer-
chant ships, winds, currents and other patterns of weather dictated the
seasons of sailing in the Mediterranean, and most of the commercial mari-
time activity and sailing took place in the ‘extended’ summer months from
April to November. Sailing in the winter was more dangerous, however;
sudden storms would sometimes occur in the summer as well, causing the
loss of ships, lives and commercial goods.195 According to Constable:
The more favorable pattern of winds and currents along the northern shores
promoted the growth of European Christian traffic at the expense of the
more southerly routes preferred by Muslim and Jewish shipping between
ports in the Dār al-Islām. Northern shipbuilding techniques and greater
access to timber may also have tipped the balance in favor of Christian
maritime traffic in the Mediterranean during the later Middle Ages.196
commercial centres ( eleventh to twelfth centuries )

Qayrawān was integrated into the Mediterranean trade as early as the tenth
century. The East to West overland routes passed through this city, and their
commercial activity is well documented in the Cairo Genizah. The short
distances between Tunisia, Morocco and Spain, and the existence of Jewish
communities there induced commercial relations, both maritime and land.
As mentioned before, thanks to the Fatimids, the international trade of the
Maghribs became mainly maritime.
In the eleventh century al-Mahdiyya was established as the capital of
ʾIfrīqiya. According to Ben-Sasson, Qayrawān maintained its importance
as a commercial centre and an intermediary between Europe and Central
Africa.197 Al-Mahdiyya, along with other port cities on the Maghrib shores,
such as Bougie and Ceuta, were centres for the export of Central African
and Saharan products, mainly gold. The gold was sold to the European mer-
chants, mainly Italian, Spanish and Sicilian; in return they sold European
goods, mainly textile.198
The Genizah’s commercial documents provide evidence of the impor-
tance of Sicily as a commercial bridge between East and West.199 The Jewish
traders of the island, mainly under Islamic rule (827–1061), imported large
quantities of a great range of products including dyeing materials (alum,
lacca, yellow myrobalan, saffron, sappan wood, warras and so forth), spices
and perfumes (ambergris, camphor, cassia, clove, cubeb pepper, musk and so
on), drugs (aloe, bamboo ash, myrobalan, purging cassia and so forth) and
other commodities, most of which were exported to Andalusia and Europe.200
Alexandria had always possessed natural advantages, being a harbour
and boasting a good geographical location mainly in relation to other impor-
tant Mediterranean ports. The city, first established in its present location
in 332 BC, was an extremely important port and even a capital city, until
the Muslim conquest, mainly thanks to the establishment of Cairo and the
central place of importance it held. After the Muslim conquest no major
political or administrative centre was located on the sea coast – similar to the
way in which Alexandria gave way to Cairo-Fus†ā†, Antioch to Damascus,
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Caesarea to Ramla and Carthage to Qayrawān.201 In this way Cairo-Fus†ā†,

and not Alexandria, served as the primary naval base for Fatimid war ships.
This made it the focal point of an extensive network of Mediterranean trade,
even though Alexandria was the port through which most of the commodities
were shipped, exporting mainly linen, dyes for cloth, spices, sugar and pix,
and importing chiefly silk, oils, soap, wax, honey, metals, wood, hides and
coins. Camel caravans went from Alexandria to the Maghrib and into the
desert regions.202
According to Genizah documents, prices of articles of the trans
Mediterranean commerce such as pepper, silk and sal-amoniac were cheaper
in Cairo-Fus†ā† than in Alexandria.203 Hundreds of Genizah documents
prove that Fus†ā†, the inland city, was the commercial and financial capital
of Egypt; it was the money market, banking centre and international supply
centre for Egyptian commodities, mainly flax and all other goods that were
brought from the East. The powerful demand emanating from Europe sent
European merchants running to Egypt, especially to Cairo-Fus†ā†, to acquire
merchandise for their home markets.204 Flax was the principal commodity in
the medieval Egyptian economy; throughout the eleventh century and most
of the twelfth it was probably the single most important commodity exported
from Egypt to the West.205
byzantine trade
The Byzantine Empire lost nearly 75 per cent of its domain to the Arab con-
quests, but ironically came out stronger, with a homogeneous territory, more
easily defendable borders, a strong navy and a vigorous economy. Another
major change in the Mediterranean Basin, mainly the loss of Western Europe
markets, compelled the Levantine merchants to seek out new markets and
opportunities in the vast new Islamic Empire. The Arab trade and com-
merce with Byzantium, which had suffered ups and downs, never ceased and
ultimately assumed an important role in Muslim–Christian relations.206 The
international and domestic commercial routes in Byzantium had changed,
and a new class of merchant-mariners was established; they were granted free-
dom of movement and permitted to search, purchase and exchange goods.207
In spite of their wars against the Muslims, the trade between Muslims and
Christians slowly started to take shape.208 A similar class of merchant-mariners
started to emerge in the port cities of Italy and assumed a share of the trade
between the Muslims and the Byzantines. In the eighth century, Amalfi and
Venice gradually boosted their commercial activity. Products such as lumber,
dried fruits, cheese, wine, linen, silk and cloth were imported from southern
Europe to the Maghrib; in exchange, the European merchants bought olive
oil, soap, wax (Tunisia), linen, sugar, alum, spices, drugs and dye products
(Egypt). However, gold, and, later, spices, such as pepper, were the most
sought-after.209
According to Khalileh, freedom of commerce and navigation con-
tinued in the eastern, western and southern parts of the Mediterranean
during the first century of Muslim domination of these regions; this was
despite the wars and naval raids between Christians and Muslims. Moreover,
the Arab conquests made it possible to ‘unite the two arteries used since
antiquity for the long-distance trade between the Indian Ocean and the
Mediterranean’.210
The breakup of the Islamic Mediterranean territories into fragments in
827 motivated the rulers to create commercial ports and expand their domes-
tic and international commerce. And, indeed, dozens of commercial centres
were operating on the shores of the Mediterranean Basin, bringing together
merchants of different religions, races and languages.211 Moreover, it can be
said that, generally speaking, political boundaries never impeded the freedom
of movement of persons or goods in the Mediterranean, with the exception of
wartime. Interestingly enough, the reality was that while, as a rule, Jews and
Christians engaged in trading with all regions, Muslim merchants tended to
limit their sphere of operation to Islamic markets.212
In the mid-eleventh century, Egypt replaced Tunisia as the hub of
Mediterranean international commerce. And indeed we learn from the his-
torical sources that throughout the eleventh and twelfth centuries, Italian
and Byzantine merchants visited Egypt, where they purchased spices and
other goods from India.213 Udovitch claims that after several centuries of
modest economic exchange between the southern and northern shores of the
Mediterranean Sea, in the eleventh century vast commercial activity com-
menced in the Mediterranean Basin.214 Lopez characterises it as the ‘commer-
cial revolution’;215 according to Udovitch, the rapidly growing trade within
and across the Mediterranean world soon became ‘a permanent, structural
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feature of its economic and political life’. This phenomenon was mainly
driven by demographic growth in and around the Mediterranean Basin,
which gave rise to a remarkable expansion in the demand of goods in both
Europe and the Islamic world. This generated a ‘veritable seller’s and pro-
ducer’s market’ the commercial activities of which were undertaken to satisfy
that demand.216 Western pharmacology did not change immediately and,
more importantly, production and trade of medicinal substances continued
under the regulation of the Arab authorities. Moreover, since the Arabs had
adopted the Greek medical tradition and its literature, this ensured a constant
demand for imported medicinal drugs.217
And, indeed, numerous Byzantine sources of different kinds attest to the
use of medicinal substances of ‘Indian’ origin. For example ambergris, cam-
phor and galingale are mentioned in the medical book of Aëtius of Amida.218
Cosmas, the Egyptian monk of the sixth century, describes in detail the
products of India and Sri Lanka, including corundum, coconut, musk and
pepper219 as well as prestigious products that were probably imported from
China such as silk, clove and sandalwood.220 The Book of the Eparch, in
which the ordinances of the Byzantine Emperor Leo VI (ninth century)
are presented, mentions agarwood, ambergris, balsam, camphor, cinnamon,
musk, myrrh, nard and pepper among the perfumes and spices that were
permitted to be sold. This attests to the distribution and use of these sub-
stances in Europe as early as the ninth century.221 Similar substances are
mentioned in a book by a Byzantine veterinarian (tenth century) such as
musk, ambergris, nutmeg, agarwood and galingale.222 McCabe elaborates
on the above mentioned substances and on the drugs, spices and perfumes
in the Byzantine sources (fourth to tenth) devoting special attention to the
‘new’ substances.223
Groups of Traders
Several groups of merchants were operating in these commercial activities, in

which traders of various religious and ethnic groups cooperated. Much can
be learnt about the commercial activity of the East–West trade as well as the
Indian–Arab–European trading system. We will discuss and elaborate below
on the predominant groups, including the Tustaris, Rādhānites, Kārimīs,
Maghribis, Amalfitans and Venetian merchants.224
Tustaris – According to Gil, the trade in the Persian Kingdom was in the
hands of the Jews, who traded mainly in silk. Their special place in inter-
national commerce continued during the Muslim period, and they relo-
cated to Baghdad and other commercial centres in the Persian territories,
including Tustar and al-ʾAhwāz (Khūzistān). Later, they were to be called
Tustaris after the name of the city.225 Arabic sources, which provide valu-
able information about the first generations of the family, mainly regarding
their political activities during the Fatimid Caliphate, assert that they were
very wealthy and served as bankers, trustees, large traders and suppliers
of precious goods, mainly gemstones, to the Fatimid court. Letters and
documents found in the Cairo Genizah teach us more about the second
and successive generations and their commercial activities. Based on these
documents, Gil argues that the family was Karaite. Analysis of the letters
reveals that the family’s commercial activity concentrated on three major
aspects: large-scale international maritime shipping, export/import with the
Abbasid regions and monetary activity (transferring vast sums of money and
holding large trusts). The gemstone trade probably started in order to fulfil
the rulers’ lust for special and expensive goods, mainly precious stones and
unique saddles (thousands of them were found in their possession, according
to the sources and legends). According to Genizah letters, the Tustaris were
also heavily involved in exporting flax, the single most important export
commodity of Egypt in the eleventh and twelfth centuries (one letter men-
tions a shipment of 8,000 kg of flax that was exported to Qayrawān and
another of 4,500 kg shipped to Sicily). They also traded in various kinds of
textiles, mainly expensive and unique ones, as well as in clothing. Another
aspect of their commercial activities was the trade in perfumes,226 spices
and dyes; the Genizah letters inform us of international trading in products
from the East such as myrobalan, lac and pepper that were exported to the
Maghrib and other Mediterranean ports (for example, a shipment of 600 kg
of pepper sent from Alexandria to Qayrawān above and beyond the two
previous shipments!). According to Gil, it is no wonder that the Maghribi
traders struggled to send their sons to work for the Tustaris to acquire
and perfect their skills and to establish commercial networking; indeed, the
Genizah documents echo the vast networking and international relations of
the Tustaris.227
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Rādhānite – Jewish merchants, whose caravans spanned Eurasia from the Seine
basin and central Spain to the Chinese Empire during the ninth and tenth cen-
turies, have been studied for more than a century and a half (since1865).228 The
Rādhānites were described by early Arabic sources, such as Ibn Khurdādhbih
(ninth century), who provides detailed information regarding their wide-
spread international commercial activities. Gil, who discusses the various
assumptions regarding their origin and trade routes that were published by
many scholars along the years, asserts that their origin was from the city of
Gocha (Jūkhā in Arabic), situated on the eastern bank of the Tigris River.
After the Abbasid revolution, they relocated to Baghdad and were renamed
for their place of origin. He also concludes that the detailed description of
their trade routes and commercial activities portrayed by Ibn Khurdādhbih
is accurate. According to him the Rādhānites spoke six languages (Arabic,
Persian, Greek (rūmiyya), Slovenic, ʾIfranjiyya and ʾAndalusiyya) and traded
in various goods, mainly from the East – agarwood, camphor, cinnamon,
jewellery, musk and silk – but also from the West – brocades, furs, slaves
and swords. The trade routes (a combination of maritime and overland)
spanned from Western Europe (Bilād al-ʾIfiranj and ʾAndalus) to China and
India (Sind and Hind), and included the medieval Arabian Peninsula, Egypt,
Iran, Iraq, North Africa, Palestine, Syria and Khurāsān. They also extended
to Antioch, Byzantium (al-Rūm), the Caspian Sea, Constantinople, Khazar,
Slovanic lands and Transoxiana.229 Ibn Khurdādhbih describes the four main
routes of the ‘Jewish merchants’: A. From the West (Western Europe or the
Maghrib) through the Mediterranean to Farama (Baluza) (sea), Farama to
Kolzum (also Qulzum = Suez) (land), Kolzum to India, India to China (sea).
B. Western Europe – Antioch (sea), Antioch to al-Jābiya (land), al-Jābiya on the
Euphrates to Baghdad (river), Baghdad to Obolla on the Tigris (river), Obolla
to Oman, Oman to Sind, Hind and China (sea). C. Spain or France to Sous-
al-Akza (Morocco) (land and short journey by sea), Sous-al-Akza to Tangier,
Qayrawān and Cairo (land), Cairo to Ramla, Damascus, al-Kūfa, Baghdad and
Bas.ra and from there to Sind, Hind and China (land). D. Western Europe to
Rome, to the country of the Slavs, to Khazars (land), Khazars to Kalkh (Caspian
Sea) and from there (Persia) to China (land).230 As mentioned above, the his-
toriography of the research of the Rādhānites is long and their origin, activity
and influence on the Arabic and international commerce and finance during
the medieval period has been dealt with by many scholars.231 In any case it
seems that in the ninth century their activity began to decline.232
Kārimī – According to standard definitions, the Kārimī were a ‘group of

Muslim merchants operating from the major centres of trade in the Ayyubid
and Mamluk empires’, that engaged in the spice trade between Egypt, on
the one hand, and Yemen, southern Arabia and India, on the other. The
origin of their name is not clear and has been discussed in detail by schol-
ars.233 Fischel writes that, in general, they have often been portrayed as major
(Muslim) traders operating in Mamluk Egypt and trading mainly in spices
and incense.234 Ashtor adds that some were operating in Syria as well.235
Bramoullé,236 using Genizah documents and citing Vallet,237 suggests that all
Egyptian traders that sailed during the navigation season (June–November)
were called Kārimī. Moreover, they did not use regular modest Red Sea ves-
sels specialising in coastal shipping and coast-to-coast navigation, but larger
vessels that were able to transport greater volumes of goods and to sail in a
more direct route between Aden and Egypt.238
The Genizah offers the earliest occurrence of the term ‘kārim’, and thus
proof of their existence and activity.239 Wansbrough and Margariti claim that
the kārimī were a loose federation of Muslim merchants, and in early sources
the term applies mainly to convoys of ships travelling in the western Indian
Ocean to and from Egyptian ports. Moreover they assert that Jewish as well
as Christian merchants were part of the Kārimi.240
Arabic sources elucidate for us that the Egyptian rulers built a special fleet
to protect the commercial activity of the Kārimī.241 The commercial routes
used by the Kārimī can be reconstructed thanks to historical sources sup-
ported by findings from archaeological excavations: the Indian commodities
reached Aden and from there by ship through the Red Sea to the western side
of the Egyptian Sudanese coast, to ports such as ʿĪdhāb, Qu‚eir al-Qadīm
and even al-˝ūr or Suez. According to Fischel, ʿĪdhāb was favoured by the
Kārimī merchants thanks to its easy accessibility, good harbour facilities and
high waters; however, Qu‚eir al-Qadīm was nearer the city of Qū‚, on the
Nile, an important commercial centre near Cairo that reduced the need for
land transportation.242 The Nile had always been an important transportation
route in Egypt since ancient times;243 however, from Arab sources as well as
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from Genizah documents we learn that shipping on the Nile was not an easy
task due to slippery mud in the winter, goods that got wet from the rain or
when falling into the water or attacks by pirates. The traders used various
kinds of boats; the main kind used for sailing on the Nile was the Usceri
(ʿUshshārī) galley that sailed mainly at night. The Usceri also sailed on the
open sea during the summer, a season when the sea was calm.244
The Kārimī owned warehouses (funduq) at commercial centres and ports
along the Red Sea – Nile route, such as Cairo-Fus†ā†, Aden, Alexandria, Jidda,
Qū‚, Taʿiz and Zabīd; however, we do not know exactly in what way they
were organised. In any case, there are indications that they controlled the
traffic of mass commercial shipping between Egypt and Aden and that Indian
shippers governed the marine traffic between Aden and their homeland.245 The
commercial and financial activity of the Kārimī, whose fortune was estimated
at one million dīnārs or more, helped sustain Cairo as the international capital
of finance and trade. The profits earned by the Kārimī, which were higher than
those permitted by Islamic law, were made by family-owned operations and
firms and by various means of commerce and financial tools, such as bartering,
paying cash and cheques, and operating as a banking institution. Their most
important clients were sultans (Mamluks), kings (Yemen, Mālī) and emirs,
whom they assisted by granting credit and even by supplying armed troops.246
The Kārimī merchants eventually lost their power in the fifteenth century due
to political and economic actions taken by the Mamluk sultans.247
Maghribi Jewish traders operated mainly from the coasts of North Africa and
created a uniquely original and efficient system that was based, according to
Greif, on ‘an economic institution which enabled 11th century traders to
benefit from employing overseas agents despite the commitment problem
inherent in these relations’.248 This system has been studied and analysed by
modern economists using economic research tools and methodologies that
focused on issues such as networking, institutions, reputation and coalition.249
european groups of merchants

The most important players on the Mediterranean commercial scene were
the groups of European merchants, mainly Italians, such as the Amalfitans,
Venetians, Genoese and Florentines, and later on the Catalans and Castilians.
We will briefly discuss a few aspects of the two main important groups – the
Amalfitans and the Venetians:
Amalfitans – The new ‘Indian’ drugs and other products reached the Byzantine
Empire and West Europe in various ways – some through Arab commerce, for
example, through the relations between Carl the Great and Hārūn al-Rashīd,250
or through the marine trade routes of the Mediterranean.251 As mentioned
above, the Italians achieved the greater portion of this commercial activity
towards the high Middle Ages.252 Among the first were the Amalfitans that
traded with the Fatimids as early as the ninth and tenth centuries.253 According
to Lev, the huge estimated value (90,000 dīnārs), conveyed by Arabic sources,
of goods exported from Egypt to Europe by the Amalfitans should be treated
seriously. He suggested that ‘only spices and other luxury goods of local or
Indian origin could be the explanation for such a high estimate’.254
Amalfitans became a one of the most important players on the
Mediterranean commercial scene and, according to Citarella, ‘gave life to a
network of mercantile establishments which at the time of its greatest expan-
sion extended to southern Italy, Sicily, Tunisia, Egypt, the Middle East and
the Byzantine Empire’. According to various historical sources, the Amalfitans
were present in many Muslim and other Mediterranean ports, and even estab-
lished colonies of merchants in a number of cities, including Cairo. The unique
organisation of the Amalfi commerce enabled them to operate successfully for
more than 300 years. The commercial fortune of Amalfi relied mainly on the
trade privileges within the Byzantine Empire that enabled them to sell spices,
oriental products and luxury items obtained from the Eastern Mediterranean
markets in Italy. On the other hand, they maintained intimate relations with
the Arabs, mainly the Fatimids, from an early stage; these relations were even
guaranteed within a liberal grant of charters of protections they received. The
importance of the Amalfitans for Mediterranean commerce is well-known and
widely documented; however, their contribution to the industry and economy
of Italy, via the import of raw materials (fibers, linen, cotton, fixers and so
forth) should be mentioned as well.255
Venetians – The rise of Venice from a ‘small community scattered over

cluster of islands in the north Adriatic to a major maritime power in the
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Mediterranean in the 12th century was furthered by a conjunction of politi-

cal, military and economic developments over several centuries’.256 Venice
lived ‘between two worlds: the land and the sea, the East and the West, yet
belonging to niether’. Much has been written on the Venetians and their role
in commercial activity in the medieval Mediterranean; according to Crowley,
by the tenth century the Venetian ‘were selling Oriental goods of extrodinary
rarity’ at important fairs in Italy.257 Jacoby writes on their role that ‘the
Venetian operations underscore the interdependence and complementary
nature of the Byzantine and Egyptian economies’. Before the establishment
of the Frankish state in the Levant, they had established a ‘triangular trading
and shipping pattern’ that connected Alexandria, Venice and Constantinople;
the ports of the Levant and Byzantine acted as transit stations and markets in
this context.258
A great deal of information was supplied through the publications of
Ashtor. His research activity was mainly based on the archives of the Italian
Republic, groups of merchants and notary documents. Ashtor indicated their
control and dominance on the international trade and the transfer of mer-
chandise, including drugs, from the ports of Egypt and the Levant (Syria and
the Land of Israel) into Europe. Some of these were based on goods from East
Asia. In fact, the Venetians are responsible for the fact that the lion’s share
of the trade and economy of the Levant, for example, were related to Europe
more than the Muslim home front.259
The Venetian activity in the region started with the beginning of the
Crusader’s conquests and the privileges they accepted from the Jerusalem
Kingdom, and became stronger from the end of the fourteenth century with
the additional framework of various contracts with the Mamluk regime.260
As captured by Howard, trade ‘not only offered Venetian merchants the
experience of visiting the East – and even of living there for extended priods –
but also created the wealth to sustain the building activity in which oriental
characteristics might be revealed’.261
Notes
1. Cahen, L’Islam, pp. 35–42; Gutas, Greek Thought, pp. 11–12; Watson,
Agricultural Innovation, pp. 1–6.
2. Flood, Objects of Translation, pp. 15–25.
3. Maqbul, ‘Hind’; see also: Yoeli-Tlalim, ‘Islam and Tibet’.

4. Watson explains this phenomenon as Arab fascination with the new and differ-
ent: Watson, Agricultural Innovation, pp. 1–3, 77–80.
5. Saliba, Islamic Science, pp. 4, 28–72.
6. Ibn Khaldūn, The Muqaddima, III, p. 115.
7. Many studies have been written on this topic; see, for example: Endress and
Kruk, The Ancient Tradition; Montgomery, Science in Translation, pp. 60–173.
8. Pormann and Savage-Smith, Medieval Islamic, pp. 24, 26.
9. Kennedy, The Early Abbasid; Kennedy, When Baghdad.
10. Al-ʾAndalusī, Kitāb ˝abaqāt, p. 48.
11. Gutas, Greek Thought, pp. 28–60.
12. Ibid., pp. 75–104.
13. Dodge, The Fihrist, II, p. 584; Ibn Khaldūn, The Muqaddima, pp. 115–16.
14. Al-ʾAndalusī, Kitāb ˝abaqāt, p. 48.
15. Various approaches are known regarding the authenticity of this institution
and its existence, see, for example: Meyerhof, ‘On the transmission’; Gutas,
Greek Thought, pp. 75–104; Balty-Guesdon, ‘Le bayt al-Óikma’.
16. Dodge, The Fihrist, II, p. 574; Montgomery, Science in Translation, pp. 77–81.
17. Meyerhof, ‘The background’; Gutas, Greek Thought, pp. 20–7; Montgomery,
Science in Translation, p. 60.
18. Dodge, The Fihrist, II, p. 581.
19. Ibn al-Qif†ī, Tārīkh al-Óukamāʾ.
20. Ibn al-Qif†ī, Tārīkh al-Óukamāʾ, p. 80; Meyerhof, ‘The background’, pp.
1,851–3; al-ʾAndalusī, Kitāb ˝abaqāt, p. 88.
21. Balty-Guesdon, ‘Le Bayt al-Óikma’.
22. Sabra, ‘The appropriation’.
23. Lewicka, ‘On Hellenistic medicine’, pp. 502–3.
24. Dols, ‘Syriac into Arabic’; Shefer-Mossensohna and Abou Hershkovitz, ‘Early
Muslim medicine’, p. 288.
25. Dols, ‘Syriac into Arabic’.
26. Sourdel, ‘Bukhtīshūʿ’; Meyerhof, ‘The background’, p. 1,853; Browne,
Arabian Medicine, pp. 23–4.
27. Meyerhof, ‘The background’, p. 1,853.
28. Meyerhof, ‘New light’; Browne, Arabian Medicine, pp. 24–5; Pormann and
Savage-Smith, Medieval Islamic, pp. 25–6; De Lacy, How Greek Science, p. 112.
29. Bos, Qus†ā ibn Lūqā’s, pp. 1–2; Ali and Qadry, ‘Contribution’.
30. Kahl, ‘Sābūr b. Sahl’, p. 694; Kahl, Sābūr ibn Sahl, pp. 11–12.
i ntroducti on | 39
31. According to Conrad there is no evidence for the existence of hospitals in

Arabia before the Umayyad and Abbasid periods. Conrad, ‘Did al-Walid’;
Serikoff, ‘The Islamic’, p. 22.
32. Ibn Khaldūn, The Muqaddima, p. 116.
33. Conrad, ‘The Arab-Islamic’.
34. Elgood, ˝ibb-ul-Nabī; Elgood, A Medical History, pp. 63–5; Johnstone,
‘Tradition’, p.29; Jalil, ‘˝ibb al-Nabī’; Perho, The Prophet’s Medicine; Conrad,
‘The Arab-Islamic’, pp. 124–25; Serikoff, ‘The Islamic’, p. 25.
35. Savage-Smith, ‘˝ibb’; Meyerhof, ‘The background’, p. 1,853.
36. Dols, Syriac into Arabic; Meyerhof, ‘On the transmission’, pp. 21–4.
37. Budge, Syrian Anatomy.
38. About Sasanian translation activity, see: Dodge, The Fihrist, II, pp. 575–78,
581.
39. Saliba, Islamic Science, pp. 4, 28–72.
40. Ibn Khaldūn, The Muqaddima, p. 114. Ibn Khaldūn writes that Caliph ʿUmar
ibn al-Kha††āb gave the order to destroy them all, due to his fear that they con-
tained writings that oppose Islamic laws; however, the same was said as being
the reason for the fire at the famous library at Alexandria, see: Ibn al-Qif†ī,
Tārīkh al-Óukamāʾ, p. 244. Other scholars pointed out that it is not authentic
historical reality, but a legend that appears in later sources, as of the thirteenth cen-
tury, see: Meyerhof, ‘On the transmission’, p. 18; Meyerhof, ‘The background’,
p. 1,851; Abbou Hershkovitz, ‘The mystery’. According to another version, the
school of science in Alexandria was not destroyed, but relocated at the time of the
Umayyad ruler, Umar II (717–20), to Óarrān and Antioch, see: Meyerhof, ‘On
the transmission’, pp. 20–21; al-Masʿūdī, al-Tanbīh, p. 122.
41. Dodge, The Fihrist, II, pp. 575–8, 581, 589–90.
42. Browne, Arabian Medicine, p. 22.
43. Meyerhof,‘The background’, p. 1,848; Ullman, Islamic Medicine, p. 16; Dols,
‘The origins’.
44. Reinink, ‘Edessa grew’, pp. 49–59.
45. Elgood, A Medical, p. 46; De Lacy, How Greek Science, pp. 37–8; Drijvers,
‘The School of Edessa’, pp. 49–59.
46. Montgomery, Science in Translation, p. 79.
47. Browne, Arabian Medicine, p. 21; Meyerhof, ‘The background’, pp. 1,848–50;
Ullman, Islamic, p. 19; Gutas, Greek Thought, pp. 24–8; el-Gammal, ‘The rela-
tions’; Montgomery, Science in Translation, p. 79.
48. Browne, Arabian Medicine, p. 22.
49. Dols, ‘The origins’, p. 369; Conrad, ‘The Arab-Islamic’, p. 101; Pormann and
Savage-Smith, Medieval Islamic, pp. 20–1; Shahbazi and Richter-Bernburg,
‘Gondēšāpur’.
50. Regarding the ‘Myth of Gondeshapur’ or Jundīshāpūr, see: Shefer-Mossensohna
and Abou Hershkovitz, Early Muslim Medicine, pp. 282–3.
51. Shefer-Mossensohna and Abou Hershkovitz, ‘Early Muslim medicine’,
pp. 275–6.
52. Meyerhof, ‘On the transmission’, p. 25; more about the Barmakids and their
origin, see: Van Bladel, ‘The Bactrian’.
53. Dodge, The Fihrist, II, pp. 826–7; Dols, ‘The origins’, p. 383; Pormann and Savage-
Smith, Medieval Islamic, pp. 21–2, 36; Ullman, Islamic Medicine, pp. 19–20;
Ali and Qadry, ‘Contribution’, p. 53; Levey, Early Arabic, pp. 10–17.
54. Dols, ‘The origins’, p. 383; el-Gammal, ‘The relations’, p. 40.
55. Levey, Medieval Arabic, p. 6; Ibn Abī U‚aybiʿa, ʿUyūn, pp. 474–5.
56. El-Gammal, ‘The relations’, p. 40; Abbot, Two Queens, p. 150.
57. Sezgin, Geschichte, III, pp. 187–202.
58. Dols, ‘The origins’, p. 383; Hamarneh, ‘Development’.
59. Ibn al-Qif†ī, Tārīkh al-Óukamāʾ, p. 215; Ibn Abī U‚aybiʿa, ʿUyūn, pp. 475–6.
60. Dols, ‘The origins’, p. 383; Hamarneh, ‘Development’, p. 368; Shefer-
Mossensohna and Abou Hershkovitz, ‘Early Muslim medicine’, p. 287.
61. Dodge, The Fihrist, II, p. 826.
62. Ibid., pp. 826–7; Meyerhof, ‘On the transmission’, p. 26.
pp. 277–8; al-JāªiÕ, al-Bayān wa-l-Tabyīn, pp. 91–2.
64. Shefer-Mossensohna and Abou Hershkovitz, ‘Early Muslim medicine’, p. 278;
Kennedy, The History of al-˝abarī, XXIX, p. 89.
66. Shefer-Mossensohna and Abou Hershkovitz, ‘Early Muslim medicine’.
68. Sezgin, Geschichte, III, p. 294.
69. Meyerhof, ‘The background’, pp. 1,854–62; el-Gammal, ‘The relations’; Ali
and Qadry, ‘Contribution’.
70. Ibn Abī U‚aybiʿa, ʿUyūn, pp. 413–73.
pp. 294–5.
72. Schmucker, Die Pflanzliche, p. 12.
73. Al-˝abarī, Firdaws al-Óikma, pp. 407–12, chapters 35–6.
i ntroducti on | 41
74. Schmucker, Die pflanzliche, pp. 45–6; Ullman, Islamic Medicine, p. 41;
Meyerhof, ‘Alî a†-˝abarî’s’.
75. Gillispie, Dictionary, II, pp. 147–60.
76. Lawrence, ‘Al-Biruni’s approach’; Peters, ‘Science, history and religion’;
Rosenthal, ‘Al-Biruni between Greece and India’.
77. Said, al-Bīrūnī’s, I, pp. 5–6.
78. Ibid., p. 206.
79. Ibid., p. 4. It seems that this may be the reason that pharmacists in Arabic are
called ‘Íaydana’ or ‘Íaydalānī’ and pharmacy has been ‘Íaydaliyya’ until the
present day.
81. Al-Harawi, Kitāb al-ʾAbniya, pp. 4–6.
82. Laufer, Sino-Iranica, pp. 581–5.
83. On the contribution of Iran to Arabic medicine, see: Richter-Bernburg, ‘Iran’s
contribution’.
84. Dols, ‘The origins’, p. 381.
85. Said, The Role, p. 77.
86. Gutas, Greek Thought, p. 129.
87. On the preference of the Greek and Syriac translations over the Persian texts
during the rule of al-Maʾmūn, see: Gutas, Greek Thought, pp. 75, 79.
88. Ibn Abī U‚aybiʿa, ʿUyūn, XII, pp. 473–7.
89. Ibid., pp. 413–72.
90. Except for seven Arab physicians from the pre-Islamic period. See: Ibn Abī
U‚aybiʿa, ʿUyūn, VII, pp. 161–82.
91. Dols, ‘The origins’, p. 381; Conrad, ‘The Arab-Islamic’, p. 101; Savage-Smith,
‘˝ibb’, p. 452; Pormann and Savage-Smith, Medieval Islamic, pp. 20–1.
92. Meyerhof, ‘The background’, pp. 1,849–52; Meyerhof, ‘On the transmission’,
p. 19; according to Montgomery, Science in Translation, p. 63, it had already
begun at the time of Justinian the Great in 529.
93. Conrad, ‘The Arab-Islamic’, p. 100.
94. On the tendency towards continuity between the Byzantines and the Umayyads,
see: Amar, Agricultural Produce, pp. 41–4.
95. Savage-Smith, ‘˝ibb’, p. 452; Pormann and Savage-Smith, Medieval Islamic, p. 24.
96. Dols, ‘Syriac into Arabic’; Meyerhof, ‘The background’, p. 1,848.
98. On the destruction of Persian scientific books due to content deemed unsuited
to the Islamic spirit, see: Ibn Khaldūn, The Muqaddima, p. 115.
99. On the adaptation of Galen to the monotheistic trend, see: Ullman, Islamic
Medicine, pp. 30–1; Temkin, Hippocrates, pp. 116–25; Temkin, Galenism,
pp. 62–74.
100. Conrad, ‘The Arab-Islamic’, pp. 104–5; Dols, ‘The origins’, p. 384; Serikoff,
‘The Islamic’, p. 22; Rekaya, ‘al-Maʾmūn’. On the relations between
al-Maʾmūn, al-Kindī and the Muʿtazilite, see: Walzer, Greek into Arabic,
pp. 176–87.
101. Régis, ‘General survey’, I, pp. 1–19; Régis, Thābit B. Qurra; Houzel, ‘The new
astronomy’.
102. Plofker, Mathematics in India, pp. 255–71; Plofker, ‘Use and transmission’.
See also Pingree, ‘The Greek’. And see also various articles in: King, Islamic
Mathematical.
103. Jokish, Islamic Imperial Law, chapter 6, pp. 397–405.
104. Régis, ‘Eastern Arabic’; Pingree, ‘Islamic astronomy’.
105. Fuller et al., Across the Indian Ocean, pp. 545–7.
106. Tomber, Indo-Roman Trade, pp. 54–87; for more about the Indo-
Mediterranean trade along with the history, see: De Romanis and Maiurom,
Across the Ocean.
107. Zohary, ‘The diffusion’; Zohary and Hopf, Domestication.
108. For example: Song of Songs 4: 14; Exodus 30: 23–6.
109. Buccellati and Buccellati, ‘Terqa’.
110. Namdar et al., ‘Cinnamaldehyde’.
111. Naville et al., The XIth Dynasty Temple.
112. Maqbul, Hind.
113. Fuller et al, Across the Indian Ocean, pp, 547–8; Manniche, An Ancient Egyptian,
p. 136.
114. Cary, Herodotus, pp. 250–1.
115. Sidebotham, ‘Ports of the Red Sea’.
116. Fuller et al., Across the Indian Ocean, p. 547.
117. Higgins, Greek and Roman, p. 153.
118. Wendrich et. al., ‘Berenike Crossroads’.
119. Van Der Veen et al., ‘Plant remains’.
120. Wendrich et al., ‘Berenike Crossroads’, pp. 68–9; Tomber, Indo-Roman Trade,
pp. 76, 83; Van der Veen et al., ‘Plant remains’, p. 228.
121. Tomber, Indo-Roman Trade, pp. 72–3.
122. Jun-yan, ‘Relations’; Chaudhuri, Trade, pp. 49–51; Whitehouse, ‘Abbasid’.
123. Chaudhuri, Trade, pp. 49–50; Whitehouse, ‘Abbasid’.
i ntroducti on | 43
124. Lev, ‘A Mediterranean encounter’, p. 143.

125. Melon, ‘Trade’.
126. Franz-Murphy, ‘A new interpretation’.
127. Lewis, ‘The Fatimids’.
128. Bramoullé, ‘The Fatimids’.
129. Ashtor, ‘The Kārimī’, p. 52.
130. Shatzmiller, ‘Trans-continental trade’, p. 119.
131. Abulafia, ‘Asia, Africa’, pp. 405–11.
132. Ibid., p. 403.
133. Ibn Khurdādhbih, al-Masālik, P. 95; Ibn al-Faqῑh, Kitāb al-Buldān, pp. 12, 67.
134. Ibn al-Faqῑh, Kitāb al-Buldān, p. 69.
135. Bonner, The Arabian Sillent Trade.
136. Shatzmiller, ‘Trans-continental trade’, pp. 126–7.
137. Shatzmiller claims that three chronological cycles can be observed in the his-
tory of medieval Islamic trade: the eighth to tenth, eleventh to thirteenth and
fourteenth to sixteenth centuries. Each demonstrates changes in the economic
fundamentals of their political units and institutions, in the global conditions
affecting precious metals and transport systems and in the sources that we use
to study them; see: Shatzmiller, ‘Trans-continental trade’, p. 119.
139. Shatzmiller, ‘The role’.
141. Shatzmiller, ‘Economic performance’.
143. Goitein, A Mediterranean, pp. 148–346.
145. Goldberg, Trade and Institutions, pp. 337–61.
146. Al-Dimashqī, al-ʾIshāra, p. 36.
147. Seland, ‘The Persian Gulf’.
148. Ibid.
149. Seland, ‘Moscha’.
150. Lev, ‘A Mediterranean encounter’, p. 143; Whitehouse, ‘Abbasid’, pp. 64–7.
151. Whitehouse, ‘Maritime trade’; on Muslim commerce in the Indian Ocean, see:
Risso, Merchants and Faith, pp. 9–54.
152. Al-ʾI‚†akhrῑ, Masālik al-Mamālik, p. 154.
153. Whitehouse, ‘Maritime trade’, p. 330.
154. Kennedy, The Prophet, pp. 343–4.
155. See in details: Cooper, The Medieval Nile.

156. Smith, ‘Have you’; Smith, ‘More on the port’; Margariti, Aden.
157. Mayerson, ‘The Port of Clysma’.
158. Bramoullé, ‘The Fatimids’, p. 129; Cooper, The Medieval Nile, pp. 238–45.
159. Wendrich et al., ‘Berenike Crossroads’.
160. Peacock and Blue, ‘Overview’.
161. Whitcomb, ‘Excavations’.
162. Kawatoko, ‘Archaeological finds’; Mikami, ‘Chinese ceramics’; Rougeulie,
‘Medieval trade’.
163. Shatzmiller, ‘Trans-continental trade’, pp. 126–7.
164. Ibid., pp. 126–7.
165. Gil, ‘Shipping’, pp. 151–3; regarding boats and sailing at that period, see:
Agius, Classic Ships of Islam.
166. Goitein, ‘From the Mediterranean’.
167. Ashtor, ‘Profits’; Ashtor, ‘Spice prices’.
168. Margariti, Aden.
169. Al-Muqaddasī, ʾAªsan al-Taqāsīm, p. 97.
170. Smith, ‘Have you’.
171. See, for example: Goitein and Friedman, India Traders; Goitein and Friedman,
India Book.
173. Abulafia, The Great Sea, mainly pp. 241–354; Braudel, The Mediterranean.
174. Stillman, ‘Jewish merchants’.
175. Khalileh, ‘Trade’.
176. McCabe, ‘Imported materia medica’, pp. 278–80.
177. McCrindle, The Christians Topography; McCabe, ‘Imported materia medica’,
p. 282.
178. Goldberg, Trade and Institutions, pp. 115–19.
179. On the importance and uses of minerals in the Islamic civilisation, see:
Strohmaier, ‘Minerals’.
180. Khalileh, ‘Trade’, p. 820.
181. Stillman, ‘Jewish merchants’.
182. Constable, ‘Merchants’, p. 135.
184. McCabe, ‘Imported materia edica’, p. 252.
185. See, for example: Abulafia, ‘Trade and crusade’; Ashtor, ‘The Crusader’; Ashtor,
‘European trade’; Prawer, The Latin Kingdom, II, pp. 352–4.
i ntroducti on | 45
186. Abulafia, ‘The Levant trade’; Day, ‘The Levant trade’.

187. Ashtor, ‘Profits’, pp. 273–4.
188. Pegolotti, La Pratica, pp. 293–7; the list is translated by Lopez and Raymond,
Medieval Trade, pp. 108–14.
190. McCabe, ‘Imported materia medica’, p. 246.
191. Goldberg, Trade and Institutions, pp. 300–5 (based mainly on the travels of Ibn
ʿAwkal and Nahray ibn Nissīm groups of traders), see especially: Map 10.1–2
on pp. 301–2.
193. Goldberg, Trade and Institutions, pp. 215–29, see especially: Map 8.1 on p. 219.
196. Ibid., p. 148; for more information regarding the effect of climate, geography
and technology, see: Pryor, Geography.
197. Ben-Sasson, The Emergence, pp. 67–89.
198. Lev, ‘A Mediterranean encounter’, pp. 138–9; Abulafia, ‘Asia, Africa’,
pp. 462–4.
199. See Roth, ‘Sicily’; Ben-Sasson, The Jews; Goldberg, Trade and Institutions.
200. Greif, The Sicilian Jews, pp. 77–82.
201. Udovitch, ‘Medieval Alexandria’; Bareket, ‘Alexandria’.
202. Ibid.
203. Goitein, A Mediterranean, I, pp. 221, 223, 229.
204. Udovitch, ‘Medieval Alexandria’.
205. Gil, ‘The flax trade’; Udovitch, ‘Medieval Alexandria’, p. 280.
206. Abulafia, ‘The role of trade’; Citarella, ‘Merchants’, pp. 241–61.
207. Citarella, ‘Merchants’, pp. 241–61.
208. For more on this in detail, see: Kampbell, The Economy of Conflict.
209. Citarella, ‘Merchants’, pp. 241–61.
210. Khalileh, ‘Trade’.
211. See Khalileh, ‘Trade’ for a detailed list of such centres.
212. Ibid.
213. Balard, ‘Notes’; Laiou, ‘Exchange and trade’, mainly pp. 750–1.
214. Udovitch, ‘International commerce’, pp. 239–40.
215. Lopez, The Commercial Revolution.
216. Udovitch, ‘International commerce’, p. 240.
217. McCabe, ‘Imported materia medica’, p. 282–4.
218. Aëtius of Amida, Libri Medicinalis.

219. McCrindle, The Christians Topography, pp. 360–5.
220. Ibid., p. 366.
221. Freshfield, Roman Law, pp. 30–5.
222. Oder and Hoppe, Corpus Hippiatricorum, VII, p. 48.
224. About the various merchants groups that were involved in the cross-cultural
commerce of the medieval Mediterranean, see: Constable, ‘Merchants’.
225. See detailed discussion regarding the name and the geographical origin: Gil,
The Tustaris, pp. 1–23.
226. On the role of perfume in the Islamic civilisation, see: Anderson, ‘Perfume’.
227. Gil, The Tustaris, pp. 29–37; Fischel, Jews in the Economic, pp. 68–89.
228. See, for example: Rabinowitz, Jewish Merchants; for a high-quality review of the
research into their origin, see: Bareket, ‘Rādhānite’, pp. 558–9; Abulafia, ‘Asia,
Africa’, p. 415–19.
229. Gil, ‘The Radhanite’; Rabinowitz, Jewish Merchants; Gil, The Tustaris,
pp. 13–14; Bareket, ‘Rādhānite’.
230. Rabinowitz, Jewish Merchants, pp. 139–50; see a modern interpretation and
geographical identification: Bareket, ‘Rādhānite’, pp. 559–60.
231. Pellat, ‘al-Rādhāniyya’; for an interesting discussion regarding the activity of
the Rādhānites in Europe and their relations with the local Jewish communi-
ties, see: Toch, The Economic History, pp. 193–200.
232. Abulafia, ‘Asia, Africa’, p. 418.
233. See in detail: Labib, ‘Kārimī’.
234. Fischel, ‘The spice trade’.
235. Ashtor, ‘The Kārimī’; Labib, ‘Kārimī’.
236. Bramoullé, ‘The Fatimids’, pp. 133–4.
237. Vallet, Pouvior commerce, pp. 407–10.
238. Bramoullé, ‘The Fatimids’, pp. 133–4.
239. Margariti describes eleven Genizah documents in which Jewish merchants
speak about ‘kārim’; these ‘leave no doubt of their stake in the institution’.
See Margariti, Aden, pp. 152–3; see also Goitein and Friedman, India Traders,
pp. 22, 50, 150, 239, 259–60, 264, 378, 480, 482–3, 509, 518–20.
240. Wansbrough, ‘The Medieval Kārim’, p. 300; Margariti, Aden, p. 152.
241. See in detail: Labib, ‘Kārimī’; Agius, Classic Ships of Islam, pp. 237–8.
242. Fischel, ‘The spice trade’, pp. 162–3.
243. For more about medieval navigation in the Nile, see: Cooper, ‘No easy option’.
i ntroducti on | 47
244. Gil, ‘Shipping’, pp. 151–7; for a detailed discussion regarding the river boat
and deep-sea vessels, see: Agius, Classic Ships, pp. 297–320.
245. Abulafia, ‘Asia, Africa’, p. 439; For more about the funduq and its role in
medieval Mediterranean, see: Constable, Housing the Stranger.
246. See in detail: Labib, ‘Kārimī’.
248. Greif, ‘Contract’, p. 525.
249. See, for example: Greif, ‘The fundamental problem’; Greif, ‘Reputation and
coalitions’.
250. McCormick, Origins, pp. 714–15.
251. Lev, ‘A Mediterranean encounter’, pp. 140–3.
252. Citarella, ‘Merchants’.
253. Kreutz, ‘The ecology’; Citarella, ‘The relations’.
254. Lev, ‘A Mediterranean encounter’, p. 143.
255. Citarella, ‘Merchants’, pp. 276–82; Citarella, ‘The relations’.
256. Jacoby, ‘Venetian’, p. 371.
257. Crowley, City of Fortune, pp. 6–7.
258. Jacoby, ‘Venetian’, p. 391. The relationship between Venice and Byzantium
was of intense complexity, see: Crowley, City of Fortune, p. 15.
259. Ashtor, ‘European trade’. In the next chapters we will present the information
based on Ashtor research.
260. Regarding the Venetian trade with the Levant at the fourteenth and fifteenth
centuries, see: Ashtor, ‘The volume’; Ashtor, ‘Observations’.
261. Howard, Venice and the East, p. 14.
2
Agriculture and Pharmaceutical Innovations:
Milestones in Research and Case Studies
I n this chapter we present the history of the research into the subject pre-
sented above with some adjacent issues, its criticism and the results of new
research projects we have conducted that directed us to the methodology
used and presented in this book, which deals specifically with the breadth
of the phenomenon of the ‘new’ medicinal substances introduced and dis-
seminated by the Arabs after their conquests and the special trade conditions
that subsequently became available. Our first assumption is that most of
these medicinal substances were unknown in the Middle East and Europe,
and Arab control over the vast expanse of its conquests from India to Spain
made possible the transfer and distribution of these substances from southern
and eastern Asia. As mentioned above, many scholars have noted this phe-
nomenon, yet focused and systematic research of this issue has never been
conducted.
The main goal of our present research is to reconsider this phenomenon,
that is, to reconstruct as complete a list as possible of all the ‘new’ medicinal
substances that were more widely distributed than in the pre-Islamic period;
to study the contribution and influence of these substances on the theoreti-
cal and practical medieval medical legacy;1 to understand how, and to what
extent, these substances merge with the development and distribution of
‘new’ technologies and industries that evolved in the Middle Ages such as tex-
tiles2 and paper,3 and with the new trends, demands and fashions regarding
perfumes, ornaments and foodstuffs; to trace the main routes of trade in these
substances in the new ‘Arab space’; and to assess the actual relevance that
should be ascribed to the Greek and Indian legacies in the formation of Arab
48
agric u l t u re and pha rma ceuti cal in no va tio n s | 49
medicine and pharmacology. To do so, we will first propose a methodology

for the clearest possible identification of these new ‘Arabic’ substances.
Indian Pharmacology and Galeno-Arab Medicine
The field of materia medica is of leading importance in an assessment of

the influence of the Indian legacy on Galeno-Arab medicine. One must ask
how deeply and extensively southern and eastern Asian medicinal substances,
namely from China,4 Tibet,5 India,6 Sind, Persia and Mesopotamia, pen-
etrated the Galenic inventory after, or more precisely, thanks to the Arab
conquests of the seventh century.
Modern scholars have noted the phenomenon of medicinal substances
and spices that were introduced as a result of the Arab conquests,7 although
no systematic research so far has been conducted. A few researchers name
some of them: cloves, nutmeg, camphor, senna, sandalwood, ambergris and
musk.8 Others observe that the names of some of these substances have pen-
etrated modern European languages, for example, nāranj – orange, kāfūr –
camphor and misk – musk.9 Furthermore, the distribution of new medicinal
substances by the Arabs joins other medicine-related pursuits that were devel-
oped in their time, such as alchemy10 and pharmacology, and new techniques
devised for concocting medical potions with Latinised names that attest to
their Arabic origin, such as syrups, juleps, alcohol and more. Above all, the
contribution of the Arabs was by giving pharmacology its rightful place and
distinguishing it from medicine.11
The aims of our research are, therefore, to systematically re-examine the
distribution of the ‘Arab’ drugs and to understand the extent of this phenom-
ena and its effect on the Arabic pharmacology of the medieval period. We will
also delineate the main routes of distribution of these drugs in the new Arabic
space and beyond. Therefore, we would like, first, to propose a methodology
that will enable us, as clearly as possible, to identify these new drugs that were
distributed in the Arabic period.
The ‘Agriculture Revolution’ and the Watson Thesis – Cucurbitaceae

Family as a Model
Many signs indicate that the Muslim rulers utilised the diverse building and
agricultural techniques that existed in the huge area that had come under
their control, and would transfer knowledge, experts and cheap labour from
one geographical location to another. In Iraq, for example, the Umayyads
initiated extensive agricultural activities12 in which they transferred Indian
workers (Zu††), as well as black African slaves, from East Africa (Zanj) to
other regions, bringing with them new crops and cultivating techniques.13
This process was repeated in the lower rift valley (the Jordan Valley) as well.
Experts in irrigation systems were brought, probably from Iran, to build
an underground irrigation system that included a network of wells, canals
and pools (qanat). Interestingly enough, Jewish sources ascribe the project
to one of the Umayyad rulers.14 Besides the transfer of new crops, some
evidence exists for the transfer of domesticated animals such as the water
buffalo (jāmūs), with their zu†† breeder from Pakistan (sind) through Iraq to
al-Shām.15 Another example is the transfer of the binnī fish to the Óula Lake
(al-Shām) from the city of Wāsi† in southern Iraq.16 Remains of the Umayyad
agricultural initiative and activity in the Jordan Valley are also preserved in
local tradition as mentioned by the Jerusalem physician al-Tamīmī (tenth
century), regarding the oil that was pressed from the balsam tree of Jericho,
known as the Jericho Balsam (Balanites aegyptiaca):
The oil is produced, as in the ghawr of Jericho found in the range of

Jerusalem, from the seed of the fruit named Zaqqūm and similar to the
kind of myrobalan (Terminalia sp.) ʾihlīlaj name zaqqūmī. And the people
of this region, the old and the wise, claim that its origin is the ʾihlīlaj kābulī
that was transferred by the Umayyad from Kābul during their rule and
seeded in the Jordan Valley. Big trees grew out of the seeds and they exist
there ever since. However, the soil of Jericho changed the fruits and the
nature of the ʾihlīlaj, and therefore it produces green fruit in the shape and
image of the ʾihlīlaj, though they lack the ability of acting as an astringent.17
The Umayyad conquered Kābul in the mid-seventh century, thus opening

the route to India from which myrobalan, one of the most important drugs in
the East, was exported – the ʾihlīlaj kābulī (Terminalia chebula).18 However,
we doubt the statement regarding the import of al-Zaqqūm to the Jordan
Valley during the Umayyad period. Although both varieties are similar,
according to the system of classification they represent two distinct botanical
species. The importance of such a tradition is the record of the Umayyad
agriculture project that may have included the grafting of various crops that
were conserved two hundred years after their rule.
In addition to their medicinal uses, many of the ‘new Arabic drugs’ were
also used for perfumes, incense and spices, and for various industries such as
dyeing and tanning. Such evidence should be examined on the basis of the
book written by the Canadian scholar Watson already mentioned above.
Watson argues that the Muslim conquests sparked off an agricultural revolu-
tion by creating new advantages and opportunities.
Watson’s thesis is based mainly on an analysis of the distribution of
fourteen key tropical crops originating in South and East Asia. These are
sorghum, rice, hard wheat, sugarcane, cotton, bitter orange, lemon, banana,
coconut, watermelon, spinach, artichoke, colocasia, eggplant and mango,
which he maintains had spread through the Middle East and later Europe19
as a result of the Muslim conquests. We can add to the list two kinds of
mungo beans (māsh): green kind – Vigna radiata, and the black kind – Vigna
mungo, as well as various kinds of gourds, which we discuss later (cucumber,
Dudaʾim melon). Imports of new varieties and the development of existing
crops were part of these phenomena as well.
Several scholars disagree with Watson’s thesis on the grounds that some
of the crops he mentions were introduced to the Middle East in pre-Islamic
periods from India along the regular trading routes.20 Ashtor, who showed
that some of Watson’s crops were known as early as the Roman period, is par-
ticularly critical, declaring that Watson’s presumed ‘agricultural revolution’
did not really take place.21 Generally speaking, we accept Watson’s thesis,
with the exception of certain details and his claim as to the extent of the
revolution. Lately, Decker reached a similar conclusion to ours, challenging
Watson’s proof through the study of four crops: durum wheat, Asiatic rice,
cotton and artichoke.22
One of the problems of Watson’s thesis derives from his lack of adequate
knowledge of Jewish halachic literature, mainly the Mishnaic23 Tosefta,24
which was written in the eastern part of the Middle East during the Roman–
Byzantine period. This vast literature conserves a treasure trove of knowledge
and information regarding many aspects of life in the Eastern Mediterranean.
In the case of agriculture, the most important is the ‘Zeraʿim’ tractate of the
Babylonian (written in Babylonia) and Jerusalem Talmud25 (written in the
Land of Israel). This literature, which contains many Persian expressions,

mentions products as well as merchandise that were traded and used in the
Middle East before the Arab conquest such as coconut26 and musk oil.27
However, despite the weakness and gaps in Watson’s thesis, we agree in
general with the statements concerning the distribution of new crops, agro-
technical methods and merchandise after the Muslim conquests. We dispute,
however, the magnitude of what the ‘agriculture revolution’ implied and
some of the examples presented in his book. For instance, some of the crops
that Watson mentions, such as rice, ‘hard’ wheat, watermelon and the col-
casia (taro), were disseminated in the Land of Israel during the Roman and
Byzantine periods, whereas other crops were known and grown only spo-
radically (cotton). New crops, such as various species of citrus, banana and
eggplant, did not gain a central place in local agriculture; nor did they replace
or push aside the traditional basic crops, on which the subsistence economy
of the earlier periods was based, but rather contributed to the enrichment of
the existing agricultural inventory. It is important to note that most of the
crops in the Land of Israel were grown on the eastern and western slopes of
the central mountain range, where tropical and subtropical conditions exist;
as a result, the influence of the Arab conquerors in these regions was mostly
recognised.28 The cultivation of sugar cane, which played a central part in
medieval agriculture and the economy, is exceptional,29 as are local changes
in the textile sector.30
According to our perception, which we will try to prove later in this
chapter, the ‘new crops’ (as well as the ‘new drugs’, which are the subject
of the current book) can be divided into two groups: new plants that were
brought and distributed by the Arabs; and the continued cultivation of exist-
ing crops. In order to support our argument, we present herein the results
of studies we have conducted on the history of certain species of vegetables
of the Cucurbitaceae family and the change they underwent in their culti-
vation and distribution from antiquity to the Middle Ages. These provide
good historical examples for the diversity of new and old crops. Two species
cultivated in the wake of the Arab conquest, the watermelon31 and melon,32
were undoubtedly already well-established in Levantine agriculture and diet
from biblical times to the Classical period. But the conquest also led to the
development and distribution of new types of sweet and fleshy watermelons
similar to our own in present times. Two new species that were brought and
distributed by the Arabs (the cucumber33 and the Dudaʾim melon34), were
studied as well. The cucumber, a new vegetable, joined them and was added
to the diet. These are but a few examples of the many crops, medicinal sub-
stances and spices that were distributed and dispersed during the Middle Ages
from southern and eastern Asia to the Middle East, and thence to Europe.
In order to demonstrate a new and improved approach for the investigation
of the natural history of these crops, some of which are discussed by Watson,
we will briefly describe a few species from each group.
Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) and melon (Cucumis melo) – Watson

counts the watermelon (Citrullus lanatus=C. vulgaris) among the new crops
distributed by the Arabs. He maintains that no real evidence exists as to its
cultivation in ancient Egypt and that the ancient wall illustrations there depict
colocynth (Citrullus colocynthis). The Hebrew ʾava†iªim appears once in the
Bible, along with kishuʾim and other vegetables that the Israelites had eaten in
Egypt and sorely missed during their sojourn in the desert (Numbers 11:5).
But Watson’s statements cannot withstand a reexamination of the data: the
colocynth is a wild plant with a bitter fruit. It has highly purgative proper-
ties and, taken in high dosage, is even toxic. It is thus very unlikely to have
been cultivated as a crop for human consumption. By contrast, there is much
archaeo-botanical evidence for the cultivation of watermelon (Citrullus lana-
tus) and melon (Cucumis melo) in Egypt from the second millennium BC.35
Watermelon seeds were also found in Bronze Age Bāb al-Dhirāʿ in ancient
Moab, now Jordan, and in Iron Age Tel ʿArad in the Negev, Israel.36
The Jewish sources of the Roman and Byzantine periods (Mishna, Tosefta
and Talmud) frequently mention watermelon and other field crops of the
Cucurbitaceae family37 so there is no doubt that watermelon was cultivated in
the countries of the Levant centuries before the Islamic conquest.
Although these sources do not precisely specify the normal characteristics
of these subspecies (colour, internal texture, taste and so forth), close scrutiny
of the text offers an insight into some of them. For example, the practice of
scalding the watermelon suggests the possibility that it was a subspecies of the
plant traditionally cultivated today in southern Egypt and Sudan: Citrullus
lanatus var. citroides. Its fruit has a white pulp. It is not very juicy. It is eaten
raw or boiled. The watermelon subspecies that was eaten raw probably had
a soft pulp and tasted bland or even sweet. Furthermore, watermelons are
listed with other sweet and juicy fruits eaten raw like grapes, pomegranates
and figs.38
Moreover, we firmly reject the opinion that the biblical ʾava†iaª is the
colocynth (bitter gourd). Scholars and scientists take this species to be the
‘father’ (genetic source) of the cultivated watermelon. An intermediate phase
in its domestication was detected in seeds found in various archaeological
sites in Egypt.39 Furthermore, a population of Citrullus lanatus var. colo-
cynthoides was identified in sand dunes of Nitzana in southern Israel. These
plants have a fleshy non-bitter watermelon fruit 20 cm in diameter and are
used as fodder.40
After the Islamic conquests, alongside the local varieties, new types of
watermelon became widespread: green watermelon (al-ba††īkh al-ʾakh∂ar)
and yellow melon (al-ba††īkh al-ʾa‚far). These displaced some local types
and were named according to their alleged origin: India (al-ba††īkh al-hindī),
Pakistan (al-ba††īkh al-sindī) and Palestine (al-ba††īkh al-filas†īnī).41 The third
suggests their assimilation into the traditional agriculture of the Levant.42
The twelfth-century Andalusian herbalist al-ʾIshbīlī includes both melon
and watermelon in his entry al-ba††īkh. Describing ‘al-ba††īkh al-filas†īnī’
(the Palestinian watermelon) he lists synonyms (al-ba††īkh al-shāmī (‘Syrian
watermelon’), dullāʿ, ba††īkh hindī, ba††īkh sindī and ba††īkh shatawī), and
writes that its fruit is fleshy with a high water content. There were three types:
one with red seeds, another with black seeds and the third was the colocynth
(ªanÕal). Al-ʾIshbīlī adds that of the dullāʿ there is a fourth type, grown in
al-Murāba†īn Desert in southern Morocco,43 which is similar to the colo-
cynth, but its juice is sweet and tasty, as if containing sugar.44
The distribution of the various types of watermelon seems to have been
a long process. Later sources of the Mamluk period (1250–1517) mention
certain varieties of watermelon known for their beauty, sweetness and small
number of seeds,45 to note only a few of these accounts.46 Describing the
crops of Aleppo (Syria), Ibn al-Shiªna mentions a green watermelon notable
for its sweetness and thin peel. Aleppo residents ascribe its source to a region
named Shūsh near the Euphrates River, thus accounting for its being called
shūshī. Its seeds were taken to Gaza every year and yielded remarkably sweet
fruit. According to the same source, if the seeds of these fruits were sown,
the crop of the second year was dissimilar in its attributes to that of the
previous year.47 Al-Nābulsī (1715) writes about varieties of the contemporary
watermelon in his book on agriculture, including the kind grown in al-Shām
featuring a striped peel, very sweet fruit and white seeds. He also notes an
ancient tradition asserting that the seeds of this type had been brought from
Persia (ʿajam).48 A similar process occurred with melons: for example, the
thirteenth-century physician al-Baghdādī mentions an Egyptian tradition
that ascribes the so-called ʿAbdallī or ʿAbdallāwī melon to ʿAbd-Allāh Ibn
˝āhir, governor of Egypt during the regime of al-Māʾmūn. This melon had a
thin peel and an overall inferior taste, although in some cases it was sweet.49
We assume that it was associated with the governor due to his efforts to
import it, or it may simply have been cultivated in his time. Al-Baghdādī
adds that the people of Egypt preferred a new type of melon al-Khurāsānī or
al-‚īnī (Chinese).50 Here is clear evidence of the importing of new varieties of
watermelon from southern and eastern Asia and Persia, regions that opened
up following the Islamic conquests. In light of the foregoing, information
regarding another special melon grown in Khwārizm and named bāranj
is of special interest. Thaʿālibī describes it as: ‘reputedly the sweetest and
nicest-tasting of all melons. They were first exported to al-Maʾmūn, then to
al-Wāthiq, being packed in snow inside leaden containers.’’51 The melons of
Khwārizm were praised by Ibn Ba††ū†a some centuries later as being ‘incom-
parable’ in flavour: ‘The melons of Khwārizm have no equal in any country of
the world, East or West, except perhaps the melons of Bukhārā, and next to
them the melons of ʾI‚fahān. Their rind is green and flesh is red, of extreme
sweetness and firm texture.’52
Watson’s assumption that the Muslims distributed new varieties of
fleshy, sweet watermelon and melon is thus partially supported. Nevertheless,
the crossbreeding and cultivation of excellent local types were known in the
Levant long before the Muslim conquests.
Chate melon (Cucumis melo var. chate) – The kishuʾim and the ʾava†iªim
(watermelons) of the Bible (Numbers 11:5) were identified by most
Aramaic translators of the Scriptures, and by later scholars, as a field plant
of the Cucurbitaceae family called chate melon (Cucumis melo var. chate).
Archaeo-botanical evidence of this species in ancient Egypt exists as well.53

On the other hand, the kishuʾim appear in the Septuagint as sikus and in
the Vulgate as cucumis – collective names for varieties of the Cucurbitaceae
family such as melon (Cucumis melo), chate melon (Cucumis melo var. chate)
and apparently also cucumber (Cucumis sativus). However, the identifica-
tion of kishuʾim with cucumber is late, first appearing in the Middle Ages.54
This error came about only when the cucumber appeared as a result of the
Muslim conquests, probably because of the similar shape. This seems to have
contributed to the view in the Arabic sources that the cucumber is a type of
‘qiththā’.55 In other words, in the Middle Ages names were transformed con-
currently with the division into two groups of traditions for identifying the
ancient melafefon – European and Arab. European commentators who iden-
tify the Talmudic melafefon as a kind of melon (influenced by the Jerusalem
Talmud and the Greek language); Arab commentators who identified it as
khiyār (Cucumis sativus).56
Returning to the Biblical kishuʾim, according to the text it seems to
be a specific type of crop, and solid evidence favours its identification with
the chate melon. Moreover, a close reading of descriptions in the Classical
sources suggests that, at least in some cases, regarding some kinds of cucumis,
they were indeed varieties of chate melon. For example, this crop was covered
with white ‘down’, which was not a typical attribute of the cucumber.57
Cucumber (Cucumis sativus) – Unlike the watermelon and the chate melon
known in the agricultural tradition of the Middle East and the Mediterranean
Basin in the pre-Islamic period, the cucumber seems to be among the new
crops introduced and distributed by the Arabs. It is not listed by Watson,
although all signs indicate that it originated in India and penetrated the
Middle East after the Islamic conquests. Evidence of it in ancient Egypt
and the Levant in the biblical period is neither clear nor solid, so it should
be treated with a certain degree of caution.58 True, there is a record of the
remains of cucumber seeds from the eighteenth dynasty in Egypt, and pos-
sibly from other periods as well,59 but scholars have pointed out the difficulty
and uncertainty of a clear distinction between cucumber and melon seeds,
so that care is essential in dealing with its existence or cultivation in ancient
Egypt.60
The Greek expression for the Hebrew melafefon refers to the melon, like
the biblical ʾava†iaª in Numbers 11:5. Evidence for this is the reference
to the ‘hair’ on the fruit, which is not a feature of the present-day cucum-
ber (Cucumis sativus).61 Moreover, three species of the Cucurbitaceae family
appear frequently in Jewish sources from the Roman period, occasionally
together: ‘Chate melons and gourds and water melons’ (Mishna, Peʾa 1:5;
Maʿasrot 1:4). The cucumber is never mentioned.
In fact, solid evidence for the cultivation of the cucumber in the Middle
East, positively identified by its Arabic name khiyār, exists only after the
Muslim conquests. The most important source is Abū Dāwud Sulaymān
ibn Juljul (944–94). He was an Andalusian physician born in Cordoba who
wrote a short treatise as an addendum to Dioscorides’ codex. Analysis of
this work and the medicinal substances mentioned in it is discussed in detail
below.62
The cucumber (khiyār) is described in Dietrich’s edition in Arabic and
German as:63 ‘a kind of qiththāʾ; however it has bulges on its peel, like warts,
and it is shorter than the qiththāʾ in size, and its leaves are like the leaves
of the al-qiththāʾ al-bustānī, its nature is cold and moist, and it suits who-
ever suffers from fever, and when its fragrance is smelled it cools the brain’.
The Persian name for cucumber, khiyār, also evinces this vegetable’s origin,
or more precisely the route it took from Asia to the Middle East through
Persia.64 Al-Bīrūnī certifies that khiyār is a common name for the cucumber
in Iraq; however, in Khurāsān its name is khiyār bāzhrnag.65
Dudaʾim melon (Cucumis dudaim) has small (3–6 cm) diameter and
smooth, round fruits of wild and feral melons that are bland, bitter, sour
or slightly sweet.66 The name dudaʾim is taken from the Biblical Hebrew
dudaʾim (Genesis 30:14–16; Song of Songs 7:14) for mandrakes, Mandragora
spp. (Solanaceae). As both mandrakes and dudaʾim melons bear exotically
fragrant fruits of similar shape and colour, they were often associated with
each other.67
Dudaʾim melons reached the westernmost Mediterranean, Tunisia and
Andalusia, from the East, Persia and Central Asia. From historical records, it
appears likely that dudaʾim melons were first selected in Persia. Nonetheless,
their close resemblance to wild melons suggests the possibility that dudaʾim
melons may have been first selected further East, simply as a beautifully
ornamental and sweet-smelling ecotype, and then dispersed to neighbouring
Persia and from there to distant locations.68
To our knowledge, there is no description of melons of the Dudaʾim
group in Mediterranean antiquity.69 The earliest mention of dudaʾim melons
that is known to us appears in Sābūr ibn Sahl book’s al-Aqrābādhīn (The
Dispensatory) (c. 850) (South-Western Asia). One prescription (no. 184),
calls for the use of the rinds of twenty dastabūyah.70 A compound Persian
word, ‘dastabūyah’ is, literally, ‘hand perfume’,71 for dudaʾim melons.72
Muªammad Abū al-Qāsim ibn Óawqal, a Kurdish native, travelled exten-
sively around the Islamic Empire. In his travelogue, titled Configuration of the
Land, he writes that he saw the highly aromatic dastabūyah, dudaʾim melons,
in what is now north-western Iran, in 969.73 Abū Rayªān al-Bīrūnī writes
in his book of pharmacy and materia medica titled al- Íaydana fī al-˝ibb
(c. 1048), that the Arabic shammām are the Persian dastabūyah or dastabūyah,
small melons that look like colocynths, Citrullus colocynthis, having red, green
and yellow stripes, and a pleasant odour.74 The Persian-language version
of the Tora (Pentateuch), dating to 1319, translates the Hebrew dudaʾim
(mandrakes of Genesis 30:14–16) as dastambouha.75 Ibn al-Bay†ār writes that
the dastabūyah, dudaʾim melons, were called shammām and luffāª in Syria,
although, to be exact, the luffāª were the fruits of mandrakes. These were small
melons of the same shape and size as colocynths, striped with red, green and
yellow, and pleasantly aromatic.76 He also quoted Ibn Māsawayhi (777–857)
as writing that the dastabūyah, dudaʾim melons, relaxed the stomach.77
Dudaʾim group melons were first described in Andalusia and North
Africa at the beginning of the tenth century by Isªāq ibn Sulaymān
al-ʾIsrāʾīlī (Isaac Judaeus), a medical author of Qayrawān (Tunisia), in his
Kitāb al-ʾAghdhiya wa-l-ʾAdwiya (Book of Foods and Simple Remedies)
(c. 920) where he wrote that the striped melons were the dastabūyah but
were thought by common people to be a kind of luffāª (mandrakes).78 In the
Cordoban Calendar (second half of the tenth century)79 and the Calendar of
Ibn al-Bannāʾ of Marrakech (c. 1310),80 the luffāª were listed as being sown
in April, together with the khiyār (cucumbers, Cucumis sativus). Muªammad
ibn Aªmad al-Tamīmī, a physician from Jerusalem who lived in the tenth
century,81 was quoted by Ibn al- Bay†ār82 as writing that the dastabūyah were
what Egyptians erroneously called luffāª, and were also known as shammām.
They resembled round watermelons but were smaller, distinctly striped, red
and yellow like a garment called ʿattābiyya and had an aroma was like that of
the mandrake, as it was pleasant, cooling and induced sleep. Nasiri Khosraw,
a traveller from Marw, Khurāsān (modern Turkmenistan), who wrote in
Persian, listed in his Sefer Nameh (Book of Travels) the dastabūyah as among
the fruits and vegetables he saw when visiting Old Cairo in December 1048.83
Ibn Ri∂wān, an eleventh-century Egyptian physician84 was quoted by
Ibn al-Bay†ār85 as writing that the dastabūyah have warm rinds that aid the
stomach and digestion. Other later medieval sources (eleventh to fourteenth
centuries) from both the East and the West (Andalusia) describe the plant, its
names and its uses.86
‘Crusader Plants’
Among our efforts to find a reasonable methodology for the identification

of plants that were distributed by the Arabs, we would like to present herein
another example of research dealing with the distribution of plants in the
medieval period. Dudai and Amar studied the hypothesis that a few wild
plants were brought or spread from Western and Central Europe into the
Middle East as a consequence of the Crusader expeditions. This hypothesis
is not supported by historical records and relies mostly on circumstantial
evidence. From a phyto-geographical analysis of the adventive flora of the
Land of Israel, it seems that the origin of the ‘alleged’ species is western
Mediterranean, while the vast majority of the adventive plants in Israel
are of tropical origin. Interestingly enough and in support of the common
assumption, these ‘Crusader’ plants are found predominantly near the ruins
of Crusader fortresses and villages scattered throughout modern-day Israel.
Some examples of the plants suspected of integration within the local wild
flora during the Crusader period are: oleaster (Elaeagnus angustifolia), tree
spurge (Euphorbia dendroides), Sicilian (wall) snapdragon (Antirrhinum sicu-
lum) and great (common) snapdragon (Antirrhinun majus). A remarkable
member of this plant group is the wormwood tree (Artemisia arborescens),
a medicinal plant and a spice, which was reported by researchers as having
been introduced to the eastern Mediterranean by human agency,87 and from
there to the Land of Israel.88 In the framework of this study, the chemical

composition and properties of the various etheric oils of the wild population
of Artemisia arborescens in Israel were studied in comparison with the popu-
lation of this species in Western and Central Europe and in North Africa.
Dozens of compounds were identified in the plants that were collected in
Israel, such as: a-thujone, b-thujone, chamazulene and camphor, which
were then used as chemical identification markers. The conclusion result-
ing from our research was that the plants that grow wild in northern Israel
near Crusader fortresses are mainly of the ‘camphoric’ kind, similar to the
European variety and different from North African plants. The results there-
fore hint at the origin of the northern plant population of tree wormwood
and the ways in which it was distributed and introduced into northern
Israel.89
Greek Literature and the Physicians of Andalusia as a Model
Certain methodological measures make it possible to determine and define

the ‘new’ medicinal substances introduced after the Islamic conquests. These
measures are, for example, the use of historical sources that specifically men-
tion the substances,90 philological analysis of their names, analysis of their
phyto-geographical origins, distribution of medicinal plants and archaeo-
botanical findings.
One of the most important ways to reconstruct and identify the array
of pre-Islamic ‘new’ drugs is to detect substances that are not mentioned
by, or in, the writings of Classical sources such as Aristotle, Theophrastus,
Dioscorides, Galen and others. We assume that their absence from the
Classical sources, and their appearance as common substances in the Arab
medical literature, teach us that they were either introduced to the field of
pharmacology, or the scope of their medical use was enlarged by the Arabs.
In due course we will deal with the problematic aspects of this assump-
tion and its reliability and validity as an exclusive measurement. But first,
let us present it as a model, as having already appeared in medieval Arabic
literature. A few medieval Arab scholars, mainly Andalusian, discussed
the omission of medicinal substances in the writings of Classical authors.
According to Abū Dāwud Sulaymān Ibn Juljul,91 Ibn Zuhr,92 Abū ʿAbd Allāh
Muªammad al-ʾIdrīsī,93 Ibn al-Bay†ār,94 Maimonides,95 al-Ghāfiqī96 and
Ibn Rushd,97 about 100 medicinal substances found in Arabic sources (the
vast majority
being of plant origin, the minority of animal origin and a few
precious stones and compound drugs) are not mentioned by Dioscorides and
Galen.98 Although the geographical origin of at least half of these substances
was southern and eastern Asia, the intention of these medieval authors was
not to emphasise that these were ‘new’ substances.
This method, however, merits a separate discussion of its reliability and
validity with respect to each and every substance. In general, we can accept
this approach based on a detailed analysis of these lists. In fact, the combi-
nation of all the above measures, or at least most of them, can determine
adequately, although not absolutely, the group of medicinal substances that
were distributed by the Arabs from southern and eastern Asia to the Middle
East and Europe.99 If we add to this list a few other substances mentioned
sporadically by other physicians, such as Ibn Samajūn, al-Ghāfiqī and Ibn
al-Bay†ār, we come up with a list totalling about 100 substances (many of
them not identified), which were categorised as typical drugs and edible fruits
and vegetable, spices and perfumes.
Some of these substances arrived from regions that were part of the
huge territory controlled by the Arabs, such as al-Shām, Yemen and the area
between the Black and the Caspian Seas, regions that stretched to the north-
ernmost points reached by the Arabs on their trade routes.100 We also know
that Arab traders went to India and China – possibly also Tibet – from very
early times. This raises the question of whether knowledge was conveyed
through the translation of texts or through traders, or (most likely) both.
An example of one plant whose medicinal use (mainly as a purgative) spread
from Egypt and Arabia due to the Islamic conquest is senna, also named
senna maki (Cassia acutifolia).
Dioscorides and the Arabic Herbalists
Pedanius Dioscorides, a Greek physician and one of the first pharma-

botanists (that is, botanists who specialised in materia medica while

practising medicine), lived in the first century AD and practised medicine
as a surgeon for the Roman legions of Nero and Vespasian. He is known
mainly for his book De Materia Medica, a medical codex listing hundreds
of medicinal substances from the plant, animal and mineral worlds he col-
lected while travelling through many countries with the legionary armies.
The medicinal substances are systematically described, along with their var-
ious names and medical effects and properties. Due to its practical nature
the book was used as a basic text in the fields of pharmacology and medi-
cine for 1,600 years.101
Dioscorides’ book was translated from Greek into Arabic as part of the
Abbasid translation project, probably at the time of al-Mutawakkil.102 The
translator was Stephanos, son of Basileios of Baghdad, and his work was later
collated, edited, proofread and updated by the well-known medical translator
Óunayn ibn I‚ªāq. One problem here was that Stephanos translated only
the names of substances that he recognised, leaving those he did not in their
original names.103
Shortly after its completion the translation reached al-Andalus where
it attracted no particular attention. No more work on the identification of
unfamiliar substances was done, either in the East or in al-Andalus, until the
time of al-Na‚ir ʿAbd al-Raªmān (who ruled 912–61). In 948 the Byzantine
emperor in Constantinople, Romanus I, presented his friend al-Nā‚ir with an
illustrated manuscript of Dioscorides’ De Materia Medica written in ancient
Greek. In the absence of a competent Greek reader the manuscript was set
aside and remained unused until it was sent to Cordoba in 951 by a Byzantine
monk called Nicola, who at that time was teaching the finest physicians the
art of translating from the Greek. Among this group of physicians we may
mention Óisdai Ibn Shaprut and Ibn Juljul.104
Ibn Juljul and Dioscorides
The Andalusian physician Abū Dāwud Sulaymān ibn Juljul was born in
Cordoba in 944 and died after 994. He began his medical education at the
age of fifteen, and within ten years he had become a renowned physician and
medical authority. He devoted most of his time to identifying the medicinal
substances listed in Dioscorides’ monumental work and even wrote a book
on the subject in 982. In it he explains and elaborates on their names (Kitāb
Tafsīr ʾAasmāʾ al-Adwiya al-Mufrada min Kitāb Diyasqūrīdus).105 Another
text by Ibn Juljul, which is the most important in relation to our discussion,
is a short article he writes as an addendum to the Codex of Dioscorides: ‘An
article on the drugs not mentioned in Dioscorides’ book, those that are used
in medicine and are beneficial and those that are not used and are noted just
for the record’ (Maqāla fī dhikr al-adwiya allatī lam yadhkurhā Diyasqūrīdus
fī kitābihi mimmā yustaʿmalu fī ‚ināʿat al-†ibb wa-yuntafaʿu bihi wa-mā lā
yustaʿmalu li-kaylā yughfalu dhikruhu).106 The text was first published by
Dietrich.107
Ibn Juljul’s addendum contains the names of sixty-two medicinal
substances with a brief description of each, and the origin, characteristics
and medicinal uses of some of them.108 A number of substances on Ibn
Juljul’s list are also sporadically mentioned by Spanish and North African
medical authors. A similar list of substances, almost complete, appears in
the introduction to the medical book of al-ʾIdrīsī. These two lists show
great similarity – in fact, they are almost identical, differing only in minor
details.109
Ibn Juljul points out in his article that these drugs were not mentioned
by Dioscorides because he had never seen them or because they were not
in use in his time.110 However, we argue here that the list compiled by Ibn
Juljul should be ascribed far more significance. According to our analysis,111
the great majority of substances he mentions are plants, a few are of animal
origin and the rest are inorganic substances, such as minerals, precious stones
and soils.112 Not all of the drugs on the list are identified, and for some we
suggest possibilities below. From his writings, Ibn Juljul seems not to have
been familiar with some of the substances or, alternatively perhaps, scholars
disagreed about their identification or their precise name. In a few cases
he places some of them in the category of ‘those not used and noted just for
the record’.113
Spices and gemstones had already been imported from India in earlier
historical periods and, indeed, some of the ‘new’ crops are mentioned in
the Classical sources, such as sugar; however, their potential was revealed
and practically actualised much later, thanks to Indian cultural agents who
re-imported the products with their full medical and industrial potential
and practical technology. Moreover, there are examples of certain drugs
that were mentioned in the Classical literature, but mistakenly thought by
the Arab practitioners not to have been mentioned or, perhaps, they were
not familiar with them (those not mentioned by Galen, however, do appear
in Pliny, Dioscorides or Theophrastus);114 for example: ʿunnāb (jujube,
Ziziphus vulgaris), sabistān (Asyrian plam, Cordia myxia) and ªabb al-zalam
(Rush-nut, Cyperus esculentus). It is clear that some of these drugs appear in

the Classical sources; however, either the translators or the Arabic practi-
tioners mis-identified them. Therefore, these phenomena do not reflect new
drugs.
Even though Johnstone notes the division of medicinal substances
according to their geographical origin,115 this matter seems not to have been
dealt with adequately. Examination of the origin of the medicinal plants on
the list, according to Ibn Juljul’s remarks as well as phyto-geographical analy-
sis, reveals that more than half are tropical plants that grow on the islands of
the Indian Ocean such as Madagascar, Zanzibar and the Maldives, as well as
in southern India, Tibet, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and China; all of these loca-
tions were referred to in the past as ‘India’.116
Many of these substances and other exotic spices proliferated in the
Middle East and North Africa, and later reached Europe, due to the Muslim
conquest in the seventh century. Note that already in the Classical world,
medicinal substances, incense and spices such as cinnamon, nard and pepper
were brought to the Middle East and Europe via the Indian trade routes117
and, indeed, these substances are mentioned by Dioscorides. However, those
were only a few representatives, in contrast to the rich inventory of drugs that
became prevalent after the Arab conquest.118
Most of the plants from which the medicinal substances that Ibn
Juljul mentions were derived did not pass beyond the borders of ‘Indian’
agriculture; only their products were distributed along the trading routes.
These were not foodstuffs in general but medicinal substances, spices and
perfumes.
A deeper examination of the ‘Indian’ medicinal substances reveals that
not all of them were new in the domain of the Islamic empire. Some of them
were already in use in Mesopotamia in the pre-Islamic period, such as the
perfume made out of deer musk and coconut, which are mentioned in the
Babylonian Talmud as early as the fourth and fifth centuries AD.119 This attests
to the fact that although the elimination of the border between the Byzantine
and the Persian empires by the Arabs furthered their distribution, the process
of dissemination had begun even earlier. In this category we should also
mention substances with typical Persian names, such as bahman ʾabya∂ and
bahman ʾaªmar, būzīdān, bustān ʾabrūz, māhī zahra and ʾisfānākh. It seems
that ʾihlīlaj kābulī and yāsamīn, the latter appearing under the same name in
the Babylonian Talmud,120 were originally from Persian territory, and only
after the Muslim conquest were their uses expanded – not only westward but
to China as well.121
The Arab conquerors, who originated from Arabia, contributed some
of their own original substances to the global inventory; these were called
‘Yemeni’. Other substances were brought from al-Shām (the Levant), mainly
from the Mount Lebanon area, which was known in the medieval period as a
rich source of medicinal plants.122
Some of the medicinal substances listed in Ibn Juljul’s article had wide
international distribution, such as the perfume derived from the sperm whale.
These are included on the list of plants not mentioned by Dioscorides because
he was not acquainted with them or because they were not used medici-
nally in the Classical period. In any event, their addition to the Graeco-Arab
inventory of medicinal substances indicates that Arab contribution to the
distribution of drugs was two-way, that is, from Southeast Asia to the West
and also in the opposite direction. Moreover, in the Middle Ages even typical
Galenic drugs penetrated Ayurvedic medicine due to the influence of Arab
pharmacology on Indian traditional medicine.123
Ibn Rushd and the List of Drugs not Mentioned by Galen
Another important source of our knowledge of the drugs not mentioned

in the Classical literature is Abū al-Walīd Muªammad ibn ʾAªmad ibn
Muªammad, Ibn Rushd, also known as Averroes (born in Cordoba, Spain
in 1126, and died in Marrakech, Morocco, in 1198). Ibn Rushd came from
an important family of jurists, acquired a very good education from the best
teachers in Seville, and became an excellent medical practitioner who served
several princes. Ibn Rushd’s achievements include writings in the fields of
astronomy, philosophy, religion, law and medicine.124 He, like other phy-
sicians of his times, referred to Galen in his writings. In his major work
on medicine, al-Kulliyyāt (Generalities), written between 1153 and 1169,
he even devoted a chapter to drugs not mentioned in Galen’s De simpli-
cium medicamentorum temperamentis ac facultatibus.125 The subject matter
of the al-Kulliyyāt relies heavily on Galen and Hippocrates, who are often
mentioned by name.126 Ibn Rushd’s list, found in the fifth book, consists of
forty-one drugs, of which twenty are identical to drugs mentioned in Ibn

Juljul’s and al-ʾIdrīsī’s lists.
Analysis of the list reveals that most of the simples (thirty) are of
plant origin, five are of animal origin, four are precious stones and two
are compound drugs. Phyto-geographical analysis of the identified simples
of plant origin in Ibn Rushd’s list shows that, similar to Ibn Juljul’s list,
more than half are tropical plants grown on the islands of the Indian Ocean
(Madagascar, Zanzibar and the Maldives), South India, Tibet, Sri Lanka,
Indonesia and China. As mentioned above, in the past all of these geo-
graphical locations were considered parts of ‘India’.127
Comparison of Ibn Rushd’s and Ibn Juljul’s Lists
All the drugs omitted by Galen and Dioscorides and that do appear on the
two lists as ‘new’ drugs consist altogether of eighty-four items. Most of the
drugs on these lists became prevalent thanks to the Muslim conquests (about
100 by our estimation) (see Table 2.1).
Table 2.1 List of drugs that were not mentioned in Dioscorides’ and Galen’s book
according to Arabic sourcesa
Source: Arabic medieval sources used in the table (IR – Ibn Rushdb IJ – Ibn Juljulc ID – al-ʾIdrīsīd
IB – Ibn al-Bay†āre MP – Maimonidesf MA – Maimonidesg)
No. Arabic name Scientific name (identification)h English name Sources

1. halīlaj(!) ʾa‚far Terminalia citrina Yellow myrobalan IJ, IR, ID
2. ʾihlīlaj kābulī Terminalia chebula Chebulic IJ, IR, ID
myrobalan
3. ʾihlīlaj ʾaswad i Terminalia chebula Black myrobalan IJ
4. khiyār shanbar Cassia fistula Purging cassia IJ, IR, ID
5. tamr hindī Tamarindus indica Tamarind IJ. IR, ID
6. balīlaj Terminalia bellerica Belleric myrobalan IJ, IR, ID
7. ʾamlaj Phyllanthus emblica (= Emblica Emblic myrobalan IJ, IR, ID
officinalis, Terminalia emblica)
8. khūlanjān Alpinia galanga Galingale IJ, IR, ID
[Galanga]
9. qāqulla kabīr Amomum melegueta ? Grains of Paradise IJ, IR, ID
10. jawzbuwā Myristica fragrans Nutmeg IJ, IR, ID
11. kabāba Piper cubeba Cubeb pepper IJ
12. qaranful Eugenia caryophyllata Clove IJ, IR, ID
13. zurunbād Zingiber zerumbet Shampoo ginger IJ, IR, ID
14. darawnaj Doronicum sp. Leopard’s bane IJ
[doronicum,
panther strangler]

15. bahman ʾabya∂ Centaurea behen, Daucus carota White-behen IJ, IR, ID
ssp. Maximus
16. bahman ʾaªmar No identification IJ, IR, ID
17. būzīdān No identificationj IJ
18. †abāshīr Bambusa vulgaris or burnt Bamboo (chalk, IJ, IR, ID
elephant bones tabashir)
19. fawfal Areca catechu Betel palm (areca IJ, IR, ID
nut)
20. tānbūl Piper betel Betel pepper IJ
21. ʾamīrbārīs Berberis sp. Berberry [Lebanon IJ
berberry]
22. harnuwa No identificationk IJ
23. fulayfila Vitex agnus castus, Carum Ajwain IJ
copticuml
24. maªlab Prunus mahaleb Perfumed cherry IJ, IB
25. jawz al-hindī (sic) Cocos nucifera Coconut palm IJ
26. nāranj wa-laymūn Citrus aurantium & Citrus limon Orange & Lemon IJ
27. bustān ʾabrūz Amaranthus sp.m Amaranth or Basil IJ
28. balādhur Semecarpus anacrdium Anacardium IJ, IR, ID
(marking-nut tree,
marsh-nut)
29. zarnab No identificationn IJ
30. yāsamīn Jasminum sp. Jasmine IJ, IR, ID,
IB
31. khayzurān Bambusa sp., Ruscus aculeatus Bamboo or IJ
butcher’s broom
32. kāfūr Cinnamomum camphora Camphor IJ, IR, ID
33. misk Moschus moschiferus Musk IJ, IR
34. ʿanbar Physeter catodon Ambergris IJ, IR
35. duhn al-turunj Citrus medica Citron IJ
36. duhn al-kādhī Pandanus odoratissimus Screw pine IJ
37. shayyān Dracaena draco Dragon’s blood IJ
38. ‚andal Santalum album, Pterocarpus Sandalwood IJ, IR, ID
santalinus (white, red)
39. baqqam Caesalpinia sappan Brazil wood IJ
(Sappan wood)
40. sāj Tectona grandis Teac IJ
41. mūsh dārbandī Collyrium (eye-powder) Collyrium IJ
42. mawz Musa paradisiaca Banana IJ
43. khiyār Cucumis sativus Cucumber IJ
44. qarn al-khutuwwo No identification Narwhal or other IJ
animal
45. yāqūt Corindon (corundum) Corundum IJ, IB
46. ªajar al-mās Diamond Diamond IJ, IB
47. ªajar al-bāzahr Bezoar stone Bezoar stone IJ, IR, ID,
MP
(Continued)
Table 2.1 (Continued)

48. ªajar al-baht No identificationp IJ
49. ªajar al-khall No identification IJ
50. qanbīl No identificationq IJ
51. jawz jundum Lichen Lichen IJ
52. shajarat al-kaff No identificationr IJ
53. māhī zahra Anamirta paniculata Cocculus indicus IJ
(= Menispermum cocculus)
54. rībās Rheum sp. Rhubarb IJ
55. julubbān Lathyrus sp. Vetch IJ
56. bādhinjān Solanum melongena Eggplant IJ
57. mash Phaseolus mungo Mungo bean IJ
58. ʾisfānākh Spinacia oleracea Spinach IJ
59. †arkhūn Artemisia dracunculus Tarragon IJ
60. ªabb al-zalam Cyperus esculentus Rush-nut, earth IJ
almond
61. wars Flemingia grahamiana Warras IJ
(= F. rhodcarpa), Memecylon
tincrorum
62. kurkum Curcuma longa Turmeric IJ
63. ʾihlīlaj hindī Terminalia arjuna Indian myrobalan IJ, IR, ID
64. kashūth Cuscuta sp. Dodder IR
65. taranjubīn Manna from Alhagi maurorum Manna IR
66. ªajar al-zabarjad Olivine IR
67. zumurrud Emerald IR
68. ªajar al-ʿaqīq Cornaline IR
69. luʾluʾ Pearl IR
70. ªajar al-bijādī Red garnet IR
71. sabistān Cordia myxia Sebesten IR
72. sandarūs Callitris quadrivalvis Arae tree IR
73. sanā Cassia acutifolia Senna IR
74. sukk al-misk Composed remedy from musk IR
75. sukk al-ʿaf‚ Composed remedy from Indian IR
astringent
76. shaqāqul Malabaila secacul = Pastinaca Arabian hartwort IR
schekakul
77. ʿūd al-†īb Aquilaria agallocha Agarwood IR
78. ʿunnāb Ziziphus vulgaris Common jujube IR, IB
79. ªabaq qaranfulī Ocimum basilicum var. pilosum Sweet basil IR
80. qāqulla ‚aghīra Elettaria cardamomum Cardamom IR
81. lakk Laccifer lacca Lacca IR
82. lisān al-ʿa‚āfīr Fraxinus sp. Ash IR
83. bādhinjān Solanum melongena Eggplant MA

84. sara†ān hindī, Fossil crab IB
sara†ān baªrī
85. sult Secale cereale Rye IB
Notes
a The first sixty-two drugs are according to Ibn Juljul’s book.
b Ibn Rushd, Kitāb al-Kulliyyāt.
c Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung.
d In the right margin of Fātiª ms. of al-ʾIdrīsī, Compendium, I, pp. 2–3, the copyist added: ‘After a
while I found a lot of them to which he paid no attention, and he also omitted many drugs that he did
not mention.’
e Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ.
f Ben Maimon, Poisons, p. 18.
g Ben Maimon, Aphorisms, pp. 24, 15.
h This column gives the scientific names of identified substances with certainty or high probability.
i In some cases ʾihlīlaj kābulī is called ʾihlīlaj ʾaswad, which should not be confused with the ‘Chinese
kind’; see Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, IV, p. 196.
j The Spanish physicians stated that this was an Indian plant, and added that in their time it was
mistaken for other plants such as the orchid; see Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged, p. 140; Ibn
al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, I, p. 122; Ben Maimon, Un Glossaire, no. 56. Indeed, the būzīdān should not
be identified as an orchid, which is clearly mentioned by Dioscorides: III, no. 144, see Gunther, The
Greek Herbal.
k This plant is also mentioned in other sources (Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged, no. 261; Ben
Maimon, Un Glossaire, no. 113) and even several identifications (for example, Capsicum minimum;
Aquilaria agallocha) have been suggested. But these are not suitable for plants from the Slavic area, as
mentioned also by Ibn Sīnā, Kitāb, II, p. 299.
l See Ben Maimon, Un Glossaire, no. 259.
m al-ʾIshbīlī (I, p. 108) writes it almost identically in his entry ‘bustān al-Jawārī’ (garden of the
adolescent). At the end he adds that the plant was sown recently in his country and that it was common
in Egypt. Ibn al-Suwaydī (p. 6a) identifies bustān ʾabrūz with (Ocimum basilicum); compares al-Kūhīn
al-ʿA††ār, Minhāj al-Dukkān, p. 219.
n If the origin of this plant is really India there is no justification for its identification as Taxus
baccata mentioned in the literature; see Ben Maimon, Un Glossaire, no. 137; Lev, Medicinal Substances,
p. 151.
o qarn al-khutuww, identified with a whale (Monodon monoceros); see Richter-Bernburg, ‘Albert
Dietrich’, p. 149. Another option of identification is a bone of a bull’s forehead, See: Qaddumi, Book of
Gifts, p. 270.
p Described as a kind of a pearl, see: Ruska, Steinbuch, pp. 10–13.
q For different identification suggestions see Ben Maimon, Un Glossaire, no. 327.
r According to Ibn Juljul a few other plants in Spain such as Leontice leontopetalum and Anastatica
hierochuntica were named the same.
The aim of the Arab physicians in presenting their lists of drugs not mentioned
by Classical sources, namely Dioscorides and Galen, was not to determine
that these were ‘new’ drugs distributed for the first time in their period.128
Instead, they treated the matter as an omission that should be rectified; so
we may gather that they apparently were not always aware that the vast
majority of the simples were not commonly known in the pre-Islamic period.
In any event, the lists serve as a reliable first indication of these drugs. Yet this
estimation in itself is not sufficient, since we may assume that ‘Indian’ simples
were used in the Mediterranean Basin prior to the Islamic conquest but are
not mentioned in the Classical sources for various reasons. Therefore, the sum
total of all of these assumptions may reasonably determine, although not with
absolute certainty, the group of southern and eastern Asian substances that
were distributed in the Middle East and Europe.
As mentioned before, the phenomenon in which Arabic sources sporadi-
cally dealt with drugs that were not mentioned by the Classical sources was
detected in the writings of other Andalusian medical sources such as Ibn
Zuhr, Maimonides, al-Ghāfiqī and Ibn al-Bay†ār.
The School of Spanish (Andalusian) Physicians
Ibn Juljul and Ibn Rushd can be associated with the predominant school of phy-
sicians in al-Andalus (Muslim Spain) and North Africa (al-Maghrib), namely
a combination of herbalists and pharmacists specialising in medicinal substances
who regarded themselves as Dioscorides’ authentic successors.129 Unlike the
Eastern physicians, the Spanish physicians believed that a medical practitioner
must be an expert in materia medica, even though this was the pharmacist’s role,
because of his concern for the patient’s well-being. Moreover, the Andalusian
physicians were well-acquainted with the pharmacists, their shallow knowledge
and their want of integrity, and therefore did not trust them. This is why physi-
cians in Spain frequently supplied their patients with drugs themselves. The
financial aspect may have been at play, as well.130
So despite the fact that the Abbasid translation project took place in
Baghdad, the breakthrough in the study of Dioscorides’ book and in the
identification of the substances actually occurred in Spain. This was one of
the main characteristics of the Andalusian school of medicine, in which Ibn
Juljul was among the first members. The process was complete by the time of
Abū al-ʿAbbās al-Nabātī131 and his student Ibn al-Bay†ār, who wrote several
works on this field of research.132 Nor were the new studies and research of
Dioscorides’ Codex restricted to translation (tafsīr): they also entailed editing,
and later interpretations and identifications. This vigorous intellectual activity
characterises the involvement and support of the Ayubbid rulers, mainly
Sultan Íalāª al-Dīn.133 The passage of time and lack of an unbroken tradition
of identification and acquaintance with the plants described by Dioscorides
were undoubtedly among the factors that constrained not just the Abbasid
translators in Iraq, but the Andalusian scholars as well. The scientific activity
of the Andalusian physicians was characterised by a high sense of criticism and
a fresh and meticulous examination of whatever was written by the best physi-
cians before them, including correction of quotations that were mistakenly
attributed to Dioscorides and Galen, as is portrayed below by al-Ghāfiqī:
Most of them repeated the mistakes of their predecessors. Therefore, some

of them made errors in collating the words of others, as did Ibn Wāfid when
he confused the text of Dioscorides with that of Galen on two different
remedies and thought they were the same; and others did not tell the truth,
as was the case with Ibn Sīnā when he ascribed to them words which they
never said … I made a complete record of all the remedies that were men-
tioned by Dioscorides and Galen and added to their words those of their
successors, as correctly as possible.134
Identification
The methodology for the identification of plants mentioned in historical

sources has been practised since the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries,
especially by scholars such as Linnaeus and his milieu, who were mainly
interested in the identification of the plants mentioned in religious litera-
ture.135 Among the most prominent and well-known early scholars we should
mention Celsius Olaf (1670–1756)136 and Fredrik Hasselquist (1722–52)137
and among the later ones, Immanuel Löw,138 Norman and Alma Moldenke
and Yehoda Feliks139
The principles of such identification and the means that are available to
the modern researcher integrate the scientific methods of various disciplines
and include, among others, the following procedures: identification in accord-
ance with analysis of textual descriptions in its literary, cultural and real-life
context; comparison with parallel texts from different cultures and geographi-
cal regions; comparative linguistics; a survey of recent commentary literature
and modern studies; phyto-geographical analysis; ethno-pharmacological
data; and archaeobotanical findings. The system used for the identification
of the medicinal substances in our book is based on the same method, on

various dictionaries, on the ethno-pharmacological and historical survey we
have carried out and more.
Identification of medicinal substances mentioned in medieval sources is
a problematic and complex issue; the available texts are either literary, and
therefore do not reflect the realia of the period or geographical region, or
casual and deal with the everyday life of the medieval people (they are not
literary, so the writing is not bound by the official or accepted rules of orthog-
raphy). In several studies we conducted in the past, we tackled some of these
difficulties with the aid of previously conducted field and historical research.140
The knowledge and experience we acquired have proven very useful for the
present work. Of special importance is the comparative collection of materia
medica of the Middle East that was assembled a decade ago, consisting of
hundreds of substances.141 Purchasing these substances in traditional markets
in Israel and other Middle Eastern locations142 and recording their traditional
uses improved our identification methods and gave rise to new methods for
handling and examining the substances directly. In general, the identification
was accomplished by analysis of the text and the context, and by comparison
with the medieval medical literature, namely the dictionaries of terms used in
the materia medica. Yet, the most important criterion, which took us to the
highest and most satisfactory level of identification, was the continuous and
reliable ‘tradition of identification’. Many substances that appear in the texts
are used for medical purposes by various ethnic groups.143 Records of such
uses in Middle Eastern capitals in the recent past and in present-day markets
have been kept by various scholars, for example, Meyerhof,144 Ducros145 and
others.146 For purposes of identification we also used specialist botanical dic-
tionaries such as that of Issa Bey147 and Bedevian.148
The Suggested Model
After dealing with the identification issue, we would like to present the crite-
ria that have guided us in our present study, that is, the determination of the
medicinal substances that were distributed by the Arabs:
• Phyto-geographical origin – the ecological/geographical origin/habitat of

the substance (plant, animal or in-organic). The vast majority of the ‘new’
substances derives from tropical origins and grows wild in southern and
eastern Asia and the islands of the Indian Ocean, but cannot grow in the
Middle East and Europe. Some of these, mainly spices, are imported from
these regions until the present day, whereas others were introduced later
to tropical regions in South America.
• Substances that are not mentioned in the writings of the Classical sources
such as Theophrastus, Dioscorides, Pliny, Galen, Aëtius of Amida, of
Tralles, and Paul of Aegina until the Arab conquest. As mentioned before,
medieval Andalusian scholars such as Ibn Juljul, Ibn Zuhr, Ibn Rushd
and al-ʾIdrīsī wrote about it centuries ago.
• Written sources – literary sources that specifically mention the distribu-
tion of one or more of these substances by the Arabs, for example the
orange.149 Here we made an effort to learn and present the Jewish sources
written in the Land of Israel and Babylonia during the pre-Islamic period
and onward, as these sources have been under-exploited in the research
literature so far, especially against the background of the very poor sources
coming out of Iran and Iraq during that period. The main sources are
therefore the Jerusalem Talmud and, more importantly, the Babylonian
Talmud. Into these later texts were inserted and integrated by Jewish
sages called Savoraim (sixth and seventh centuries),150 who form the link
between the Talmuds and the period of the Geonim (seventh to elev-
enth centuries), which corresponds to the Abbasid and Fatimid periods.
In Geonic literature we find, for the first time, Halachic references (in
discussions of blessings) to new crops such as banana, eggplant and sug-
arcane. This is why we consider this medieval period of Jewish literature
as a highly important sensor and resource for the study of agricultural
innovation that took place in the Middle East after the Arab conquest, as
well as the ‘new’ medicinal substances distributed by the Arabs.151
• Indirect references to ‘new drugs’ in Arabic literature are medicinal sub-
stances with names that testify to their origins from southern and east-
ern Asia, China, India, Pakistan (Sind), Tibet and so forth. The Arabic
term ‘hindī’ (Indian) has a broad meaning that includes all the prod-
ucts and merchandise exported from the above-mentioned geographi-
cal areas and the islands of the Indian Ocean, that is, Madagascar and
Zanzibar.152 This measurement is significant only in cases in which the
given substance we are dealing with was not known during the Classical
period. An example of this problematic issue is cinnamon, named in
Arabic dār‚īnī, meaning its origin is from China, but, cinnamon was
already known in the Classical period and even prior to it.153 The histori-
cal sources we have used are varied and bountiful – from theoretical and
practical medical and pharmaceutical literature, alchemy and perfumery
books, lexicography, accounts of geographers and travellers, herbal and
botanical books, general medieval encyclopaedias, commercial literature
and the vast Cairo Genizah manuscripts, as well as Byzantine and other
Western literature, including commercial documents, the Italian archives
and publications regarding their studies (all of which are heavily cited in
the entries in Chapter 3).
• Comparative linguistics – a substance with a name that originates, or is
synonymous with, either Sanskrit or Persian terms but has no Greek,
Latin or Spanish equivalent. It should be noted, however, that it is possi-
ble that some of these ‘new’ substances were assigned European synonyms
in later periods.
• Archaeo-botanical findings – through the absence of any archaeological
remains of a substance in the Middle East, North Africa and Europe
until the Arab conquest, and their existence from the medieval period
onward. However, we have to be aware that archaeo-botanical findings
are sporadic and do not reflect the whole picture of reality. The evidence
from this ‘branch’ of research is therefore limited and enables us to draw
conclusions strictly in a positive way, that is, from the actual existence of
findings and not from their absence.
The combination of all, or at least some, of the above-mentioned criteria

may sufficiently determine, although not absolutely, the group of medicinal
substances distributed by the Arabs from southern and eastern Asia to Europe
and the Middle East.
This may be the place to express our reservations, from a methodological
point of view, concerning the lack of abundant information regarding the
technique used in the distribution of substances and its pattern. We are there-
fore restricted in the quality of the information we have at hand, and in many
cases what we write are primarily assumptions.154 For example, we have no
precise data about all of the trade routes and trading stations for distribution
of the substances from India, through Sind (present-day Pakistan), to Persia,
Mesopotamia and the Middle East, or alternatively from India through Arabia
and East Africa to the Middle East. Yet, it is clear that various caravan routes
existed (similar to the Silk Road)155 along which various cooperative trade
activities were conducted. One of the main centres was Kābul in Afghanistan,
which was conquered by the Umayyads in the mid-seventh century and was
regarded as the gateway to India.156 One of the most important medicinal
substances brought from this region was ʾihlīlaj kābulī (Terminalia chebula).
Notes
1. See: Amar and Lev, ‘The significance’.
2. Amar, ‘The revolution in textiles’.
3. Amar, ‘The history of the paper industry’; Amar et al., ‘The paper and textile
industry’; al-Hassan and Hill, Islamic Technology.
4. On the Chinese drugs mentioned in the Arabic medical literature, see: Aziz,
‘Arabs’ knowledge’; Pormann and Savage-Smith, Medieval Islamic, pp. 22–3,
36. Chinese medicinal substances were distributed during the early Arab
period, but translated medical Chinese texts appear much later, from the thir-
teenth century. On the transfer of medical knowledge from China to the West
and vice versa (including Mongolian Iran), see: Buell, ‘How did Persian’.
5. Regarding the trade in musk see, for example, Akasoy and Yoeli-Tlalim, ‘Along
the musk routes’.
6. Maqbul, Hind.
7. For example, Adams, The Seven Books, III, pp. 424–79.
8. Thompson, The Mystery and Romance, p. 102; Campbell, Arabian Medicine,
p. 55; Meyerhof, ‘The background’, p. 1,848; Riddle, ‘The introduction’;
Stannard, Pristina Medicamenta, p. 1,560; Rogers, ‘The Arab contribution’;
Ali and Qadry, ‘Contribution’, p. 51; Savage-Smith, ‘˝ibb’. See also: Adams,
The Seven Books, III, pp. 424–80.
9. Hill, Islamic Science, pp. 76–84; Anawati, ‘Arabic alchemy’.
10. Ali and Qadry, ‘Contribution’, p. 52; Campbell, Arabian Medicine; Hamarneh,
‘The climax’.
11. Ali and Qadry, ‘Contribution’, pp. 51–3.
12. Udovitch, The Islamic Middle East, pp. 181–91.
13. Morony, Iraq after, pp. 271–3.
14. This area was inhabited by a population of brown-skinned and curly-haired

people who may have been the descendants of slaves brought there by the
Ummayads. See Albright, ‘The archaeological results’, p. 4; Amar, Agricultural
Produce, pp. 46–7; Yellinek, ‘The Mysterious Rabbi’, p. 79.
15. Al-Balādhurī, Kitāb Futūª, pp. 168, 171, 229–30; see in detail: Amar and
Serri, ‘When did’.
17. Amar and Serri, al-Tamīmī’s, pp. 20–1.
18. Flood, Objects of Translation, pp. 16–17; Lev and Amar, Practical, pp. 218–21.
19. Watson, Agricultural Innovation.
20. Crone, ‘Review’; Johns, ‘A Green Revolution’; Cahen, ‘Review’; Amar,
Agriculture, p. 335; a summary of the proponents and opponents of Watson’s
theory was prepared by Decker. See: Decker, ‘Plants and progress’.
21. Ashtor, ‘Review’.
22. Decker, ‘Plants and progress’.
23. The basic compilation of the Oral Law of Judaism was compiled in about the
third century AD.
24. The Tosefta acts as a supplement to the Mishna.
25. A collection of Rabbinic notes about the Jewish oral tradition written in the
Land of Israel during the second to fourth centuries AD.
26. Bavli, ʿEruvin 58a.
27. Bavli, Berachot 43a; The Jerusalem Talmud, Berachot 6, 6: 10d. In Bavli
Óullin 28a; Pesaªim 42b; Jasmine in Shabbat 50b; Musk in: Berachot 43a;
Coconut palm in ʿEruvin 58a.
28. Amar, Agricultural Produce, pp. 334–6.
29. Ashtor, ‘Levantine sugar industry’; Amar, Agricultural Produce, pp. 300–25.
30. Amar, ‘The revolution in textiles’.
31. Amar and Lev, ‘Watermelon’.
32. Paris et al., ‘Medieval emergence of sweet melons’.
33. Amar and Lev, ‘Watermelon’.
34. Paris et al., ‘Medieval history’.
35. Zohary and Hopf, Domestication, pp. 193–4; Smartt and Simmonds, Evolution
of Crop Plants, pp. 93–4; Germer, Flora, pp 127–8; de Vartavan et al., Codex,
pp. 78–88.
36. Liphschitz and Waisel, ‘Dendroarchaeological investigations’, pp. 34–5);
Borowski, Agriculture in Iron Age Israel, p. 137.
37. Feliks, Plant World, p. 164; Löw, Die Flora, I, pp. 550–3.
38. Mishna, Maʿaseroth 2: 6.

39. Zohary and Hopf, Domestication, p. 193; Germer, Flora, p. 127.
40. Danin and Shmida, ‘Watermelons’.
41. Ibn Biklārish, Kitāb al-Mustaʿīnī, p. 42; al-Baghdādī, Kitāb al-ʾIfāda wa-l-
ʾIʿtibār, p. 75; Ben Maimon, Glossary of Drug Names, no. 98.
42. For information on the sale of ba††īkh sindi in Acre, see: Ibn Jubayr, Riªla, p. 314.
43. The region was ruled by the Almoravids from western North Africa to
Andalusia.
44. Al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, pp. 86–7.
45. Lewis, ‘An Arabic account’, p. 484.
46. See full data in Amar, Agricultural Produce, pp. 264–5.
47. Ibn al-Shihna, Al-Durr al-Muntakhab, p. 253.
48. Al-Nābulsī, ʿIlm al-Milāªa, p. 135.
49. Al-Baghdādī, Kitāb al-ʾIfāda wa-l-ʾIʿtibār, p. 73.
50. Ibid.
51. The book of curious and entertaining information: Bosworth, The La†āʾif,
p. 142.
52. Defremery and Sanguinetti, The Travels, III, p. 547.
53. Germer, Flora, pp. 128–9.
54. Epstein, The Gaonic, p. 123; Catane, Otzar ha-Leʿazim, p. 13, no. 3,211.
55. For example, al–Bīrūnī wrote in the entry (khiyār) that it is known as ‘qiththā’
in Arabic and ‘sikus’ in Greek. Said and Elahie, al–Bīrūnī’s, p. 140. Both Ibn
al-Bay†ār and al-Baghdādī wrote that it is one of the types of the faqqūs; see
al-Baghdādī, Kitāb al-ʾIfāda wa-l-ʾIʿtibār, p. 72; Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ,
II, p. 80.
56. Allony, Studies in Medieval, p. 189; Ben Maimon, Mishna, I, p. 101.
57. See Pliny, Naturalis Historia, XIX, 70; compare: Mishna, Maʿasrot 1: 5:
‘ha-kishuʾim ve-ha-daluʿim mi-she-yifkesu’ meaning – ‘The chate melon and
the gourds when they have lost their hair.’
58. For example, sculpted models have been found in ancient Egypt of what looks
like cucumbers, although scholars identify them as melons or faqqūs. See Wilson,
Egyptian Food and Drink, pp. 22–3; Janick et al., ‘The cucurbits’, p. 1,449.
59. Germer, Flora, pp. 129–30; de Vartavan et al., Codex, p. 89.
60. Zohary and Hopf, Domestication, p. 195.
61. For details, see: Janick at al., ‘The cucurbits’. This work assembles and analyses
all Jewish and Roman sources of that time, including the findings of ancient
Egypt.
62. Amar et al., ‘On Ibn Juljul’.

63. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung. Cucumber (khiyār) was one of the plants that
al-ʾIdrīsī (1100–66 AD) listed as not mentioned by Dioscorides: see: al-ʾIdrīsī,
Compendium, I, pp. 2–3; II, p. 3.
64. See: al-ʾIdrīsī, Compendium, II, p. 499. The scholar Ibrāhīm Ben Mrād holds
the same view, although he mentions other Arabic philologists who claim it is
an Arabic name: Ben Mrād, Al-Mu‚†alaª al-ʾAʿjamī, II, pp. 360–1; Said and
Elahie, al-Bīrūnī’s, p. 140.
65. Said, al–Bīrūnī’s, I, p. 140.
66. Kirkbride, Biosystematic, pp.79–82; Robinson and Decker-Walters, Cucurbits,
pp. 65–70.
67. Amar, Agricultural Produce, pp. 285–7.
68. Paris et al., ‘Medieval history’.
69. Janick et al., The Cucurbits; Paris et al., ‘The cucurbitaceae’; Paris et al.,
‘Medieval herbal’.
70. Kahl, Sābūr ibn Sahl’s Dispensatory, p. 85 (Arabic), p. 190 (English).
71. Steingass, A Comprehensive Persian–English.
72. Kashani and Kashani, The Combined New; Soltani et al., ‘Characterization’.
73. Kramers and Wiet, Kitāb Íūrat, p. 314 (Arabic), p. 360 (French).
75. Paper, Ha-Tora, p. 35.
76. Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, III, p. 69; IV, p. 110.
77. Ibid., II, p. 93.
78. Al-Íabbāª, Kitāb al-ʾAghdhiya, pp. 349–51.
79. Pellat, Le Calendrier, p. 76.
80. Ibid., p. 40.
81. Amar and Serri, al-Tamīmī’s.
82. Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, II, p. 93.
83. Schefer, Sefer Nameh, p. 51 (Persian), pp. 150–1 (French).
84. Dols, Medieval Islamic Medicine.
86. Al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XI, pp. 30–1; Amar, Agricultural Produce, p. 285;
al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, p. 387; Clément-Mullet, Le Livre, II, pp. 222–3;
El Faïz, Ibn al-ʿAwwām, pp. 683–4.
87. Davis, Flora, V, p. 318.
88. Zohary, Geobotany, p. 322; Feinbrun-Dothan, Flora Palaestina, III, p. 353.
89. Dudai and Amar, ‘Tree wormwood’.
90. For example, al-Masʿūdī describes the trade route of the orange from India to
Oman, Iraq, al-Shām and Egypt; see: al-Masʿūdī, al-Dhahab, II, pp. 438–9.
91. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung.
92. Ibn Zuhr, Kitāb al-ʾAghdhiya, p. 89.
93. Al-ʾIdrīsī was born in the North African coastal town of Sab†a (now Ceuta)
(1100– 66), al-ʾIdrīsī, Compendium, I, pp. 2–3, II, p. 3.
94. Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ.
95. Maimonides disagreed with ʿAlī Ibn Ri∂wān (eleventh century), who was of the
opinion that the eggplant was known by Galen and ‘the right essence [truth] is that
Galen did not know it and therefore did not remember [mention]’. Ben Maimon,
Aphorisms, pp. 24, 15. In another place Maimonides writes that the bezoar stone
was not mentioned by Galen; see: Ben Maimon, Poisons, pp. 18–19.
96. Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged.
97. Ibn Rushd, Kitāb al-Kulliyyāt, pp. 268–72.
98. It should be mentioned that Ibn Juljul listed sixty-two drugs (Amar et al., ‘On
Ibn Juljul’), and Ibn Rushd listed forty-one (Amar et al., ‘Ibn Rushd’). In a
survey we did on Ibn al-Bay†ār’s book Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ it was found that twenty
drugs about which he wrote were not mentioned by Dioscorides and Galen;
for example: bādharnabūyah (I, p. 74) [lemon balm, Melissa officnalis]; sult
(III, p. 24) [Rye, Secale cereale]; maªlab (IV, p. 141) [perfumed cherry, Prunus
mahaleb]; yāsamin (IV, p. 201) [jasmine, Jasminum officinale]; al-mās (III,
p. 40) [diamond]; yāqūt (IV, p. 202) [Corundum].
99. Amar et al., ‘On Ibn Juljul’; Amar et al., ‘Ibn Rushd’.
100. Gil, ‘The Radhanite’; Amar et al., ‘On Ibn Juljul’.
101. Dubler, ‘Diyūsk.urīdis’; Riddle, Dioscorides on Pharmacy; Agha, Bibliography.
102. On the translation project, see: Meyerhof, ‘Sultan Saladin’s physician’; De
Lacy, How Greek Science; Balty-Guesdon, ‘Le bayt al-hikma’; Gutas, Greek
Thought.
103. Ibn Abī U‚aybiʿa, ʿUyūn, p. 493; al-Qif†ī, Tārīkh al-Óukamāʾ, p. 190;
al-ʾAndalūsī, Kitāb ˝abaqāt, pp. 80–1; Meyerhof, ‘The background’.
104. el-Gammal, ‘The relations’; Ibn Abī ʾU‚aybiʿa, ʿUyūn, pp. 493–4.
105. Wüstenfeld, Geschichte, no. 57; Leclerc, Histoire, I, pp. 430–2; Brockelmann,
Geschichte, I, §237, p. 422; Sarton, Introduction, I, p. 682; Dietrich, ‘Ibn
Djuldjul’; Johnstone, ‘Ibn Juljul’.
106. Ibn Abī U‚aybiʿa, ʿUyūn, p. 495.
107. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung. See review article: Richter-Bernburg, ‘Book review’.
109. Al-ʾIdrīsī, Compendium, I, pp. 2–3; II, p. 3. Two more substances are men-
tioned: ‘sunbul’ and ‘kurrāth’, but it seems that this is a transcriber’s error since
both substances are mentioned in Dioscorides’ book. The term ‘sunbul’ is nard
(Nardostachys jatamansi); see Dioscorides (I. 7), see: Beck, Padenius Dioscorides.
‘kurrāth’ is leek (Allium porrum); Dioscorides (II.1 79), see Gunther, The Greek
Herbal.
110. Ibn Abī U‚aybiʿa, ʿUyūn, p. 495; Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 21; Richter-
Bernburg, ‘Albert Dietrich’. Unfortunately, Ibn Juljul’s words and the quo-
tations attributed to him have not survived, but are referred to in Ibn Abī
U‚aybiʿa’s writings.
111. Amaret al., ‘On Ibn Juljul’.
112. The term ‘jawz jundum’, although identified as a lichen species, is included in
ancient medicine as †īn (earth).
115. Johnstone, ‘Ibn Juljul’, p. 40.
116. Maqbul, ‘Hind’.
117. Miller, The Spice Trade; Groom, Frankincense.
118. Riddle, ‘The introduction’.
119. Berakhot, 43a, as ‘mushk’; ʿEruvin, 58b, as the Persian name ‘nargila’.
120. Shabbat, 50b.
121. Aziz, ‘Arab’s knowledge’, p. 227.
122. Al-Dimashqī, Nukhbat, pp. 199–200; Amar, ‘Ibn al-Bay†ār’.
123. Hameed, ‘History of drugs’.
124. Arnaldez, ‘Ibn Rushd’, III, pp. 909–20; Gillispie, Dictionary, XII, pp. 1–9;
Steinschneider, Die europaischen Ubersetzungen, pp. 671–7; Brockelmann,
Geschichte, pp. 604–6; Leclerc, Histoire, II, pp. 99–109; Sarton, Introduction, II,
pp. 355–60; Ibn Abī ʾU‚aybiʿa, ʿUyūn, pp. 487–90.
125. Galen, Claudii.
128. This explains why lisān al-ʿa‚āfīr, as a plant that was not mentioned by Galen, is
mentioned and identified as Fraxinus sp. by Dioscorides (I. 108), see: Gunther,
The Greek Herbal.
129. Ben Mrād, Buªūth, pp. 287–96.
130. Ibid., pp. 422–3.
131. Amar, ‘Abū al-ʿAbbās’.
132. Ibn al-Bay†ār, Tafsīr; Sankary, The Cilican; Dietrich, Dioscurides Triumphans;
Amar and Serri, ‘Ibn al-Íūrī’.
133. Meyerhof, ‘Sultan Saladin’s physician’.
134. Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged, pp. 56–7.
135. On the history of the identification of the plants mentioned in the Bible, see:
Moldenke and Moldenke, Plants of the Bible, pp. 1–15.
136. Celsius, Hierobotanicon.
137. Hasselquist, Iter Palaestinum.
138. Löw, Aramaeische Pflanzennamen; Löw, Die Flora.
139. Feliks, Plant World, pp. 3–12.
140. Lev, Medicinal Substances; Lev, ‘Reconstructed materia medica’; Lev and Amar,
Practical.
141. Lev and Amar, ‘Ethnopharmacological survey’.
142. Ibid.
143. Lev and Amar, ‘Fossils’.
144. Meyerhof, Der Bazar.
145. Ducros, ‘Essai sur le droguier’.
146. Salah et al., Herb Drugs.
147. Issa Bey, Dictionnaire.
148. Bedevian, Illustrated Polyglotic Dictionary.
149. Al-Masʿūdī, al-Dhahab, II, pp. 438–9.
150. Ephrathi, The Sevoraic Period.
151. Amar, ‘Agronomic innovations’.
153. Amar, Incense, p. 124.
154. Indeed the trade issue is an entirely different matter, larger than described here.
Here we limit ourselves to textual transmissions.
155. Whitfield, ‘Was there a Silk Road?’; Whitfield, The Silk Road.
156. Flood, Objects of Translation, pp. 16–17.
3
‘Arabian’ Substances
T his chapter is dedicated to the description of the main medicinal sub-

stances that were distributed as a result of the Muslim conquests.
Out of nearly 100 substances, we have chosen to present nearly half, for
which we dedicate entries. Most of the entries discuss substances that were
clearly identified, along with evidence of practical uses in medical books and
prescriptions, as well as commercial documents. In general, we have not
included compound drugs or other substances regarding of whose identi-
fication the later practitioners (twelfth and thirteenth centuries) were not
certain.
Moreover, we have not included agriculture crops, which had already
been studied and published by Watson;1 in other words, we are dealing here
with typical medicinal substances, some of which were also used as spices,
perfumes, dyes and gemstones. These drugs were commonly used for long
periods, many of them until the nineteenth century. In this manner, the
long-term contribution of the Arabs in introducing the ‘new’ drugs in the
Old World will be clearly demonstrated.
Each entry is constructed according to the following pattern:
1. Names: English, Arabic, scientific

2. Description and phyto-geographical distribution
3. Substance origin according to the written sources and philological analysis
4. Evidence of trade and anecdotes
5. Medicine: qualities, nature, degree (according to the Humoral Doctrine),
description of the main medical uses and other uses according to the
medical literature, prescriptions and so forth.
82
Plate 1 Fruits of two varieties of terminalia trees: yellow (Terminalia citrina) and black
(Terminalia chebula)
Plate 2 Fruits of the marking-nut tree (Semecarpus anacardium)
Plate 3 Resin and powder made out of dragon’s blood (Dracaena draco)
Plate 4 Fruits of tamarind tree (Tamarindus indica)
Plate 5 Grains of .tabāshīr made of bamboo (Bambusa vulgaris)
Plate 6 Fruits of purging cassia (Cassia fistula)
Plate 7 Dry flower buds of clove tree (Eugenia caryophyllata)
Plate 8 Slices of betel palm nut on leaf of betel-pepper tree (Piper betel)
Plate 9 Betel palm nut (Areca catechu)
Plate 10 Betel palm tree in Sri Lanka
Plate 11 Rhizomes of turmeric (Curcuma longa) and powder made of them
Plate 12 Rhizomes of galingale (Alpinia galanga)

Plate 13 Fruits and leaf of nutmeg (Myristica fragrans)
Plate 14 Nutmeg seeds and peels of seeds (mace)
Plate 15 Seeds of perfumed cherry (Prunus mahaleb)
Plate 16 Seeds of purging croton (Croton tiglium)
Plate 17 Fruits and leaves of cassia (Cassia acutifolia)
Plate 18 Fruits of berberry (Berberis vulgaris)
Plate 19 Sugary secretion (grain) of the Persian manna plant (Alhagi maurorum)
Plate 20 Grains of sandarus (Callitris quadrivalvis)
Plate 21 Fruits of cubeb pepper (Piper cubeba)
Plate 22 Stick-lacca – secretion of lacca (Laccifer lacca)
Plate 23 Wool fleeces dyed with lacca
Plate 24 Sawdust of sappan wood (Caesalpinia sappan)
Plate 25 Sappan wood hues (on wool fleeces)
Plate 26 Wool fleeces dyed with warras (Flemingia grahamiana)
Plate 27 Fragments of wood and bottle of agarwood oil (Aquilaria agallocha)
Plate 28 Leaves, white crystal cubes and bottle of camphor oil (Cinnamonum camphora)
Plate 29 Sawdust and wood of red sandalwood (Pterocarpus santalinus)
Plate 30 Fragments of wood of white sandalwood (Santalum album)
Plate 31 Screw pine tree in Zanzibar (Pandanus odoratissimus)
Plate 32 Red corundum (ruby)
Plate 33 Raw white and transparent corundum

Plate 34 Raw blue and purple corundum
Plate 35 Raw diamonds

‘ara bi a n’ substances | 83
Drugs, Spices and Industrial Substances
Drugs
myrobalan
Its nature is cold in the first degree and dry in the second degree, because
it consists of a cold element of earth and a burnt element of earth which is
less than the cold one in strength, and the proof for that is the astringency –
which is to be found in its flavour – together with a bitterness.2
Myrobalan (Cherry Plum) (ʾamlaj; balīlaj, ʾihlīlaj, halīlaj); Terminalia sp.

(Combrotaceae)
The Terminalia genus has 200 species. The trees are tall with their fruit
containing 30 per cent tannin, which is used for both curative and industrial
purposes. The use of the myrobalan fruit as a remedy was well-known in
India and China since early times while Greek and Roman medical treatises
allude neither to the tree nor to its fruit.3
Several species of myrobalan are mentioned in the medieval commercial,
industrial and medical literature (Plate 1). The main ones are: Yellow myrob-
alan (Terminalia citrina) (ʾihlīlaj ʾa‚far); Black myrobalan (Terminalia che-
bula) (ʾihlīlaj, halīlaj ʾaswad, kābulī); Indian myrobalan (Terminalia arjuna)
(ʾihlīlaj hindī); Belleric myrobalan (Terminalia bellerica) (balīlaj). The last
one, Embelic myrobalan (Phyllanthus emblica) (ʾamlaj), belongs to a different
botanical family (Euphorbiaceae).
Remnants of fruits of Phyllanthus emblica (=Emblica officinalis) were
found among the Roman archaeo-botanical assemblage of the Egyptian port
Berenike on the western shore of the Red Sea, along with rice, bamboo,
coconut and mungo bean.4
We have no evidence that myrobalan was used or mentioned by Classical
sources; according to Ibn Juljul and Ibn Rushd, myrobalan species were
not mentioned by either Galen or Dioscorides.5 Yet, myrobalan of differ-
ent kinds is mentioned in the Middle East from the early Islamic period in
connection with the medicinal uses of its fruit. In Europe, no information
on myrobalan is available until trade in its fruit began.6 Myrobalan species
were imported from tropical Asia and Africa, where they were cultivated
(India, Burma, Madagascar),7 and then exported to the Mediterranean region
through Aden,8 and from there to Europe.9 The Kābulī species was exported
from Kābul in Afghanistan.10 The fruits of the myrobalan species were used
for ink production, dyeing and tanning.11 In other cases, a jam was made
from the ripe fruits.12
Dried fruits of myrobalan are referred to in many trade-related docu-
ments found in the Genizah.13 Myrobalan was imported to Egypt through
the trading routes of the Indian Ocean. From Aden (Yemen) it was trans-
ported to Egypt through the port of GhayÕa.14 Many Genizah fragments,
such as letters between merchants based in Fus†ā† and Alexandria, deal with
trade in myrobalan.15
From Egypt, cargoes of Indian and yellow myrobalan were exported to
Qayrawān16 and Sicily17 through Mahdiyya.18 Cargoes were also sent from
Egypt to the Levant – that is, the ports of Ascalon,19 Tyre20 and Tripoli21 –
and thence overland to the interior. For example, eleventh-century Genizah
documents reveal that myrobalan of Egyptian origin was sold in Jerusalem,
although the precise route is not clear (presumably via Ramla). In a letter
sent from Ramla to Jerusalem on which the signature of ʿAmram ha-Rofe
was identified, the addressee was asked to send some medicinal substances,
including kuhl and myrobalan.22 In another letter, sent from Jerusalem to
Fus†ā† in 1053, Naharay Ben Nissim is asked to send myrobalan for the
treatment of the sender’s wife.23 The Jewish traders of Sicily, mainly under the
Islamic rule (827–1061), imported quantities of myrobalan along with vari-
ous products (including drugs, dyeing materials, spices and perfumes) and
other commodities, most of which were exported to Andalusia and Europe.24
The plant is also mentioned on a list of substances in which the Crusaders in
Acre traded during the thirteenth century.25
Sometimes the order to sell was sent from Fus†ā† through Alexandria to a
merchant in the West. In other cases, the sellers had no notion of the cargo’s
final destination. Distances and final destinations were determined by market
forces. This is illustrated by a letter from Naharay Ben Nissim to a merchant
in the eleventh century, as follows: ‘and the shipment, of which the myroba-
lan is a part this year, please let me know where you sent it’.26
Prices can be ascertained from other documents, showing that yellow
myrobalan was the best and, therefore, the most expensive, kind. The Indian
species was the second best and Chebulic was the cheapest.27 As with other
substances, the price of myrobalan varied according to market conditions.

For example, a merchant from Alexandria writes in a letter (summer 1062):
‘Chebulic myrobalan has no demand.’28 A year later (in Mahdiyya, 1063), the
market was rising. The price of Chebulic myrobalan was 2.5 dīnārs per mann
while yellow myrobalan was ten dirhams per qin†ār. In both cases, only small
quantities were sold.29 In Alexandria (1065), the price of yellow myrobalan was
already five to six dīnārs with a concentrate of fine Chebulic myrobalan going
for one dirham per mann.30 In any event, there is no doubt that the difference
between purchase and sale prices was large. In Fus†ā† ten manns were sold
to a middleman in Sicily (1059) for 3.3 dīnārs, whereas one qin†ār of yellow
myrobalan sold for 1.25 dīnārs.31 Yellow myrobalan was imported, along with
saffron, sappan wood, lacca, alum and so on, into Sicily for dyeing cloth and
fabric, which were the main industries of the island under the Islamic rule.32
In medieval medical literature, myrobalan varieties were described as
being used as a cathartic drug also intended to cure ear diseases and throat
pains, counteract swellings in the mouth, serve as a component in an abor-
tive medication, strengthen breathing, stimulate coitus, harden the penis and
increase sperm, prevent diarrhoea and strengthen the gums, teeth and brain.33
According to Ibn al-Bay†ār, the various myrobalan species were used mainly
to treat and cleanse a weak stomach.34
Interestingly enough, Abū al-Khayr al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄ writes about the three
kinds of ‘pepper’ mentioning the balīlaj, ʾihlīlaj ʾaswad and ʾamlaj. He also
names them as the ‘three rounded brothers’.35 One of the ways to dispense
the myrobalan was to make a jam out of the fruits and to use them medici-
nally. Al-˝abar⁄, for example, testifies that such a jam was used to strengthen
the stomach, remove moisture, treat haemorrhoids and reduce black bile.36
The Arabic medical authorities differed regarding the number of myroba-
lan kinds that were sold in the markets and used for medicine. Abū al-Khayr
al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄ describes six kinds while others, such as Ibn Māsawayhi, men-
tion four.37 However, most of the sources, including Ibn Rushd and Ibn
Juljul, describe five kinds of myrobalan: ʾa‚far, kābulī,38 hindī, ʾamlaj and
balīlaj.39 Contemporary sources, such as Abū al-Khayr al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄, deal with
the identification of the different kinds, quoting and citing many physicians
and botanists.40 Forgeries when selling fruits of myrobalan are described by
al-Shayzar⁄41 while forgery of myrobalan jam is recorded by al-Qurashī.42
Five kinds of myrobalan are mentioned frequently and recorded on

twenty-four lists of drugs and in fifty-five prescriptions, appearing in practi-
cal medical documents found in the Cairo Genizah. These documents later
teach us that their actual medieval uses were mainly for the treatment of eye
disease, hallucination, stomach and digestion, weak eyesight, migraine, diet,
invalid’s diet and as an aphrodisiac.43
Due to the importance of myrobalan in the daily life of the medieval Arab
world, in general, and that of the inhabitants of the Eastern Mediterranean,
in particular, we hereby present their main uses according to selected medi-
eval medical Arabic sources:
ʾIhlīlaj kābulī (Black myrobalan): al-˝abar⁄ testifies that a jam made of
black myrobalan was used to reduce black bile, strengthen the stomach and
treat haemorrhoids.44 According to Ibn Juljul, this Indian drug was brought
from Kābul, which borders India. He adds that its nature is slightly hot with
dryness. It purges the black bile that is formed from the yellow (bile), its dose
being four mithqāl.45 Ibn Rushd, who also writes about the ability of the
plants to ‘purge black bile gently’, adds that ‘it is one of the best drugs for
purging this bile’.46 Ibn Qā∂ī Baʿalbakk writes that it is a cold and dry drug.
It extends life, ‘prevents old age’, treats haemorrhoids and strengthens the
gums, hair (preserving its black colour) and stomach. From his personal expe-
rience, the ʾihlīlaj kābulī strengthens the heart and promotes happiness.47
Ibn al-Bay†ār writes, while citing other important Arabic medical sources,
that black myrobalan reduces black bile, and reiterates most of the above
mentioned uses.48
ʾIhlīlaj hindī (Indian myrobalan): Ibn Juljul writes that it has some
heat and dryness with its dosage being the same as that of the Kābulī kind.
He adds that some practitioners also call it ‘the Chinese one’ and it, too,
removes black bile.49 Ibn Rushd adds that, through the ability to ‘burn
black bile’, it cures head diseases that derive from the stomach. Moreover,
he claims that using it frequently sharpens the senses and thinking and
slows down hoariness.50 Ibn al-Bay†ār writes that the Indian myroblan
reduces yellow bile.51
ʾIhlīlaj ʾa‚far (Yellow myrobalan): al-˝abar⁄ writes that a jam made of
yellow myrobalan was used to remove intestinal worms.52 According to Ibn
Julul, its dominant characteristics are coldness and dryness, possessing the
power to purge yellow bile. He cites medical sources claiming its purging
effect when in the form of juice or, alternatively, resin.53 Ibn Rushd also
writes that it is used to purge yellow bile ‘gently’, adding that it can be
used as a potion made of myrobalan fruits soaked in water or as a powder.54
Ibn al-Bay†ār writes, supporting his claims by citing other Arabic medical
authorities, that it is a cold and dry drug, beneficial as an astrigent, which
reduces yellow bile and strengthens the stomach.55
Balīlaj (Belleric myrobalan): Abū al-Khayr al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄ describes the fruit
as ‘similar to the gall nut and the walnut. Its colour is grey-yellow. It has a
round, fleshy and oily seed which has the pleasant flavour of pistachio or hazel
nut.’56 Ibn Juljul writes that coldness and dryness are its dominant attributes,
it has the ability to remove the yellow bile gently and its astringency is pleas-
ant. He adds that it has a special quality for relieving gas and haemorrhoids
and dries the moisture in the intestine and the stomach.57 Ibn Rushd asserts
that ‘some have claimed that it only purges bile’.58
ʾAmlaj (Embelic myrobalan): According to al-˝abar⁄, the ʾamlaj is a
cold drug, which strengthens the stomach and is beneficial for the hair, being
similar to the balīlaj.59 Ibn Rushed writes that it increases sexual desire, stops
spitting and vomiting, sharpens the mind and is useful against haemorrhoids.
He also writes that ‘some have said that it quenches thirst’.60 According to Ibn
Juljul, its dominant properties are coldness and dryness. It is also a somewhat
sour astringent. He adds that it breaks fever ‘caused by yellow bile’. When
cooked with camel’s milk, it is called sīr ʾamlaj and is beneficial for gas and
haemorrhoids and dries the moisture of the intestine and stomach.61
A compound laxative named triphala (ʾa†rīfal, ʾi†rīfil, ʾi†rifil, ʾitriful,
ʾi†rīful in Arabic) was known and used in the medieval Arab world and
the Mediterranean. According to Sbath and Avierinos, it is ‘a confection
made of the three varieties of myrobalan: chebulic, embolic and belleric’.62
Levey believes that it is the ‘Arabised’ form of the Indian name. It applies
to three kinds of myrobalan, kābul, belleric and embolic, which ‘strengthen
the organs of the nervous system and aid the digestive organs with regard
to excess waste’. They usually consist of equal weights due to their similar
usefulness and strength.63 Several records of triphalas were found in the Cairo
Genizah and studied, one of which supplies a recipe for yellow ʾi†rīful that
was used in the treatment of piles (haemorrhoids).64
Ibn Qā∂ī Baʿalbakk writes that all five kinds of the myrobalan (ʾihlīlajāt)
were used to promote good spirits.65 This may be explained mainly by its abil-
ity to reduce and remove black bile, which was considered in Arabic medicine
as the main reason for depression (as well as cancer, leprosy and so on).
anacardium
Repeat, repeat (your learning), and you will not need the anacardium.66
Anacardium (marking nut tree, marsh-nut) (balādhur); Semecarpus anacar-

dium (Anacardiaceae)
The anacardium is a deciduous tree, about fifteen metres in height, of
the sub-Himalayan tract and found throughout the hotter parts of India;
however, it is not found in Burma or Sri Lanka. The fruit is of the size and
shape of a broad bean, black in colour and quite hard and dry on the outside
(Plate 2). The central cellular portion of the pericarp is full of an oily, black,
acrid juice. Anacardium is known in India as the ‘marking nut tree’, since the
tannin-like substance extracted from the fruit is useful in marking fabrics.67 It
is also known there as a plant that possesses pain-relieving properties.68
The plant was not known by either the Greeks or Romans.69 Māsarjawayh,
the Persian Jewish physician (eighth century), was one of the first sources to
mention the balādhur along with the purging cassia, musk, camphor, galangal
and rhubarb.70 Other Arabic sources, mostly medical authorities, mention the
plant named balādhur as well as its uses, merited mainly with the improve-
ment of memory.71 al-ʾIshbīlī mentions the balādhur a number of times in
his book and names a few synonyms.72 He compares the red colour of the
fruits of the baqqam tree to the colour of jawz al-balādhur.73 Al-Bīrūnī writes
with regard to the name of the balādhur that ‘in the Roman language it is
called ʾanaqardiyā’. He describes it as ‘a fruit that resembles tamarind fruit but
is bigger. The pulp of the fruit is like the kernel of an almond. It is sweet, not
dangerous with a shell-like peel like that of an almond. The shell has a hole,
which contains a sticky, black and odourless “honey”.’74 Several Arabic sources
mention China, Íiqilliya and Jabal al-Nār as sources of anacardium.75
Ibn Rushd describes the balādhur as ‘hot in the fourth degree and dry
at the end of the range of the second degree. It is useful against hemiplegia
and limpness. It restores the power of memory when that is lost, by virtue
of its moisture.’76 According to Ibn Juljul, the balādhur ‘grows in India and
elsewhere and is a heart-shaped chestnut (qas†al ) black in colour, tasting like
almonds and encased in honey, which is the balādhur honey. Its nature is hot,
dry, burning, beneficial for cold illnesses such as hemiplegia (fālij), half-face
paralysis (laqwa) and dementia (nisyān) and is called in the Roman language
ʾanaqardiyā, meaning heart-shaped.’77
Medical treatment using anacardium has severe side effects that can even
cause death. Therefore, the dosage must be precise. In addition, a special
diet should be administered to neutralise the poison. It was said about the
Arab historian (of Persian origin) ʾAh.mad Ibn Yah.yā al-Balādhurī (ninth
century),78 who was active in the court of the Abbasid Caliph al-Mutawakkil,
that he was admitted into hospital and died (892) because he had drunk
a potion made of anacardium without knowing its lethal effect. This was
the way he ‘gained’ his family name ‘al-Balādhurī’.79 Indeed, according to
al-Bīrūnī, the plant was ‘counted amongst the poisons which corrode the
humours’. Interestingly enough, ‘yogurt counteracts its alexipharmic proper-
ties, to some extent, whilst walnut oil destroys its potency’. He adds, with
regard to its medicinal uses, that the balādhur ‘acts as a vesicant and corrodes
the blood and the humours. It also excises body warts and removes the
scars left by leprosy and tattooing. It cures alopecia but promotes internal
hot inflammations. A special drug was made out of the plant called maʿjūn
ʾanaqardiyā.’ According to al-Bīrūnī, it was especially useful in diseases asso-
ciated with paralysis, nerve and facial paralysis and amnesia. It was also con-
sidered a stimulator of phantasmagorical vision and melancholia.80 Al-Rāzī
asserts that a concentrate of balādhur prevents pannus and injuries. He cites
other sources that deal with the ability of the plants to alleviate forgetfulness,
improve memory, aid sufferers of paralysis and calm nerves, but reiterates
that it is, nonetheless, very dangerous.81 In his book on Forgetfulness and Its
Treatment, Ibn al-Jazzār highly recommends the use of the balādhur. For
example, he says that:
The electuaries of the balādhur and all the confections of which it is made
and which the ancients composed have beneficial effects through the same
activity mentioned above, with regard to all the other warm, compound
drugs. Their usefulness lies in their special quality, which they derive from
the balādhur or similar drugs. The special quality of the balādhur is its
usefulness against forgetfulness. If one drinks half a dirham of it, it helps
counter forgetfulness and memory loss.82
In another manuscript (Hebrew) of the same book, a few detailed recipes are
given. One of them mentions balādhur’s honey and remarks that it should
‘increase the memory, sharpen the brain, eliminate forgetfulness and help
deal with black bile’. This recipe includes the following substances: three
kinds of myrobalan, black pepper, long pepper, thyme, ginger, balādhur’s
honey, clove, beaver testicles, chamomile, sugar and almond oil.83
The balādhur was widely mentioned in medieval Jewish literature mainly
due to its use by Jewish scholars to improve their memory and scholarship.
A few seventeenth- and eighteenth-century scholars active in Jerusalem used
the anacardium despite the known risks of its use. On the other hand, other
scholars opposed such use and advocated repetition as the preferred way to
memorise. This was the background for the known Hebrew proverb (Repeat,
repeat and you will not need the balādhur) (ªazor ªazor ve-ʾal titzarekh
la-balādhur).84
dragon ’ s blood
… and it is the ʾaydaʿ and dam al-ʾakhawayn, and the resin of an Indian tree
shaped like a palm tree that secretes this resin. It is bright red. Therefore,
its final product is called – al-fu‚ū‚ī [like rock crystals/precious stones]. It
is beneficial for [treating] bleeding from the chest and the rectum and is
sprinkled over wounds if they are still bleeding. It coagulates them quickly.
Its nature tends to be cold. In al-Andalus, it is found on the Island of Cadiz.
This was told to me by credible people who saw this with their own eyes.
There are not many there; only one tree.85
Dragon’s blood (shayyān, dam al-ʾakhawayn; shiyyān); Dracaena cinnabari

(Dracaenaceae)
The modern substance named dragon’s blood is obtained from vari-
ous species of several distinct plant genera. These have been scientifically
identified and studied in laboratories.86 Scholars suggest that dragon’s blood
was produced originally from Dracaena cinnabari and later from Dracaena
draco.87 Dragon’s blood is the name of a bright red resin for medicinal uses.
This natural resin had been used in antiquity for diverse medical and artistic
purposes (Plate 3). It was renowned for its deep red colour and also was a
staple for medieval alchemy. Many ancient legends describe the growth of a
dragon tree on the spot where mythical beasts fought a dragon to the death.88
We identify the early medieval dragon’s blood mentioned in the Arab
sources as Dracaena cinnabari. It is a monocot evergreen tree with a typical
umbrella-shaped crown localised in the Haggeher Mountains in the central
eastern part of Socotra. This island, part of Yemen today, is situated on the
African continental shelf, 225 km east of Cape Guardafui, Somalia, and is
characterised by a high level of endemism (37 per cent). The genus Dracaena
comprises in the region of 60 to 100 species.89
Dragon’s blood appears in several Roman sources but in general was not
a common medicinal substance. For example, Greek writers called it ‘Indian
cinnabar’. The name ‘dragon’s blood’ dates back to the first century AD when
a Greek sailor wrote about an island in the Red Sea where the trees yielded
drops of cinnabar.90 Pliny mentions a liquid by the name blood of dragons
used as an antidote and medicinal substance.91 The plant was not mentioned
by Dioscorides, as was verified by several early Arab scholars and medical
sources, such as Ibn Juljul.92
Early Arabic sources had opposing ideas regarding the substance and its
origin (resin, decoction or a mixture of the two). Various sources tried to
‘guess’ its geographical as well as botanical origin.93 In general, the Arabic
sources mentioned the geographical sources of dragon’s blood as India,94
Socotra95 and al-Juh.fa.96 Some wrote that it was a red resin that was kneaded
and formed into chunk-like shapes.97
Thanks to its red colour and as reflected in the Arabic sources, mainly the
Óisba literature, dragon’s blood was one of the substances used for forgery,
that is, for the production of fake versions of expensive medicinal substances
such as musk98 and saffron.99 Al-Qurashī writes a detailed description:
And some imitate the musk using Turkish rhubarb or dragon’s blood … The
forgers of the musk create the ‘musk pouch’ from peels of myrobalan and
Indian garden cress … All of these should be kneaded with water and pine
resin to create the musk. After that, the ‘mouth’ of the musk is sealed with
resin. The fake musk pouch is dried in the oven. It is possible to identify the
forgery of the musk by opening the pouch, groping the contents and tasting
it. If it is sharp like fire, it is not a forgery. If it does not burn, it is a fake.100
Interestingly enough, al-Shayzarī writes that the dragon’s blood itself was an
object for forgers. According to him, lacca was melted and mixed together with
crushed burnt red brick and maghra, red chalk hematite (Fe2O3). The mixture
was kneaded and disks were made when dried. The disks were later broken and
crushed, together with the substance, and then sold as dragon’s blood.101
Dragon’s blood was widely traded in the medieval period by the Arabs
(and the Jews). For example, it was mentioned in a merchant’s letter found
in the Genizah dispatched from Qayrawān to Cairo regarding substances
required in Palermo.102
As mentioned above, the substance was extensively used by the Arabs
for medicinal purposes. For example, al-Kindī, the famous Arab chemist and
physician in the middle of the ninth century, writes that dragon’s blood was
used to treat fistula, haemorrhoids, cancer and looseness of the gums.103 Ibn
Juljul describes the drug, its names and medical uses, mainly for the treat-
ment of bleeding from the chest and the rectum: ‘and it is sprinkled over
wounds if they are still bleeding and coagulates them quickly; its nature tends
toward coldness’.104 Other physicians add that it was used for the treatment
of wounds.105 Evidence of the practical medical uses of dragon’s blood in
medieval Egypt was found in the Cairo Genizah. It was mentioned in three
lists of materia medica.106 Later sources such as R. Nathan Ben Yoel Falaquera
(thirteenth century) recommend the use of the plant to strengthen the stom-
ach and treat bleeding, open wounds and diarrhoea.107
Local people from Socotra still use it to cure gastric sores, dye wool, act
as a glue and decorate pottery and houses. In modern Egypt, it is used in
powder form as a haemostatic and cicatrising agent.108 In Iran, it is used to
stop haemorrhages and relieve pain in the legs and feet.109
tamarind
I contracted deadly malaria on my travels [in South India] and feared this
was the end of my life. Then, God directed me to the tamarind, which was
very common there. I used half a kilo soaked in water and drank it for three
days. God healed me … I very much hated this city and asked to leave it.110
Tamarind (tamar hindī, al-h.umar), Tamarindus indica (Caesalpiniaceae)
The tamarind is the fleshy brown fruit of a tall evergreen tree (up to 25 m) that
grows in tropical Africa and Asia. The tree is cultivated today in Africa, India
and Mexico. The fruit pods contain large, kidney-shaped seeds (Plate 4).111
The pulp of the fruit was considered an astringent in ancient India and was
used as a tonic in case of menorrhagia and as a safe laxative. The leaves were
used to treat eye disease and jaundice.112
According to most scholars, the tamarind was not mentioned in Classical
sources; actually it was first mentioned by early Arabic sources.113 Ibn Juljul,
for example, mentioned two kinds of tamarind (Indian and Egyptian) and
writes that ‘the inhabitants of Ba‚ra call it al-h.umar … its fruits are thin
black pods covered with a honey-like sap which sticks to the hand. There are
solid red seeds in the pods.’114 Several other early Arabic sources mention the
al-h.umar as a synonym for tamarind. It was written that tamarind was grown
in Oman and Arabia between the ‘two mosques’ (Mecca and Medina).115
According to al-ʾIshbīlī, the tamarind was also named ‚ubbār. Interestingly
enough, he asserts that the plant was not mentioned either by Dioscordies or
by Galen, which means that it was brought to the West after their time.116
Other sources such as al-Shayzarī and al-Qurashī wrote about the forgery
of the tamarind, with plums (dried and crushed) and, according to another
technique, using wax, salt and vinegar.117
Tamarind was among the many products transported through the port of
Aden during the Ayyubid period, along with spices and perfumes including
camphor and lacca.118 According to documents found in the Cairo Genizah,
tamarind was traded by the members of the Jewish community in Cairo.119 It
was exported from Egypt and other places to the Maghrib and Sicily.120
According to early Arabic medical sources such as al-Kindī, the tamarind
fruit was used in an infusion and its seeds in a decoction.121 Ibn Qā∂i adds that
the fruit suppresses yellow bile, strengthens the heart, slows down rapid the
pulse (caused by heat) and lowers the temperature of the blood.122 In a letter
to the Egyptian ruler, Maimonides recommended a summer diet that includes
tamarind.123 Marco Polo writes that drinking tamarind and sea water is a trick
that the people of Gujarat (West India) use in order to induce vomiting among
captured foreign traders to check for concealed gemstones in their stomachs.124
Al-˝abar⁄ compares the medical properties of the plum and the tama-
rind, subsequently claiming that the action of the tamarind is gentler. Both
fruits were used to treat intestinal parasites (worms), prevent vomiting and
stop itching.125 Ibn Rushd writes that tamar hindī ‘is cold in the third degree
and dry in the second degree. The reason for that is that it consists of an ele-
ment of water mixed with a little heat which softens that wateriness and func-
tions as an instrument for its penetration … It purges yellow bile gently.’126
Ibn Ba††ū†a testifies that the fruits of the tamarind saved his life from a
deadly fever he caught while travelling in southern India. He mentioned
that for three days he drank water in which tamarind had been steeped and
recovered.127 According to Ibn Juljul, tamarind ‘removes yellow bile, breaks
the heat of the blood and its sweetness is combined with strong sourness. It
quenches the thirst when sucked. Its dosage is 8 mithqāl if dissolved in water;
then this drunk. It might slightly abrade the intestines due to its sourness.’128
R. Nathan Ben Yoel Falaquera recommends tamarind as a purgative and
as a way to cool the body in case of fever.129 Tamarind appears in fourteen
Genizah fragments of practical medicine, in eight lists of materia medica and
in six prescriptions, for relief of fever, cough and as an aphrodisiac. It was also
mentioned in several medical books as a simple remedy for the treatment of
dry, brittle and split hair and in advice on diet and beverages for invalids.130
bamboo
Some of the perfumers forge the †abāshīr with burnt dry bones. It is possible
to detect this forgery if the substances are put in water. When it is fake the
bone sinks whilst the †abāshīr floats. It was said that the †abāshīr is the core
of burnt cane from which †abāshīr is derived after it burns.131
Bamboo (chalk, tabashir); (†abāshīr). There are several species: Bambusa vul-
garis and B. arundinacea (Poaceae).132
It is a tall grass that grows rapidly and contains a large amount of silica. The
stem is wide and round (10 cm in diameter). It is common in tropical habi-
tats. In medieval times, the bamboo was burnt, and the ashes, which form
crystals of a bluish-white, hard, lightweight substance, were called in Arabic
†abāshīr (Plate 5).133 This word may derive from the Sanskrit tavak-ksina,
meaning vegetable juice.134 The bamboo canes are called in Arabic khayzuran,
which are mentioned in the Babylonian Talmud (fifth century) as kney de-h.
izra.135 There, it was used as a strong material (for example, as poles for fences)
since it was better than the regular canes. The Andalusian scholar al-ʾIshbīlī
describes the plant thus: ‘In India, the bamboo grows on river banks. The
Indians use it for various needs, including building boxes, shelves … It is not
a local plant.’136 The bamboo is native to southeast Asia, specifically India,
Sri Lanka and Sind.137 It was imported to the Levant through the ports of
Oman138 and Persia.139
˝abāshīr was one of the subtances traded in the Mediterranean region,
according to Genizah documents.140 It was traded between the cities of
Mahdiyya, Cairo and Qayrawān as well as Palermo in Sicily (for example, in
a letter sent from Qayrawān to Egypt in the middle of the eleventh century,
†abāshīr was mentioned as being needed in Palermo).141 Indeed, the Jewish
traders of Sicily, mainly under Islamic rule (827–1061), imported quantities
of bamboo ash along with various products (including drugs, dyeing materi-
als, spices and perfumes) and other commodities, most of which were then
exported to Andalusia and Europe.142
The †abāshīr was not mentioned in Classical sources. It was first described
by early Arabic sources such as Ibn Juljul. Ibn Juljul teaches us about its iden-
tification and origin as follows: ‘It is sometimes white and sometimes grey. It
is an Indian drug regarding which there is disagreement. Some say it is burnt
bone of elephant whilst others say it is the root of the qinā, which is the Indian
cane. This [the latter] is correct.’ From one version of Ibn Juljul’s manuscript
we learn (cited from ʿAbd Allāh Ibn Íālih.) that he ‘has already seen those
who burn the bones and sell them in place of the †abāshīr’.143 Indeed from
Arabic ªisba literature, we learn more about such forgeries. Al-Shayzarī and
al-Qurashī, for example, claim that some traders forged chalk by adding ashes
of burnt bones to the ashes of burnt bamboo. The way to reveal this forgery
is to place the substance in water. The ashes of the bones sink while the real
bamboo chalk floats.144 Al-Qurashī asserts that the †abāshīr is the ‘heart’ of
burnt cane and the best is the kind that is lightweight, white and collapsible.
He adds that it is a third-degree cold substance and has some astringency.145
Chalk was used in various ancient cultures to treat fever, asthma, cough
and paralysis and as an aphrodisiac. According to al-Kindī, chalk was used to
treat mouth sores and throat problems, protect soft gums from heat, as a ster-
nutative and for night blindness.146 According to al-˝abari, chalk reduces high
fever, prevents vomiting and heals mouth sores in children.147 Ibn Juljul adds
that ‘its nature is cold and dry. It is beneficial for the treatment of acute fevers,
strengthens the hot liver by reducing its heat, dries the rotten moisture of the
stomach and stops the “loose” stomach caused by yellow [bile].’148 Ibn Rushd
writes that the chalk ‘is the “flesh” of the knobs of qinā basswood. It is cold
and dry in the third degree. Its beneficial property is that it is useful against
heat, inflammation, yellow bile, for strengthening the stomach and for palpi-
tations, agony and sorrow.’149 R. Nathan Ben Yoel Falaquera writes that chalk
is used to treat eye diseases, pulse rate and thrush.150 Maimonides advised the
Egyptian ruler to use chalk and other substances to strengthen his heart.151
Chalk appears on six lists of materia medica and as a medicinal substance
in eleven practical prescriptions found in the Cairo Genizah as having vari-
ous uses. It was also mentioned in medical books in preparations for jaundice
with acute fever and palpitation, loss of teeth, strengthening the stomach and
against diarrhoea resulting from weakness of the liver, and bile corruption,
as well as a powder for the treatment of diarrhoea, quartan fever, burning
black bile and phlegm. White chalk was used to treat sufferers of bubo and
scrofula.152
shampoo ginger
It is [zurunbād] a hot and dry Indian drug, which strengthens the heart,
refines thick black-bilious blood, is beneficial for [banishing] evil thoughts
and for whoever talks to himself. It is similar to ginger.’153
Shampoo ginger (pinecone, gingerhorse ginger, pain ginger) (zurunbād);

Zingiber zerumbet (Zingiberaceae)
The genus Zingiberaceae is represented by approximately 140 species of a plant

disseminated throughout tropical Asia. It is a perennial rhizomatous herb,
native to India. It comprises two stems, one being sterile and 30 to 80 cm long
and the other bearing flowers 15 to 30 cm long. The flowers are pale yellow.
The fruit is a white capsule bearing numerous black seeds. According to medi-
eval Arab medical sources,154 the plant was cultivated in India155 and China.156
Arab writers disagree with regard to the geographical and botanical

origin of the zurunbād. However, they mainly write that it was imported
from China. They describe the product they saw and used as having
rounded stalks similar to birthwort (Aristolochia sp.) and being ginger in
its taste and colour. The imported substance was in the form of pieces of
rhizomes, with rounded, dry segments, the size of walnuts and similar to
bamboo.157
Medieval Arabic medical literature describes the plant as an extremely
dry and hot medicinal substance used to treat the womb and insect bites.158
According to Ibn Rushd, the zurunbād is ‘hot in the third degree, dry in
the first degree, cleans and dissolves flatus and is useful for those who have
[ingested] lethal poisons. It is especially good for relieving menstrual pains.
It stops vomiting. It has scented leaves. Būlus said that it can be substituted
by a drug called dār ‚īnī.’159 Ibn Juljul also writes that it is a hot and dry
drug similar to ginger, of Indian origin, adding that it strengthens the heart,
‘softens’ the thick blood of black bile and is beneficial to ‘bad thoughts’ and
people who talk to themselves.160
Ibn al-Bay†ār writes that the zurunbād is well-known among practition-
ers both in the East and the West (Maghrib). After a detailed description of
the various appearances of its rhizom, he names and cites its diuretic proper-
ties and many uses, such as preventing bad smells (onion, garlic and alcohol),
helping in the aim to gain weight, expelling black bile, improving mood and
memory and treating heart conditions, toothaches, headaches, depression,
snake bites and so on.161
purging cassia
It is of the big trees and a kind of carob. Its leaves are similar to carob leaves
but longer and shinier and have inlets … The fruit is hard, the insides of
which are split into layers … In between the layers, there are seeds, similar
to the seeds of Andalusi carob, red with hard pulp. The purging cassia grows
in India, the Levant and even a few in Egypt. The tree managed to grow in
our land, at Seville, but died due to the weather conditions.162
Purging cassia (Pudding-pipe, Indian laburnum) (khiyār shanbar, kharrūb

hindī, qiththāʾ hindī); Cassia fistula (Caesalpiniaceae)
It is a tall tree with egg-like foliage, which is paired in the leaf structure and
inflourescence, consisting of yellow-orange flowers. The pipe-like fruit is long
(up to 50 cm) with the seeds separated by dividers (Plate 6). Ripe fruit is
blackish. The flesh is sweet and smells like carob. It is a well-known ornamen-
tal tree in regions of tropical and sub-tropical climates. This tree is indigenous
to tropical Africa and India.
The plant is not mentioned in the Classical sources. In this category, it
is part of the lists of both Ibn Juljul163 and Ibn Rushd.164 It is first mentioned
by Jewish practitioners in Hebrew medical literature by the physician Assaf165
and Arabic medical literature by Māsarjawayh, a Jewish physician of the
eighth century.166 The Arabic names of the plant hint to its origin: kharrūb
hindī (Indian carob) and qiththāʾ hindī (Indian chate melon).167 The name
khiyār shanbar is Persian168 and testifies to the route of its distribution from
India to the Middle East through Persia. According to al-Bīrūnī, the name
was extracted from Sanskrit, in his writing that in ‘Hindi, it is known as kinar
and kad and nay hindu in Sigzi’.169 Arabic medical literature affirms that the
tree was cultivated in various locations including India, Kābul, Ba‚ra and
Yemen.170 Another kind was cultivated in Egypt (Ibn Juljul), with its fruits
being exported to al-Shām (Levant).171 Other sources claim that the tree was
cultivated in the Levant as well.172 An Egyptian kind was also mentioned.173
Its fruits were exported to al-Shām.174 Ibn al-Bay†ār quotes the description
of the fruit by Abū al-ʿAbbās al-Nabātī, who visited the Levant in or around
1216, as follows: ‘A well-known tree whose fruits are known in Alexandria,
Egypt from where they are borne to a-Shām.’175 A few sources claim it was
cultivated in al-Shām as well.176 Al-ʾIshbīlī mentions a purging cassia tree
that managed to grow in Seville but died due to its unsuitability to the local
climate.177
Several merchants’ letters found in the Genizah describe the trade in
purging cassia in Cairo, Jerusalem and Mahdiyya.178 For example, in a letter
from the Genizah (eleventh century), a Jerusalem merchant, ʿEli ha-Kohen
Ben Yeh.ezkel, reports to his family in Egypt of the sale of a crate of purging
cassia from Ramla.179 In a guidebook for merchants written by the Italian
Pegolotti (1340), the Cassia fistula is mentioned, including its sale in the city
of Acre.180 The trade in purging cassia was common in the medieval period.181
Many sources, including the Genizah, give an account of the trade in the fruit
of the purging cassia in sixteenth-century Egypt, especially the role played by

Jews.182 Of special interest is a document that mentions Rabbi Yitzh.ak Ben
Shlomo (the ʾAri), a famous kabbalist leader in Safed, who traded in this fruit
during his stay in Egypt.183 Fredrik Hasselquist describes the cultivation of
the plant in Egypt and the preparation of its fruit for curative purposes.184
From the Óisba literature, we learn that there were deceitful traders who
would sprinkle water on the fruits that were wrapped in cloth to increase their
weight.185 Moreover, it was forbidden to sell the dividers between the seeds
(that resemble coins and therefore were called fulūs – small copper coins) when
they were unripe, since they were believed to be harmful. These dividers could
be sold only when they were ‘ripe’, that is, after three to ten years, similar to
the sweet viscous juice/syrup (honey) that was prepared from the fruits.186
According to most medieval physicians, the quality of the purging cassia
fruit was considered to be generally moist with its temperature balanced
between hot and cold. The physician Assaf asserts that the tree grows in
Yemen and Ethiopia and it is of a hot and dry quality. According to him,
the best is the red one that has ‘the scent of old wine’.187 Al-Bīrūnī describes
the different varieties of the purging cassia and discusses their qualities.188
Ibn Rushd writes about the medical uses of the khiyār shanbar: ‘This espe-
cially purges burnt yellow bile, extinguishes heat in the blood and dissolves
tumours. This drug purges gently like tamarind, [but is] stronger [than tama-
rind] in dissolving things. A potion may be made by using it in the same way
as tamarind.’189
Ibn al-Bay†ār, citing Abū al-ʿAbbās al-Nabātī, describes the plant. Other
physicians report on the use of the peel for curative purposes. Noted among
the medical uses are the cleansing of internal organs, reducing of swellings,
soothing of nerves, curing of sore throats and, mostly, purging.190 According
to Maimonides too, the cassia is a mild and safe purgative.191 Elsewhere he
cites al-Tamīmī, who states that the fruit counteracts the poison of snakes
and scorpions and strengthens the womb of pregnant women.192
Ibn Juljul writes about lubb al-khiyār shanbar that:
It is a fruit of a tree whose interior is a thin circle. There is a layer between

this ‘circle’, the heart, which is black. In it, there is a honey-like sap which
sticks to the hand and whose taste is sweet and sour. The Egyptian kind
is sour and scratchy for its first year and decreases yellow bile and breaks
the heat of the blood as well as being beneficial for the hot swellings of the
throat and liver. Its dosage is 8 mithqāl when it is dissolved in water with its
nature tending to coldness.193
Purging cassia appears in the Cairo Genizah on three lists of materia medica
and eight prescriptions (for diet, as an aphrodisiac and as a plaster). It was also
mentioned in several Genizah excerpts of medical books.194
Purging cassia was soon used for medicinal purposes in Europe and con-
sidered a basic medication found in every pharmacy. Saladino d’Ascoli lists
the purging cassia among the varieties of fruit that serve for curative purposes
and that can be kept for only one year.195
Spices
clove
Clove is grown on an island from which it is imported. The traders descend
to the shore, leave their merchandise and return to their boats. The next
morning they return to the shore and find cloves near their products. If the
trader finds it favourable, he takes the cloves and leaves his merchandise …
The islanders eat fish, bananas, coconuts and cloves. Eating fresh clove
increases one’s longevity and prevents white hair.196
Clove (qaranful); Eugenia caryophyllata (Myrtaceae)
The clove is a tropical evergreen tree that grows in Madagascar, Indonesia,

the Muluk Islands and the islands of the West India. The tree is 8 to 13 m
high. Its leaves are shiny and leathery. The flowers form clusters at the end
of the branches. The young flowers are green at first, later turning red. The
spice is made from the dry flower buds (Plate 7). Cloves as well as pepper,
cinnamon and nutmeg are among the first spices mentioned in Indian and
Chinese literature.197
Arab authors indicated that the clove was not mentioned in Greek medi-
cal literature.198 Al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄ deduces that the clove was brought to the West
only after their time.199 However, in fact, clove was already known in the
Classical period although it seems to have been a rare and costly import
product. Pliny describes the clove tree briefly: ‘Called the caryophyllon, which
‘a rabi an’ substa nces | 101
is reported to grow on the Indian lotus-tree, it is imported here for the sake
of its scent.’200 However, he did not mention its medicinal uses. The clove was
mentioned in Byzantine works of the sixth century. Paulus Aegineta writes
about its properties as a medicine201 while the Egyptian Cosmas the monk
describes the clove as an import product that comes from China (Tzinista)
along with silk and other luxury products.202
The Arabic name of the clove, qaranful, derives from the Greek name
caryophyllon. The clove became a common spice and an affordable, acces-
sible medicinal substance only after the Muslim conquests. According to
Arabic sources, clove was imported from Sofala (South Africa),203 India,204
China,205 Shalheh Island,206 Nicobar islands207 and Ethiopia208 through the
port of Aden (Yemen).209 Ibn al-Faq⁄h describes the trade with the islanders
of Bar†ayīl in the China Sea by means of barter. He adds that the clove was
an important component of their diet. The islanders used to eat it fresh and
therefore had a long life. It prevented white hair.210 According to Marco Polo,
the European traveller of the thirteenth century, the island of Java was a ‘very
rich island producing pepper, nutmeg, spikenard, galingale, cubebs, cloves
and all the precious spices found in the world. It is visited by great numbers
of ships and merchants, who buy a great range of merchandise, reaping hand-
some profits and rich returns.’211
Clove was one of the substances identified in an early Egyptian drug-
gist’s account (ninth century) written on papyrus.212 The Muslim traveller
Ibn Ba††ū†a describes the abundance of spices and perfumes in the region of
the island of java. He mentions that the clove trees are big and grow mainly
in the regions occupied by the non-Muslims and less in the Muslim regions.
‘What is imported to our countries are sticks named by our people ‘nuwwār
al-qurunful’ (flower of clove).’ Later, the author confuses clove and mace.213
This reflects a phenomenon encountered in the writings of many Arabic
authors, who were very familiar with the spice as a product but had never seen
the tree or plant itself. In the case of the clove, while some authors visualised
the clove tree as Christ’s jujube thorn (Ziziphus spina-christi) others imagined
it as sweet lime (Citrus medica).214 Al-ʾIdrīsī asserts that the clove was culti-
vated on the islands of Indonesia (Java). He describes collecting the spice and
processing it thus: ‘the “mature” flowers were soaked in water, then dried and
afterwards sold to traders arriving at the island’. 215 Al-Qazwīnī adds that the
flowers (or fruits in the original source) were soaked in fresh water, similar to
the present-day procedures before drying. In his opinion, islanders did this in
order to prevent others from cultivating the tree elsewhere.216
Several legends were created and passed on regarding the origin of the
clove, several of which contain a kernel of truth, as can be seen in the follow-
ing story: Muh.mmad ibn al-ʿAbbās al-Misqī is quoted as having said that
he had seen people in Baghdad buying ‘Dīnār al-Marwāniyya’, which were
minted by the Caliph ʿAbd al-Maliq ibn Marwān (685–705). The people
explained that when they reached an island near India,217 they exchanged
them for cloves. They put the money in a bag, on which they wrote the name
of the local trader, and left it on the beach in an agreed-upon place. The next
day they received the cloves without having seen the local trader or the clove
trees. He adds that at a certain point the importation of the clove ceased for
a few years and therefore it became extremely expensive.218
Clove was an important commodity mentioned in many Genizah docu-
ments, mainly concerning eleventh-century trade and commerce in cities
such as Cairo, Alexandria, Mahdiyya, Qayrawān, Palermo and Tripoli. For
example, in a Genizah letter dated 1045, a Jewish merchant from Cairo
tells his counterpart in Jerusalem of the purchase of an expensive substance
‘qirfat qaranful’ identified as clove.219 The Jewish traders of Sicily, mainly
under Islamic rule (827–1061), imported quantities of clove along with vari-
ous other products, including drugs, dyeing materials, spices and perfumes
and other commodities, most of which were exported to Andalusia and
Europe.220 The ‘girofle’ (clove) is presented as merchandise that was taxed in
the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem during the thirteenth century221 and is
also listed among the substances exported to Europe.222 This trade continued
well after the Crusaders had left the Levant. For example, clove and other
spices are mentioned as goods bought by a Venetian trader in the fifteenth
century in Ramla.223
Clove is one of the more delicate spices, light in weight and costly; there-
fore, it was transported overland. The economic historian Ashtor estimates
that its price in the Levant was low. So, European merchants found it worth-
while to buy it there and transport it to their respective countries.224
Clove was also mentioned among the most esteemed perfumes in Arabic
poetry.225 It was included among the preferred perfumes given as presents and
gifts to kings and rulers along with nard and camphor.226Clove was used as an
ingredient to season and aromatise food and beverages. Al-Kindī mentioned
several recipes for making perfume out of cloves.227 In a refining process, a
concentrate could be produced which was considered even better than rose
water. The clove concentrate was added to various perfumes and cosmetic
pastes used by women.228 It was also used in cooking and baking.
Arabic medical literature defined the clove as a hot and dry drug.229 Ibn
Māsawayhi writes: ‘It is hot, gentle, good for the stomach, fainting, vomiting
caused by the damp humour and some liver ailments that entail putrefaction
and damp humour.’230 Similarly, Ibn Juljul writes, ‘With a pleasant fragrance,
[it] strengthens the heart, brain, stomach and internal organs (intestines).231
It is one of the finest perfumes.’232 Al-Kindī describes intensive use of the
clove in medicinal preparations to freshen the breath and treat the gums and
stomach disorders.233 Maimonides quotes al-Tamīmī who asserts that the
clove is very useful as a cure for hysteria and epilepsy and as a component in
a remedy used to treat heart palpitations.234
Al-Rāzī adds that ‘it is used in drugs that sharpen the eyesight and
remove the crust from the eye’.’235 Elsewhere it was said that it ‘wakens one
from fainting and stops vomiting’. According to al-Nuwayrī, the preferred
use is ‘clove pulverised with Syrian apple. The concentrate should be mixed
with mint.’236 It is a diuretic and prevents pregnancy if a woman takes it
daily for one month. On the other hand, when powdered and drunk with
milk, it strengthens male potency.237 Maimonides reports different medicinal
applications of clove as a component in a general remedy that also includes
pomegranate seeds and sugar.238 He also states that it is a component in an
aphrodisiac pill used to stimulate erection and enhance sexual pleasure.239
The medieval Jerusalemite/Cairean ophthalmologist Benevenutus lists clove
among the substances in his ‘Jerusalem Electuary’ that he prescribes for curing
cataracts. Other substances in this remedy are honey, beaver testicle glands,
saffron and coconut.240 Al-Qazwīnī quotes Ibn Sīnā, who states that the clove
sweetens the breath, improves eyesight, and prevents loss of consciousness.
He also writes that the clove is effective against nausea and that its scent
strengthens the brain and heart and uplifts one’s spirits.241
Evidence for the actual medical uses of cloves was found in the Cairo
Genizah. It appears in fifteem practical medical documents (nine lists of
materia medica and six prescriptions). It was also widely mentioned in

fragments of medical literature found in the Genizah.242
betel pepper
You should know that these people and indeed all the peoples of India,
are addicted to this habit, which affords them some satisfaction, of carry-
ing almost continually in their mouth a certain leaf called tambur. They go
about chewing this leaf and spewing out the resulting spittle. This habit
prevails especially amongst the nobles and magnates and kings. They mix
the leaves with camphor and other spices and also with lime and go about
continually chewing them. This habit is very beneficial to their health. If
anyone is offended by somebody and wishes to insult and affront him, then
when he meets him in the street he collects the mixture in his mouth and
spits it in the other’s face.’243
Betel pepper (tānbūl); Piper betel (Piperaceae)
It is a slender climbing vine (5 m) with heart-shaped leaves, tiny yellow-

green flowers and small spherical fruits (Plate 8). According to an aggregate
of biogeographical, historical and linguistic sources as well as archaeological
evidence, the plant was introduced to India from its wild origin in the islands
of southeast Asia as early as the Bronze Age.244 In various tropical lands and
islands, the inhabitants chewed the seeds to expel stomach worms and as a
sedative and astringent.245 Neither the plant nor its leaves were mentioned in
Classical sources, early Western literature or the Jewish Sages’ writings. It was
first mentioned in Arabic sources.246
Early Arabic sources mention the plant and its uses extensively. Ibn
Ba††ū†a, for example, writes that the betel pepper was planted in a similar way to
vines, near a hut built from reeds or nearby coconut trees, to enable it to climb.
He asserts that the leaves are useful, with the best being yellow. The Indians
highly regarded the plant: ‘If a person visits his friend and gives him 5 tānbūl
leaves, it is as if he gave him the whole world and everything in it, as if the
visitor is rich and distinguished.’247 Al-ʾIdrīsī adds that the betel pepper is a
climber from the same family of the ‘Cucurbitaceae’. Its flavour is distinctive
and similar to the clove, while its fragrance is pleasant. He describes a common
way, customary in India, to improve the flavour of the leaves by kneading them
with lime.248
From these sources, we also learn about the geographical aspects of the
cultivation and distribution of the betel pepper. When al-ʾIdrīsī describes the
products of the group of islands situated east of Sri Lanka, he refers to coconut
trees, sugarcane and betel pepper.249 Ibn Ba††ū†a reports the consumption of
betel pepper leaves in many locations in Asia, Arabia and Africa as part of cer-
emonies and at the end of meals and feasts. According to him, serving the betel
pepper leaves, which were very expensive, was a sign of appreciation and honour
toward the guest. For example, he describes an Indian tradition according to
which, on the third day following a person’s death, a ceremony is conducted in
which the participants drink rose water, eat sweets soaked in rose water and in
the end chew betel pepper leaves. The visitors and guests were offered the same
fare. The family of the deceased could eat it only on that particular day. Ibn
Ba††ū†a emphasises that the betel pepper leaves were considered more precious
than gold or a piece of jewellery.250 In his description of Yemen, al-Qalqashandī
writes that in some regions, such as the city of Êafār (al-Shih.r region) in the
southern shores of Yemen, betel pepper and other Indian trees are cultivated.
From his description of Ethiopia, we learn of a local plant whose consumption
increases the sharpness of the mind and induces happiness. However, it reduces
appetite and sexual desire. He claims that the local people use it similarly to the
way that the Indians use the betel pepper, since the plants are similar, with their
uses being mainly reducing sleeping, eating and sexual drives.251
In most cases, the leaves of the betel pepper were chewed together with
betel palm fruits (fawfal) by dignitaries, sultans and kings of India and their
guests at feasts, receptions, weddings and even funerals and memorial ser-
vices, in most cases at the end of the meal.252
From Arabic medical literature we learn that Ibn Sīnā recommends betel
pepper to improve the smell of one’s breath and strengthen teeth and gums.
A decoction of the leaves with wine is also recommended for skin diseases
as well as for improving the smell of gases and aiding in digestion.253 Ibn
Juljul writes in his book on the medicinal substances not mentioned by Galen
that tānbūl is ‘an Indian leaf of a fragrant tree which the Indian people com-
monly use by chewing it every morning. It makes the lips red, gives a pleasant
odour to the breath, and gladdens the heart. Its nature is medium hot.’254
Betel pepper appears in medical documents found in the Cairo Genizah.

On a list of materia medica, one segment mentions its use as a treatment to
ease queasiness after meals, and in medical books it is included in recipes
for the treatment of palpitation, and as a purgative, an emmenagogue and
an abortifacient.255 The leaves of betel pepper were traded in the Genizah
society256 as was its fruit, which is mentioned in merchants’ letters regarding
its trade in Alexandria and Cairo in the eleventh century.257
betel palm
At the end of the main course of the meal, the servants arrive with tubs
of tānbūl and fawfal, each one of the dinner-guests is given some crushed
fawfal and fifteen leaves of tānbūl tied with red silk rope. Then the servants
praise the name of God. All the dinner-guests stand up and leave.’258
Betel palm (areca nut) (fawfal, ʾa†mā†); Areca catechu (Arecaceae)
A tall tropical palm tree of the Asian region its fruits are shaped like chicken
eggs and its seeds are grey (Plates 9, 10).259 According to a collection of bio-
geographical, historical and linguistic sources as well as archaeological evi-
dence, the plant was introduced in India from its wild origin on the islands of
Southeast Asia as early as the Bronze Age.260 The plant and its fruits were not
known in the West and nor were they mentioned by the Classical sources.
Al-D⁄nawar⁄ in his book on plants, places the fawfal in the classification
of the palm trees.261 Ibn al-Jazzār writes that the plant is from China.262
However, Ibn Wah.shiyya writes that it is not indigenous to Iraq, but rather
imported from India.263
Arabic sources such as Ibn Ba††ū†a describe the betel palm claiming that
it grew on various islands, including Java and Andaman.264 He adds that
the inhabitants of these islands traded in their fruits.265 Ibn Ba††ū†a records
the use (chewing) of betel palm fruits together with leaves of betel pepper
(tānbūl) at feasts and even memorial services, in most cases at the end of the
meal. The consumption of the fruits improves one’s digestion, breath (smell
of the mouth), colour of the face and gums (red), ‘brings’ happiness and pre-
vents yellow colour and thirst. Both kings and their wives and female slaves
chewed betel palm fruits before engaging in sexual activity.266
According to al-D⁄nawar⁄, the pungent-tasting black fruits were used

by women to colour their lips and gums red. This was done by chewing the
pleasantly fragrant fruits together with the leaves. Men also used the fruits
thanks to their pleasant fragrance.267
The Andalusian scholar al-ʾIshbīlī asserts that the plant was not men-
tioned either by Dioscorides or Galen. Al-ʾIshbīlī, citing earlier sources,
describes the tree as a palm, similar to the coconut, bearing clusters on
which the fruits grow. They are red, white and grey and the size of hazelnuts.
According to al-ʾIshbīlī, the tree does not grow in Arabia but only in China
and India. The main medicinal uses of the fruits are strengthening internal
organs and treating inflammations. Al-ʾIshbīlī also mentions other names of
the fawfal, including al-bunduq al-hindī and ʾa††.268
According to Ibn Juljul, fawfal is:
An Indian drug, the ʾa†mā†, a al-bunduq al-hindī and the fruit of a delicate
Indian palm tree, which sways because it is so thin. It has clusters that bear
the fawfal, a red kernel shaped like a bird’s heart with a pleasant fragrance.
It gives a pleasant odour to the breath and strengthens the heart. Its nature
is cold and dry.269
In his book on the medicinal substances that were not mentioned by

Dioscorides, Ibn Rushd writes, ‘It has several varieties. Its potency is similar
to that of ‚andal. When drunk in quantities of one to two dirhams, its purga-
tive property is mediocre.’270 Fawfal was also mentioned by al-ʾIdrīsī on his
list of drugs that were not mentioned by Dioscorides.271
Al-Nuwayrī, citing earlier scholars, asserts that ‘the power of the betel
palm is similar to that of the sandalwood. It was believed to be a cold drug
that caused constipation and was beneficial for the treatment of inflamma-
tions, swellings and eye diseases.’272 Ibn Wah.shiyya writes that when the betel
palm is chewed, it enhances saliva, strengthens the gums and the stomach and
awakens people that have fainted.273
Betel palm appears on one list of materia medica and in one practical
prescription found in the Cairo Genizah. It also appears in recipes for treat-
ment of liver disease and was mentioned in medical books, some of which
dealt with skin diseases. The seeds were chewed as stimulants and astringents
and to expel worms.274
turmeric
It is a drug that the people of Iraq call kurkum. It is the yellow roots. The
roots are stiff, similar to ginger, but have concave surfaces. When ground,
you see that the powder is yellow. The people of al-Shām call it hurd.’275
Turmeric (kurkam, kurkum, hurd, shajarat al-kha†ā†īf, zaʿfarān hindī, ʿurūq

‚ufr);276 Curcuma longa (Zingiberaceae)
A tropical perennial plant (90 cm), with a short stem and knobby rhi-
zomes,277 turmeric rhizomes were used in the past, mainly in Southeast Asian
countries, as a common spice and medicinal substance (Plate 11).278 Kurkum
is mentioned once in the Bible together with the precious perfumes of the
ancient world.279 However, it was identified by ancient and medieval sources,
as well as by modern scholars, as saffron (Crocus sativus).280 Maimonides
maintains the same identification in most of his writings. However, in one
case he describes kurkum as having yellow roots. We claim that there was
a transformation in which the turmeric received the Arabic and Hebrew
name (kurkum/karkom) from the saffron due to the similarity of its main
use – yellow dyeing. This happened after the Islamic conquests, which con-
tributed to the introduction and distribution of turmeric as a spice, drug and
yellow dye.281 We accept Miller’s claim that turmeric was not mentioned by
the Classical sources. There is no evidence of its use in the Levant and the
Mediterranean Basin before the Islamic conquests.282
In medieval Arabic literature, turmeric had several names and was mainly
called ‘Indian saffron’.283 In his book Kitāb al-Nabāt, al-D⁄nawar⁄ mentions
that kurkum derives ‘from the names of the saffron’.284 Al-ʾIshbīlī also calls
turmeric ‘the Indian saffron’ and gives a detailed description in his book of
two varieties of the plant, turmeric and khālīdūnyūn †ūmāghā. He writes
that the root is yellow and solid while its taste is bitter, sharp and ‘burns’
the tongue.285 Similar to the Arabic language, one of the names for turmeric
in Europe in medieval times was ‘Indian saffron’, which served as a cheap
substitute for saffron.286
Turmeric was not mentioned by the Classical sources. It was first men-
tioned in the West in the early Arabic sources. For example, Ibn Juljul men-
tions kurkum (identified by us as Curcuma longa) in his book on the plants
that were not mentioned by Dioscirides. Ibn Juljul describes the uses of
turmeric and its various names in Iraq and the Levant.287 Ibn al-Jazzār affirms
the existence of turmeric in China and Yemen.288 Al-ʾIshbīlī writes that tur-
meric was cultivated in India and Ethiopia.289
Several travellers left their first impressions regarding turmeric and its
various uses and ‘cultures’. For example, Ibn Ba††ū†a recorded a unique use
of turmeric that he had seen in India on the way to Delhi. The inhabitants of
this city hunt the sqnaqūr (medical skink = Scincus scincus), empty its innards
and fill it up with turmeric, which was known as a substitute for saffron. The
author writes that he did not eat this dish, since he was disgusted by it.290
Ibn al-Bay†ār discusses the identity of the plant and notes that ‘the tur-
meric that is known to us comes from the roots imported from India’. He
later cites a source stating that the people of Ba‚ra say that turmeric is saffron.
They likened it to saffron because it produced the same yellow colour as
saffron.291 Indeed, turmeric is mentioned along with saffron in the chap-
ter dealing with dyeing materials. A phrase in Arabic was quoted: ‘karkama
thawbuhu’ (his cloth became yellow).292 Al-ʾIshbīlī reports that the plant was
being used in his time for dyeing cloth yellow.293
In the Middle Ages, turmeric was exported from the Eastern countries
to Europe, in contrast to the direction of the trade in saffron.294 An example
of this kind of trade appears in a commercial document dated 1412 that
describes the purchase of turmeric roots in Ramla on behalf of a Venetian
trading house whose representatives resided in the city of Óamath (Óamā)
in Syria.295 Turmeric was among the merchandise traded in Sicily by the
Jewish traders, according to the Genizah.296 Moshe Poriat (seventeenth cen-
tury) relates that he saw cheap turmeric (of low quality) in the markets of
Jerusalem.297
Turmeric rhizomes were used in Asian medicine for the treatment of
liver infections and jaundice.298 In Arabic medical literature, turmeric was
considered a hot and dry drug.299 It was used for the treatment of various eye
and skin diseases.300 Ibn Juljul writes in his book: ‘It is included in ointments
beneficial for eczema and dries the abscesses. Its nature is hot and dry. Some
say it is the root of shajarat al-kha†ā†īf.’301 The powder of the turmeric rhi-
zomes served as a component in medications to strengthen the teeth, treat sore
throat, swellings in the mouth, mouth sores and haemorrhoids, as a toothpaste
that strengthened gums, to counteract various poisons and for the treatment
of insanity.302 The fact that turmeric is featured on five lists of materia medica
found in the Cairo Genizah (eleventh to thirteenth centuries) and in two
practical prescriptions (one of which was for treatment of eye diseases) is proof
of its practicality and availability.303 In Asian traditional medicine, the yellow
powder served as a remedy for diseases of the intestines and liver, to cure colds
and ulcers and as a component of a skin ointment.304 In India, medical proper-
ties are attributed to turmeric for strengthening the heart and stomach while
in Java it is used to cure diseases of the urinary tract.305
galingale
God endows each land and country with different and special advantages.
Otherwise, commerce would not have been established and advanced and
people would not have got to know each other. He endows a land with a
desert and another country does not receive it. Therefore, God blessed the
lands of Sind and India with various kinds of perfumes and precious stones
such as corindons [corundum] and diamonds … and with various kinds
of agarwood, ambergris, clove, galingale, cinnamon, coconut, myrobalan,
bamboo ashes, sappan wood, sandalwood, pepper and other wonderful
products.306
Galingale (Galanga) (khūlanjān, khawlanjān); Alpinia galanga (Zingiberaceae)
Galingale is a perennial tropical plant, originating in Southeast Asia. Its rhi-

zome is dark reddish-brown, cylindrical and marked at short intervals by
raised rings, which are scars of the leaf base (Plate 12). It has been used as a
condiment, a spice and a medicine since early times.307
Galingale was not mentioned by the early Classical sources, a fact empha-
sised by both Ibn Juljul and Ibn Rushd, who included it on their lists of the
drugs not mentioned by Galen and Diascorides.308 Other sources such as
al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄ noted this as well.309 Al-Qalqashand⁄ asserts that khūlanjān is a
name of Persian origin, which entered the Arabic language, together with
other drugs that were brought from Southeast Asia, such as camphor and
sandalwood.310 Galingale is mentioned in the medical treatise of Aëtius of
Amida311 and also by later Byzantine sources.312
In a description of the city of Aden and its importance, al-ʾIdrīsī writes

that it is the port from which the ships of Sind, India and China sail.313
Besides galingale, he mentions many imported goods from these locations,
including susbtances such as agarwood, camphor, cardamom, cinnamon,
clove, coconut, cubeb pepper, lead, musk, myrobalan, nutmeg and pepper.314
Ibn Khurdādhbih mentions galingale as one of the goods imported by the
Arabs from the area of the China Sea.315 Marco Polo writes that galingale
was a product of Java, along with pepper, nutmeg, spikenard, cubebs and
cloves.316
Galingale was one of the spices imported by the merchants of Italy
from Greater Syria and Egypt. In fact, it appears in European medical
prescriptions from the ninth century onwards317 and was traded in the
Levant well into the fifteenth century.318 Galingale is mentioned in the
Genizah documents as being exported from Egypt to Sicily (Palermo)
through North Africa.319 Al-Dimashqī writes that the best galingale is the
one with the natural colour without any decay, moisture or black spots.
This comment illustrates that spices such as galingale were sometimes
exposed to damage due to the moisture of the sea during transport from
the East.320
Early Arab medical literature describes the plant and its medical uses.
Ibn Juljul asserts that it is ‘a hot and moist Indian drug, which increases
coital lust, has a pleasant smell and strengthens the cold stomach, liver and
internal organs’.321 Ibn Rushd writes regarding galingale that ‘it is good for a
moist stomach, improves the smell of the breath, digests food, soothes nerves
and strengthens sexual potency’.322 According to al-Kindī, galingale was
used to treat stomach ailments and excessive addiction to sex, to strengthen
respiration and used as toothpaste.323 Ibn al-Bay†ār cites many physicians
and lists several uses: treating stomach ailments, increasing appetite, easing
digestion, reducing flatulence and improving the memory.324 According to
Maimonides, it was one of the ingredients in a medication called ‘the great
ʾi†rīfil’ and also served to cure haemorrhoids, strengthen the bodily organs,
mainly the heart, to sharpen the senses and delay ageing. The plant was listed
among the hot and dry drugs.325 Evidence of the practical use of galingale in
medieval Middle East is its appearance in practical prescriptions and on three
lists of materia medica found in the Cairo Genizah.326 The use of galingale as
a spice started in Europe during the medieval period, as can be learnt from
contemporary menus.327
Galingale is an essential spice and food-flavouring product as well as a
medication, or part of one, used in Asian folk medicine for various applica-
tions, such as treatment of rheumatic ailments and respiratory diseases, as an
aromatic agent and as a tonic and aphrodisiac.328 In Egypt, the galingale root
still serves as an aromatic drug and a carminative, and arouses sexual desire.329
nutmeg
It is an Indian drug, hot, dry, with a pleasant smell, gives a pleasant odour
to the mouth, strengthens the stomach and the heart, removes gases, digests
the food and is one of the most wonderful spices.330
Nutmeg (jawzbuwā, dārkīsa, jawz al-†īb); Mace (basbāsa); Myristica fragrans

(Myristicaceae)
It is the fruit of an evergreen tree growing in tropical Southeast Asia, mainly

on the islands of the eastern Indian Ocean. The fruit is peach-shaped with a
single, large seed. The seed is encased in a red, net-like aril or mace, which is
also used (Plates 13, 14).331
Nutmeg was mentioned in the writings of the Jewish sages (Mishna).
The Hebrew expression ‘rashey besamim’ (chief of the spices) was identified
by medieval scholars as ‘jawzbuwā’ – nutmeg in Arabic.332 Maimonides men-
tioned the ‘basbāsa’ (mace) as being among the predominant Jewish spices.333
From the seed of the nutmeg, two spices are produced: the seed, jawzbuwā in
Arabic, and its cover, or peel, basbāsa. Some of the medieval sources did not
know that the two spices share the same botanical origin, since the separation
was done in India before it was exported.
Some Arabic sources claim that nutmeg was not mentioned by
Dioscorides.334 Early Arabic sources write about nutmeg, mentioning its
origin (India) and describing it as a fruit of a size similar to a hazel nut. It
is firm with a pleasant fragrance and spicy taste.335 Al-Thaʿālib⁄ writes that
nutmeg is among the unique products of India.336 According to Ibn al-Faq⁄h,
nutmeg, similar to other medicinal substances such as camphor, cloves and
sandalwood, arrives from al-Zābaj in the south near China from a city called
Qan‚ūr.337 In another place, he writes that the basbāsa is one of the special
products of the islands near Sri Lanka.338
In a description of the city of Aden, al-ʾIdrīsī writes that it is a small city
but its port is very important, since boats from India, China and Sind sail
over and bring with them the finest produce of China, including nutmeg.
According to him, the sources of nutmeg are a few islands in the China
Sea, especially one called al-Íanf.339 Other early sources also write that
India was the main source of nutmeg and other medicinal substances and
perfumes.340
As mentioned before, in many cases the Arab authors had never been
to India or China and therefore could not describe the shape or size of the
medicinal plants. One example of this phenomenon is a description of a clove
tree drawn by Ibn Ba††ū†a. Ibn Ba††ū†a claims that cloves are leftovers of the
flower of the tree and that its fruits are nutmeg jawzbuwā while the flowers
are the mace basbāsa.341
According to Watson, the Arabs began to trade in nutmeg in the sixth
century; by the twelfth century it was well-known in Europe.342 It was carried
overland from India via Mecca to the ports of the Levant343 and Egypt,344 and
from there to Europe. For example, nutmeg appears in a medical prescription
in a Byzantine veterinary book of the tenth century.345 Marco Polo writes
that nutmeg was one of the products of Java along with pepper, spikenard,
galingale, cubebs and cloves.346
Peels and seeds of nutmeg were frequently mentioned in letters of Genizah
merchants sent from Mahdiyya, Qayrawān and Palermo to Alexandria and
Cairo. Egypt appears to have been an important trading centre for nutmeg
exported from Asia.347
Nutmeg was a delicate and expensive commodity in the market of Acre
as is evident from the tax lists of the first half of the thirteenth century.348
Evidence of the continuity of the overland transport and trade in the fifteenth
century and the high value of nutmeg is found in a letter of 1411. The letter,
written by an Italian trader, describes the caravans from Mecca to Damascus
and thence to Ramla. Half of the merchandise remained in Ramla while the
rest was carried by Italian ships to Europe.349
Arabic medical writings teach us about the medicinal uses of nutmeg.
Al-Kindī writes that nutmeg was an ingredient in a medication to strengthen
breathing.350 Ibn Rushd writes that nutmeg is ‘a hot and dry drug … It has
a nice odour. It cleans the stomach’s languidness of a putrid humour and
strengthens it. It is useful for the liver and also the spleen of people that suffer
from cold.’351 According to Ibn Juljul, nutmeg strengthens the stomach and
the heart, removes gases and digests food.352 Ibn al-Bay†ār relates that the
nutmeg aril (mace) was used as a remedy and was named ‘dārkīsa’ in the
al-Shām region.353
Maimonides also writes that nutmeg was a hot and dry drug354 prescribed
to strengthen the stomach, improve the appetite and enhance sexual desire.
He also quotes al-Tamīmī describing the ‘royal beverage’ containing nutmeg.
This was used as medication for the elderly, for colds and for rheumatic
pains.355 Evidence of the actual uses of nutmeg in the medieval Middle East
is its inclusion on two lists of materia medica and in two practical prescrip-
tions found in the Cairo Genizah. Nutmeg is also mentioned in medical
books found in the Genizah in recipes for the treatment of colic, coughs and
colds.356 According to Benevenutus, nutmeg was used to treat cataracts.357
Nutmeg appears in medical recipes in medieval Europe, for example, for the
treatment of stomach ailments.358
perfumed cherry
A round berry covered with a blackish/reddish peel, its exterior has a woody
peel whilst the content is tasty and white with a pleasant fragrance. It has
some bitterness in it. It is a fruit of a tall tree having coarse bark and is used
in compounds of cleaning materials.’359
Perfumed cherry (mahaleb cherry) (maªlab); Prunus mahaleb (Rosaceae)
It is a tall deciduous tree or large shrub growing to a height of 2 to 10 m

with a grey-brown trunk (up to 40 cm diameter). The leaves are ovate, 1 to
5 cm long and 1 to 4 cm wide, and the flowers are small (8 to 20 mm), white,
fragrant and arranged in groups of three to ten. It blooms in mid-spring.
The fruits are elliptic, bald, small and thin-fleshed cherry-like drupes (8 to
10 mm). They are green at first, turning red then dark purple to black when
mature (mid to late summer) and have a bitter flavour (Plate 15). The seeds
are slightly open and fragrant. The trunk is used as bracket for cherry trees.
The wood of the tree, which is hard, is used for making household utensils
and smoking pipes while the leaves are used as a condiment for milk. The
seeds are used as a condiment in baking and cooking.360
Perfumed cherry was probably not mentioned by the Classical
sources361 but is widely described in Arabic sources.362 Al-ʾIshbīlī men-
tions two kinds of perfumed cherry: white and black. According to him,
the tree has leaves similar to those of the henna tree (Lawsonia inermis
(Lythraceae)) while the trunk is similar to the sour cherry (Prunus cera-
sia (Rosaceae)). He mentions that it grows in humid locations in Spain
and the Canary Islands and is also known in the Levant, where it is called
‘Andalusī’.363 According to other medieval authors, the perfumed cherry
trees grow in Lebanon’s mountains and in Azerbaijan.364 Ibn al-ʿAwwām
writes that the tree grows quickly but is not resistant to prolonged
drought. The preparation of the maªlab seeds involves boiling them in
sugared water.365
Perfumed cherry was traded, according to merchants’ letters from the
Genizah, in Cairo, Qayrawān and Sicily.366
Perfumed cherry was one of the substances identified in an early
Egyptian druggist’s account (ninth century) written on papyrus.367 A few
medieval medical authorities, such as al-˝abar⁄ and Maimonides,368 write
that the perfumed cherry is a cold and dry drug, beneficial for improv-
ing bad odours.369 Ibn Waªshiyya describes the production of medicinal
oil from the seeds of perfumed cherry cooked in oil supplemented by
other medicinal plants.370 Al-Bīrūnī notes the use of the seeds for washing
hands because of its pleasant scent.371 According to al-T⁄fāsh⁄ (first half of
the thirteenth century), seeds of perfumed cherry were used, along with
castor oil, sesame and camphor, for a cosmetic preparation for cleansing
and brightening the face.372 Al-Kind⁄ asserts that crushed seeds of per-
fumed cherry were used to produce blends of perfumes, thanks to their
fine fragrance.373 Perfumed cherry appears in medieval medical documents
found in the Cairo Genizah (on eight lists of materia medica and in one
prescription). This is unequivocal proof of its practical medical use and trade
during that period in the Middle East and in the eastern Mediterranean
region.374
other substances
All of the entries mentioned in our book, regardless of the length of the
material, received significant exposure in Arabic medical literature, both
theoretical and practical, regarding their medicinal uses. However, while
writing these entries, we have chosen to focus on other aspects, such as
origin, distribution, trading routes and anecdotes. The quality of the sources
in these aspects differs from entry to entry. Moreover, the amount of infor-
mation does not testify to the prevalence or importance of the drug. For
example, the prestige of bezoar stone was marginal. Yet, due to the many
anecdotes, it ‘received’ greater exposure. On the other hand, the cassia,
which appears in our book as a short entry, used to be, and still is, one of the
most commonly used traditional drugs, found in every spice and traditional
pharmacy.
Indian aconite (Aconitum ferox) (Ranunculaceae), both the Persian

and the Arabic name is bīsh, which originates from the word ‘visha’
in Sanskrit, meaning poison. The Classical physicians mention the
European aconite (Aconitum napellus). The Indian aconite was first
mentioned in Arabic sources thanks to the influence of Indian and Persian
practitioners according to whom there were several kinds of bīsh of various
origins, mainly from China, India and Afghanistan. The Indian aconite
was mainly referred to as a strong poison and used, among other things, to
treat leprosy.375
Zedoary (Curcuma zedoria) (Zingiberaceae), zadwār in Persian,

jadwār in Arabic. It is an Indian plant that was used in the past as an
antidote in the treatment of poisoning. Zedoary was mentioned, among
other spices and drugs that were sold in Ramla, in commercial
documents found in the Cairo Genizah and dated 1412. A European plant
growing in Spain had a similar name and was identified as Aconitum
anthora.376
Purging croton (Chinese castor oil plant) (Croton tiglium) (Euphorbiaceae),

ªabb al-mulūk, dand, khirwa⁄ ‚⁄n⁄ in Arabic. According to the Arabic sources,
it is a plant from India and/or China, where the Arab and Persian practitioners
became familiar with it. Its main medicinal uses are as a strong purgative and
a vomiting stimulant (Plate 16). 377
Cassia (Cassia ssp., mainly Cassia acutifolia = Senna alexandrina), (Fabaceae),

sanā, sanā makkī in Arabic. The plant grows wild in Upper Egypt, Sudan,
Somalia and India. In the past, the vast majority of trade in cassia was
done through the port of Alexandria. From there, and then through the
Mediterranean (Sicily, for example), it was exported to Andalusia, North
Africa and Europe. Another trading route was through Óijāz and Yemen.
Although its main medicinal use was as a purgative (leaves and pods), cassia
was also used to treat epilepsy and chickenpox (Plate 17).378
Berberry (Berberis sp., mainly Berberis vulgaris, Berberi daceae), ʾamīrbārīs

in Arabic, zirishk in Persian. The plant was not mentioned by the Classical
sources, yet Arabic sources do mention several kinds. It seems that the
medicinal use of the plant entered Arabic medicine from Iraq and Iran.
There, it was used to treat liver ailments such as jaundice and stomach ulcers,
prevent diarrhoea and strengthen the stomach. In Lebanon, Berberis libanotica
is still known to this day as a drug for various skin diseases, including acne
(Plate 18).379
Fossil crab (sea crab, Indian crab), sara†ān hindī in Arabic. Arab
physicians wrote that it was not an ordinary marine crab, but a crab that
was dried and hardened, ultimately becoming stone-like (fossilised). In this
form, it was used as a drug. The origin of the fossil crab or stone crab is
in the China and Indian Seas. It was mainly used for the treatment of eye
cataract as a collyrium. The fossil crab is still used in Indian traditional
medicine, mainly for the treatment of obstructions and lithiasis in the
urinary system.380
Sukk Sukk is an Indian compound drug with several variations. Maimonides

describes it as ‘date juice with gall-nuts (ʿaf‚) and Indian drugs (astringent and
aromatic)’. Similarly, Ibn Kaysān writes a detailed recipe that includes crushed
burnt gall nuts soaked in black grape juice, boiled together and dried in the
sun. Sometimes musk was added. Dry pills for medicinal uses were made of
the above-mentioned ingredients. Sukk was also used in perfume. Sukk was
mentioned in a commercial document of a North African trader (1038) who
reported on the transport fee he paid on it in Alexandria. According to Ibn
Sīnā, this compound drug had a secret recipe that was known only to the
Chinese, who called it ʾūmālī.381
Tarangabin (Persian manna plant) (Alhagi maurorum=Alhagi

camelorum) (Leguminosae), taranjubīn in Arabic. The sugary liquid of
this plant, when dried, turns into yellow-brown grains (Plate 19). Several
medieval commentators mistakenly confused it with the Biblical manna
eaten by the Israelites in the desert. Tarangabin was considered to be
one of the medicinal substances that were imported from the Persian
region (Khurāsān, for example). Tarangabin was used for the treatment
of cold coughs and stomach aches, acting as an expectorant and gentle
purgative.382
Sandarus (identified as Arar tree) (Callitris quadrivalvis) (Cupressaceae),

sandarūs in Arabic, is an evergreen coniferous tree endemic to the regions
of the western Mediterranean, North Africa and Southeastern Spain. The
white crystals of resin were produced from the tree trunk from which
a medical potion and incense were made (Plate 20). In a commercial
document from Alexandria (1065) found in the Cairo Genizah, a shortage
of sandarus is reported. Among its medieval medicinal benefits, we should
mention that it was used to stop bleeding, ease toothaches and treat
haemorrhoids.383
Turpeth (Ipomoea turpethum = Operculina turpethum) (Convolvulaceae),

turbad in Arabic. The origin of the Arabic name is the Sanskrit name trivrit.
A perennial herbaceous endemic to India, it is extensively mentioned in the
medieval Arabic medical literature as a hot and dry drug, mainly as a purgative
made of its roots. Turpeth was mentioned among the drugs that were ordered
by a Jewish North African trader from Egypt to be sold in Palermo, Sicily,
in the middle of the twelfth century. Three packages of turpeth bought in
the port of Acre and sent to Italy are mentioned in an Italian commercial
document (1481).384
Neem (Melia azedarach) (Meliaceae), ʾazādadrakht in Arabic. The origin

of the Arabic name is Persian, meaning ‘the free tree’. The neem tree, which
was introduced from India to Persia, was not mentioned by the Classical
sources. During the medieval period, it was introduced as an ornamental and
medicinal tree to various lands, including Syria and Palestine. The neem is
known as a poisonous tree, used as an insecticide, on the one hand, and as
an antidote, on the other. A potion made from its leaves was used to kill lice,
make the hair grow and strengthen it.385
Cubeb pepper (Piper cubeba) (Piperaceae), kabāba, ªabb al-ʿarūs,

in Arabic, is a perennial ivy of the tropical regions. The round fruits
have a characteristic, identifiable smell and taste (Plate 21). It was not
mentioned by Classical sources. It was imported from India, Java and
China through Aden to Egypt and Sicily and from there to Europe. Cubeb
pepper was used as a spice and a hot and dry drug for treatment of sore
throats, for curing teeth and gum ailments and strengthening the stomach
and internal organs. It was also used to expel bad odours, improve the
appetite and open obstructions. ‘Acting as a diuretic it can break [kidney]
stones.’386
uncertain identification
Most of the substances featured on the long list of the new ‘Arab’ drugs were
identified with great assurance. However, as early as the medieval period, there
were differences of opinion regarding the identification of some of these drugs
or others whose exact identification was lost over the years. In this section, we
present some examples to illustrate these phenomena.387
Būzaydān This is the Persian name of a medieval Arabic drug. Yet,

contemporary scholars questioned its identification. Some insisted it
was a kind of orchid, while physicians of the ‘Spanish School’, such as
Maimonides and al-Ghāfiqī, claimed it was a medicinal tree originating in
India.388
Qinbīl The Arabic name comes from the Sanskrit. It is a kind of

fine earth (turba) from India, or from Yemen, according to other
sources. It seems that in the medieval Arabic world, scholars were not
in complete agreement about its identification. Meyerhof writes that
‘the powder of kamala is a red dust that covers the fruits of the tropical
plant Rottlera tinctoria or Mallotus philippinensis’. It was used to treat
various skin diseases, to dry abscesses and acne and to expel intestinal
worms.389
Jawz jundum (jawz kundum) The name, which is half Persian and half
Arabic, means ‘wheat nut’. Based on the description of various Arabic
sources, it seems to be a generic name for different kinds of lichens
from Ba‚ra (Iraq), Khurāsān (Iran) and Syria. According to the sources,
it ‘lands from the air’ and accumulates on the rocks. It is collected and
wettened with water. It then becomes a sticky tin, which is used to treat
various skin diseases including irritations and scalp ringworm (tinea
capitis).390
Jawz al-qayʾ, al-daf ʿ Emetic nut. Arabic sources describe the Jawz al-qayʾ
391
and write that its dry flowers or fruits inhibit vomiting, among other
medical benefits.392 We accept the Meyerhof and Sobhy theory that the
Arabic sources, until the seventh century, were referring to Trichilia emetica
(Meliaceae),393 a tall evergreen tree (20–35 m high) similar to the walnut
tree, which grows in the sub-Saharan Africa and steppes of southern Arabia
(Yemen).394 Many sources dealt with its origin395 and medicinal uses.396
Strychnos nux-vomica (Loganiaceae) was brought from eastern Asia and
became the new Jawz al-qayʾ from about the seventeenth century. It is a
small tree from Southeast Asia whose seeds had been used in the past for the
extraction of strychnine.397
Industrial Substances
lacca
It does not grow in the Arabs’ lands … It is a resin that is condensed
on the wood and covers it as if it was its bark. When cooked, a colour
called al-lukk is produced. This colour is used to dye the leather named
al-lakkāʾ.398
Lacca (lakk), Laccifer lacca (Kerridae)
The best-known species, which was the main source of the production of
lacca in the past, was the scaly insect called Laccifer lacca. It is a small para-
site (mature females are 5 mm long) that lives in India, Pakistan, Thailand,
China and Burma on the leaves of certain trees, such as the sacred fig (Ficus
religiosa). The origin of the name lakkha or laksha is Sanskrit, which means
one hundred thousands, an allusion to the enormous number of young
caterpillars that hatch from the eggs or the number of the insects on the
tree. The source of the lacca is a secretion of the insect’s body. The substance
secreted from all insects in the colony produces a dark, yellow-brown crust
that protects them. The substance that crystallises on the tree trunk, called
stick-lacca, is collected and used as a bordeaux-red pigment used for dyeing
fabrics (Plates 22, 23).
Lacca was mentioned in Indian sources as early as the Veda era (1500–600
BC) and in later Chinese sources.399 It seems that one of the first references was
made by Aelian (the beginning of the third century BC) based on the Greek
historian Ctesias (fourth century BC) in his book on the history of Persia.
Aelian writes that there is an insect on trees in India that produces resin from
which the Indians produce a dye for colouring their gowns.400 Lacca was barely
mentioned in Classical sources.401 It seems that until the Byzantine period its
use was restricted. In fact, fabrics dyed in shades of reddish-purple were found
in some sites in Syria, such as Palmira. At that time, in the late Roman and
Byzantine periods, fabrics were not dyed in the Middle East.402
A trader’s logbook from the middle of the first century AD describes the
trade in lacca between India and Egypt.403 The name lacca as a red substance
was first mentioned in the Jewish sources in the Babylonian Talmud.404 The
linguistic origin of the lacca is, as previously mentioned, Sanskrit; in Persian
it was called lakk, which was its Arabic name as well.405 The Arabs did not
know the manner in which lacca was produced aside from the fact that it
was created on trees in India. Some authors wrote that it was the resin of the
sappan wood baqqam in Arabic (Caesalpinia sappan)406 while others suggested
that it is a kind of honey-dew melon, manna in Arabic, which falls from the
sky on to the tree or a kind of qirmiz, similar to the one found in Armenia.407
According to al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄, lacca is produced on the thin branches of trees
that grow in Armenia and the lands of India.408 Lacca was among the many
products transported through the port of Aden (Yemen) during the Ayyubid
period, along with spices and perfumes such as camphor and tamarind.409
Al-D⁄nawar⁄ writes that the stick-lacca does not grow in the Arab lands.
He adds that the resin is condensed on the wood and covers it ‘as if it was its
bark’. A colour named al-lakk is produced by cooking it and is used to dye
leather.410 The use of lacca reached new markets with the Islamic conquests,
together with many other medicinal substances and industrial products,
and extended from India to the Middle East and from there to Europe.411 The
wealth of records from the Cairo Genizah regarding the trade in and use of
lacca in the Middle East, Egypt and in other locations in the Mediterranean
region is worth noting.412 According to Forbes, the use of the red colour made
from lacca by the Arabs was probably more significant than that made out of
kermes (also known as scarlet dye, made from Kermes sp.) and purple (made
from Murex brandaris) in the Byzantine period.413 The advantage of the lacca
scales is the fact that they live within colonies on the branches. It is easier
to obtain large amounts of the substance in comparison with the quantity
obtained from the gland of the purple murex or from the scarlet scale that
had to be collected from the trees one at a time. It seems that the low price
of lacca, the quality of its colour and the lack of profitability in producing a
similar colour from scarlet scale or purple murex brought about the collapse
of those industries in the Middle East.414 Lacca was imported, along with
saffron, sappan wood, yellow myrobalan, alum and so on, into Sicily for the
process of dyeing cloth and fabric, the main production of the island under
Islamic rule (827–1061).415
The medicinal uses of lacca were not mentioned in the Classical litera-
ture.416 It served as a drug in the Mediterranean Basin only after the Islamic
conquests. The Arab practitioners classify lacca as a hot and dry drug. Ibn
Sīnā reports that lacca helps in weight loss, reduces heart rate, strengthens
the liver and cures various ailments.417 According to al-˝abar⁄, it opens severe
obstructions in the stomach.418
According to al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄, lacca can be helpful in weight reduction if a
drink made out of lacca, water and oxymel is drunk for a long period.419
According to Ibn Rushd:
It is a gum, hot and dry in the first degree. It is renowned for strengthening
the liver and opening its obstruction. It is also good for the stomach and
spleen as well as being useful against kidney and bladder pains. It increases
sexual potency.420
Ibn al-Bay†ār sums up the medicinal uses of lacca from various medieval
medical authorities as serving mainly for the treatment of jaundice, liver
inflammation and weight loss.421
Regarding the practical uses of lacca, we learn mainly from medical docu-
ments from the Cairo Genizah.422 Interestingly, lacca was used in the medi-
eval Middle East as the basis of a forgery of another red medicinal substance,
the dragon’s blood dam al-ʾakhawayn (Dracaena draco).423
teak
It is one of the types of tall trees with a large treetop. The leaves are very big,
shaped like a banana leaf or a shield which can hide a grown man, and it
smells like walnut. Elephants like these leaves very much. The tree grows
in India and Iraq. Its lignin is red, similar to red sandalwood. Sometimes
its colour is blackish. The tree has a strange smell. Its wood is used for
building … According to Abu Hanifa, most of the buildings in Iraq and
Baghdad are built of teak wood.424
Teak (sāj), Tectona grandis (Lamiaceae)
Teak is a large, deciduous tree that is dominant in mixed hardwood tropical

forests. It has small, fragrant white flowers and papery leaves that are often
hairy on the lower surface. It is native to Southeast Asia and today occurs
naturally only in the Indian Peninsula, Myanmar, northern Thailand and
northwestern Laos.
In Sanskrit, the tree is called sagun while in Indian saka or saga is similar
to its Aramaic name saga and in Arabic sāj. The teak tree was not mentioned
either by Dioscorides425 or in the Greek botanical literature.426 In the Maris
Erythraei of Periplus (first century AD), various trees, such as ebony and teak,
are mentioned as being traded in the port of Omana (present-day Iran), six
sailing days from Hormuz.427 These were probably exported from the Indian
region.428
The Jewish literature from the late Roman and Byzantine periods mentions
the teak tree as an expensive wood used in making furniture.429 The Babylonian
Jewish Sages even identified it with the Biblical tidhar (Isaiah, 41, 19).430
Teak is an example of an expensive wood that was known in a limited
way in the Classical period. It was probably imported through Persia. Its use
as a superb building material increased after the Islamic conquests.
Ibn al-Bay†ār, while citing other medieval sources, describes the teak
tree as the tallest tree of all, casting a gigantic shadow. Its wood is black and
strong featuring long branches and many leaves.431 Ibn Ba††ū†a describes the
construction of the Mosque in al-Madīna in Óijāz, carried out by ʿUmar ibn
al-Kha††āb, and noted that the ceiling was made of teak wood. According to
him, when al-Walīd ibn ʿAbd al-Malik enlarged the mosque, he used marble
and golden teak.432 When describing the route to India, Ibn Khurdādhbih
mentions the teak trees he saw in the city of Sandān.433
Ibn al-Faqīh describes the merits of various countries and explains how
important diversity is to commerce. When writing about the products to
India and Sind, he mentions teak among other important woods, such as
bamboo, sandalwood, pepper and sappan.434 Al-Thaʿālibī’s description of the
endemic virtues of India includes a list of unique animals (such as elephant,
rhinoceros and parrot); teak is one of the precious medicinal substances
(along with ivory, corundum, clove, white sandalwood, pepper and nard).435
According to al-Muqaddasī, Oman was a transit station for numerous
medicinal substances and perfumes, including musk, saffron, sappan wood,
ivory, pearl, corundum, cocoa nut, aloe, iron, lead, bamboo, sandalwood and
teak.436
Ibn Juljul (quoting Abū Óanīfa al-Dīnawarī; author of the essay Kitāb
al-nabāt) writes that the teak tree is:
An Indian wood that tends to be black, stiff and … grows high in the sky.
It has very large leaves. If you wrap your leg with one of its leaves, it will
be protected from the rain. A renowned type of oil is pressed out of the sāj
fruit, known as duhn al-sāj, with which they adulterate the gland of the
musk [deer] by sprinkling it in the gland. It trickles into the musk in such
a way that it can never be removed, adding some weight to the contents of
the gland … The nature of the sāj is hot. Its wood is sold at a high price.’437
Ibn al-Bay†ār writes about a cream that was made of the teak fruits with
which some people imitate musk. Whenever it was added to the musk, nobody
could identify the forgery. He adds that it is a cold and dry drug whose ashes
are used to treat eye diseases (as kohl). Its sawdust mixed with water reduces
heat, treats inflammations and swellings and expels worms.438 Ibn Waªshiyya
writes that the tree is unknown to him, but cites another source regarding the
medical use of its leaves. Specifically, a liquid pressed out of its wet leaves was
smeared on severely inflamed legs to ease inflammation.439
sappan wood
And after the island of Sri Lanka, there is an island called al-Rāminī. This
island is home to the unicorns, camphor and gold deposits … and on this
island there are many sappan wood trees, which are cultivated. Its fruits are
similar to the fruits of the carob tree whilst its taste is like squirting cucum-
ber440 and similarly inedible. It is said that its fibers are beneficial for the
treatment of poisoning … There are bamboo and nutmeg. Unlike other
islands, there is also sandalwood there.441
Sappan wood (Brazil wood) (baqqam), Caesalpinia sappan (Leguminosae)
A small and spiny tree, its flowers are yellow with elliptical pods 8–10 cm
long and 3–4 cm wide. The origin of sappan wood is southern and central
India. It also grows in China, Malaysia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and other coun-
tries. Red dye is produced from the orange-red lignin (Plates 24, 25).
The Arab writers commented that sappan wood was not mentioned in the
Classical literature, including the materia medica of Dioscorides.442 However,
there is evidence of the use of sappan wood in eastern Turkistan, India and
Japan in the early periods (second century BC to sixth century AD).443 Sappan
wood was distributed throughout the Middle East and Europe by the Arabs
after their conquests. The origin of its Arabic name baqqam is Sanskrit.444
Sappan wood is defined in the Arabic literature as an Indian tree that was
also brought from East Africa (zanj).445 al-Dīnawarī writes explicitly that ‘it
is not one of the Arab plants’. He also writes that when the wood is cooked
it is possible to dye with it.446 The main use of the sappan wood was dyeing
textiles in varieties of red and purple but also as a medicinal substance. When
sappan wood reached Europe in medieval times, it was called ‘Bresel Wood’.
It was mistakenly confused by commentators, since the twelfth century, with
trees mentioned in the Bible such as ‘Gofer Wood’ (Genesis, 6, 14) and
‘Almog Wood’ (Kings, I, 10, 11–12).447
Later, after the discovery of the American continent, the Portuguese
found a similar tree in South America (Caesalpinia echinata). The tree was
given the European name Bresel wood. Later Brazil became the name of the
country in which it was found.448
In fact, sappan wood and lacca were used as cheap substitutes for dyes like
the expensive purple one produced from the royal purple snails, until the late
Byzantine period. This was not mentioned any further in medieval commercial
documents. The sappan wood was used to fake the purple colour (ʾurjuwān)449
and the same was done with saffron by cooking dodder (Cuscuta sp.) in a
tincture of sappan wood.450 The proper way to check for high-quality and fresh
sappan wood was, according to al-Dimashqī, to examine the brightness and
strength of its colour (strong red or golden yellow) and its white thin patina
since, over time, both the colour and the quality diminished.451 Arab writers
describe and record various locations in which sappan wood trees were grown
and cultivated: the island of Sofala (southeastern Africa – Mozambique),452
parts of India, Sri Lanka and other islands around it.453 Marco Polo asserts that
it also grew on the islands of Java and Nicobar.454 The trade in sappan wood,
similar to spices from East Asia, was through Oman.455
The fact that sappan wood, similar to lacca, became a common and popu-
lar dye is well demonstrated in dozens of commercial documents found in the
Cairo Genizah. These reveal that lively commercial activity with sappan wood
occurred in the medieval Mediterranean.456 In a letter from the Genizah,
dated 1060, the merchant Yaʿakov Ben Yosef of Ashkelon writes to Naharai
Ben Nissim of Fus†ā† that he wishes to order various medicinal and industrial
substances, such as tanning sumach, gall-nuts, myrobalan, tin and ‘baqqam’
(sappan wood).457 Sappan wood was imported, along with saffron, yellow
myrobalan, lacca, alum and other substances, into Sicily for the purpose of
dyeing cloth and fabric, the main production of the island under Islamic rule
(827–1061).458 Baqqam from India was mentioned among other substances
in an Arabic delivery note found in al-Qu‚ayr, dating back to the Ayyubid
period.459
A consignment of twenty-five qin†ār of sappan wood was among the

spices that reached Ramla in a caravan from Mecca in 1411. Half of the con-
signment remained in the city while the rest was sent onwards to the West.460
Consignments of sappan wood were exported to Europe from Egypt as
well.461 The main distributer of sappan wood in the medieval European coun-
tries such as Italy and Spain, were the Venetians.462 Sappan wood and other
spices, perfumes, dyes and drugs are mentioned as goods traded in the Levant
in the fifteenth century and beyond.463
According to Ibn Juljul, sappan wood is ‘an Indian tree with red roots,
branches and twigs. Its leaves are green like almond leaves.’ While quoting
Abū Óanīfa (al-Dīnawarī), he writes: ‘I do not know any medical use of
it, except it is said that drinking a quantity of the ground root will kill the
drinker.’464 However, other medical authorities mention, sometimes from
their personal experience, that a drug against poisoning and snakebites was
made out of the roots and the lignin of the sappan wood.465 Al-ʾIshbīlī adds
that its seeds are used to prepare purgative drugs.466 Al-Ghāfiqī notes that
the tree was used to produce dye and treat wounds, blood haemorrhages and
dried ulcers.467 Ibn al-Bay†ār quoted various physicians who describe a large
tree that grew in India with leaves like those of the almond tree, featuring
red-coloured stems and branches. The tree served to heal cuts, stop blood
haemorrhages and dry abscesses and ulcers. The ground root was poisonous
and lethal.468
warras
North of Íanʿāʾ, on a 60 mile-long mountain named al-madkhīr, there is
water in small farms in which they cultivate the warras. It is a yellow plant,
similar to the saffron, and used to dye garments.469
Warras (stain-pod) (wars) Flemingia grahamiana. Also identified as Flemingia

rhodocarpa (Leguminosae)470
It is an erect tropical bush (1 m) growing in Yemen and eastern Africa. The

young branches are covered with hairs featuring leaves with three elliptical
foliates. The greenish-yellow or pink flowers are set in clusters. The fruits are
pods 6–12 mm long. They are yellow when ripe and covered with red glands,
staining orange whatever comes in contact with them. The clusters of fruits
are cut and dried on paper in the sun to preserve the pigments. Later, the
pods are rubbed and squeezed by hand over a sieve in order to filter out bits
of wood and small stones (Plate 26).471
The plant was not known to the Classical medical authors; neither
Dioscorides nor Galen mentioned it.472 The plant is mentioned extensively
in the early Arabic sources as yellow pigment of which various kinds were
found in India, Ethiopia and Yemen and differing from one another in their
qualities.473 However, most of the sources mention it being indigenous to
Yemen.474
Al-ʾIdrīsī asserts that the plant was cultivated in special farms north of
Íanʿāʾ. It was considered a pigment similar to saffron with which clothing
was dyed yellow.475 Ibn al-Faq⁄h writes that the Yemenite people were blessed
with the Saʿīdī’s and Adeni’s clothing and the warras of their country.476
According to al-Kindī, warras was added to a perfume compound that was
named after it thanks to its reddish hue.477
Al-ʾA‚maʿī (740–828) is quoted as describing the pods of the warras
as being similar to the pods of the sesame. After the former was dried and
shaken, a crushed saffron-like substance was deposited and collected.478 As
long as the pods were on the plant, the fruits were red but after being crushed
they turned yellow.479 Al-D⁄nawar⁄ describes the seeds of the warras as being
similar to the māsh (mungo bean – Phaseolus mungo (Fabaceae)). The best kind
of warras was produced from young plants, whose colour is reddish-yellow,
whereas the inferior kind was made of ‘old’ plants whose colour is a ‘strong’
(bright) yellow. The Ethiopian kind produced a blackish ‘weak’ yellow. Fake
warras was produced from the juniper tree (Juniperus sp.) (Cupressaceae).480
According to Ibn Juljul, the warras is ‘a plant that grows in gardens in Yemen.
It has heads like cotton in which the warras is found. It is yellow, which
may be used as dye like the saffron. The poets already mentioned the warras
dye.’481 Some Arab scholars had never seen the plant and did not know how
the pigment was produced. For example, Ibn Māsawayhi writes that ‘it is
not known to us. It is a substance on a tree that, once the tree is shaken, it
falls down and is collected in leather containers … Some say it falls from the
tree whilst others say it falls on the tree from the air and the moisture.’482
Abū al-ʿAbbās al-Nabātī (Andalusia, thirteenth century) describes the warras
he saw in Óijāz (that was brought from Yemen) as resembling sawdust (of
wood) or chamomile flowers with the same colour as safflower. However, it is
not known in Andalusia. The substance known there as warras actually refers
to something else.483
The warras was exported from the ports of Aden and Oman.484 An inter-
esting idiomatic phrase appears in the book of al-ʾI‚fahānī (897–967) enti-
tled Omani Camel. It was said about a person that his face was yellow due to
an illness since the Omani camels carrying the warras from Yemen to Oman
were yellow from their cargo.485 Women in eastern Yemen and in various
regions in Africa still colour their body yellow with warras for ornamentation
and to prevent skin diseases.486
A shipment of a small packet containing warras was mentioned in a
trader’s document from Alexandria (1057) found in the Cairo Genizah.487
Warras was imported, along with saffron, sappan wood, lacca, alum, yellow
myrobalan and so on, into Sicily for the process of dyeing cloth and fabric,
the main production of the island under Islamic rule (827–1061).488
Warras was considered in the medieval medical Arabic writings to be
a hot and astringent drug.489 It was used externally in the form of a paste
that was smeared on the body to treat skin diseases such as itching, pustules,
psoriasis, eczema and abscess, and to remove discolourations of the skin. It
was also said that whoever wore clothing that had been dyed with warras
and perspired in it would have his sexual desire enhanced.490 Warras was
not mentioned in practical medical documents found in the Cairo Genizah.
However, it was mentioned in medical books found there.491 Serapion rec-
ommends it for the cure of leprosy, pruritus and pustule.492
Perfumes and Incenses
Perfumes have been known as practical but exclusive products since antiquity.
Use of aromatic substances for rituals, funerary, therapeutic and cosmetic
purposes were first mentioned in early sources and archaeological excava-
tions of the ancient world. Perfumery is the art of making perfumes. It began
in ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia and later was developed and improved
by the ancient Israelites, Chinese, Indians, Persians, Carthaginians, Greeks,
Romans and Arabs. The word ‘perfume’ comes from the Latin per fume
meaning ‘through smoke’. Indeed, many of the fragrances of ancient times
were incense based, that is, the burning of aromatic gums and herbs mainly in
religious services. As luxury products, perfumes and spices were mainly used
in temples and the homes of the elite and the nobility, constituting part of
their royal treasures.493 Among the first verifications of the ‘Indian’ connec-
tion are nard, costus, cinnamon and galbanum, which were mentioned in the
Bible.494 Evidence of the role of the traders of Arabia is found in the Bible’s
mention of frankincense and myrrh.495
The pace of circulation of the substances was undoubtedly inconsistent
both chronologically and regionally. The patterns of distribution of sub-
stances, including perfumes and incenses, from southern Asia in Biblical
times and in the Hellenistic and Roman periods have already been studied.496
The patterns of distribution of the ‘Indian’ plants to the Middle East in which
the Arabs were involved had existed from early times.497 Among these, cin-
namon, nard and costus were known there during the Biblical era, whereas
pepper, cardamom and long pepper were known from Classical times.
Moreover, some of the Indian substances mentioned in Arabic sources were
probably known to a limited extent in earlier periods and, therefore, were not
sufficiently discussed in the sources.498
The definition of ‘new Arabian perfumes’ includes substances that were
barely mentioned in ancient sources for various reasons and undetermined
circumstances. They later spread again in the Middle Ages in a second and
more substantial wave, this time extensively and significantly with a clear
affinity to Arabic sources. Before the Islamic conquests, from Biblical times
up to the seventh century, Arab tribes had a ‘history’ of being intermediaries
in the spice trade on the incense routes from India through Arabia and on to
Egypt, Syria and Byzantium.499
Perfumes and Incenses of the Pre-Islamic Period
By reviewing Classical sources, one can reconstruct a reliable picture of the

perfumes and incenses that were known and used during those periods. There
is, of course, a possibility that some of the other perfumes not mentioned in
the sources were of restricted local and economic distribution. In this book,
we deal strictly with the list of preferred and expensive perfumes. These were
probably determined by the ‘cultural and social public opinion setter’ of the
higher socio-economic strata and elitist circles of each period. In most cases,
these are perfumes imported from southeastern Asia, eastern Africa or from
‘Arabia Felix’. Such substances were usually well exposed in the historical
sources. In some cases, a whole entry, or even a chapter, was dedicated to
their detailed description, the means of production, trading routes, prices,
uses and so on.
Among the important Classical authors, we should mention Theophrastus,
Dioscorides and Pliny. There is significant value to information gathered
sporadically from these sources. More reliable importance should be ascribed
to data emerging from sources reflecting practical reality, such as the medi-
cal prescriptions and religious rituals of each period. An example of this is
Jewish Halachic (mainly the Talmud)500 literature, which incidentally men-
tions such perfumes. Of special interest and value are the sources that rank
the perfumes according to their importance.
Immense value should be attributed to sources dealing with the produc-
tion of perfumes, such as Theophrastus’ book Concerning Odours. This work
is dedicated to the various techniques for the production of perfumes and
deals with about twenty fragrant plants and compounds, half of which are
of Mediterranean origin while the rest are from southern and eastern Asia.
Two plants of special interest that were most often referred to are the rose
and myrrh. These were followed respectively by the iris, nard, Sri Lanka cin-
namon, Chinese cinnamon, marjoram, frankincense, saffron, costus, balsam,
calamus, myrtle, citronella501 and laurel.502
We present below three examples that allow us to construct a reliable
list of the most prestigious perfumes of the Roman period (Table 3.1). The
first example is the list of prices conveyed by Pliny in his monumental work
Historia Naturalis. The second example involves the perfumes mentioned
on the list of the most important commodities of his time, highlighted at
the end of that same book (XXXVII, 204). The third example is taken from
a Jewish text that enumerates and describes the incenses that were burnt as
sacrificial offerings in the Second Temple in Jerusalem (until 70 AD).503 This
last list is astoundingly similar, nearly identical, to the list handed down by
Pliny despite the geographical, cultural and religious differences of the two
sources. It is clear that the prices of perfumes and incenses varied throughout
the periods.504 Hence, the data enable us to attain a general assessment of
the importance of the different perfumes and their relative classification. We
Table 3.1 Leading perfumes and incenses in the pre-Islamic world
Source Scientific name English Name

T, P, D Commiphora gileadensis (=opobalsamum) Balsam (resin)
P, D Commiphora gileadensis (=opobalsamum) Balsam (wood)
P, D Commiphora mukul Bdellium (resin)
P, T Cinnamomum cassia Chinese cinnamon-tree (bark)
T, P, D Cinnmomum zeylanicum Cinnamon (bark)
P Cinnmomum zeylanicum Cinnamon (oil)
T, P Costus speciosus Costus
T, P, D Boswellia carteri (= sacra) Frankincense (resin)
T, P Ferula galbaniflua Galbanum (resin)
D Iris florentina or I. Mesopotamica Iris (oil)
D Cistus ladaniferus Ladanum (resin)
P, D Pistacia lentiscus Lentisk (resin)
D Lily candidum Lily (oil)
P, D Cinnamomum citriodorum Malabathrum
D Origanum hortensis Marjoram (leaves)
T Operculum of various sp. of marine Mollusc
gastropods
T, P, D Commiphora myrrha Myrrh (resin)
D Rosa canina Rose (oil)
T, D Crocus sativus Saffron
D, P Nardostachys jatamansi Spikenard (leaves)
T, P, D Nardostachys jatamansi Spikenard (oil)
P, D Liquidambar orientalis Storax (resin)
Sources: Roman (P – Pliny Historia Naturalis, XXXVII, 204 (The most expensive products in the
world) and list of prices); (D – Diocletian tax list – maximum price); Jewish (T – Talmud). Prices – all
prices are Dinar per libra, unless written otherwise.
have not presented herein a full list of known Classical perfumes and fragrant
plants.505
Analysis of the data regarding the prices of the perfumes shows that the
balsam was the most expensive perfume.506 Clove,507 rose and saffron were
known and used in the Roman period; however, since it was hard to obtain
them in the Mediterranean region, they are not mentioned among the promi-
nent imported commodities. In this category, we also include expensive fra-
grant oils, the main use of which was medicinal, such as iris, lily and marjoram.
Galbanum was not mentioned on the list of Pliny’s most expensive
items, probably because its main use was medicinal and not aromatic due
to its strong, pungent odour. Agarwood, cited by Dioscorides (I, 21) for its
medicinal use, is not mentioned in any of the other sources. In our opinion,
this shows that during that period it was probably not traded as one of the
most desired perfumes.508
Prestigious Perfumes after the Muslim Conquests
The medieval sources are varied and, in general, they widely describe the
perfumes used by the local population. We should mention the geographi-
cal literature among these sources that review the vast area controlled by the
Arabs, from India to the Spanish coast and North Africa. This genre deals
with the merits of the locations and their unique qualities;509 for instance, in
Arab literature, Islamic poetry510 and other similar informative sources, the
literature deals with luxury products used by the elite circles, such as The Book
of Gifts and Rarities.511 Exposure to the Indian material culture and its exotic
products awakened a greater demand for these products, at first among the
nobility and later among the wider population. The wonders of India were
exaggerated and not necessarily based on reality. For example, al-Thaʿālibī
describes India as follows:
Someone has described India thus: ‘Its seas are full of pearls. Its mountains
are full of sapphires. Its trees are the aloes whilst its leaves give s weet-smelling
perfumes. Indian agarwood is mentioned together with other outstandingly
fragrant products attributed to specific countries like Tibetan musk and the
ambergris of al-Shiªr.’512
The theoretical medical literature is of great importance. The authors

mention medicinal substances used in the Galenic–Arabic world as well as
new substances from the Indian–Arabic medical legacy. However, some of
the most important sources are medical prescriptions that mention the use of
medicinal substances and perfumes reflecting practical medicine at that time.
Other sources of great value to our research are traders’ letters. These actually
record the perfumes that were traded, the routes taken, methods of transport,
prices and so on.
For purposes of illustration, we have incorporated data regarding
perfumes from the index of the monumental book by Gil entitled In the
Kingdom of Ishmael in Table 3.2.513 This book includes 845 Genizah docu-
ments that were studied by Gil and other scholars before him, most notably
Table 3.2 Leading perfumes and incenses of the Islamic world
English name, Scientific name Source

Origin
Amber (A) Physeter catodom Q (27), G (16), J, I, K (5)
Balsam (P) Commiphora gileadensis G, J
(=opobalsamum)
Bdellium (P) Commiphora mukul G
Camphor (P) Cinnamomum camphora G (33), Q (17), I, K (11)
Cinnamon (P) Cinnmomum (zeylanicum and cassia) G (26), J, I, K (1)
Costus (P) Costus speciosus G (13), I
Frankincense (P) Boswellia carteri (= sacra) G (7), J, K (1)
Ghāliya Mainly musk + amber + Indian Q (5), G (1)
agarwood
Indian Agarwood (P) Aquilaria agallocha Q (17), G (15), J, I, K (3)
Jasmine (P) Jasminum sp. G, J, K (3)
Lentisk (P) Pistacia lentiscus G (11), I
Mollusk (A) Operculum of various sp. of marine I, K (2)
gastropods
Musk (A) Moschus moschiferus Q (19), G (19), J, I, K (14)
Myrrh (P) Commiphora myrrha G, J
Nadd Mainly musk + amber + Indian Q (6), G (2)
agarwood
Rose (P) Rosa canina Q (2), G (10), J, I
Saffron (P) Crocus sativus Q (4), G (46), J, I, K (11)
Sandalwood (P) Santalum album Q (3), G (4), J, I, K (1), K (1)
Screw pine (P) Pandanus odoratissimus K (1)
Spikenard (P) Nardostachys jatamansi G (8), I
Violets (P) Viola odorata G, J
Wallflower (P) Cheiranthus chiri K (3)
Wars (P) Flemingia rhodocarpa = Moghonia G, J, I, K (3)
grahamiana
Water lily (P) Nymphaea (nauchali, alba, lotus) G, J, K (1)
Sources: G – Genizah, Q – Book of Gifts and Rarities, J – al-JāªiÕ, I – Ibn Māsawayhi, K – al-Kindī.
Figures in the parentheses () are numbers of times the item was mentioned. (A) – Animal origin;
(P) – Plant origin.
by Goitein.514 This documentation is extremely important. Thanks to its

magnitude and wealth, it covers the period in which the Arabs operated
at the peak of their Mediterranean commerce (tenth to twelfth centuries).
Therefore, the list reconstructed on the basis of this documentation is solid
and representative. This is clearly illustrated by the comparison with the data
extracted from other sources such as the Book of Gifts, which consists of 414
citations,515 the Book of Trade, which is attributed to al-JāªiÕ,516 and the writ-
ings of Ibn Māsawayhi517 and al-Kindī.518
The data in Table 3.2 include the number of times the perfume was men-
tioned in each source. It is not statistical and does not include all the Genizah
documents. Moreover, in some cases perfumes are repeated several times in
one document. In any case, the data generally reflect the trend in a reliable
and realistic way. According to Table 3.2, the perfumes that head the list are
saffron, cinnamon, musk,519 ambergris520 and agarwood.521
Two compound perfumes made from three of the above-mentioned per-
fumes (musk, ambergris and agarwood), known as nadd and ghāliya, were
prestigious and expensive and should be added to the list. If we exclude
saffron from this list since it is of local Mediterranean origin and was used
mainly as a spice (for colouring food and medicine), all the rest are of ‘Indian’
origin. Since cinnamon was used extensively during this period mainly as a
spice and for medicine, we can clearly point out the five ‘new’ very popular
perfumes that controlled the market after the Islamic conquests: agarwood,
sandalwood,522 musk, ambergris and camphor.523 In some of the Arabic books
that dedicated chapters to perfumes, only three of these perfumes appear
(agarwood, musk and ambergris).524
One hundred and seven different recipes for perfumes are mentioned
in al-Kindī’s Book of the Chemistry of Perfume. These have survived the test
of time. There are fourteen recipes for musk, eleven for camphor, eleven for
saffron, five for ambergris, five for agarwood, three for warras and two for
rose. Thirty more recipes of compound perfumes such as nadd, rāmiq and
ghāliya were also discussed while thirty others deal with other plants (one
for each) such as myrtle, jasmine, cinnamon and frankincense.525 A similar
picture is drawn by the book of the Christian physician Ibn Kaysān (end of
the tenth century), which provides recipes for perfumes.526 Another example
is Ibn Māsawayhi’s book On Simple Aromatic Substances. Here, the author
divides the perfumes into two groups. The first one, called ‘the primary’,
includes musk, ambergris, agarwood, camphor and saffron while the second,
called ‘the secondary’, mentions twenty-four perfumes, some of which are
not clearly identified, mainly nard, clove, sandalwood, rose, cinnamon, mace,
costus, waras, mastic, ladanum, storax and operculum (ʾaÕfār al-†īb).527
A different classification was suggested by the poet al-Sarī ibn Muªammad
al-Raffāʾ (d. 973) in his treatise on perfumes The Book on the Beloved; and On
What is Smelled and What is Drunk. He starts his book with chapters of songs
dedicated to more than twenty perfumed plants and some fragranced liquids
made out of various fruits that were known in the Muslim world. Later, he
dedicated a whole chapter entitled ‘fī mashmūm al-†īb wa-mā tastaʿmiluhu
al-ʿarab’ [A chapter on the fragrances used by the Arabs for perfumes]. The
order of the perfumes in this chapter is musk, ambergris, camphor, nadd and
ghāliya.528
Learning about the transformation of the prestige of the precious per-
fumes from the Classical to the Medieval periods clearly shows trends of
innovation as well as continuation. Arab perfumes can be divided into three
groups, according to their level of importance.
New Perfumes
These come mainly from the vast region named ‘India’. Most of these per-
fumes, such as camphor, ambergris and sandalwood (and compounds made
out of them such as nadd and ghāliya), were not known in the Middle East
and the Mediterranean until the Muslim conquests. Some of the perfumes in
this group, such as musk and Indian agarwood, existed and were used on a
small scale. It is important to mention that musk and ambergris are of animal
origin while the rest are of plant origin. These perfumes were also common
and esteemed in Arabic literature and poetry. In addition, as we have already
mentioned, these perfumes were often sent to Arab rulers as preferred gifts.529
The infiltration of substances from the East occurs in parallel to some
channels and routes, mainly through the Indian Ocean and Persia. Among
early evidence, we found one source that dealt with gifts of perfumes, agar-
wood and camphor that were sent by the kings of China and India to the
Sasanian rulers Khusraw I (528–79) and Khusraw II (590–628).530 To sup-
port this anecdote, we should state that both musk and jasmine were men-
tioned in the writings of the Jewish Sages (the Babylonian Talmud, which
was compiled in the fifth century).531
To this group we can also add famous perfumes, although less important
than those that were already known during the pre-Islamic period in the
regions of Persia and Mesopotamia, such as jasmine, water lily and violet.
The inhabitants of these regions specialised in the cultivation and production
of fragrant plants that were well-known in the West, such as saffron and rose
(mainly the jūrī type). These perfumes remained very popular in the Arab
perfume tradition.
Perfumes that Maintained their Dominance
These are substances that were already considered prestigious in the Biblical
and Classical periods and maintained their prestige though they were con-
sidered inferior to the substances mentioned above in the first group. The
perfumes that maintained their dominance include cinnamon, costus, spike-
nard, frankincense, saffron and rose.
Perfumes that Lost their Importance
In the Arabic period two of the most prestigious perfumes of the Classical
period and culture were pushed aside and lost their importance, specifically
balsam and myrrh. In reference to balsam, Pliny writes, ‘But every other
[perfume] ranks below balsam. The only country to which this plant has
been promised is Judaea’ (XII, 111). Balsam was cultivated as a governmental
monopoly only in the oases along the valley rift (such as Jericho and Ein
Gedi) until the beginning of the Arabic period. During the Umayyad period,
the cultivation and production of balsam was transferred to Egypt to a small
garden belonging to a nobleman, situated in al-Ma†tariyya (ʿAyn Shams),
northeast of modern-day Cairo. The cultivation of the plant and the produc-
tion of the perfumes were negligible and were thus discontinued, according
to the sources of the seventeenth century.532 Since then, balsam has been
known only as a wild plant, the growth of which is restricted to its natural
habitat, that is, Arabia and eastern Africa. Although balsam was extensively
mentioned in Classical sources, it was almost completely absent from Arabic
literature dealing with perfumes. For example, it is not mentioned at all in
al-Kindī’s book533 or by Ibn Māsawayhi.534 Therefore, we can treat the infor-
mation regarding its cultivation and production in the nobleman’s garden in
Cairo as a fictional anecdote.535
It appears that the best and most cherished perfume to replace balsam
was camphor. Ibn Juljul explicitly writes that it was the medical alternative for
balsam.536 Moreover, camphor is extensively mentioned (twenty times) in the
practical medical documents, mainly prescriptions and lists of drugs found in
the Cairo Genizah, where it was compared to balsam on three occasions.537

Changes in both consumption and demand were affected, among other
things, by the availability of the product to the customers. Balsam plants were
cultivated during the pre-Islamic period in Judaea on a small scale; that is, in
a small geographic area, a small amount of plants yielded a small amount of
products. These aspects had the effect of restricting commerce and elevating
the prices. The camphor, on the other hand, is a large tree that grows wild
in southern and eastern Asia spread over vast geographical habitats. While
analysing the sources, it is clear that the obtainable amounts of camphor were
unlimited; therefore, its price was relatively low, so that it was more accessible
and available to a much larger population. Like balsam, the importance of
myrrh, which was imported from Arabia and eastern Africa, also declined. It
appears that musk became its substitute.538 Other perfumes of this group are
bdellium, iris, calamus and the citronella.539
When we mention the ‘Arabs’ as a significant factor for the distribu-
tion of perfumes and spices, we do not necessarily mean the minority elite
group originating from the Quraysh tribe of Mecca. Indeed, there are some
records referring to the involvement of representatives of this ethnic group
and other Arabic tribes in the perfume trade during the pre-Islamic period.
However, specifically in these regions, the use of perfumes such as balsam,
myrrh and frankincense was not common, important as it was in the Greek
and Roman cultures. Crone makes a radical comment on this, calling it
‘Arabia without spices’.540 For example, in a treatise on perfumes by the
tenth-century poet al-Sarī ibn Muªammad al-Raffāʾ, these perfumes are
not mentioned when quoting pre-Islamic poets.541 Moreover, the centre of
the political policy that affected these processes was far from Arabia; it was
mainly in Abbasid’s Iraq. A few elements influenced this progression. It was
not just the designers of the contemporary political agenda but predomi-
nantly the market powers that were formed, thanks to the new opportunities
that were generated by the new political situation that arose following the
ascent of Islam.
These changes were the outcome of a combination of historical circum-
stances and economic and cultural factors that transformed the trends of
demands and preferences of the customers resulting from the Islamic con-
quests. With the rise of the Abbasid dynasty, the Islamic world controlled
vast regions extending from India to Spain and from North Africa to Arabia.
This was the first time, subsequent to the conquests of Alexander the Great,
that such a vast territory was controlled by Arab rulers. A medieval ‘global
village’, as it were, was the result. Various kingdoms and cultures united
under Arab domination, including parts of the Byzantine and Sasanian
Empires.
The Islamic conquests opened new trading centres that flooded the mar-
kets with luxury goods and products from all over the world,542 primarily
from southern and eastern Asia. These included the new perfumes, musk and
camphor, which were available and comparatively cheap and, as previously
mentioned, replaced traditional perfumes. As a result, the demand for tra-
ditional aromatic goods like balsam and myrrh dropped dramatically. The
abundant supply of new perfume varieties was rich and diverse, deriving from
a wide range of geographical origins and assorted qualities, with their prices
varying accordingly. This was the manner in which ‘Indian’ perfumes replaced
‘Arabian’ ones, while the ‘East African’ perfumes took precedence.
This change had symbolic expression in Muslim religious rites. The fact
that camphor and musk were mentioned in the Qurʾān (76: 5, 83: 26)
probably contributed to their allure and prestige among Muslims. While
balsam and myrrh of Arabian origin were included in the incense burned in
the Second Jewish Temple,543 in the Umayyad period other perfumes were
burned in the same location (the Islamic Dome of the Rock), specifically
musk and ambergris, as described herein: ‘Every Monday and Thursday the
gatekeepers used to melt musk and ambergris, rose water and saffron and
prepare from this mixture ghāliya with rose water made of the roses of jūr.’544
The Arab rulers preferred the new perfumes and drugs from the East over the
local products from their own region.
In addition to the distribution of the new perfumes by the Arabs,
alchemy evolved alongside the development of techniques for the production
of perfumes and the preparation of compound drugs. One of the techniques
that became famous and widespread was distillation.545 This widened the
options of extracting perfumes and, in many cases, enabled the production
of less expensive perfumes, such as rose water. Instead of the prestigious and
expensive oil of roses that was common during the pre-Islamic period, they
could now distil the rose petals.
agarwood
Saʿīd al-Tamīmī: ‘My father told me, from knowledgeable people, about
a huge tree that grows in the Indian lands, some of which [its wood]
is brought from Kashmir, some from Sri Lanka and some from various
islands’ … ‘I was told that it is produced from the heart of the trunk,
unlike other trees whose oil is produced from the material nearer to the
bark’ … The best agarwood is solid, dry, highly oily, fire- and melt-proof
and stays in the clothing … There are eighteen kinds of agarwood, the
first one named for its source – al-Mandalī (India). During the Jāhiliyya
period until the late Umayyad, it was not imported due to its bitter
smell. Once Óusayn ibn Barmak entered India running away from the
Umayyad, he liked the Mandalī agarwood and decided to trade in it. After
the victory of the Abbasids over the Umayyad, the Barmakis reached them
[the Abbasids]. Óusayn came to al-Man‚ūr (the Abbasids ruler) and saw
him freshening himself with Kamarī agarwood. Óusayn offered him the
Mandalī kind saying it was the best. Since then, they imported large quan-
tities and created a great demand amongst people. Over time, people got
used to the bitter fragrance and used it, as it kills lice and prevents them
from breeding.546
Agarwood (Indian Agarwood Tree) (ʿŪd Hindī, ʿŪd al-˝īb); Aquilaria agal-
locha (Thymelaceae)
It is a tropical tree with a smooth pale trunk, thin leathery leaves and yel-
lowish-green flowers (Plate 27). The biblical varieties of spice ‘ʾaholim’ and
‘ʾaholot’ (Psalms, 45, 9; Proverbs, 7, 17; Song of Songs, 4, 14) are identified
by some researchers as the species Aquilaria agallocha and Aquilaria malac-
cens, respectively.547
Agarwood is mentioned in several pre-Islamic sources.548 It became very
popular after the Islamic conquests with the agarwood of Cambodia (Qumār)
and Champa (Íanf ), being particulary prized in literature and poetry.549
Agarwood was barely known in classical antiquity. Dioscorides states that the
agallochon tree (agalochon xylon), a native of India and Arabia, was aromatic.
The aromatic wood was used as a perfume, incense and chewing substance to
sweeten the breath. Its medical uses were for curing the liver and dysentery
and treating stomach upsets.550 The use of the wood as incense was also men-
tioned by Isidore of Seville, who completed his book towards the end of his
life (seventh century).551
The name ʿūd in Arabic is a generic name for all of the varieties of wood
and lignin used as incense.552 However, it is a specific name for the high-
quality lignin of agarwood from India whose colour is yellowish red and that
is filled with resin and a pleasant fragrance.553
Agarwood was in use in the Arabic pre-Islamic world.554 Nevertheless, it
seems to have become one of the most desired perfumes only after the early
Islamic period, from which we have evidence of its uses as a liquid perfume
and as incense. According to earlier sources, Ibn Māsawayhi attested to the
fact that after the tree was cut down, it was buried for one year until its bark
disintegrated. Only the pure and concentrated aromatic substance survived
in the heart of the dry wood. Pieces of the trunk and the large branches
were used primarily to produce liquid perfume or serve as incense sticks.555
Al-ʾIshbīlī adds that the description of the production of agarwood found
in the books of Dioscorides and Galen proves that neither had ever seen the
plant or was familiar with it.556
According to one of the stories, agarwood was used in the Hindi ritual.
In the city of ‘Multān’557 located in Sind, the perfume was dedicated to a
special sculpture. The priests of the local temple used to burn incense of some
agarwood as a way of expressing worship to the sculpture and would sell the
rest to traders. When the city was conquered by the Muslims, they shattered
the sculpture and took all the agarwood they found in the Hindi temple as
booty.558
Similar to the other precious and esteemed perfumes, it was used as a
royal gift. Such a liquid perfume, immersed in wax, was sent by the King
of India as a gift to the Persian king Khusraw.559 This tradition contin-
ued after the Islamic conquests. For example, the King of India sent various
gifts to al-Óasan ibn Sahl (in 825): ‘Amongst which a basket of Indian
agarwood the likes of which had never been seen.’ In the same context,
it was said that when Caliph al-Mutawakkil fell ill the physicians sug-
gested he disinfect himself with good and fresh agarwood. So he did. The
substance was taken from the above-mentioned shipment to al-Óasan
ibn Sahl.560
One of the most famous types of agarwood was the ‘al-mandalī’ (from
India), probably imported from the port of Mandari. However, from the
early Islamic period (Jāhiliyya) until the end of the Umayyad dynasty, the
Arabs did not use it frequently due to its ‘bitter’ smell. It is also said that one
member of the Barmak family (al-Barāmika) who fled from the Umayyad to
India learned there about another kind of ‘al-mandalī’ agarwood. When the
Abbasid Caliph Abū Jaʿfar al-Man‚ūr (754–75) gained power and controlled
this region, a member of the Barmakī invited the Caliph to use this kind,
which was considered the best. Since then, it has been extensively imported
from India. Its demand increased, mainly due to its pungent smell and its
beneficial uses in scenting cloth and in killing lice.561 Agarwood was men-
tioned many times in various recipes of perfumes, which are written in the
alchemical book of perfume by al-Kindī called the Book of the Chemistry of
Perfume.562
Arab writers describe India as a country that is rich in agarwood trees.563
Their reference to India then includes present-day Sri Lanka and Malaysia.564
Marco Polo adds that India (Chamba) and Java are rich sources of agarwood.
Some of the trade in agarwood was transferred through the Persian port of
Sīrāf and from there to various destinations in the medieval world.565 He
mentioned the port of Zaiton (identified as Qunzhou or Xiamen, in China)
as being important for the export of agarwood, sandalwood, pepper and other
spices to Egypt and Europe.566 Twenty varieties of different origins were men-
tioned, varying in nature and price. The differences were expressed by their
colour, quality of smell and characteristics (sweet or sour), thickness of their
smoke, quality of the oil produced from them, the preservation of fragrance
and so on.567
Some of the sources mentioned various kinds named mainly for the ports
from which they were imported such as the ‘al-mandalī’;568 ‘al-samandūrī’
(from Samandūr near Bombay); ‘al-qumārī’ (Khmer, approximately ancient
Cambodia);569’al-‚anfī’ (Chanf in eastern Indochina) and others. The prices
varied according to type and quality. Usually, the packages were shipped as
a lump of three manas (weight).570 The trade was conducted along different
routes, perhaps due to the customer’s preferences. For example, the variety
named qāqullī (from Malaysia) was brought to al-Shām (medieval Greater
Syria) and from there distributed to other countries.571 Medicinal uses of the
agarwood were mentioned in the West at the end of the eighth century in
circles close to Charles the Great (Charlemagne).572
Agarwood appears on a list of perfumes and spices that were permit-
ted to be sold, found in the Book of the Eparch (895) from the time of the
Byzantine Caesar Leo VI573 and in a Byzantine veterinary book of the tenth
century.574
From a description of the medieval Jewish traders (Rādhānite), we learn
that agarwood was brought from China across the Indian Ocean to Suez and
from there by a land route to Parma on the northern shore of the Sinai Peninsula.
From there, the agarwood was shipped across the Mediterranean to Western
Europe.575 According to merchants’ letters found in the Cairo Genizah, agar-
wood was traded between Cairo and Alexandria and exported to the Maghrib
and Sicily, mainly in the eleventh century.576 From a letter written by a trader
of Fus†ā† to his partner in Jerusalem (1045), we learn of the huge demand for
agarwood in Egypt because ‘the Byzantines departing from Fus†ā† do not leave
any agarwood. There is a huge demand even for the sawdust.’577
Similar to other perfumes, many forgeries of agarwood were found in the
markets. For example, some forgers took pieces of sandalwood, which was
much cheaper, or the wood of the olive tree, and soaked it in a mixture of
perfumes for a long time. The best way to reveal such a forgery was burning
some of the wood and inhaling the fragrance.578
In medieval Arabic medicine, agarwood was considered a hot and
dry drug. Practitioners believed that its aroma fortified the human body.
Drinking an agarwood potion was considered effective for the treatment of
various ailments of the digestive and intestinal system. It was also used exter-
nally by smearing the agarwood ointment and massaging the body with its
oil (or crushed agarwood soaked in rosewater) and was considered beneficial
for a variety of ailments.579 According to medieval Arabic medical literature,
it was used for the treatment of fever, poor respiration, polishing the teeth,
protecting the mouth and gums, arousing the desire for coitus, increasing
sexual pleasure, boosting the spirit, calming the nerves as a carminative and
as a diuretic.580 Evidence of its importance and practicality can be learnt from
the fact that agarwood appears on eight lists of materia medica found in the
Cairo Genizah and in eleven practical prescriptions, mainly as an aphrodisiac,
linctus, ointment and for itches.581
camphor
Camphor is the most prestigious and valued of all resins. This is due to
its preference in various compounds and its inclusion in various kinds of
drugs and perfumes … It is the resin of a huge tree that grows in India on
the mountain slopes. The traders can identify the origin of the product,
amongst them camphor from the island Qan‚ūr, also known as the ‘Land
of Gold’ (Java). This kind was most preferable. Here is a description of the
production of that camphor: In a certain season, the tree is approached.
A ditch or groove is dug around it in which a canister is placed. With
a big axe, the trunk is hit until the liquid erupts. The man should cover
his face and nose whilst striking the tree with the axe and be careful of
the lethal liquid. The resin accumulates in the canister and from there
is divided into smaller containers. After the tree is cut, let it dry. The
branches are cut as well. Some say that between the bark and the trunk
there are chunks of resin. Others say that there are salt-like crystals in the
lignin. It is true.582
Camphor (Kāfūr); Cinnamonum camphora (Lauraceae)
It is a tall tropical evergreen tree (up to 30 m) with dark long leaves with
sharp ends, yellow-green flowers and small black fruit. The plant grows in
tropical southern and eastern Asia, mainly in China and Japan. The aromatic
substance is found in all parts of the tree. The production process yields oil
and a white crystal substance, used to produce medicine (Plate 28).583 The
cultivation of the tree, production of its oil and its medical uses were wide-
spread in early times in China and Japan.
The tree and its derivatives were apparently unknown to physi-
cians and scholars of ancient Greece and Rome, a phenomenon that had
already been studied by medieval Muslim scholars.584 Its introduction to
the Greco-Roman world seems to have occurred shortly before the rise
of Islam.585 Camphor became widely distributed around the world and
was known in the Middle East from the Sasanian period, when it served
as a perfume and a condiment. It was deemed among the most impor-
tant and exclusive perfumes that were given as presents to kings.586
Camphor does not appear frequently in pre-Islamic poetry since it was not
well-known in Arabia at that period.587 However, it is mentioned, for exam-

ple, in the pre-Islamic period as one of the gifts brought to the Persian
rulers by the kings of China and India who controlled its cultivation and
production.588 Camphor was also mentioned by the Byzantine physician
Aëtius of Amida in his medical treatise.589 According to Arabic sources, the
origin of its name is Persian, similar to other Eastern medieval spices and
perfumes.590
The Arabic name kāfūr derives from the Malay language kapor and the
Sanskrit kar pura. Strangely enough, it seems as though the Arabs had barely
heard of camphor in the very early Islamic period. They indicated explicitly
that the tree did not grow in their territories.591 They discovered the tree
and its uses during their conquest of the East. It was said that when the
Arabs conquered the city of al-Madāʾin (Ctesiphon) in 637, they found
a large amount of crystal camphor that at first glance appeared to be salt.
They realised they were mistaken only after tasting the bread that had been
baked with these crystals. Its taste was bitter.592 Camphor was known in
ancient Arab culture because it is mentioned in the Qurʾān (76: 5) mainly
as a flavouring for drinks that would have been served to the saints in the
Garden of Eden. It was also mentioned by early Arab poets, who included
it in their poems together with musk.593 One of the first mentions of cam-
phor in the Arabic medical literature was by the Persian Jewish physician
Māsarjawayh.594
Camphor was known in Europe at the end of the eighth century in
circles close to Charles the Great (Charlemagne).595 It was probably one of
the commodities brought to Europe thanks to his ties with Hārūn al-Rashīd.
In The Book of the Eparch (895) describing the rules and ordinances of the
Byzantine Caesar Leo VI, camphor is mentioned as one of the products sold
in the local grocery shop.596
The famous description of the medieval Jewish traders (Rādhānite) writ-
ten by Ibn Khurdādhbih (ninth century) mentions camphor and its import
from China (probably via the Indian Ocean to Suez) and from there by land
route to Farama (Pelusium) on the northern shore of the Sinai Peninsula.
From there, the camphor was shipped through the Mediterranean to Western
Europe.597 Camphor was among the many products that were transported
through the port of Aden (Yemen) during the Ayyubid period, along with
spices and perfumes such as lacca and tamarind.598 Camphor is mentioned in

European prescriptions of the ninth and tenth centuries.599
The tree, the production of the substance, its preservation and its trade are
described by chroniclers, geographers and travellers. Some describe the tree as
growing mainly on the banks of streams, reaching great heights and having
branches that spread widely. The full-grown tree used to be incised at a certain
time of year in order to collect its resin. At the end of the process, the tree
died.600 Al-Kindī writes one of the first recipes for the production of crystal
camphor: ‘at the end of the process, a “white sugar-like substance is pro-
duced”’.601 More prescriptions are found in the book of perfumes written by
Ibn Kaysān.602 Camphor is described by al-Nuwayrī as ‘the most distinguished
and valuable of all resins thanks to its preference in various compounds and
its inclusion in many kinds of perfumes and drugs’. The author also notes the
debate in Arabic literature regarding the production of camphor.603
Various kinds of camphor were sold in different shapes: small coins
(fulūs), thin plates and so on.604 Camphor water, for example, was produced
in sind.605 The names of about ten kinds of camphor and their forgeries are
found in the medieval Arabic literature. They differ from one another by their
quality, colour, medical uses and efficacy.606
Various forgery techniques were used in the trade of camphor, including
mixing ‘grains’ of camphor with chips of leftover marble engravings, eroded
‘grains’ of ammonia salts (nushādur) or sawdust of the castor oil plant and
crushed date pits. Therefore, signs and techniques to check the authenticity
of the camphor appear in the ªisba literature, which was intended to serve as
a practical tool for the market supervisors.607 Al-Dimashqī, in his book on the
commerce, writes that the ‘good’ (genuine) camphor has a sweet taste as well
as a dry and pleasant odour, unlike kerosene. In order to store it properly,
it should be preserved in a glass or Chinese ceramic jar and covered with tin
chips.608
Besides ‘India’, Arabic sources mention the import of high-quality cam-
phor from various islands near Sri Lanka,609 the area of China,610 and islands
in the Red Sea near East African countries.611 The ports of Aden,612 Oman613
and Sīrāf614 were the main centres of trading in camphor.
As mentioned before, there were several varieties of camphor, the vast
majority of which came from the ‘land of Sofala in India’.615 The Arabic
sources also mentioned China as a source of camphor.616 The best kind was
from Qan‚ūr (or Fan‚ūr/Íanfūr).617 The plant, its origin, the production
process and its medicinal uses are frequently mentioned in Arabic literature.
For example, we present below the entry of camphor from Ibn Juljul (there
are several versions but we present the shortest):
Indian [substance], it is the resin of an Indian tree similar to the pine.

There, the kāfūr is like Arabic gum and pine resin. It is collected and washed
in water and then steamed until it becomes as white as snow. Its colour first
is yellow with a tint of red. The water in which it is washed is called kāfūr
water and is a sticky oil with a pleasant fragrance, which replaces balsam
oil. The kāfūr is cold and dry when steamed … Beneficial for yellow-bilious
fever and inflammation of the liver and acute fevers if inhaled, it is a drug.618
According to Ibn Māsawayhi, camphor is one of the five most important aro-
matic substances and only a few types of it exist.619 It was a commodity traded
between Egypt, Sicily and the Maghrib, imported from China by Jewish
merchants.620 The Jewish traders of Sicily, mainly under the Islamic rule
(827–1061), imported quantities of camphor along with various products
(including drugs, dyeing materials, spices and perfumes) and other commod-
ities, most of which were exported to Andalusia and Europe.621 In a Genizah
letter, for example, Óabīb Ben Nissim of Ramla (eleventh century) describes
the difficult journey from Alexandria and relates that on the way he lost the
camphor he had bought in Egypt. In the thirteenth century, camphor was
a commodity that was transported across the Levant en route to Europe.622
Riddle claims that the camphor was discovered only later, during the
Middle Ages.623 In medieval Arabic medical literature, it is described as a cold
and dry drug used for the treatment of ear conditions, jaundice, pain, liver,
spleen, testicles and kidney diseases, sore throat, headaches, fevers, putrescent
wounds, kidney and bladder stones in the urinary tract and swellings.624
A few drops of liquid camphor were used to stop nasal bleeding,625 while
the substance was considered beneficial for the treatment of high fever and
headaches (inhaled as is or with roses or sandalwood). Camphor was also used
for the treatment of swellings and inflammations by massaging the body.
When used in high dosage, it was considered a libido-moderating agent and
was believed to alleviate problems in the digestive system.626 Evidence of the
importance and practicality of camphor in the medieval Mediterranean may

be its presence on thirteen lists of materia medica found in the Cairo Genizah
and in seven practical prescriptions for eye diseases, swellings and to stop
bleeding.627
ambergris
A fish known by the name al-Bāl lives in the sea of Zanj. Its length is
400–500 forearms, whose big wing’s (fin) edge is like a big sail. When it
takes its head out of the water and blows out air, massive amounts of water
are emitted … When fishermen catch it, they take it to the shore, open its
stomach and remove the ambergris … The substance is sold to traders and
perfumers in Iraq, Persia and India.628
Ambergris (ʿanbar); Physeter catodon (Physeteridae)
The Arabic name serves to describe two different substances: one a semi-
precious stone (fossil resin of pines and other trees) and the other a perfume
that we will discuss below.
Ambergris is a perfumed substance with a sweet scent similar to musk.
It is flammable and burns with a bright flame. The raw material of this
precious perfume is apparently derived from bile secretions of the sperm
whale.629 Ambergris either floats on the surface of tropical seas or is found
cast upon the shore in large lumps that weigh up to five kilograms. It was
highly valued in the East both as a perfume and a medicinal substance.630
Ambergris was mentioned in the medical book of the Byzantine physician
Aëtius of Amida.631
Similar to musk, ambergris became one of the most popular perfumes in
the Arabic culture. One of the early Arabic poets wrote a flowery phrase: ‘If
I were a perfume, I would like to be ʿanbar from al-Shiªr.’632 Ambergris was
mentioned in recipes for perfumes in early Arabic alchemical literature.633
Moreover, it was used as incense in the Dome of Rock on the Temple Mount
in Jerusalem during the Umayyad period.634
From early Arabic sources we learn that the Arabs did not know the real
source of ambergris. They mostly believed that it was created at the bottom of
the ocean or in underground springs from which it was carried until reaching
the ocean.635 In most cases the sources wrote that when it floated, different
kinds of marine creatures ate it, and most fish died by doing so.636 Al-JāªiÕ
writes on this issue that ‘the ambergris is dragged up to the shore from the
sea. Whoever eats it dies. If a bird pecks it, its beak falls off; so do its claws
if the bird stands on the ambergris. The bird dies since it cannot eat. Sailors
and perfume makers told us that sometimes they found beaks and nails of
birds in the chunks of ambergris. The whale dies, too, if it eats ambergris.’637
Al-Muqaddasī writes that ambergris ‘is tossed on to the shore from Aden to
Mukhā … Anyone who finds any part of it, a little or a lot, takes it to the
governor’s deputy, who pays him a piece of canvas and a dīnār for it … I have
never found out what ambergris actually is.’638
Arabic sources tell us that Hārūn al-Rashīd (786–809) sent a delega-
tion to Yemen to inspect the quality of the local ambergris and ascertain the
truth regarding its origin.639 Al-Qalqashandī, for example, and other Arabic
authors cite earlier sources who describe how the dwellers on the seashores
in Arabia trained special animals (probably the female camel) to smell and
locate ambergris on the seashores during the night.640 Each source names
several kinds of ambergris and describes their qualities and uses.641 According
to al-Masʿūdī, the best ambergris was found on the shores of al-Zanj (black
people’s lands = Africa) and from a region called al-Shiªr on the shores of
Arabia, for example, Oman and Yemen (Óa∂ramawt).642 He asserts that the
local people would catch the whale, extract its intestines and remove the
ambergris while others would search the beach for ambergris brought ashore
by the waves. Ibn Juljul maintains that ʿanbar is:
The secretion of a marine animal that feeds on the ʿanbar weed. When it was
overstuffed by swallowing the weed, this bothered the animal so much that
it would spew it out as a secretion. It is in the shape of big woody arrows,
and is greasy, soft, oily like asphalt, floating on the water. Its colour tends to
be black and brownish. The black kind is inferior whilst the brownish is dry
and low in moisture. The best is the one that is a black and brownish mix.643
According to various Arabic writers, ambergris was brought from the

shores of Arabia,644 Yemen,645 Africa,646 Persia,647 Bahrain,648 India,649 various
islands in the Indian Ocean,650 Andalusia651 and even from the shores of the
cities of al-Shām.652 In many cases, the commerce on these islands took place
in the form of barter. The local inhabitants preferred to exchange iron for
their ambergris, with the communication being done by hand gestures.653
Al-Muqaddasī emphasised that Aden was the centre of trade in ambergris,
unlike many other products for which Oman was the focal point of trade.654
Some Arab travellers and geographers recorded the uses of ambergris in
the East. For example, Ibn Ba††ū†a describes an instrument for incense burn-
ing that he saw in India (in the shape of a tower made of gold). Several men
carried it. They burnt two kinds of agarwood and ambergris in three different
compartments until the smoke enveloped the crowd.655
Ambergris was well-known and appreciated by the perfumers of Iraq,
Persia and India.656 In fact, it is an example of a substance that the Arabs intro-
duced into India (probably from Yemen and Oman).657 One of the best kinds,
which was imported from the region of Sofala (India), was named salaha†ī.
It was recognised by its bluish colour and oily matter.658 Al-Qalqashandī
enumerates six different kinds of ambergris, the last of which was named
al-Maghribī. This kind, unlike the others, was brought to Andalusia from
Egypt,659 That is, it derived from the whales of the western Mediterranean.660
Similarly to musk, ambergris became one of the most popular and expen-
sive perfumes in Arab culture.661 It is frequently cited among the precious
goods in the pre-Islamic period and later among Arab rulers.662 Al-Thaʿālib⁄
describes various kinds of ambergris and their sources and adds that every
year eighty ratals were carried to the Sultans from Mecca, Medina and
al-Óijāz.663 Moreover, it was said that ‘ʿAmr ibn al-Layth al-Íaffār sent to
al-Muʿta∂id … three thousand ra†ls of musk, a thousand mithqāls of amber-
gris, fifty mann of agarwood’.664 Ambergris soon became a common perfume
among vast populations of various socio-economic strata. It was imported
from different locations from the shores of Africa, the Indian Ocean and
the Mediterranean Sea. Medieval Arabic sources were not in agreement with
respect to their origin. The most common descriptions depicted a substance
similar to asphalt that comes from the sea floor and the secretions of marine
animals.665 Ibn Rushd writes on this issue that:
It is a kind of qafr [=pitch] because some have claimed that it is created in

springs in the ocean and floats on the sea water. The best variety is the grey
one. It is hot, dry in the second degree and strengthens the brain, heart,
stomach and senses. It is good for old people that suffer from the cold.
It is useful against stomach aches, coarse winds created in the bowel and
obstructions. When smeared externally, it strengthens organs, especially
nerves, and, if it is used frequently, repairs the putridity of the air that
causes epidemics.666
Al-Tamīmī describes the preparation of nadd (perfume made from musk

and ambergris), which the mother of the Abbasid Caliph al-Muqtadir (908–
32) made and offered every Friday as incense at the Dome of the Rock
in Jerusalem (Bayt al-Maqdis). He adds, ‘The head of the Temple servants
would give my father some of this nadd. My father would melt it in bān (oil
of the fruit of the ben tree) and produce ghāliya (a perfume mixture) from
it, which is unequalled for its pleasant scent.’667 Such a mixture appears in a
letter describing perfumes imported from North Africa to Alexandria.
Ambergris was introduced from the Middle East into Europe. It was
known there from the late eighth century and the early ninth.668 According
to the Book of the Eparch, a Byzantine book (895), ambergris was one of the
perfumes that was permitted to be sold in Byzantine.669 Ambergris was also
mentioned in a Byzantine veterinarian book.670 Moreover, it was mentioned
by this name in various Western sources such as in medical books and by
Jewish commentators.671
Many documents found in the Cairo Genizah deal with this expen-
sive commodity and its trade, especially in the eleventh century between
Cairo, Qayrawān, Mahdiyya, Alexandria, Palermo, the Maghrib and even
Spain.672 The Jewish traders of Sicily, mainly under Islamic rule (827–1061),
imported quantities of ambergris along with various products, including
drugs, dyeing materials, spices, perfumes and other commodities, most of
which were exported to Andalusia and Europe.673 Ambergris was traded in
the Mediterranean and Levant well into the fifteenth century;674 it appears
among the perfumes that were made out of animals, distributed by the Arabs
and used for medicine in medieval Europe.675
Since ambergris was precious and expensive, forgeries were made by
criminal traders. The sources provide us with several recipes of familiar and
much cheaper aromatic substances that were combined to produce fake
ambergris. The Óisba literature provides us with techniques for recognising
these forgeries. For example, some perfume sellers would make an imitation
out of the pure ambergris and blend it with other substances such as wax,
other perfumes, pomis and even the droppings of the spiny-tailed lizard.676
According to medieval Arabic medical literature, ambergris was consid-
ered a hot and dry drug used in the treatment of headaches, colds, fevers,
constipation, diseases of the brain and the heart, muscle spasms, stomach
conditions, tension, sore throats, obstructions, diarrhoea, joint pains, mental
diseases and paralysis. It was considered beneficial for strengthening the
body, spirit, heart and brain and for assistance to the aged.677 Ibn Juljul,
for example, writes that the nature of the ʿanbar ‘is hot and dry. It has a
pleasant fragrance, strengthens the heart and the brain and is beneficial for
half-body paralysis [fālaj], and half-face paralysis [laqwa] and the diseases of
coarse phlegm.’678 Ambergris is included on a list of materia medica and in a
prescription for linctus and an ointment found in the Cairo Genizah.679
sandalwood
Proven men of knowledge that traveled extensively to India, China and
Yemen and had become experts reported that sandalwood is similar to the
pomegranate tree that grows in the mountains and the colour of its leaves is
a hue between green and gray. Sandalwood is created in the ‘heart’ [inside]
of the old trees and has a pleasant fragrance. The wood of the trees is used to
build beds, boxes, boards and combs due to its hardy wood … Sandalwood
was mentioned neither by Dioscorides nor Galen.680
Sandalwood (‚andal)
Arabic medieval sources mention several kinds of sandalwood (Plates 29, 30).
The main one is white sandalwood, identified as Santalum album (Santalaceae).
This is a tropical tree, 4–9 m high, which is cultivated in Asia. Its wood is fra-
grant while the leaves are oval and the flowers are yellow.681 The presence of
the tree in southern Asia seems to be of considerable antiquity. Its use is deeply
rooted in Indian culture.682 According to a combination of bio-geographical,
historical and linguistic sources, along with archaeological evidence, the plant
was introduced to India from its wild habitat in the driest parts of Indonesia
as early as the Bronze Age.683 Another kind is the red sandalwood,
identified
as Pterocarpus santalinus (Leguminosae). This tree, which is native to southern

India and the Philippines, is used mainly for industry.684
The etymological source of the name ‘sandalwood’ is Sanskrit;the name
was passed on to Persian and then to Arabic.685 According to al-Bīrūnī, the
origin of the name Íaydalānī, a nickname for perfumers and sellers of medici-
nal substances, is derived from the Arabic term for sandalwood, which is used
until the present day for a chemist or pharmacologist, and Íaydaliyya signifies
a pharmacy.686
Neither kind of sandalwood is mentioned in the Classical medical lit-
erature.687 It was probably first mentioned in Western sources in the writ-
ings of Cosmas, the Byzantine monk (mid-sixth century), in a description
of expensive products imported from China.688 However, the use of san-
dalwood became common after the Arabs were exposed to Eastern culture.
Māsarjawayh was one of the earliest sources to mention sandalwood’s medici-
nal uses.689
The several kinds of sandalwood mentioned in the Arabic literature are
defined mainly according to their colour: red, yellow and white.690 Some
sources even note seven kinds, classifying them according to their qualities.
The best kind, yellow, had a superb fragrance and the highest concentration
of oil and was named al-maqā‚īrī due to its geographical origin.691 The origin
of sandalwood, according to contemporary sources, was in various regions in
India,692 China693 and Indonesia.694
Sandalwood, like musk and other spices and perfumes, was shipped
across the Indian Ocean to the ports of Aden and Oman.695 Marco Polo
mentions the port of Zaiton as a major hub for the export of sandalwood as
well as agarwood, pepper and other spices.696 Part of its trade was done by
the land route from the port of Sīrāf to Persia and the rest of the world.697
Further evidence of the trade in sandalwood was found in the Cairo Genizah.
For example, according to a merchant’s document, sandalwood was exported
from Egypt to Sicily (Palermo).698
Sandalwood was considered an expensive gift. It is said that some of the
Abbasid rulers would distribute portions of sandalwood to their mothers,
children and mistresses.699 Its main use was as a perfume and for the produc-
tion of incense.700 In fact, sandalwood was mixed with almost all known
women’s perfumes of the time.701 Ibn Ba††ū†a writes that during his travels he
arrived at the Maldive Islands inhabited by Muslims with a strong awareness

of hygiene and cleanliness. Many of them bathed twice a day due to the
heat and humidity and rubbed their bodies with perfumed oil such as san-
dalwood.702 The sandalwood was also used in carpentry to build unique and
very expensive furniture. It was said that the king of Yemen commanded that
his throne should be built of yellow sandalwood. Curved wooden tools were
made from red sandalwood, including chess pieces.703 Al-Dimashqī, in his
book on trade, distinguished red sandalwood, which was preferred mainly
in medicine, from white sandalwood, which was also used for perfumery.704
Sandalwood was used extensively in medicine since it was considered a
cold and dry drug and therefore was used mainly for the treatment of fevers
and other ‘heat-related diseases’ connected with yellow bile. The medicinal
uses included the use of sandalwood incense, perfume produced from the
lignin (wood) and the aroma soaked in oil and pastes (in most cases in
rose water). Chips of ground lignin were applied externally on bruises, skin
inflammations, burns and swelling in the joints.705 According to Ibn Juljul,
sandalwood has ‘a pleasant fragrance. Its nature is cold and dry and it is
beneficial for fevers and the hot diseases caused by superfluous yellow bile. If
included in ointments [maʿjūnāt] and inhaled in its ground form, it is ben-
eficial for the inflammation of the chest membrane [birsām] and for burns. If
the ointment is mixed with rose water or the extracts usually used with it are
taken, it is beneficial for the erysipelas [ªumra] and the hot swellings of the
joints and the shatar [=cut or upside down eyelids].’706
According to Ibn Rasūl, a recipe used in the treatment of headache, for
example, included ground sandalwood and sarcocolla (equal parts), which
should be mixed and kneaded with the white of an egg and smeared on
the temples. It removes smells when massaging with it after a hot bath.707
Al-Kindī uses white sandalwood for treatment of the liver and ulcers and
in tooth powder and honey syrup. White, red and yellow sandalwood is a
component in poultices for the liver and the spleen and in a drug for the
treatment of erysipelas.708 Ibn al-Bay†ār cited earlier medical sources, includ-
ing Ibn Sīnā and al-Rāzī, stating that it was used for the heart, as an astringent
and as a coolant.709
Sandalwood appears in two practical documents found in the Cairo
Genizah: one list of materia medica and one prescription. It was mentioned
extensively in theoretical medical texts, specifically some medical books found

in the Genizah.710
jasmine
And on the third day after the funeral, the grave is covered with expensive
cloth. Around it aromatic plants such as basil, rose and jasmine are placed.711
Jasmine (yāsamīn, rāziqī, zanbaq (oil)); Jasminum officinale; J. sambac; J. fru-

ticans (Oleaceae)
Jasmine is a vigorous evergreen climber, with a dark-green compound, sharply

pointed leaves and large, sweetly scented tubular flowers (white, yellow or
purple).712 Jasminum is a large genus of climbing, trailing or erect shrubs
that are widely distributed in the warmer parts of the world, mainly pan-
tropical, with a large number of species centred on the Himalayas, China and
Malaysia. About forty species are recorded in India, out of which only three
or four are commercially important from early days as sources of fresh flowers
or for extraction of jasmine oil, widely used in the perfume industry thanks
to the unique scent of their flowers.713
One of the early sources that mention jasmine (oil) is the Babylonian
Talmud, which was written in Iraq in the fifth century.714 Early Arabic
sources report that jasmine was not mentioned by Classical sources. The plant
was mentioned by both Ibn Juljul and Ibn Rushd on their lists of medicinal
substances that were not mentioned by Galen and Dioscorides.715
In general, jasmine oil was called zanbaq.716 Maimonides adds that in the
Maghrib its name is rāziqī.717 In most cases, it was oil (probably sesame) in
which the jasmine flowers were soaked.718 Al-Qazwīnī reports that the flowers
of the jasmine are yellow, white or purple. Oil was produced from the flowers
of most kinds and applied for many medical uses.719 The process of jasmine
distillation is described in detail by al-Kindī in his book on perfumes.720
Al-Nuwayrī writes that jasmine is a Persian name and describes its different
kinds.721
Al-JāªiÕ writes that jasmine was grown in the mountains of Persia.722
Ibn Ba††ū†a adds that, besides being cultivated in Persia (Tibrīz, Samarqand),
it was also grown in Asia Minor.723 Al-Qalqashand⁄ asserts that jasmine
grows wild in Ethiopia.724 Jasmine was transferred from the area of Persia
to China.725 Al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄, in his book on plants, describes several kinds of
jasmine: the cultivated (bustānī), the wild (barrī) and the mountain (jabalī).
The cultivated kinds had three varieties according to the colour of their flow-
ers (white, yellow and black). Al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄ describes the white kind in detail.726
Ibn Ba††ū†a describes the wedding of ʾAmir Sayf al-Dīn, the son of the sultan
Muªammad ibn Tughluq, and writes that the companions and foreign slaves
held bouquets of flowers consisting mainly of aromatic flowers such as jas-
mine and rose.727
Most Arabic physicians and scholars, early and late (including al-˝abar⁄)
write that jasmine is a hot and dry drug and therefore beneficial for colds.728
Ibn Rushd agrees and adds that ‘it is useful against moisture and phlegm. It is
suitable for old men and those who suffer from cold. It is good for headaches
caused by coarse humours.’729 Ibn Juljul asserts that:
Its oil has a pleasant fragrance. There is a yellow [kind] whose infloures-
cence is cooked with sesame. Then an oil called zanbaq is produced, also
called al-rāziqī… It is beneficial for cold diseases such as taut nerves and
paralysis, with its nature being hot with some dryness. If cooked with olive
oil, it will be dryer.’730
Al-Nuwayrī adds that its oil is beneficial for old patients and the treatment
of various ailments, including coldness in the nerves, headache and cosmetic
problems (to remove freckles).731
According to al-Kindī, jasmine was used in the treatment of infec-
tions and as a component in a preparation to increase sexual excitation.
Jasmine oil is a component in an ointment to treat haemorrhoids.732 Ibn
Māsawayhi recommends rubbing the body with jasmine oil in the month of
Adar (March).733 Maimonides notes that jasmine oil constitutes a component
in various compound drugs, such as ointments and pills, for the improve-
ment of sexual performance. The juice was used as a medication to sweeten
the breath.734 According to Ibn al-Bay†ār (citing contemporary physicians),
jasmine was used to cure headaches, facial paralysis and colds and wounds,
to eliminate phlegm, strengthen the mind and blacken the hair.735 Evidence
of the practical medical uses of jasmine is found in a prescription from the
Cairo Genizah, which records the use of jasmine oil for the treatment of eye
diseases. Jasmine is also mentioned in many books found in the Genizah for
dyeing hair black, treating headaches and massaging the gums.736
musk
It is similar to a deer that is found in our lands, but has two canines bursting
out of its jaws … Extracting the musk before the deer is mature is useless,
similar to picking a fruit before it has ripened … The best musk is that
which is naturally extracted by the deer. When the blood accumulates in the
deer’s ‘umbilicus,’ the deer pleasurably rubs himself with a rock. The blood
bursts out and dries on the rock. Then people collect it. This is the source
of the good musk.737
Musk (misk); Moschus moschiferus (Cervidae)
The musk deer is a medium-sized mammal (6–11 kg). Both sexes have long
upper canine teeth, a gland under the tail and no antlers. This species inhabits
the mountains of Central Asia (the Himalayas and Tibet). The musk, derived
from the anal gland secretion, is a substance used as a perfume and in medi-
cine. The gland is found in the male and is situated between the anus and
the penis.738 It weighs thirty to fifty grams and is filled with liquid during the
mating season. In its raw state, the substance is dark brown, but some time
after extraction it turns black.739
Tibetan musk was considered in the past to be the best in quality. Sources
attributed this to its diet, mainly the nard that grows in its habitat, and also
to the fact that the people of Tibet do not add blood or other substances as
the Chinese do. The Tibetans collected the perfume by trapping the deer
alive in nets rather than hunting and killing it with arrows. The rectal gland
was then cut off and dried in the open air. The hunters preferred adult males
with mature glands. The best musk was collected, according to the sources, in
the grazing meadow of the deer, where the substance was secreted on to the
rocks in order to mark its territory.740 The final product was marketed in both
liquid and solid form.741
Musk is not mentioned in early Classical literature.742 Nevertheless, it
became very popular after the Islamic conquests. Musk perfume was men-
tioned in pre-Islamic poetry743 and even in the Qurʾān (83: 26). It was also
known in pre-Islamic Persia, although on a limited scale. For example, it is

said that a gift of 100 mann of musk was sent by the King of Tibet to the
Persian king Khusraw.744 It is clear that musk was known in Mesopotamia
throughout that period, since it is mentioned in both the Babylonian and
Jerusalem Talmuds745 as a perfume of animal origin in connection with a
blessing pronounced upon using it.746 The monk Cosmas describes the hunt-
ing of the musk deer in India and Sind and how the hunters ‘tied up the
blood collected at the navel’.747 In Christian sources, the name first appears
in Hieronymus (fourth century AD). During the Middle Ages, musk was
considered a valuable perfume and imported overland from Asia,748 the trade
of which was controlled by the Arabs. It was one of the most prestigious and
expensive perfumes. Musk was described as one of the scarcest and most
treasured items that kings could wish to possess.749
Musk was one of the substances identified in an early Egyptian druggist’s
account (ninth century) written on papyrus.750 Various medieval sources,
including Ibn Juljul, mention musk as an Indian drug. He describes how the
substance is produced in bulges from the legs of a beast (animal) the size of
a deer. The bulges never stop growing and filling up with the blood of this
animal. After filling up with blood, they fall off the animal, the musk located
inside.751 There are some Muslim traditions (ªadīth) that attribute a phrase to
the Prophet saying that the musk is the best among all perfumes and that the
Prophet himself used it. Therefore, they learnt that it is a ‘pure’ perfume that
can be used and traded although its source may be an impure animal: ‘It is a
secretion and not blood, just as vinegar is not wine!’752 It seems that this was
one of the reasons that musk was so revered in the Muslim religious ritual.
For example, musk was used as incense in the mosque of Dome of the Rock
in Jerusalem during the Umayyad period.753 Ibn Ba††ū†a writes that while he
was visiting the ʿAlī Mosque in al-Najaf (Iraq), he saw, between the tombs of
ʿAlī, the first man, and Noah, golden bowls filled with rosewater and musk
in which visitors dipped their hands and smeared the liquid on their faces as
a sign of blessing.754
The following anecdote testifies to that fact and to the importance of
musk. Once, the Byzantine Caesar sent a gift to al-Maʾmūn (813–29), the
latter commanded that a gift be sent back that was a hundred times more
precious in order to show Caesar the affluence of the Muslims. When they
discovered that musk was the most expensive product, al-Maʾmūn sent him
200 ra†l of musk and 200 skins of sable.755 In The Book of the Eparch in which
the Ordinances of the Byzantine Caesar Leo VI (886–912) are written, a list
of perfumes permitted for sale appears with musk on this list.756 Musk was
also mentioned in Byzantine prescriptions.757
Māsarjawayh, who was active during the Umayyad period, was one of the
first to mention musk.758 It was also a very common substance in the recipes
of perfumes in al-Kindī’ Book of the Chemistry of Perfume.759 More recipes
can be found in the book on perfumes written by Ibn Kaysān.760 There is a
dispute among Arab authors regarding the production process of the musk
extracted from the musk deer. Interestingly enough, some information is
based on factual reality while other information is based on mystical specula-
tion or legends.761 Some even thought that it was a kind of ambergris, but
the Muʿtazila people rejected this and explained that it was a kind of deer
(ghazāla).762 It was told that the dispute over the identification of the animal
was the reason for the travels of Ibn ʿAqīl al-Baghdadi (1040–1119) to the
Eastern countries. He brought it with him to the West in order to study it.763
As mentioned before, Tibetan musk was considered the best with the second
best being the Indian and the third, the Chinese. As a matter of fact, the
various kinds were sold in the markets and distinguished by their colour and
scents. Al-Qalqashandī counted ten of them.764 Moreover, cases of forgery
were also known.765 For example, forgers would mix various components
with a real (or imitation, made in various sophisticated ways) gland in a way
that the real musk constituted only one fourth of the total amount. Certain
methods were therefore developed to enable the market supervisors to check
this forgery.766 Likewise, instructions were given to traders on how to retain
the value of the perfume, mainly by keeping it in a sealed vessel, preventing
exposure to water and air (that damaged it) and covering it with a cloth
soaked in wax.767
According to medieval Arabic literature, musk was imported from
Tibet,768 India,769 China,770 al-Íaʿīd771 and Turkish lands772 through various
trade routes.773 The lion’s share of the quality musk was brought to Khurāsān
and Persia via land routes and from there to the Arabian Peninsula and the
Middle East. On the other hand, the lengthy journey by boat along marine
routes damaged the musk due to its exposure to the sea air. It appears that
the marine trade of the musk by Muslim and Eastern traders overlapped,
since there is some evidence that Muslim traders reached the Chinese city of
Hanafu while Indian traders reached Bahrain774 and Oman.775 According to
Akasoy and Yoeli-Tlalim, from the eighth century onwards musk was one
of the main products exported from Tibet and distributed to the Islamic
world. They proposed naming these distribution routes the ‘Musk Routes’
due to the importance of the trade as well as the knowledge regarding the
medical uses of musk and the culture that was transferred with the product.776
Musk was mentioned in many Genizah fragments as a commodity in various
Mediterranean cities, including Alexandria and Qayrawān (North Africa).
The Jewish traders of Sicily, mainly under Islamic rule (827–1061), imported
musk along with various other products (including drugs, dyeing materials,
spices and perfumes) and other commodities, most of which were exported to
Andalusia and Europe.777 Musk appears among the perfumes that were made
out of animals, distributed by the Arabs and used for medicine in medieval
Europe.778
According to Crusader sources, musk was exported from China by
merchants and traded in Acre, probably on its way to Europe.779 We learn
from a description of the medieval Jewish traders (Rādhānite) that musk was
brought from China across the Indian Ocean to Suez and from there by land
route to Parma on the northern shore of the Sinai Peninsula. From there the
musk was shipped across the Mediterranean to Western Europe.780 Therefore,
it is not surprising that musk is mentioned frequently in European medical
prescriptions of the early medieval period and by medieval European Jewish
physicians.781
According to medieval Arabic medical literature, musk was considered a
hot and dry drug. Among the medical qualities attributed to it were warming
and fortifying the body and its organs (mainly the heart) and improving the
smell of the breath. It was recommended mainly for ‘cold’ people, and the
elderly. Persian physicians mention its quality for the treatment of impotency.
Musk was used to treat many ailments and medical conditions, including
paralysis and drying inflamed eyes, psychological treatment, improving the
spirit of those with an excess of black bile as well as temper and memory.782 It
was also used to treat headaches, diseases of the brain, weakness of the sexual
organs, infected wounds, eye ailments and diarrhoea as well as to strengthen
the limbs, heart and brain, prolong longevity, enhance the senses and sexual
potency, warm internal organs, cure haemorrhoids and flatulence, alleviate
sadness and fear and prevent epilepsy and black-bilious disorders. It was also
described as an aphrodisiac and abortifacient.783 Ibn Rushd, who mentioned
musk among the substances that were omitted by Galen, elaborated on some
of its medicinal uses: ‘It has a fantastic ability to strengthen the heart and
alleviate sadness and fear. It is useful against epilepsy and strangulation of
the womb and, in general, all fainting diseases. It is useful against coarse
winds created in the bowel, melancholia and black-bilious disorders.’784 Musk
appears in the Cairo Genizah on four lists of materia medica and in two prac-
tical prescriptions, one of which is for strengthening the gums.785
screw pine
It is a palm not as tall as other palms. Once the stamens grow, they are cut
before they are opened. The pollen is soaked in oil until it has absorbed the
fragrance. This oil is used medicinally.786
Screw pine (al-kādhī); Pandanus odoratissimus (Pandanaceae)
Plants of the genus Pandanus are prevalent in tropical areas and grow in the
Pacific and Malaysian islands and Australia. Screw pine is an evergreen tree
or bush, with an upright trunk extending up to 5 m high (Plate 31). The
leaves are rigid and sword shaped. The yellow flowers, which are set in a spike,
bloom in the summer. The collected fruit is hard. The origin of this tropical
tree is East Africa and West India. Screw pine has flourished throughout the
ages; their products are still being used and studied today for their medicinal
benefits on islands such as Taiwan.787
Male screw pine trees grow on the shores of Yemen and in the valleys
between Óays and Taʿiz (500–1500 m). The local Yemenite population still
considers it a cherished perfume plant.788 Clusters of their fragranced flowers
are sold covered with the leaves of the tree. Both screw pine oil and water,
which are highly fragrant, are produced from the flowers.789
This plant was known to the Arabs. However, the distribution of its use
was internal in Arabia; that is, it was hardly used outside of the Arab penin-
sula. Screw pine may be the ‘fragrant date’ mentioned by Greek geographer
Strabo (first century BC) while describing the incense and perfume-produc-
ing plants of Yemen.790 Interestingly, it was not mentioned as being part of
the inventory of either perfumes or drugs by Classical physicians such as
Dioscorides.791
The discovery of the new Indian perfumes by the Arabs led to their distri-
bution including that of the screw pine perfume. However, it never attained
the popularity of either musk or ambergris. It was not frequently cited in
medieval commercial writings or in recipes for the production of perfumes.792
One of the Arab sources related an anecdote regarding a letter from
the king of India to al-Maʾmūn (813–29) that was written on the bark of a
fragrant tree from India named kādhī.793 All of the Arab sources pointed out
that the screw pine was an Indian tree that was cultivated also in the Arab
Peninsula, specifically in Oman and Yemen.794 Inflourescence was cut from
the tree, soaked in oil and turned into a perfume for both fragrance and
medicinal purposes.795
The Arab physicians cite Indian medical books praising the benefits of
the screw pine in the treatment of leprosy and varicella (chickenpox).796 Ibn
Juljul writes that screw pine oil (duhn al-kādhī), which was produced from
the fruits of the tree, was used to ‘strengthen the weak organs and fortify
them’.797 Al-Tamīmī, the tenth-century Jerusalemite physician, recommends
rubbing the body with screw pine oil in the bath since it is highly beneficial
for the treatment of back and thigh pain.798 Moreover, the screw pine oil was
also used to treat leprosy. Al-ʾIshbīlī mentions a recipe that al-Rāzī included
in his book (citing Indian physicians) that was believed beneficial for stop-
ping varicella.799
Gemstones
Gemstones, jawhar (pl. jawāhir) in Arabic, precious in the medieval period as

they were in previous times, were used as ornaments, set in jewellery, seals and
amulets and even as an investment and status symbol.800 Vast literature was
written on gemstones by the Arab writers and scholars.801 Though some books
were lost over the years, such as al-Kindī’s book, the knowledge was partly pre-
served in the citations found in the works of later Arabic writers.802 Vast infor-
mation regarding gemstones was also found in books written by European
scholars;803 in fact, both traditions are rooted in Greek and Roman origin.
The identification of the names of the gemstones found in the Arabic

sources is not always unequivocal804 since the stones were recognised and
identified according to external characteristics, such as colour and compara-
tive hardness, and not by definitive chemical or mineralogical analysis. This
is the reason for the confusion and name-swapping between various stones.
For example, red stones were identified as carnelian (cornelian), red garnet,
ruby and spinel.
The tradition of identification of stones mentioned in the Greek litera-
ture and its Arabic translations did not abide by the tradition of identifica-
tion of medicinal plants. Some of the names underwent transformation. For
example, the Greek beryllos (beryl) became ballūr805 in Arabic, and signifies
rock crystal.806
Some studies have been done on ‘Arabic’ gemstones. However, in our
work the focus is on examining which gemstones were most commonly
used in the medieval Arab world within the various socio-economic strata.
Moreover, we seek to ascertain whether there were any significant changes in
comparison with earlier periods.807
Gemstones in the Arabic Literature
Our research is based on the written sources. We assume that the Arabic lit-
erature dealing with this issue reflects authentic reality and presents the main
stones that were actually used in that period. Table 3.3 presents a selection
of stones that were dealt with mainly in the Arabic literature. In general, the
inventory of Arabic gemstones is smaller (totalling about twenty) than the
number of stones that were mentioned in the Greek and Roman literature
(several dozen). 808 Moreover, the number of stones mentioned in works deal-
ing with Arabic trade (such as those by al-Dimashqī and al-JāªiÕ)809 is even
smaller (not more than ten).810
The literature on the gemstones allows us to categorise the precious stones
according to their relative importance within medieval Arab society. In the
first group of the most preferred stones we can find gems such as corundum
(mainly red), emerald, diamond and pearl. These are mentioned in all works
dealing with precious stones. We therefore assert that they were highly prized
and used abundantly by the higher socio-economic strata, the elite and the
ruling class. The second group consists of relatively less expensive stones such
Table 3.3 Names of the common gemstones in the Arabic literature
English name Arabic names Pseudo Aristotlea al-JāªiÕb Ibn Māsawayhic al-Bīrūnīd al-Dimashqīe al-T⁄fāsh⁄f Ibn al-ʾAkfānīg
Pearl luʾluʾ, marjān, durr + + + + + + +
Corundum yāqūt + + + + + + +
Diamond mās + + + + + +
Emerald, peridot zumurrud, zabarjad + + + + + + +
Malachite Dahnaj + + + + +
Lazurite Lāzāward + + + + +
Red garnet Bijādī + + + + + +
Carnelian ʿaq⁄q + + + + + +
Onyx, sardonyx jazʿ baqarānī + + + + +
Amethyst Jamast + + + +
Turquoise fayrūzaj‘ + + + + + + +
Jasper yast, yashm, yashb + + + +
Coral bussad, marjān + + + +
Rock crystal Ballūr + + + +
Bezoar bādzahr, bāzahr, fādzahr + + + +
Sabaj Sabaj + + +
Amber kahrubāʾ, ʿanbarī + +
Spinel balakhsh + +
Zircon banafsh +
Chatoyancy ʿayn al-hirr +
Note: The table mentions the names of the main stones but not the varieties of each type of stone. We did not add names of minerals and metals, but only whatever was
defined as a precious stone.
a
Ruska, Steinbuch des Aristoteles.
b
al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur.
c
Ibn Māsawayhi, Kitāb al-Jawāhir.
d
al-Bīrūnī, Kitāb al-Jamāhir.
e
al-Dimashqī, Nukhbat.
f
al-T⁄fāsh⁄, Kitāb ʾAzhār.
g
Ibn al-ʾAkfānī, Kitāb Nukhab.
as turquoise, carnelian, garnet, onyx, lazurite and malachite. In general, they

were more popular and common among the middle class. The third group
includes even cheaper and more common stones, such as jasper, amethyst
and rock crystal, presumably used by the lower class. Peridot was considered
less expensive in comparison with the emerald. However, due to depletion of
minerals during the Ayyubid period, it became rare.811
The Arabic literature on gemstones actually portrays the interests and
needs of the higher socio-economic Arab elite, including scholars and physi-
cians, who were, after all, a minority in medieval society. A more solid and
realistic picture can be drawn from the actual consumption and trade of
gemstones in the medieval period. This can be obtained only from historical
records of trade. However, gemstones are rarely mentioned in commercial
records, as evidenced by the fact that among thousands of documents (mainly
from the eleventh and twelfth centuries) dealing with medieval Arabic trade
that were found in the Cairo Genizah, precious stones such as corundum
and diamonds are barely mentioned at all. The explanation is that precious
stones were not traded in the regular commercial system like other expensive
goods and products, but personally by specialists. On the other hand, records
demonstrating the trade in cheaper stones are very common in commercial
documents. These give us an opportunity to assemble a picture of the preva-
lence and popularity of these stones in Eastern Mediterranean society. For
example, we will present herein a summary of the data that Gil presented
in his monumental work according to the number of documents in which
precious stones were mentioned.812 In fact, the number of records is higher
since each stone is repeated several times in each document: pearls [luʾluʾ and
other names] (seventy-one), small pearls and corals [marjān]813 (sixty-two),
carnelianʿaqīq] (twenty-six), lazurite [lāzward] (fifteen), rock crystal [ballūr]
(four) and red garnet [bijādī]814 (one).
There is no doubt that pearls were the most common and popular gem-
stones in medieval society and make up more than 75 per cent of the trade in
precious stones. We based our estimation on the above-mentioned informa-
tion while we assume that some of the stones that are called marjān in the
sources are actually small pearls. Moreover, some of the beads mentioned in
more than forty documents815 were probably also made from various kinds
(different shapes, sizes, quality and colours) of pearls. The Arabic literature
dealing with gemstones dedicates a lion’s share to pearls, more than any other
stone. It is full of details regarding the different kinds of pearls, their prices
according to size and weight, whether in necklaces or alone.816 Nonetheless,
carnelians were the most common and widespread gems in signet rings. Apart
from the stones whose names were explicitly mentioned in the Genizah,
gemstones were often mentioned simply according to their colour (that is,
red stones and blue stones), but without specifying their names. These stones
were usually kept in small pockets.817
The Changes in the Popularity of Gemstones after the Arabic Conquests
As a result of the Arab conquests and the exposure to new geographical

regions, the distribution and use of gemstones by the Arabs underwent sub-
stantial changes. Among these, we will mention in particular the improve-
ment and expansion of the trade routes (maritime as well as land) and the
commercial connections with East Africa and the Persian Gulf along with
India, Sri Lanka and China.
Alongside the increased availability of the gemstones used during the ear-
lier periods and the new sources for mining, several changes in style occurred
on the backdrop of the appearance of new and previously unknown gem-
stones. The predominant ones were the ruby (red corundum), Eastern topaz,
diamond and bezoar-stone (bādzahr), none of which was mentioned by the
Classical medical sources.818 As stated above, the Arabs developed a whole
field of mineral and gemstone science, which specialised in distinguishing
the different stones and their qualities, learning the ways they are formed and
locating the places to collect and mine them as well as improving the mining
techniques. Moreover, Arab jewellers took an active part in inventing and
developing new technologies and tools, mainly in the field of goldsmithy as
well as alchemistry and heating, melting, pouring and polishing gemstones.819
In the work on stones, attributed to Aristotle (ninth century), it is writ-
ten that the important gemstones in his time were the large pearl (durr),
corundum (yāqūt) and emerald (zabarjad).820 There is no doubt that these
precious stones were limited to the higher socio-economic strata that were
part of the elite of the ruling courts since these stones were more than merely
jewellery; they were a show-off product or a status symbol signifying the
wealth and social position of a person. According to al-Dimashqī:
The expensive gemstones are tempting for the kings and rulers to buy them
for themselves due to their high value, low weight and the opportunity to
show-off and boast, mainly since the common people could not afford them.
A precious stone brings the kings happiness, joy, pleasure and bliss.821
This phenomenon was not unique only among the Arabs. The records of
wealth with regard to the squandering of the Arab rulers, mainly by col-
lecting unique precious stones and showing them off, attest to the Classical
influence or adoption of habits, because the Classical literature, well-known
to medieval Arabs, dealt widely with gemstones.822 In any case, this phe-
nomenon, which already existed during the time of the first Caliph and the
Umayyad dynasty,823 became more prominent during the Abbasid period.
Traders would travel to Southeast Asia, that is, to India, Sri Lanka and China,
to purchase gemstones and sell them for a huge profit. Special delegates were
sent on behalf of the Caliphs to look for and acquire rare and unique gem-
stones. It was said of Hārūn al-Rashīd that he was eager to obtain expensive
gemstones. Therefore, he sent an emissary, an expert jeweller named Íabāª
al-Kindī, to Sri Lanka to buy precious stones for him. Al-Kindī, the emissary,
was rewarded with a large prize from the king of Sri Lanka.824 Similarly, we
learn from al-T⁄fāsh⁄’s book on gemstones (the first half of the thirteenth cen-
tury) that he had heard from Persian gemstone traders frequently traveling to
China and India about diamonds possessing special quality.825 On the other
hand, we hear of a tenth-century trader named Sulaymān who travelled to
India and China and brought emeralds from Egypt to their rulers.826 Evidence
of the importance of gemstones to the Abbasid rulers is the special ‘safe’ that
they built (khizānat al-jawhar) in which they consigned their precious stones
under special supervision. The main responsibility of the supervisor of that
‘safe’ was to take special care of the stones, protect them and acquire more
stones for the family members of the rulers. Therefore, he employed several
goldsmiths at a monthly wage.827 It seems that the rulers invested a significant
portion of their wealth buying precious stones due to their lightness and the
ease of transferring them. More importantly, they relied on them as a source
of wealth in times of crisis or disaster.828
At their courts, the Arab Caliphs would glorify themselves with huge
and unique gemstones to mark their wealthy status.829 Arabic literature is
filled with descriptions of rare and unique gemstones in the treasuries and
hoards of the Fatimid rulers. These were presented on special occasions, such
as parades, processions and other festive events. On the other hand, these
special stones are also mentioned in descriptions of robberies and ransacking
of the hoards of the Fatimid rulers during the period of anarchy that charac-
terised the end of their regime.830 We will present herein some examples of
this luxurious pretentiousness. Among the exquisite and expensive treasures
of Caliph al-Mutawakkil were prayer beads consisting of 100 beads, each
one weighing one mithqāl and valued at 1,000 dīnārs.831 The most expensive
gemstones, renowned for their size and rarity, received special nicknames.
One such stone, dubbed ‘the orphan’, was a pearl weighing three mithqāls.
Its nickname was explained by the fact that there was no other even slightly
similar stone to compare it with or assess its value.832 Alongside this pearl that
had a rich and interesting history, there was a red corundum shaped like a
crescent weighing eleven mithqāls known as ‘the horseshoe’ (al-ªāfir), which,
after being in the hoards of the Fatimids, was later transferred to Íalāª al-Dīn
and other rulers.833
The Most Valued Stones
The stones most appreciated by the Arabs during the medieval period were
the corundum, some of which, such as the blue variety (sapphire), were
already known, albeit on a small scale, from the late Roman and the early
Byzantine periods.834 The ruby was highly and especially valued. There is no
doubt that the reference to the ruby in the Qurʾān (55:58) only benefited its
prestige. The written sources bring many anecdotes regarding the prestige of
the ruby among the different rulers.835 Similarly, the pearl, which was well-
known in Arabia, was mentioned in the Qurʾān several times (22:23; 35:33;
55:22). The third stone in order of prestige after the corundum and the pearl was
the emerald. This stone was well-known and highly esteemed during the Roman
period.836 The superb white diamond (or transparence) was used by the Indian
elite as jewellery. However, it was still rare in the Western world. Therefore, the
large stones were expensive, while the smaller raw stones were usually used to
process other hard gemstones.837 Bezoar-stone [bādzahr] was not used as a gem-
stone, but rather as a medicine. It was almost a supernatural cure for prevention
and protection from poisoning, the principal threat to all Arab rulers.838
On the other hand, several gemstones that were considered expensive

and precious in the pre-Islamic period were described by the Arabic sources
as being less valued than in the past. Among these we note turquoise, car-
nelian and lazurite. The sources indicate that kings would no longer wear
them or pride themselves on them unless they were very conspicuous, unique
or special.839 During the medieval period, the carnelian (ʿaqīq) of Yeminite
origin was still considered a precious stone, especially the bright red.840 For
example, this stone, along with the Yemenite onyx, was included in the gifts
that the Caliph al-Maʾmūn (813–833) gave the king of India in return for
the corundums and mother of pearl (durr) he received from him.841
A few gemstones known in the Classical period have no Arabic name
even though they were quite common, such as some varieties of quartz and
the agate. These were probably part of the collective noun carnelian while
the heliotrope was probably part of the collective noun gasper (yashb). The
aquamarine stone, which was prestigious in the Roman period, was probably
considered to be part of the collective noun emerald.842
The rating of the gemstones can also be learnt by their respective prices,
which can be found sporadically in the literature (see Table 3.4). The prices
of the stones were not fixed but set according to various parameters, includ-
ing size, type, quality, demand and supply. Al-T⁄fāsh⁄ (the first half of the
thirteenth century), for example, lists the prices of the stones according to
their level of processing: a processed stone, ready to be set, three dirhams;
a half-processed stone after washing and cleaning, less than a dīnār for one
ʾūqiyya (ounce); and a raw stone – two-thirds of the price of a washed
stone since the process of washing reduces its weight. He added that pol-
ishing the lazurite is a lucrative and respected occupation.843 Lazurite, like
carnelian, was polished with a grindstone and water.844 Analysing changes of
the prices of gemstones over the long run from the Abbasid to the Mamluk
period can teach us about the commonness and availability of gemstones.
For example, at the time of al-Maʾmūn, when the market was flooded with
gemstones and they were easy to obtain in abundance, the demand and,
consequently, the prices dropped. A Brahmin corundum valued at 5,000
dīnārs was sold for 1,000 dīnārs.845
However, we can say that in the early periods, in general, the prices of
gemstones were high and were only available to the elite. In later periods,
Table 3.4 Rates of prices of gemstones in the medieval period
Name of the stone Ninth centurya Tenth–eleventh centuriesb Thirteenth–fourteenth centuriesc

Corundum (red) 1.5 mithqāl – 2,000 dīnār 1 mithqāl – 400 dīnār 1 mithqāl (red) – more than 100 mithqāl gold
1 mithqāl – 800–1,000 dīnār 1/2 mithqāl – 50 dīnār 1 mithqāl (yellow) – 100 dīnār
1/2 mithqāl – 400 dīnār 1/3 mithqāl – 15 dīnār 1 mithqāl (blue) – 10 dīnār
1/3 mithqāl – 120 dīnār 1/4 mithqāl – 6 dīnār 1 mithqāl (white) – less than 10 dīnār
1/6 mithqāl – 30 dīnār 1 mithqāl (yellow) – 100 dīnār
1 mithqāl (blue) – 200 dīnār
Diamond (transparent, 1/2 mithqāl – 100 dīnār 1 mithqāl – 100 dīnār 1 q⁄rā† – 2 dīnār
good quality) 1 mithqāl – 80–200 dīnār
1 mithqāl (cheap) – 15 dīnār
Size of hazelnut – 300 dīnār
Emerald 3 mithqāl – 30,000 dīnār 1/2 mithqāl – 1,000 dīnār
1/2 mithqāl – 2,000 dīnār 4 q⁄rāt – 2,000 dīnār
Small and cheap stones – 1–5 dīnār 12 q⁄rā† – 11,500 dīnār
Pearl 1 mithqāl (best quality) – 1,000 2 and 1/3 mithqāl – 30,000 dīnār 1/2 mithqāl (best quality) – 200 dīnār
mithqāl gold 1 mithqāl – (best quality) – 300 dīnār 1/3 mithqāl – 50 dīnār
1/2 mithqāl – 20 dīnār 1/4 mithqāl – 20 dīnār
1/3 mithqāl – 5 dīnār 1/8 mithqāl – 3 dīnār
Turquois 1 dirham – 5 ʾistār (raw) – up to 1 dirham – 1 dīnār
50 dīnār
1/2 mithqāl (polished) – 20 dīnār
Garnet 1 mithqāl 1/2 – 10 dīnār 1 mithqāl – 1/2 dīnār
1/2 (superb) – 30 dīnār
Carnelian 1 mithqāl – 1 dīnār Seal ring – 4 dīnār
Engraved/Cone stone – 1 dirham
Lazurite Polished stone – 3 dirham
Half polish – dīnār and less for 1 ounce
Raw stone – 2/3 of the half polished
Onyx 1 mithqāl – 5 dīnār Bead – 1 mithqāl – 2 dirham
Rock crystal 1 ra†l (superb) – 10 dīnār
Jet Bead – 1 mithqāl – 1/2 dirham
Jasper 1 mithqāl – 1/3–1 dīnār 1 dirham – 1/2 dirham
Coral 1 mithqāl – 1–100 dīnār 1 mithqāl – 4 dīnār 1 ra†l 5–7 dīnār (Maghrib)
(depending on quality) 1 ra†l (superb) – 20 dīnār 1 ra†l – 10–21 (Egypt)
1 ra†l (medium quality) – 10 dīnār
1 ra†l (inferior) – 3–6 dīnār
Notes: Weights: q⁄rā†: 0.186–0.176 gram; dirham: standard weight 3.125 grams; mithqāl: Egypt 4.68 grams, Iraq 4.46 grams; ʾistār: 20 grams; ra†l: Egypt 450 grams,
Iraq 406.25 grams; ʾūqiyya: 1/2 of ra†l.d
a Al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur; Ruska, Steinbuch des Aristoteles; Levey, The Medical Formulary; Ibn Māsawayhi, Kitāb al-Jawāhir.
b Al-Dimashqī, Nukhbat; Ibn Juljul, Maqāla; al-Bīrūnī, Kitāb al-Jamāhir; Gil, Palestine; Gil, In the Kingdom; Goitein, A Mediterranean.
c Al-T⁄fāsh⁄, Kitāb ʾAzhār; Ibn al-ʾAkfānī, Kitāb Nukhab.
d Hinz, Islamische Masse.
as the supply of and trade in stones increased, prices fell and it appears that
certain gemstones could be purchased by a wider section of society.
The Practical Uses of Precious Stones in Medicine
In comparison with the vast information on the medicinal uses of gemstones

in the theoretical literature, the information regarding their practical medical
uses is poor, as can be learnt from dozens of practical prescriptions found
in the Cairo Genizah, with the exception of noticeably cheap stones such as
agate and lazurite.846 More expensive stones, such as corundum and emerald,
appear only in the theoretical medical literature.847 Therefore, we presume
that they were not common. In Book of the Pharmacists written by Saladino
d’Ascoli in 1430, the author gives advice on the medicinal substances
that should be dispensed at a pharmacy, including metals and gemstones.
However, the list consists primarily of such inexpensive, available stones as
pearl, lazurite, corals, rock crystal and antimony.848
This trend continues in the Ottoman period. In prescriptions found
in the Topkapı Palace, the names of several ground gemstones of different
kinds appear. However, there is no record that they were actually bought and
transferred to the palace storehouse, probably due to their high price.849 It
means that whoever needed them had to pay for them out of his own pocket.
Inorganic materials (minerals, metals and kinds of soil) used in ancient
times, and in the medieval Arabic world,850 are still widely used in traditional
societies as was recorded in recent surveys conducted in Middle Eastern mar-
kets, including Israel and Jordan (about 10 per cent of the inventory).851
However, no gemstone was recorded in the market. Their use today is mainly
as amulets and supernatural cures. It seems, as in the past, that today, pur-
chasing gemstones is restricted to the elite and is done in the goldsmith’s
shop, not in the medicinal markets and pharmacies. We should mention,
however, that certain gemstones such as the bezoar or beaded necklace set
with precious stones, were in the possession of the rich, who lent them out to
laymen for the treatment of serious diseases.
Gemstones for the treatment of serious diseases were given as presents.
For example, the stone for the treatment of dropsy was sent by Basil, the
Byzantine emperor, to Tāj al-Dawla, the governor of Sicily, at the end of
the tenth century.852 The gemstones that were used for healing were hung
up or placed on the body of the ailing person. In this manner, they could be
used unlimited times. This phenomenon is known in modern times as well.
For example, in twentieth-century Yemen, a few well-to-do Jewish families
owned beaded necklaces set with precious stones, which they lent to other
families when needed for medical purposes.853 Óayyim Óabshūsh describes
the use of medicinal gemstones in Yemen at the beginning of the twentieth
century, especially the qualities of bezoar stone that one family possessed. He
writes that ‘the owners of the stone do not charge [for its use]. They do it for
the sake of heaven as alms or for righteousness.’854
corundum
When they (inhabitants of Sarandīb – Sri Lanka) did not find precious stones,
they used to slaughter animals and scatter their parts at the foot of the moun-
tains. The eagles would take these parts in their beaks and fly with them back
to their nests on the mountaintop. Sometimes, pieces of meat would drop
and fall to the ground. Then a yāqūt stone stuck to it. Afterwards, the eagle
would seize the piece of meat again and glide in the sky. The yāqūt stone
would fall back to the ground, where the local people would collect it.855
Corundum (yāqūt)
Yāqūt is a generic name for the group of precious stones named corun-
dum; the Greek hyakinthos was translated in Arabic literature into yāqūt and
in Persian into yākand. They are crystalline rock-forming minerals made of
aluminium oxide (Al2O3) with traces of other materials, such as titanium
and iron. The corundum is second only to the diamond in its hardness
(nine on the Mohs scale). These minerals are clear and transparent when
pure. However, they appear in nature in various colours when impurities are
present. Corundums are still considered among the most expensive precious
stones in existence today.
The modern name ‘corundum’ is derived from the Sanskrit word ‘kuru-
vinda’, meaning ‘ruby’. That is to say, at first it was the name of the red
corundum (ruby) and afterwards it became the generic name of all stones that
shared the same characteristics but had different hues. In the medieval period,
the ruby was mistakenly attributed by some historical sources to the anthrax
and carbunculus stone mentioned in the Classical literature.856
Four varieties of yāqūt are mentioned in the Arabic literature857 according

to their colours (Plates 32, 33, 34):
1. yāqūt ʾaªmar – red corundum – the ruby stone of present day. According
to the sources, this stone also appears in shades of pink and purple.
2. yāqūt ʾazraq or kuªlī or ʾasmanjūnī – blue corundum – the present-day
sapphire stone.
3. yāqūt ʾa‚far – yellow corundum – present-day topaz, or oriental topaz
(Al2SiO4(F,OH)2). This is a silicate mineral consisting of aluminum and
fluorine. In most cases, its colour is yellow. However, it also appears in
nature in varieties of orange, brown and even red. Its hardness is eight on
the Mohs scale.
4. yāqūt ʾabya∂ or al-mahāwī – white corundum. Two varieties are men-
tioned with respect to this stone: the crystalloid (ballūrī) – similar to a
rock crystal in its transparency, and a stone called ‘moonstone’ by the
inhabitants of India, which was harder than the first stone.858
Al-Qazwīnī, while summing up information from other scholarly sources of

his time, characterises the yāqūt as:
A dry stone in its nature that was formed, according to the ancestors, from
drops of waters that were stuck in-between layers of hard rocks for a long
time until transforming also into very hard stone. It does not melt in fire
due to the tiny amounts of oil found in it, nor does it disintegrate due to the
lack of moisture … Its origin is the lands south of the Equator. It is unique
and very precious.859
Corundums were unknown in the Middle East in the Biblical period. It

seems that only after the conquests of Alexander the Great were the condi-
tions ripe and the necessary connections formed for their importation. An
analysis of a figurine of the Parthian goddess Ishtar dated not before the
third century BC (displayed at the Louvre Museum in Paris) reveals that the
red stones set in its eyes and umbilicus are ruby stones.860 This is a unique
and quite exceptional finding that shows that the corundum was known but
probably not very common in the Mediterranean region during the Roman
period.
The issue of the yāqūt stones in the literature is a characteristic exam-

ple of the transformation in the identification of precious stones between
the Classical and Medieval sources. Pliny mentioned the iacinthus stone
from Ethiopia and its amethyst-like colour.861 Beyond that information, it
is not mentioned among the common precious stones in his book. In fact,
its identification is not at all clear. In the Classical period, it was said that
the iacinthus stone was imported from Muziris, a port city in Southwestern
India. We assume it was the blue corundum.862 Isidore of Seville describes
the group of purple and blue precious stones at the beginning of the sev-
enth century mentioning the amethystus, sapphirus and iacinthus. The iacin-
thus is described as a blue stone and very hard to engrave on. However,
it is possible to chisel it with diamond.863 It is therefore evident that the
early sources (as early as the seventh century) made a clear distinction
between the sapphirus and iacinthus. The first is clearly identified with lazur-
ite stone (lapis lazuli), a blue stone that is speckled with pyrite (golden
colour spots).864 The second is a very hard stone, probably the blue corun-
dum, which first appeared as a gemstone embedded in jewellery in the
archaeological findings of the Roman period.865 For example, blue corun-
dums were found in excavations of the Roman-Egyptian city of Berenike, a
port on the western shore of the Red Sea, and at Shenshef, a city southeast
of Berenike.866
From this period onward, the blue corundum is called a ‘sapphire’. It fits
the description of a very hard stone in the Midrash (homiletic interpretation
of the Bible) of the Jewish Sages’ writings of the Roman–Byzantine period.867
In the medieval period, the process of linguistic separation between these
two stones was completed. The sapphire was identified mainly with the blue
corundum while the lazurite stone (lapis lazuli) designated a different and
separate name – lāzward.
Ibn Juljul included the yāqūt on the list of drugs that were not mentioned
by Dioscorides.868 In the Arabic literature, the corundum is not specific to the
blue stone, but as a generic name for a variety of stones of different hues char-
acterised by their unique hardness. Pseudo Aristotle with reference to stones
(ninth century) mentions the red, yellow and blue corundum.869 Similarly,
these varieties of iacinthus are mentioned in the European medieval literature
dealing with precious stones.870
Arabic literature dealing with precious stones describes white yāqūt

in addition to the red, yellow and blue variety.871 Almost all of the Arabic
sources concur that the origin of the corundums is India,872 mainly Sarandīb
(Sri Lanka).873 There, the Brahmins identified the sacred Rahūn mountain
(known today as Adam’s Peak) on which, according to a common belief,
the footprint of the first man is found, as a place near which many corun-
dums of all colours are found.874 The island’s inhabitants used to collect the
corundums from the sediments that were washed down the mountain during
floods. Ibn Māsawayhi describes stones of various hues that were found in
and brought from Sarandīb as light and dark red, similar to black with red
veins.875 Marco Polo praises Sri Lanka for its production of gemstones thus:
‘The island produces sapphires, topazes, amethysts, garnets and many other
precious stones.’876 The trade with corundums took place, among other ports,
through Oman.877
Several legends regarding the finding of precious stones by the res-
idents of the island are recorded by Arabic sources.878 Another origin of
these precious stones mentioned by the Arabic sources is the Badakhshān
region (Afghanistan of present day) from which red yāqūt was brought, yāqūt
rummānī as well as the lāzward (lapis lazuli).879
The corundum, like the pearl and the emerald, were considered the most
important and prestigious precious stones in the Arabic world.880 There is
no doubt that the prestige and affinity towards the corundum among the
Muslims received formal and compelling approval by its mention in the
Qurʾān: ‘(In beauty) they are like al-yāqūt (rubies) and coral’ (Qurʾān, Sūrat
al-Raªmān 58). This may be evidence that the traders of Óijāz were familiar
with the yāqūt at the dawn of Islam and perhaps even prior to that. It was told
about the Caliph Yazīd I (680–3) that he sent a small bottle made of yāqūt as
a gift to the Kaʿba in Mecca.881
Due to the importance of corundum, the medieval Biblical commenta-
tors identified them, on the backdrop of the reality of their period, as part of
the stones of the Biblical Óoshen (twelve precious stones in the High Priest’s
breast plate). For example, Rabbi Saadia Gaon (ninth and tenth centuries)
identifies the Biblical Odem (ruby) as yāqūt ʾaªmar, the Bareket (topaz) as
yāqūt ʾa‚far, the Sapir (white corundum) as al-mahā and Tarshish (aquama-
rine) as yāqūt ʾazraq.882
The red variety of yāqūt was considered the most precious and, therefore,
was expensive.883 In fact, when yāqūt is mentioned in the Arabic sources
without an adjective of colour, it is probably the red stone. In contrast to the
blue corundum that was already known in the Roman–Byzantine period,
however relatively restricted, the red corundum became known and used
in the medieval period. According to the Arabic sources, it could tolerate
fire and heat, which improved, elucidated and strengthened the red colour,
thereby increasing its value.884 This technique was used on dark stones in
India by which heating removed the blackness and improved the uniformity
of the red colour of the stone. In regard to the other varieties of yāqūt stones,
it is said that they were cut and polished with diamonds in India and Iraq.885
Arabic literature distinguishes between several varieties of red yāqūt whose
hues differ from one another: al-rummānī (looks like pomegranate seeds),
bahramānī (Brahmin; an orange colour similar to that of the safflower –
Carthamus tinctorius), ʾurjuwānī (bordeaux red), laªmī (red meat colour),
banafsajī (purple like the flowers of the sweet violet – Viola odorata), jullanārī
(yellowish hue) and wardī (red mixed with white). Similarly, the yellow and
the blue yāqūt stones varied in their hues and names. One of the blue hues
was yāqūt ʾakhab (dark grey), the value of a superb one being ten dirham for
one mithqāl. Al-Bīrūnī cites an Indian book in which it is written that the
superb variety of al-ʾakhab is the one that ‘if you look at it under the sunlight,
its colour tends to seem black’.886
The value of each stone was determined by its colour, transparency and
smoothness. Top-quality stones were shiny corundums with strong colours
and no speckles or deficiencies.887 The Arabic sources assert that the yāqūt is
the hardest precious stone except for the diamond, which was the only stone
with which they could cut and polish the yāqūt.888 One of the earliest Arabic
sources describes the vast booty that the Arabs seized from the Sasanians after
the Battle of Nahāwand in 642. It included yāqūt and other precious stones
that had never been seen before.889
At first, corundums were rare; therefore, their price was high. The Arabic
sources tell, by the name of the ‘ancestors’ (probably from the early Arabic
period), that the value of one mithqāl of corundum was 3,000 dīnārs. Al-JāªiÕ
even writes about one pure red yāqūt stone of the Brahmin variety whose
value was 5,000 dīnārs.890 Over the years, the prices dropped, but corundums
nonetheless remained expensive. Their value was calculated according to their

size.891
Corundums that are not red were valued as well. It is told that one of
the soldiers of Mu‚ʿab ibn al-Zubayr found in the treasures of one of the
Sasanian kings a golden date tree set with gems, including a yellow corun-
dum and emerald, and brought it to his commander.892 Another anecdote
is about Abū al-Óusayn Bajkam al-Makānī, a commander in the Abbasid
army (938–41), who gave his wife a jewellery box filled with large pearls and
red and blue corundums.893 After the death of his master, the Abbasid ruler
al-Rā∂ī took over the treasuries of the palace, which included jewellery, gems
and yellow corundums.894
Here are some examples of prices of corundums during the Abbasid
Caliphate. Top-quality corundums sold at a price of thirty dīnārs for one-
sixth of a mithqāl, 120 dīnārs for one-third of a mithqāl, 400 dīnārs for
one half of a mithqāl, 1,000 dīnārs for one mithqāl and 2,000 dīnārs for a
mithqāl and a half. At the time of al-Maʾmūn, corundums were available
in abundance. Their prices were calculated according to hue. For example,
the price of one mithqāl of the Brahmin variety was 800 dīnārs, ʾurjuwānī
500 dīnārs, laªmī and banafsajī 200 dīnārs and the wardī even less.895 In the
second half of the eleventh century and during the twelfth century, the prices
of these precious stones dropped dramatically. One mithqāl red yāqūt of dark
hue sold for 400 dīnārs, one half of a mithqāl for fifty dīnārs, one-third of a
mithqāl fifteen dīnārs and one-fourth of a mithqāl for six dīnārs.896
Al-T⁄fāsh⁄ describes the yāqūt’s rates in relation to the value of gold. For
example, the average value of half a dirham of red yāqūt in Egypt and Iraq
was equivalent to six mithqāls of gold. However, a high-quality yāqūt stone
(Brahmin variety) was valued at more than 100 mithqāls of gold.897
Ibn al-ʾAkfānī (the beginning of the fourteenth century) indicates that
the price of the red corundums was the highest while yāqūt stones of other
colours were much cheaper. For example, one mithqāl of a yellow corundum
was sold for 100 dīnārs, down to one dīnār for the poorest quality,898 a blue
one was sold for ten dīnārs and the white one for even less.899 In any case,
relative to the Abbasid period, these prices are much lower. For example, in
the case of the blue corundum the prices dropped to the rate of 1:10, since
al-JāªiÕ quoted a price of 200 dīnārs for a one-mithqāl stone.900
In light of this, it is clear that the corundums, mainly the red ones, were
popular consumer goods only among the elite and the monarchs. This may be
the reason that they were not mentioned in the vast number of trader letters
and documents found in the Cairo Genizah. The medieval middle class could
only afford to buy much cheaper corundums. For example, a white corun-
dum appears along with less expensive precious stones such as rock crystal
(ballūr) on a list of jewellery as part of a girl’s dowry, which was documented
in Fus†ā† in 1156.901
Many anecdotes are dispersed within the Arabic literature regarding the
existence of unique corundums in the courts of the various Caliphs. Their
existence was a sign of high status and prestige. It was told of a man named
Óamza ibn Bī∂ who received a big red yāqūt as a present from Yazīd ibn
al-Muhallab, one of the military leaders of the Umayyad Caliphate (about
725). The man sold the stone to a rich Jew in Khurāsān for 30,000 dirhams.
Later, the buyer told him that he would have spent even 50,000 dirhams.902
In another case, Hishām ibn ʿAbd al-Malik (724–43) received a present of
a huge red corundum that was so large that its two ends stuck out of the
hand that held it. This stone was bought for 73,000 dīnārs.903 Much evidence
comes, in particular, from the Abbasid Caliphates. Abū Jaʿfar al-Man‚ūr
(ruled 754–75) had a two mithqāl corundum called al-jabal in his seal ring.
Its value was estimated at 100,000 dīnārs. However, he bought it for just
40,000 dīnārs.904 It is also told that Jibrīl ibn Bukhtīshūʿ, the Nestorian
physician of Ibn Yaªyā al-Barmakī, the vizier of Hārūn al-Rashīd, came to
visit the ailing mother of Jaʿfar. Jibrīl found that her blood pressure was high
and treated her by administrating phlebotomy. In return, the mother gave
him a ball and a spoon with which she ate – both made out of yellow yāqūt.
Jibrīl sold the presents and said that this was the source of his wealth until
his last day.905
These stories should be seen on the background of the relationship of
the Barmakī’s viziers with India. It was their initiative to invite scholars and
physicians to Baghdad and import medicinal substances and other goods
from India.906 The Caliph al-Muqtadir had a corundum called ‘myrtle’s
leaf’ (waraqat al-ʾās), because of its unusual shape, which he had bought for
60,000 dīnārs. Al-Thaʿālib⁄ writes that it was said that one time al-Muqtadir
asked a rich gemstone trader, ‘How do you discern a superb corundum?’ The
trader answered him, ‘Oh Emir of believers; its beauty, its lucidity in my
eyes, its weight in my hand, and its coldness in my mouth.’907 The Ghaznavid
Emir Yamīn al-Dawla, Maªmūd ibn Subuktikīn the Sultan of Ghazna (971–
1030), had a twelve mithqāl corundum whose price was estimated at 20,000
dīnārs.908 This should be seen on the backdrop of his wars and conquests
in India and the vast booty that he collected. The wife of the vizier Abū
al-Qāsim al-Maghribī, al-Óusayn ibn ʿAlī (980–1027), brought a small red
vessel for mixing scents cut from bahramānī and white rummānī yāqūt.909
Ibn al-˝uwayr mentions in his book dealing with the administration of
the Fatimid Caliphate that they had an eleven mithqāl red corundum shaped
like a crescent in their possession. The stone, known as al-ªāfir, was placed,
together with a pearl, on the forehead of the Caliph’s horse set between
his eyes while he was riding his horse at the parade.910 Ibn Ba††ū†a, the
famous traveller, writes extensively about the abundance of precious stones
in Sri Lanka. When he visited the capital city of Sarnadib, Kanker, situated
in a valley named Yāqūt, he saw during the holy days the Sultan riding on
a white elephant whose forehead was adorned with yāqūt stones bigger than
chicken eggs. When the Sultan saw Ibn Ba††ū†a’s astonishment in seeing
the yāqūt stones the size of the Sultan’s hand, he told him that he had even
bigger stones. Ibn Ba††ū†a testified that most of the women of Sarandīb wore
necklaces embedded with corundums. The inhabitants of the island could
have any stones they found up to the value of 100 fanams (six gold dīnārs).
If they found any bigger and more valuable stones, they had to give them to
the rulers and would be paid their equivalent value.911
The author of a book on precious stones and minerals, al-T⁄fāsh⁄, tells
about a man, al-Sharīf al-Jawharī (an expert on precious stones), who lived in
Cairo in about the year 1232. This man had acquired his knowledge in India
and learned that whoever owns a valuable yāqūt stone will have increased
strength, status and prestige.912 Indeed, as is the case with all prestigious
goods, large corundums were sent as presents between rulers, especially the
kings of India and the Muslim rulers.913 One example is the female camel that
the king of India sent to al-Junayd ibn ʿAbd al-Raªmān al-Murrī, the ruler of
Sind at the time of Hishām ibn ʿAbd al-Malik. Its body was filled with gems,
its udder with small pearls and its neck with red yāqūt stones. The Caliph
was astonished to see the gift, which he kept in his treasury until transferring
it to the possession of the Abbasid Caliphate.914 Similar gifts and precious

goods from India were also bestowed on rulers at the time of al-Maʾmūn.915
Ibn Ba††ū†a testifies that he saw with his own eyes gifts that were given to the
Sultan of India and Sind, Muªmmad ibn ˝ughluq, including one tray laden
with yāqūt stones, a second tray full of emeralds and a third full of pearls.916
From the medicinal point of view, the nature of the red and yellow
corundums was considered hot and dry; the blue – cold and dry; and the
white – cold and humid.917 Wearing a yāqūt stone was considered beneficial
against the evil eye, being hit by lightning and thunder, plagues and epilepsy.
Grinding and drinking it was considered beneficial for strengthening the
heart, fighting fear, increasing courage and counteracting poisons.918 It was
also mentioned that the yāqūt quenches thirst if placed in the mouth or under
the tongue and prevents bleeding. The yellow variety was used to prevent
nightmares and nocturnal emission.919 The white variety was administered
and smeared on the tongue, along with other medicinal substances, for the
treatment of speech impediments. It was believed that when it was hung on
the thigh of a woman giving birth, the childbirth was faster and easier.920
diamond
Motupalli (West India) is a kingdom … the kingdom produces diamonds.
Let me tell you how they are obtained. You must know that in the kingdom
there are many mountains in which the diamonds are contained, as you
will hear. When it rains the water rushes down through these mountains,
making its way through mighty gorges and caverns. When the rain has
stopped and the water has dried up, men go in search of diamonds through
these gorges from which the water has come, and they find plenty.921
Diamond (ªajar al-mās)

The diamond is a mineral formed from pure crystallised carbon. The
most expensive and precious is the clear colourless diamond. Diamonds have
the greatest hardness of any bulk material (ten on the Mohs scale). Diamonds
are formed in magmatic rocks rich in carbonate at high temperatures; they are
brought close to Earth´s surface through deep volcanic eruptions by magma,
which cools into rocks known as kimberlites. When the kimberlites erode,
the diamonds are scattered by the flow of the rivers to produce secondary
deposits in the alluvium. It was there, in the past, that they were usually col-
lected. The most ancient deposits of diamonds were found in India. Only in
the modern period were more deposits found in South Africa and America.
Until the Middle Ages, diamonds were rare and expensive, but were not
used as preferred jewellery since their processing was primitive and produced
transparent stones that, mostly due to a lack of lustre, resembled pieces of
glass. The main use of the diamonds, at first, was for cutting and polishing
other hard gemstones (Plate 35).922
The technology of cleaving diamonds and removing deficiencies by
polishing them using a special grindstone with water on a surface of black
lead (ʾasrub) was already described in ninth-century India.923 However, the
sophisticated art of polishing diamonds in the modern sense known today
was invented only in the Medieval era. In the thirteenth century, Europeans
already knew the simple cosmetic processing that had been done in India
hundreds of years before. At the beginning of the fourteenth century, the
method of splitting the rough diamond according to the octahedron struc-
ture was learnt, a process preventing loss of material. Meanwhile, the tech-
nology of polishing the diamonds improved. An important milestone of this
long process is attributed to Ludwig van Berquem, a Belgian goldsmith who
invented the scaif machine in 1476, using old technology and improving it
significantly.924
The diamond is probably not the Biblical (Hebrew) yahalom.925 No Bible
translations or commentaries mention diamonds as one of the Óoshen (High
Priest breastplate) stones or even the yahalom. Moreover, there is no historical
or archaeological evidence for the existence of diamonds in the Middle East
before the Muslim conquests. It seems that the Greeks were first introduced
to diamonds only after the conquests of Alexander the Great. Due to its
unique hardness, the Greeks named the diamond adamas, meaning ‘uncon-
querable or unbreakable’.926
The diamond is mentioned by the Roman authors as a precious stone
deriving from India. However, it was not included among the precious stones
used in the Classical period. In fact, a specific reference to diamonds exists
only from the Roman period. 927 Marcus Manilius (first century) writes, ‘The
diamond is a stone not bigger than a dot, more expensive than gold.’928 Pliny
mentions the adamas at the top of the list of the most expensive goods found
in the ground in the Roman Empire.929 In a special chapter dedicated to the

diamond, he adds that for a long time it ‘was known only to kings and to very
few of them’.930 Regarding its geographical origin, he writes that diamonds
come from India, Ethiopia, Arabia and Cyprus, but the strongest come from
India. According to Pliny, the diamond is similar in its transparent colour
and smooth hexagonal faces to rock crystal. The diamond can be identified by
its hardness and its resistance to fire. If it is struck with an iron (hammer) on
a breech block, the diamond repulses the blow. In the meantime, the hammer
and the breech block may break. Pliny writes that he devised a technique for
cracking a diamond. The precious stone should be soaked in hot fresh goat
buck’s blood. After it is struck many times, it breaks into small pieces.931
Pliny provides realistic information together with rumours and even legendry
characteristics. However, it is clear that the information on this specific stone
comes from India. In the same period, we read about the trade with the
adamas stone and blue corundum imported from Muziris (a port city in
Southwestern India).932 Another option for the identification of the hard
adamas (besides the diamond) is that it may be the colourless corundum,
which was brought from Sri Lanka.933 In any case, it is clear that it was a rare
and expensive precious stone.
Along with the expansion of the Arab trade with Southeast Asia in the
medieval period, the diamond was one of the best known gemstones of the
time. Only then did its medicinal virtues start to emerge in the medical lit-
erature. Ibn Juljul insistes that the ªajar al-mās was not mentioned either by
Dioscorides or by Galen934 and provides us with its description: ‘an Indian
stone, sometimes white and sometimes yellow. It is a stone that destroys
everything and breaks all the other stones. It is used for piercing pearls. Lead
breaks and rends it. It is a precious stone. This stone, if its weight is about a
mithqāl, is sold for 100 golden dīnārs. The white is better than the yellow and
if drunk it will kill you immediately.’935 There are many legends regarding the
discovery of the diamond.936
In the book of precious stones attributed to Aristotle, there is a legendary
description of the way that Alexander the Great found diamonds in a steep
deserted wādī in Khurāsān full of poisonous snakes, which could kill by look-
ing into one’s eyes. Alexander the Great managed to overpower the snakes
thanks to a mirror trick he played on them. Once the snakes saw themselves
in the mirrors he placed there, they died. Then, he threw pieces of meat into
the wadi. The diamonds there stuck to the meat pieces and were brought up
by eagles, which were attracted to the meat.937 The diamond was considered
among the Arabs as the preferred and noblest of all gemstones except for
the red corundum (yāqūt) and the pearl, and kings were proud to have it.
Wearing this stone or setting it in a ring enhanced one’s glory and respect.938
Most of the Arabic writers mention India939 and the rivers of Sri Lanka as
the source of diamonds, close to the places where corundum was found.940
The diamonds resembled small pebbles and in most cases were about the size
of mustard or barley seeds.941 Al-Kindī, in his book on minerals, writes that
he had never seen a diamond bigger than a nut.942 At that period, diamonds
were not polished, but rough stones usually of white or yellowish colour.
A transparent stone was rarely found.
Al-Dimashqī was more reserved, asserting that diamonds could be found
from the size of a barley seed up to one mithqāl. The diamonds appear in
various shapes as well, according to their angles. Their colour is mainly white,
similar to the ballūr (rock crystal). However, in many cases it is a bit reddish
and opaque, similar to glass. Two varieties of diamond are described in the
literature. The first is the ‘olive’, a superb stone, with a white-to-yellow hue
like olive oil and similar to the zujāj Firʿawnī. The second variety is the ‘rock
crystal’, white as glass.943 Ibn Māsawayhi describes the way a diamond was
processed. It was broken with the help of corundums, polished and cleaned
using a special grindstone from India and intensive rubbing with water.944
He adds that there are some polished diamonds that disseminate rays of
light similar to a rainbow on the walls if a glass cup is placed over them. The
Indians set such stones in jewellery.945 In his book on minerals, al-T⁄fāsh⁄
relays information he received from Persian traders dealing with gemstones
who would travel to India and China to import the finest precious stones.
According to these traders, there is a variety of a diamond with a strong sheen
and rays of colourful light, similar to the rainbow, reflected on it. This variety
is highly sought after among the Indian nobility, who wear it as an ornament
and never sell it.946
Perhaps, at early stages, the Indian authorities controlled or supervised
the trade in diamonds. They banned the trade in high-quality diamonds
and left the rest to be traded.947 Another historical source mentions that
the Indians preferred the white (transparent) and the yellow diamond while
the people and traders of Iraq and Khurāsān did not care about the colour
of the diamonds since they used them for drilling and polishing, not for
jewellery.948
Medieval Arab sources describe the diamond as an isometric stone with
eight or more facets.949 It is the hardest stone in existence, according to their
writings. They describe various techniques for breaking it. The diamond was
used for polishing and piercing holes in pearls and other hard gems, such as
corundum and emerald. They would pulverise the diamonds with black lead
(ʾasrub). The powder was set on an iron file with which precious stones were
polished. Holes were made by placing a diamond at the head of sculptor and
rapidly drilling a hole with it.950 Cutting and polishing corundums with dia-
monds were done in India and Iraq as was mentioned by Ibn Māsawayhi.951
A tenth-century source mentions that the Chinese knew the diamond as a
hard stone with which they cut and polished jade.952
The unique hardness of the diamond was the basis for identification of
the Biblical yahalom.953 This identification is first brought up in the medieval
period among the Spanish Bible commentators who translated the Hebrew
word from an etymological point of view. They found support for their iden-
tification since halam in Hebrew is to strike. That signified, in their opinion,
the hardness of the diamond enabling the breaking of other precious stones
with it.
For example, Ibn Ezra writes, ‘and a great Spanish scholar said that
the diamond, which is called al-mās in Arabic, breaks all stones and pen-
etrates rock crystal’.954 This commentary spread and was accepted by various
European commentators. By contrast, Rabbi Saadia Gaon and others identi-
fied the al-mās as a stone called shamīr, known for its hardness,955 with which,
according to the Jewish tradition, Moses engraved the names of the tribes on
the shoham (onyx) and Óoshen (breastplate) stones.956
Al-Dimashqī notes an extraordinary use of diamonds by Arab rulers.
They would wear a diamond with the intent to kill themselves in the event
they fall into captivity and choose to avoid torture or execution.957 Diamonds
were also mentioned by European scholars. Albertus Magnus (thirteenth cen-
tury), for example, mentions diamant in his book on minerals De Mineralibus
and writes that it was often mistakenly identified and confused with other
stones.958 In any case, this is one of the first times that the diamond was
mentioned and called by its modern name.
The value of diamonds increased during the medieval period and,
accordingly, their price was extremely high. It seems that diamonds were
traded extensively among the upper social strata. Prices differed between
various geographical locations according to the size and quality of the stones.
Furthermore, over the years, more and more diamonds became available
among the sellers of gemstones. Therefore, their prices dropped relatively.
The commercial book of al-JāªiÕ teaches us that a transparent crystallic
diamond (al-mās al-ballūrī) of a half mithqāl sold for up to 100 dīnārs.
The bigger and heavier the diamond is, the higher its value.959 at-Tamīmī
(tenth century AD) indicated that a diamond weighing ªabb960 was sold in
the region of three to four dīnārs.961 Ibn al-ʾAkfānī writes that ‘in the old
days, the price of one mithqāl was 200 dīnārs and for [a stone] the size of
a hazelnut between 300–500 dīnārs’. He adds a story attributed to Muʿizz
al-dawla ibn Buwayhi al-Daylamī, who gave a three mithqāl diamond as
a present to his brother Rukn al-Dawla (tenth century): ‘a bigger one was
never heard of’.962
Likewise, the Emir Nūª ibn Man‚ūr al-Sāmānī (died 997) had two seal
rings, each of which was called a ba††īkha. One was a corundum (yāqūt) the
size of a grape, while the second was a diamond (al-mās), similar to the first
in size and weight. It was told that a bigger diamond had never been seen.963
The Spanish writer Ibn Juljul quoted a price of 100 dīnārs for each mithqāl
of diamond.964
The Arab sources mention additional diamond prices. Ibn Māsawayhi
writes that a high-quality diamond in Iraq cost fifty dīnārs, with its process-
ing and polishing possibly costing thirty dīnārs more.965 At the same period,
al-Kindī mentions that the highest price for a diamond in Baghdad was
eighty dīnārs for one mithqāl while the cheapest was fifty dīnārs per mithqāl.
The bigger the stone was, the greater the option to cut it into more (smaller)
stones, thereby increasing its value two to five times.966
The diamond had medicinal uses in the medieval Arab medical school.
It was considered a cold and dry drug mainly used to treat stones in the
urinary tracts. This was done either by drinking the diamond’s powder or by
an operation that was considered dangerous. An iron wire to which a very
small diamond was glued with pistachio resin to its end was injected through
the urethra in an attempt to crumble the stone and open the obstruction.967
However, some contemporary physicians warn that the diamond should
never be administered internally due to the risk it poses for the internal
organs (of being ruptured), causing death.968 The act of taking powder into
the mouth was also considered dangerous since it could break teeth.969 In
external use, placing diamonds on the stomach was deemed useful in the
treatment of acute stomach aches.970
bezoar - stone
Whoever is harmed by any poison must put the bezoar-stone on the place of
the ‘bite’. This neutralises the poison completely.971
But the animal bezoar has been proven by experience and confirmed empir-
ically. It should be prepared in the following manner. Rub it in olive oil
on a grindstone until it lacks no less than one qīrā† up to an eighth of a
mithqāl. Let the person who has been bitten or who has ingested a poison
lick this up. One should also rub [some] of it on the site of the bite. The
patient will recover and be saved.972
Bezoar-Stone (bādzahr, bāzahr, fādzahr)
The Arabic scholars already wrote that this drug was not mentioned among
the known medicinal substances dealt with in the important Greek medical
literature of Galen and Dioscorides.973 The origin of the Arabic name bādzahr
is Persian and means ‘protection from poison’. The name penetrated the
Arabic language974 as well as several European languages (Bezoar).
The Arabic medical literature attributed exceptional medical qualities
to the bezoar-stone as a serum for the treatment of animal poisons (snakes,
scorpions, various insects and dog bites), poisonous plants and various dis-
eases. Many rulers used the bezoar-stone on a regular basis975 due to their fear
of being poisoned by their adversaries. Therefore, kings and dignitaries used
tableware made of bezoar-stone at their feasts. An early Arabic author writes
that he saw a cup of wine belonging to one of the kings made of bezoar-stone
and ornamented with precious stones.976, 977 Yaªyā (Yūªannā) ibn al-Bi†rīq
(d. 815), a close associate of al-Maʾmūn,978 writes in his treatise on deadly
poisons and theriac that a powder of the bezoar-stone placed on the location
of the bite stops the poison and defuses it.
If the stone is placed on poisoned foods or beverages, it induces the extrac-
tion of the poisonous agents. Therefore, kings used knives with handles made
of bezoar-stone when eating.979 Due to the difficulty in obtaining the bezoar-
stone, it was among the precious presents given to kings. For example, it was
told that Óasan ibn Sahl sent precious gifts to the Abassid ruler al-Muʿta‚im
(833–42), al-Maʾmūn’s brother from the area of the Turkish tribes, including
knives with handles made of bezoar-stone.980 Similarly, from the region of Fāris
(Iran), knife handles made from bezoar-stones were produce.981 Moreover, it
was told that more than one hundred mugs made of ‘blood stone bezoar’ were
found in the hoard of the palace of the Shiʿite Fatimid Caliphs. They would
pour drinks into these mugs before serving the Caliph. When the drink was
poisonous the mug would change its colour. It was also told that the name of
the Caliph Hārūn al-Rashīd was carved on some of the mugs. They did not
hesitate to use it even though he was a Sunnī.982
Bezoar-stone was described in the early Arabic medical literature (ninth
and tenth centuries) as having various hues, the yellow considered the best
variety and then the grey. The origins of these stones were in China, India,
Sind, Khurāsān, the Kirmān region (Iran) and from the ‘East’ in general, all
of which were considered excellent.983
In later sources, such as Maimonides, a bezoar-stone from Spain, deep
green in colour, was described. Maimonides mentions two varieties of bezoar-
stones in his writings: one of mineral (inorganic) origin and the other of
animal origin.984 Maimonides writes that the first one was found in Egypt and
ʿIdhāb.985 However, unlike what was written in the medical literature,986 it
was not at all beneficial, according to his experience with many patients. On
the other hand, the medical benefit of the animal variety was proven. It was
used by rubbing it with oil on a grindstone and applying it in small quanti-
ties, drinking or smearing it on the place that was bitten.987 The poison was
secreted later through the sweat.988 Another method of treatment in which
the stone remained whole was to place it inside the mouth of the poisoned
person or externally on the bite.989
Real bezoar-stones were probably very expensive and hard to attain.
Therefore, their use was restricted to the monarchy and high socio-economic
strata. It was told that the Amir Sayf al-Dīn Qalaj (Ayyubid period)
used to wear a rounded yellow bezoar-stone on his hand as a defence
against poisons. He said that the stone was given to him by al-Malik
al-ʾAshraf, ibn al-ʿĀdil (ruling Damascus 1229–38). Such stones were in
the hands of al-Malik al-ʾAshraf himself and the Caliph al-Mustaʿīn bi-llāh
(1085–1109).990
Most of the medieval sources agree that the bezoar-stone that was
most beneficial against poison was produced from an animal secretion.
However, they disagree with regard to the identification of the animal as well
as the part of the body out of which it was secreted. The following are sev-
eral theories from the Arabic literature, as documented in al-Qalqashand⁄’s
encyclopedia:
And its origin is of a known animal called the deer in China. This animal
eats snakes and is used to be fed on them [snakes]. As a result, the stone
[bezoar] derives from it, as we shall see. The people of that era disagreed
with regard to the organ of its origin: eleven said it was produced in the
ducts of falling tears whilst the snakes were being eaten. As the stone gets
bigger, the deer scratches it, causing the stone to fall down. Another eleven
said that the stone was produced in the deer’s heart. This is the reason the
animal was hunted and slaughtered, so as to extract the stone. Another
eleven said [that the stone was produced] in the deer’s gall bladder.991
The common line of all of the above-mentioned explanations is that the

bezoar-stone was considered a poisonous secretion that accumulates in the
body of animals that feed on snakes and is, therefore, used as an antidote.
There is no doubt that some of the explanations are ‘contaminated’ with
legends. Maimonides presents a more critical view: ‘It is created in a way of
accumulation. Therefore, we find it layer upon layer.992 Some say it is found
in the internal part of the eyes of certain deer in the East whilst others say it
is found in their gall bladder. This is true.’993
Interestingly, al-T⁄fāsh⁄ reaches a similar conclusion after quoting all the
different views: ‘and the bezoar-stone is extracted from the gall bladder after the
deer is hunted … whoever said so is correct since once the stone is licked, the
bitter taste is sensed. This is the view of the most renowned gemologists and
the best experts amongst them. This is, in my opinion, the correct answer.’994
Ibn al-ʾAkfānī presents a more specific description. He claims that the

origin of the bezoar-stone, excised from the gall bladder of deer from the region
of Shankārah in the mountains of Shīrāz (southern Persia), is shaped like the
fruit of the oak tree (acorn) and its colour is green or grey.995 Indeed, according
to modern studies, bezoar-stones are made of the residue of calcium and other
minerals that accumulate in various species and animal organs, such as the gall
bladder. It seems that the origin of bezoar-stones was a mountain goat (Capra
aegagrus aegagrus), also known as the Bezoar Ibex. This species is dispersed
throughout the mountains of Asia Minor and around the Middle East, Persia
and Afghanistan. It is under threat of extinction mainly due to the unrestrained
hunting in the past that was done in order to acquire the bezoar-stone.996
Besides the use of the bezoar-stone in the treatment of poisoning, the
medieval practitioners ascribed other medical benefits to this stone, such as
the treatment of fever and eye inflammations. According to some of these
physicians, it was the best drug for the treatment of all poisonous agents, cold
and hot alike (according to the classification of the basic characteristics of
the Galenic–Arabic medical theory).997 Unlike the vast majority of medicinal
substances, its uses were restricted in accordance with the nature and indi-
vidual temperament of each patient. This was true especially for the various
poisons whose action is usually specific.998
The bezoar-stone was used externally, placed on the bitten organ, or
internally. It was pulverised with a file. The powder was placed on the site of
the bite and drained, thereby removing the poison. The dosage was twelve
shaʿīra (grains of barley).999
Bezoar-stones were introduced into Europe during the twelfth century
by Arabian doctors. They were used as antidotes to arsenic. According to
Barroso, the use of bezoar-stones was widespread in Europe during the six-
teenth century. Since they were rare, their value was ten times greater than
their weight in gold. Therefore, many kings owned one or more specimens,
some of which were set in pieces of jewellery.1000
Notes
1. Watson, Agricultural Innovation.
2. Ibn Rushd, Kitāb al-Kulliyyāt, p. 268.
3. Levey, The Medical Formulary, p. 342.
4. Wendrich et al., ‘Berenike Crossroads’, p. 70.

5. Ibn Rushd, Kitāb al-Kulliyyāt, p. 268; Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 7.
6. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 7.
7. Zohary, The Plant World, p. 459; Hill, Economic Botany, pp. 123–4.
8. Al-ʾIdrīsī, Kitāb Nuzhat, I, p. 54.
9. Farag, ‘Why Europe’.
10. Al-ʾIdrīsī, Kitāb Nuzhat, II, p. 195; Ibn Khurdādhbih, al-Masālik, pp. 66–7.
11. Goitein, A Mediterranean, I, p. 337.
12. Gil, In the Kingdom, III, p. 276, IV, p. 589.
13. Goitein, A Mediterranean, III, pp. 903, 912; Ben-Sasson, The Jews, pp. 266, 273
14. Goitein, A Mediterranean, IV, p. 110.
15. Gil, In the Kingdom, III, p. 16.
16. Ibid., III, p. 170, IV, p. 101.
17. Ben-Sasson, The Jews, p. 626; Gil, In the Kingdom, II, p. 465, No. 158.
19. Gil, Palestine, III, pp. 187–8.
20. Ibid., III, p. 210.
21. Ibid., III, p. 217.
22. Ibid., II, p. 421.
23. Ibid., III, pp. 106, 108.
25. Beugnot, ‘Les Assises’, II, p. 176.
26. Gil, In the Kingdom, II, p. 709.
27. Gil, In the Kingdom: III, p. 905, No. 574, p. 912, No. 474; Ben-Sasson, The
Jews, pp. 226, 273.
28. Gil, In the Kingdom, IV, p. 447.
29. Gil, In the Kingdom, III, p. 252; Ben-Sasson, The Jews, p. 401.
30. Gil, In the Kingdom, IV, pp. 586, 589; Goitein, A Mediterranean, IV, p. 110.
31. Ben-Sasson, The Jews, pp. 159, 163.
32. Greif, The Sicilian Jews, p. 77.
33. Levey, The Medical Formulary, pp. 84, 88–91, 202–5; Ibn Sīnā, Kitāb,
pp. 271–2; Said, al-Bīrūnī’s, I, p. 76, II, pp. 80, 104; Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb
al-Jāmiʿ, IV, p. 190; al-ʾAn†ākī, Tadhkirat, p. 62; Ben Maimon, Sexual,
1: 5; Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged, no. 124; Ben Maimon, Aphorisms,
21: 73.
34. Ibn Khurdādhbih, al-Masālik, pp. 66–7; Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, IV,
pp. 196–8.
35. Al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, II, p. 474.

36. Al-˝abar⁄, Firdaws al-Óikma, pp. 393, 417.
38. In some cases, ʾihlīlaj kābulī is called ʾihlīlaj ʾaswad, which should not be
confused with the ‘Chinese kind’; see Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, IV,
p. 196.
40. Al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, p. 77.
41. Al-Shayzar⁄, Nihāyat, pp. 45–6.
42. Al-Qurashī, Maʿālim, p. 125.
43. Lev and Amar, Practical, pp. 218–21.
47. Ibn Qā∂ī Baʿalbakk, Mufarriª al-Nafs, p. 75.
48. Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, IV, p. 196.
56. Al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, p.78.
62. Sbath and Avierinos, Deux Traits.
63. Levey, The Medical Formulary, pp. 69–70.
64. Lev, ‘Mediators’.
66. Abravanel, Naªalat Avot, p. 351.
67. King, ‘A unique’.
68. Grover, ‘Man and plants’.
69. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 14; Ibn Rushd, Kitāb al-Kulliyyāt, p. 268.
70. Meyerhof, ‘Medieval Jewish’, p. 436.

71. See in detail: Bos, ‘“Balādhur”’.
72. Al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, II, pp. 420, 509.
74. Said, al-Bīrūnī’s, I, p. 72.
75. Al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, p. 87; Ibn al-Jazzār, al-ʾIʿtimād, p. 204.
76. Ibn Rushd, Kitāb al-Kulliyyāt, p.268.
78. According to another version it was his grandfather.
79. Yāqūt, Muʿjam al-ʾUdabāʾ, II, pp. 49–50.
81. Al-Rāzī, al-Óāwī, I, p. 51 (2957).
82. Citation of the translation of the Arabic manuscript, see: Bos, Ibn al-Jazzār,
pp. 34, 35, 42.
83. Ibid. 57; regarding the substances, see: Lev and Amar, Practical.
84. Amar, Pri Megadim, pp. 57–9.
86. 1. East Indian Dragon’s blood (from the fruit of Daemonorops draco);
2. Socotran or Zanzibar Dragon’s blood (exudates of Dracaena cinna-
bari); 3. Canary Dragon’s blood (exudates formed from incisions of the
trunk of Dracaena draco); 4. West Indian Dragon’s blood (exudates of
Pterocarpus draco); 5. Mexican Dragon’s blood (resin of Croton lechleri);
6. Venezuelan Dragon’s blood (resin of Croton gossypifolium); the last two
species are from the new world and therefore are not relevant for medieval
dragon’s blood.
87. Gupta et al., ‘Dragon’s blood’.
88. Howell et al., ‘Raman’; Gupta et al. ‘Dragon’s blood’; Pearson, ‘Daemonorops’.
89. Attorrea et al., ‘Will dragonblood survive?’
90. Casson, The Periplus Maris, pp. 168–9.
91. Pliny, Naturalis Historia, XXXIII, 116.
93. Al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, II, p. 596.
94. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 17 ; al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XI, p. 317.
95. Al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, II, p. 596; al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XI, p. 317;
al-D⁄nawar⁄, Kitāb al-Nabāt, I, p. 170; al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur, p. 17.
97. Al-D⁄nawar⁄, Kitāb al-Nabāt, I, pp. 39, 170.
98. Al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur, p. 17; al-Qurashī, Maʿālim, p. 124; al-Shayzarī,

Nihāyat, p. 49.
99. Al-Shayzarī, Nihāyat, p. 52.
101. Ibid., p. 47.
102. Ben-Sasson, The Jews, p. 238, no. 58, p. 355, no. 72; Gil, In the Kingdom,
p. 865, no. 562.
103. Levey, The Medical Formulary, p. 268, no. 101.
105. Al-˝abar⁄, Firdaws al-Óikma, p. 406; al-D⁄nawar⁄, Kitāb al-Nabāt, I, p. 39.
106. Lev and Amar, Practical, p. 400.
107. Amar and Buchman, Íori ha-Guf, p. 177.
108. Ducros, ‘Essai’, p. 59, no. 103.
109. Hooper, Useful Plants, p. 114.
110. Ibn Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, IV, pp. 97–8.
111. Lev and Amar, Ethnic, p. 246.
113. Theophrastus, Enquiry into Plants, IV, 7, 8 (p. 345), but this identification is
not certain.
114. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 8; Amar et al., ‘On Ibn Juljul’.
115. Al-D⁄nawar⁄, Kitāb al-Nabāt, I, p. 134.
116. Al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, II, pp. 398–9.
117. Al-Shayzarī, Nihāyat, p. 43; al-Qurashī, Maʿālim, p. 122.
119. Goitein, A Mediterranean, I, p. 200, IV, p. 261.
120. Gil, In the Kingdom, II, p. 864, no. 287, III, p. 252, no. 373, p. 263, no. 376,
p. 679, no. 309, and more. Ben-Sasson, The Jews, pp. 402, 466, 533.
123. Ben Maimon, Medical Responses, p. 143.
124. Polo, The Travels, p. 291.
125. Al-˝abarī, Firdaws al-Óikma, III. pp. 382, 417.
126. Amar et al., ‘Ibn Rushd’, p. 92.

132. B. arundinacea is still being used in traditional medicine in India and China.
134. Käs, Die Mineralien, pp. 765–99.
135. Babylonian Talmud, Baba Mez’a, 103b.
136. Al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, p. 222.
137. Ibn Khurdādhbih, al-Masālik, pp. 92, 95, 104; Ibn al-Faq⁄h al-Hamadhān⁄,
Kitāb al-Buldān, pp. 10, 16, 251.
139. Al-ʾI‚†akhr⁄, Masālik al-Mamālik, p. 154.
141. Gil, In the Kingdom, III, p. 283, no. 380, p. 865, no. 562, p. 903, no. 574,
Ben-Sasson, The Jews, p. 273.
147. Al-˝abari, Firdaws al-Óikma, p. 405.
148. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 11; Amar et al., ‘On Ibn Juljul‘.
149. Amar et al., ‘Ibn Rushd’.
151. Ben Maimon, Medical Responses, p. 145, no. 19.
154. See, for example: Ibn Qā∂ī Baʿalbakk, Mufarriª al-Nafs, p. 86.
155. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 9; Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, II, p. 158.
156. Ibn Sīnā, Kitāb al-Qānūn, II, p. 303; Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, II, p. 90;
Ibn al-Jazzār, al-ʾIʿtimād, p. 155; al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, p. 273.
158. Al-˝abar⁄, Firdaws al-Óikma, p. 402.
161. Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, II, pp. 157–8.
165. Muntner, ‘Assaph’, p. 394.

167. Ben Maimon, Un Glossaire, no. 387.
168. Ben Mrād, Al-Mu‚†alaª al-ʾAʿjamī fī, pp. 361–2.
170. Ibn al-Jazzār, al-ʾIʿtimād, p. 19.
171. Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, II, p. 81; Ibn ʾIyās, Badāʾiʿ, I/1, p. 42; Ben
Zimra, Sheʾelot ʾU-Teshuvot, I, no. 499.
172. Al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, p. 220; al-Ghassānī, Óadīqat, p. 315.
173. Al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, p. 220; Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, 8.
174. Ibn ʾIyās, Badāʾiʿ, I/1, p. 42; Ben Zimra, Sheʾelot ʾU-Teshuvot, I, no. 499.
176. Al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, p. 220; al-Ghassānī, Óadīqat, p. 315.
178. Gil, Palestine, II, p. 794, No. 395; III, p. 60; Gil, In the Kingdom, III,
p. 258, No. 374; Goitein, A Mediterranean, II, p. 574, see more: Amar, The
Use.
179. Gil, Palestine, II, 724, No. 395; III, 60–1, No. 445.
180. Pegolotti, La Pratica, p. 63.
181. Heyd, Histoire du Commerce, II, pp. 602–3.
182. Summary of the sources in detail is in Amar, ‘The use’, p. 62.
183. Shohetman, ‘New sources’.
184. Hasselquist, Voyages, p. 299. The original text was published as Hasselquist,
Iter Palaestinum.
185. Al-Shayzarī, Nihāyat, p. 46.
187. Muntner, ‘Assaph’, IV, p. 394.
191. Ben Maimon, On Asthma, 12: 8, p. 366; Ben Maimon, Regimen, 2: 11; 3:
4, 9.
192. Ben Maimon, Aphorisms, 21: 96.
195. Muntner, Saladino d’Ascoli, pp. 79, 112.
196. Ibn al-Faq⁄h al-Hamadhān⁄, Kitāb al-Buldān, p. 69, italics in the original.
197. On the history of cloves and its various names, see in detail: Singh and Singh,
‘Impact’; Ben Maimon, Regimen, p. 97.
198. Ibn Rushd, Kitāb al-Kulliyyāt, 271; Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 9.
199. Al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, p. 502.
200. Pliny, Naturalis Historia, XII, 30.
201. Paulus Aegineta, III, p. 160.
202. McCrindle, The Christians Topography, p. 366.
203. Levey, ‘Ibn Māsawaih’, p. 403.
204. Ibn Khurdādhbih, al-Masālik, p. 104; Ibn al-Faq⁄h al-Hamadhān⁄, Kitāb
al-Buldān, p. 72; al-Thaʿālib⁄, La†āʾif, p. 215; Polo, The Travels, p. 290.
205. Ibn Sīnā, Kitāb, II, p. 416; Polo, The Travels, p. 176.
206. Ibn Khurdādhbih, al-Masālik, p. 98.
208. Al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, V, p. 306.
210. Ibn al-Faq⁄h al-Hamadhān⁄, Kitāb al-Buldān, p. 69.
212. Levi Della Vida, ‘A druggist’s account’.
214. Al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XII, pp. 45–6.
216. al-Qazwīnī, ʿAjāʾib, p. 299.
217. A similar version was presented by Ibn al-Faq⁄h al-Hamadhān⁄, Kitāb
al-Buldān, p. 69. He said that it is the island Bar†āʾīl (Bar†āyīl) near the island
al-Zābaj.
218. al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XII, pp. 47–8.
219. Goitein, A Mediterranean, I, p. 152, III, p. 202; Gil, In the Kingdom, I,
p. 565, IV, p. 932 (references to eleven fragments), also see indices.
221. Beugnot, ‘Les Assises’, II, p. 174.
222. Pegolotti, La Pratica, p. 63.
223. Ashtor, ‘The Crusader’, p. 290. In detail: Ashtor, ‘Spice prices’.
224. Ashtor, ‘The Crusader’, p. 33.
225. Al-D⁄nawar⁄, Kitāb al-Nabāt, II, p. 205.
226. Al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, II, p. 131.
227. Al-Kind⁄, Kitāb f ⁄ K ⁄miyāʾ, pp. 55–6, prescriptions nos 97–9.
228. Al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XII, pp. 46–7; Levey, ‘Ibn Māsawaih’, p. 403.

231. In the text ‘ʾaªshāʾ’, which may also be translated ‘intestine’.
233. Levey, The Medical Formulary, nos 3, 106, 108, 152, 213, 225–6; Compare
Said, al-Bīrūnī’s, I, p. 265; II, pp. 101–2.
235. Al-Rāz⁄, al-Óāw⁄, VIIb, p. 126.
238. Ben Maimon, Medical Responses, 21:6.
239. Ben Maimon, Sexual, Introduction, 15.
240. Wood, Benevenutus, p. 37.
241. Al-Qazwīnī, ʿAjāʾib, pp. 229–30.
243. Polo, The Travels, p. 286, italics in the original.
244. Fuller et al., ‘Across the Indian Ocean’, p. 549.
245. Chevallier, The Encyclopedia, p. 248.
246. Adams, The Seven Books, p. 454–5.
247. Ibn Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, II, p. 127.
248. Al-ʾIdrīsī, Compendium, I, p. 71.
249. Ibid.
250. Ibn Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, I, pp. 334, 395; II, pp. 115, 116; III, pp. 163,
164, 242; IV, pp. 69, 100.
251. Al-Qalqashandī, Kitāb Íubª, V, pp. 12, 306.
252. Ibn Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, I, p, 395; II, pp. 116, 127; III, pp. 93, 141,
162, 164, 173, 179, 225, 226, 227; IV, pp, 158–9.
253. Ibn Sīnā, Kitāb, I, p. 445.
257. Gil, In the Kingdom, II, p. 866, no. 294; IV, p. 586, no. 794.
258. Ibn Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, III, p, 164.
259. Lev and Amar, Ethnic, p. 100.
261. Al-D⁄nawar⁄, Kitāb al-Nabāt, II, pp. 194, 296.
263. Ibn Waªshiyya, L’Agriculture Nabateenne, p. 1,301.

264. A group of islands in the Indian Ocean (Bay of Bengal) between Burma and
the Indian Peninsula.
265. Ibn Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, IV, pp, 107–8, 113, 117.
266. Ibid., I, p, 395; II, pp. 116, 127; III, pp. 93, 141, 162, 164, 173, 179, 225,
226, 227; IV, pp, 158–9.
267. Al-D⁄nawar⁄, Kitāb al-Nabāt, II, pp. 229–30.
268. Al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, p. 53, II, p. 488.
271. Al-ʾIdrīsī, Compendium, I, pp. 2–3.
272. Al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XI, p. 130.
276. Ben Maimon, Un Glossaire, no. 205; Ben Maimon, Glossary of Drug Names,
no. 205.
277. Chevallier, The Encyclopedia, p. 88; Loewenfeld and Back, The Complete,
p. 255.
279. Song of Songs, 4, 14.
280. Amar, Flora of the Bible, pp. 97–8.
281. Ibid., p. 98.
282. Miller, The Spice Trade, pp. 62–4.
284. Al-D⁄nawar⁄, Kitāb al-Nabāt, p. 201.
290. Ibn Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, III, p. 79.
291. Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, IV, p. 65; moreover, in another place he writes
(citing ʾIsªāq ibn ʿAmrān) that the rhizomes are imported from China, see:
IV, p. 191.
293. Al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, pp. 311–12.
294. See, for example, Lev and Amar, Practical, pp. 81–3.
296. Gil, In the Kingdom, I, p. 565.
297. Yaʾari, Travels, p. 278.
302. Levey, The Medical Formulary, nos 69, 74, 104, 125; al-ʾAn†ākī, Tadhkirat,
p. 272; Said, al-Bīrūnī’s, II, p. 55; Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, I, pp. 38–9;
IV, p. 65.
304. Uphof, Dictionary, p. 165.
307. Wren, Potter’s New Encyclopaedia, p. 122; for etymological history and analy-
sis, see: Hoogervorst, ‘If only’, pp. 82–4.
308. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 9 ; Ibn Rushd, Kitāb al-Kulliyyāt, p. 269.
310. Al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, I, p. 159.
311. Aëtius of Amida, Libri Medicinalis, I, p. 131; see also: Miller, The Spice Trade,
pp. 51–2.
312. McCabe, Anne, ‘Imported materia medica’, pp. 288–9.
313. For detailed discussion regarding the ships that were used by the Arabs, see:
Agius, Classic Ships.
317. Riddle, ‘The introduction’, p. 192.
318. See in detail (including prices): Ashtor, ‘Profits’.
319. Gil, In the Kingdom, III, p. 864, no. 562; Ben-Sasson, The Jews, p. 240,
no. 58.
320. Al-Dimashqī, al-ʾIshāra, p.36.
323. Levey, The Medical Formulary, nos 4, 101, 213, 226. Compare Said,
al-Bīrūnī’s, I, p. 138.
324. Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, II, pp. 79–80. Compare al-ʾAn†ākī, Tadhkirat,
p. 148.
325. Ben Maimon, Sexual, 9; Ben Maimon, Regimen, 3: 11; Ben Maimon,
Aphorisms, 21: 80; 22: 66.
327. Freedman, Out of the East, p. 22; regarding prices see p. 128.
328. Jirovetz et al., ‘Analysis of the’.
329. Ducros, ‘Essai’, p. 57, no. 100.
331. Zohary, The Plant World, p. 306.
332. Epstein, The Gaonic, p. 145.
333. Ben Maimon, Mishna, p. 452.
334. Al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, p. 144; Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 9. In
contradiction to Miller’s idea, there is no clear evidence that nutmeg was
mentioned by Classical sources such as Theophrastus or Dioscorides; see
Miller, The Spice Trade, pp. 59–60.
336. Al-Thaʿālib⁄, La†āʾif, II, p. 215, note 6.
338. Ibid., p. 10.
340. Ibn Khurdādhbih, al-Masālik, p. 104; al-Thaʿālib⁄, La†āʾif, II, p. 215,
note 6.
342. Watson, Agricultural Innovation, p. 195.
343. Ashtor, ‘European trade’, p. 297.
347. Goitein, A Mediterranean, I, pp. 253, 337; Gil, In the Kingdom, III, p. 403,
no. 574, p. 913, no. 575, IV, p. 101, no. 672.
348. Beugnot, ‘Les Assises’, II, p. 174, par. 8; Ashtor, ‘The Crusader’, p. 53.
353. Ibn al-Bay†ār, Tafsīr, p. 132.
354. Ben Maimon, Aphorisms, 21: 75; Ben Maimon, Regimen, p. 109.
357. Wood, Benevenutus, p. 33.
358. Freedman, Out of the East, p. 63.
359. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, pp. 12–13
360. Uphof, Dictionary, p. 431; Rushforth, Trees of Britain, pp. 1,023–4.
362. Adams, The Seven Books, p. 458.
364. Ibn al-Jazzār, al-ʾIʿtimād, p. 72; Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, IV, p. 141.
365. Ibn al-ʿAwwām, Kitāb al-Felahah, II, pp. 367–8.
366. Gil, In the Kingdom, II, pp. 321–3, no. 114; III, p. 334, no. 392; Ben-Sasson,
The Jews, p. 262, no. 63.
368. Ben Maimon, Aphorisms, 21: 71. Compare and see additional uses in Ibn
Sīnā, Kitāb, p. 369.
370. Ibn Waªshiyya, L’Agriculture Nabateene, II, p. 1,224.
372. Al-T⁄fāsh⁄, Kitāb ʾAzhār, pp. 57–8.
373. Al-Kind⁄, Kitāb f ⁄ K ⁄miyāʾ, p. 15, recipe no. 30.
374. Lev and Amar, Practical, p. 239–40.
375. Meyerhof, and Sobhy, The Abridged, no. 181, pp. 361–71; al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat
al-˝ab⁄b, I, p. 111; Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, I, pp. 132–3; Bos, ‘The
treatise’, p. 141.
376. Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged, no. 205, pp. 416–19; Adams, The Seven
Books, p. 434; Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, I, pp. 159–60; Ashtor, ‘European
trade’, pp. 285, 419; Ben Maimon, Glossary of Drug Names, no. 81; Bos, ‘The
377. Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged, no. 251, pp. 522–7; Adams, The Seven
Books, p. 446; al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, p. 232; Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb
al-Jāmiʿ, II, pp. 97–8; Ben Maimon, Glossary of Drug Names, no. 97.
378. Lev and Amar, Practical, pp. 128–30; Adams, The Seven Books, p. 431; Ibn
al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, III, p. 36; Ben Maimon, Glossary of Drug Names,
no. 267; al-Muqaddasī, ʾAªsan al-Taqāsīm, p. 98; Gil, In the Kingdom, I,
p. 564.
379. Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged, no. 15, pp. 83–4; Adams, The Seven Books,
p. 445; al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, pp. 57–8; Ben Maimon, Glossary of
Drug Names, no. 17; Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, I, p. 55; al-Dimashqī,
Nukhbat, p. 199; Lev and Amar, Practical, p. 114; Ibn al-Jazzār, al-ʾIʿtimād,
p. 112.
380. Gopal et al., ‘Marine organisms’, p. 140; Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, III,
p. 10; Ben Maimon, Glossary of Drug Names, no. 286; al-Damīr⁄, Óayāt
al-Óayawān, II, p. 27.
381. Lev and Amar, Practical, p. 568; Sbath, ‘Mukhta‚ar fī al-˝ibb’, pp. 211–12;
Ben Maimon, Glossary of Drug Names, no. 290; Gil, In the Kingdom, III,
p. 177, no. 357; Aziz, ‘Arabs’ knowledge’, p. 225.
382. Lev and Amar, Practical, p. 445; Adams, The Seven Books, p. 443; Ibn
al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, I, p. 137, II, p. 3; Ben Maimon, Glossary of
Drug Names, no. 166; al-Qurashī, Maʿālim, p. 119; al-Thaʿālib⁄, La†āʾif,
p. 237.
383. Adams, The Seven Books, p. 451; Gil, In the Kingdom, IV, p. 586, no. 794;
Amar and Buchman, Íori ha-Guf, p. 195.
384. Lev and Amar, Practical, pp. 307–8; Adams, The Seven Books, p. 445; Ben
Maimon, Aphorisms, pp. 21, 80; Gil, In the Kingdom, III, p. 865, no. 562;
Amar, and Buchman, Íori ha-Guf, p. 253; Ashtor, ‘European trade’, p. 298;
Said, al-Bīrūnī’s, p. 98.
385. Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged, no. 14, pp. 81–2; Ibn Waªshiyya,
L’Agriculture Nabateenne, p. 167; Adams, The Seven Books, p. 449; Ibn
al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, I, pp. 22–3; al-Qazw⁄n⁄, ʿAjāʾib, p. 217.
386. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 9; Adams, The Seven Books, pp. 455–6; al-ʾIshbīlī,
ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, p. 304; Ibn Khurdādhbih, al-Masālik, p. 104; Ibn Sīnā,
Kitāb, II, p. 339; al-Fīrūzābādī, al-Qāmūs, p. 119; Levey, The Medical, pre-
scriptions nos 69, 77, 91 102, 106; Polo, The Travels, p. 251; Lev and Amar,
Practical, p. 393; Ibn Qā∂ī Baʿalbakk, Mufarriª al-Nafs, p. 91.
387. For other problematic identification, see: Ibn Juljul list: Amar et al., ‘On Ibn Juljul’.
388. Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged, no. 140, pp. 298–301; Ibn al-Bay†ār,
Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, I, p. 128; Adams, The Seven Books, pp. 459; Ben Maimon,
Glossary of Drug Names, no. 56.
389. Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, IV, p. 28; Ben Maimon, Glossary of Drug
Names, no. 327.
390. Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged, no. 222, pp. 453–99; Amar and Serri,
The Land, pp. 108–9.
391. See, for example: Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged, p. 438.
393. Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged, pp. 438–9; for more on the problematic
identification, see: Adams, The Seven Books, pp. 461–2.
394. Komane et al., ‘Trichilia emetica’; Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged,
p. 438–9.
395. See, for example: Ibn al-Faq⁄h al-Hamadhān⁄, Kitāb al-Buldān, p. 16;
al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, pp. 145–7.
396. Al-˝abar⁄, Firdaws al-Óikma, p. 590; Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged,
p. 438.
397. Frédérich et al. ‘Metabolomic analysis’.
399. Donkin, ‘The insect’, p. 864; Cardon, Natural Dyes, p. 663.
400. Aelian, On the Characteristics, IV, p. 46.
401. Ibn Rushd insisted that it was not mentioned by Galen, see: Ibn Rushd, Kitāb
al-Kulliyyāt, p. 271.
402. Forbes, Studies in Ancient, IV, pp. 105–6; Donkin, ‘The insect’, p. 864; Amar,
Tracking, p. 91.
403. Casson, The Periplus Maris, pp. 114–15.
404. Babylonian Talmud, Pesaªim, 42b; Óulin, 28a. Mentioned in the print as
‘labba’ and in the manuscript as ‘lakka’.
406. Sappan wood (Caesalpinia sappan) tree was distributed by the Arabs and red
colour was produced from its wood.
408. Ibid.
411. Heyd, Histoire du Commerce, II, p. 624.
412. Goitein, A Mediterranean, I, p. 107, VI, p. 173; Gil, Palestine, II, p. 301,
no. 176, III, p. 272, no. 508; Gil presents more than sixty documents in
which the Lacca is mentioned; see: Gil, In the Kingdom, VI, p. 930 (indices).
413. Forbes, Studies, p. 107.
414. Abū al-Khayr al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄ writes that it is equivalent to the colour of scarlet dye,
see: al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, p. 344.
417. Ibn Sīnā, Kitāb al-Qānūn, I, p. 351.

423. Al-Shayzar⁄, Nihāyat, p. 47.
425. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p.18.
426. Some scholars claim that the teak tree is described by Theophrastus (V 4,7);
however, this identification is unclear: Theophrastus, Enquiry into Plants.
427. Casson, The Periplus Maris, p. 73.
428. See in detail: Casson, ‘Periplus Maris Erythraei’.
429. Babylonian Talmud, Shabbat, 219, a.
430. Babylonian Talmud, Rosh ha-Shana, 23, a.
431. Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, IV, pp. 2–3.
432. Ibn Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, I, p. 353.
435. Al-Thaʿālib⁄, Thimār, II, p. 769.
437. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p.18.
440. Ecaballium elaterium – bitter medicinal plant, known and used by the Arabs
throughout the Middle East.
442. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 18; al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄,ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, p. 105.
443. See evidence: Cardon, Natural Dyes, p. 286.
444. Ibid, p. 275. According to Ben Mrād it is a Persian name; Ben Mrād,
Al-Mu‚†alaª al-ʾAʿjamī, pp. 212–13.
445. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 18; Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, I, p. 103.
446. Al-D⁄nawar⁄, Kitāb al-Nabāt, p. 52.
447. Such as Ibn Farªun (Salerno, Italy), entry g.f.r; and Rabbi David Kimªī
(Radak), of Provence France, see: Kimªī, Sefer ha-Shorashim, entry l.g.m.
448. Hill, Economic Botany, p. 128.
449. Al-ʾAn†ākī, Tadhkirat, p. 41.
450. Al-Shayzar⁄, Nihāyat, p. 52.

452. Ibn Shahriyār, Livre des Merveilles, p. 180.
453. Ibn al-Faq⁄h, Kitāb al-Buldān, pp. 10, 16, 22, 251; al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb
Íubª, V, pp. 75, 79, 81; Ibn Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, IV, pp. 49, 79;
al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur, p. 39; Ibn Khurdādhbih, al-Masālik, pp. 95, 104;
al-ʾIdrīsī, Kitāb Nuzhat, I, p. 76.
454. Polo, The Travels, pp. 251, 258.
456. Gil, In the Kingdom, IV, p. 929; Goitein, A Mediterranean, II, p. 178, IV,
p. 173.
457. Gil, Palestine, III, pp. 186–90. no. 487.
459. Regourd, ‘Arabic language’, p. 343.
462. Leggett, Ancient, pp. 49–50.
465. Ibn Khurdādhbih, al-Masālik, p. 10; Ibn al-Faq⁄h, Kitāb al-Buldān, p. 10;
al-ʾIdrīsī, Kitāb Nuzhat, I, p. 76.
467. Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged, no. 123.
468. Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, I, p. 103; al-ʾAn†ākī, Tadhkirat, p. 80; Said,
al-Bīrūnī’s, I, p. 71; II, p. 79; Kopf, ‘Bak·k·am’.
469. Al-ʾIdrīsī, Compendium; al-ʾIdrīsī, Kitāb Nuzhat, I, p. 53.
470. Also identified by some scholars as Memecylon tinctorium Blume
(Melastomataceae).
471. Wood, A Handbook, p. 162; Edwards and Hedberg, Flora, pp. 193–5.
472. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 25; al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, p. 619.
473. Ibn al-Jazzār, al-ʾIʿtimād, p. 85; al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄,ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, p. 619;
al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XI, p. 328. al-Ghāfiqī quoted Ibn ʿImrān who asserted
that the wars was imported from Yemen as well as from China, see: Meyerhof
and Sobhy, The Abridged, p. 568, no. 274.
474. Ibn al-Faq⁄h, Kitāb al-Buldān, p. 36; al-Thaʿālib⁄, La†āʾif, p. 166; Ibn
Khurdādhbih, al-Masālik, p. 104; al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur, p. 27; Ben
Maimon, Glossary of Drug Names, no. 123; Levey, ‘Ibn Māsawaih’, p. 406.
475. Al-ʾIdrīsī, Compendium; al-ʾIdrīsī, Kitāb Nuzhat, I, p. 53.

476. Ibn al-Faq⁄h, Kitāb al-Buldān, p. 252.
477. Al-Kind⁄, Kitāb f ⁄ K ⁄miyāʾ, p. 14.
478. Al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄,ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, p. 619.
480. Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged, p. 568, no. 274; al-D⁄nawar⁄, Kitāb
al-Nabāt, p. 66. al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄ differentiates between warras of ‘new’ quality,
which fall off the tree, and the ‘old’ quality, which stays on the tree for a long
time; al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, p. 619.
482. Levey, ‘Ibn Māsawaih’, p. 407; Ibn al-Faq⁄h al-Hamadhān⁄, Kitāb al-Buldān,
p. 36; they fall on trees similar to al-taranjubīn.
484. Al-Muqaddasī, ʾAªsan al-Taqāsīm, pp. 93, 98.
485. Al-ʾI‚fahānī, Kitāb al-ʾAghānī, pp. 18, 231. We thank Dr Yaron Serri for this
reference.
486. Rodionov, The Western Hadarmawt, pp. 133, 138, 144; ʿAfīf et al., al-Mawsūʿa
al-Yamaniyya, II, pp. 1,006–7; Schönig, Schminken, p. 297.
487. Gil, In the Kingdom, III, p. 356, no. 399.
490. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 25; Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged,
pp. 568–71, no. 274; Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, IV, p. 191.
492. Adams,The Seven Books, p. 457.
493. See, for example, the case of the Judaean Kings who kept their perfumes in
the treasure house – Kings, II, 20, 13.
494. For example: Exodus, 30, 34; Song of Songs, 4, 12.
495. For example: Song of Songs, 3, 6.
496. See, for example: Zohary, ‘The diffusion’.
497. Nadvi, ‘The early relations’.
498. Watson, Agricultural Innovation, pp. 24–30.
499. Meyerhof, ‘The background’, p. 1,852; Watson, Agricultural Innovation,
pp. 77–83; Amar, ‘The ancient trade’; Dan, The City, pp. 187–8; Crone,
Meccan Trade, pp. 7–11, 34–7.
500. A collection of Rabbinical notes about the Mishna (the Mishna is Jewish oral
tradition that was written during the second to fifth centuries).
501. Probably Cymbopogon nardus = Andropogon nardus.

502. Theophrastus, Enquiry into Plants, II, pp. 325–89.
503. Babylonian Talmud, Keritot 6a: Jerusalemite Talmud, Yoma 41 d.
504. On prices of perfumes in the first century AD, see: Groom, Frankincense,
pp. 154–5. For comparison we have presented data from the list of maximum
prices compiled by Dioclitanius (301 AD), see: Frank, Rome and Italy, V,
pp. 417–21. In his time, the Empire had a deep economic crisis, in which
inflation increased and prices rose. This explains the huge gap of prices
between the two lists (Pliny vs. Dioclitanius).
505. Pybus and Sell, The Chemistry, pp. 8–9.
506. Amar and Lev, ‘Trends in the use’.
507. See entry below.
509. See, for example: Ibn Shahriyār, Livre des Merveilles.
510. King, ‘The importance’.
511. Al-Qaddumi, Book of Gifts.
512. The book of curious and entertaining information: Bosworth, The La†āʾif,
p. 139.
513. Gil, In the Kingdom, IV, pp. 929–32.
514. Goitein, A Mediterranean; Gil, Palestine; Ben-Sasson, The Jews.
516. Al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur.
517. Levey, ‘Ibn Māsawaih’.
518. Al-Kindī, Kitāb f ⁄ K ⁄miyāʾ.
524. Al-Qalqashandī, Kitāb Íubª, II, pp. 119–30; al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur,
pp. 16–19.
525. Al-Kindī, Kitāb f ⁄ K ⁄miyāʾ
526. Sbath, ‘Mukhta‚ar fī †-˝ibb’.
528. Al-Sarī, al-Muªibb.
529. Al-Qaddumi, Book of Gifts, pp. 84, 87, 234.
530. Ibid., pp. 61–2.
531. Babylonian Talmud, Berachot 43a; Shabbat 50b.

532. Amar, Incense, pp. 58–71; Rosen and Ben-Yehoshua, ‘The agriculture’,
pp. 626–40.
533. Al-Kindī, Kitāb al-Kimiyāʾ.
535. Milwright, ‘The balsam’; Milwright, ‘The balsam’.
537. Lev and Amar, Practical pp. 71, 350.
538. The musk was identified by few of the medieval Arabic-speaking Jewish com-
mentators such as Maimonides and Rav Saadia Gaon as the ‘mor’ (myrrh)
mentioned in the Jewish Sages’ writings. See: Amar, Incense, pp. 100–2.
539. Probably Cymbopogon nardus= Andropogon nardus.
540. Crone, Meccan Trade, p. 85.
541. Sarī, al-Muªibb.
542. Amar, Agricultural Produce, pp. 333, 338.
543. Babylonian Talmud Keritot 6a: Jeruslmite Talmud, Yoma 41d.
544. Sib† ibn al-Jawzī; according to the translation of Elad. See: Elad, Medieval
Jerusalem, p. 55.
545. Hill, Islamic Science; Hamarneh, ‘Climax of chemical’; al-Hassan and Hill,
Islamic Technology.
546. Al-Qalqashandī, Kitāb Íubª, II, p. 125–30.
547. Chizik, Otsar, p. 756; Löw, Die Flora, II, p. 104; Ben Maimon, Regimen,
p. 106; Ben Maimon, Un Glossaire; Feldman, Plants, p. 233; Feliks, Plant
World, pp. 124, 125.
548. Miller, The Spice Trade, pp. 34–6.
549. King, ‘The importance’, p. 181.
550. Gunther, The Greek Herbal, I. 21; regarding the medical uses of, and the
trade in, agarwood during the Classical period see: Scarborough, Roman
Pharmacy.
551. Isidore of Seville, The Etymologies, p. 349; The Byzantine monk Cosmas (mid-
sixth century) describes how it was imported from China, see: McCrindle,
The Christians Topography, p. 366.
552. See in detail: Dietrich, ʿŪd.
553. Al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝abīb, II, p. 448.
554. Crone, Meccan Trade, p. 75.
555. Levey, ‘Ibn Māsawaih’, p. 401; al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XII, pp. 23–4;
al-Qalqashandī, Kitāb Íubª, II, pp. 125–30; al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur,
p. 125; Ibn Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, IV, pp. 118; Ibn al-Rasūl,
al-Muʿtamad fī al-ʾAdwiya, p. 346.
557. ‘al-Multān’- a town in India (today in Pakistan) also named ‘farj bayt al-
dhahab’, and was given that name because Muªammad ibn Yūsuf, the brother
of al-Óajjāj, had found in it the house that was full in a vast amount of gold.
559. Al-Qaddumi, Book of Gifts, p. 62.
560. Ibid., p. 80.
561. Al-Qalqashandī, Kitāb Íubª, II, pp. 126–7.
562. Al-Kindī, Kitāb f ⁄ K ⁄miyāʾ, pp. 15, 56.
563. Al-Thaʿālibī, La†āʾif, p. 215.
564. See, for example, Ibn Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, IV, pp. 79, 117.
567. Al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XII, pp. 25–37; al-Qalqashandī, Kitāb Íubª, II,
pp. 126–30.
568. Al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur, p. 16.
569. On a shipment of agarwood from Qumār (India) see: al-Qaddumi, Book of
Gifts, pp. 102–3; al-Qalqashandī, II, Kitāb Íubª, p. 127 where agarwood
from Kashmir is mentioned; Ibn Shahriyār, Livre des Merveilles, p. 117.
572. McCormick, Origin, p. 715, note 86.
573. Freshfield, Roman Law, p. 30.
574. Oder and Hoppe, Corpus Hippiatricorum, VII, 48.
575. Ibn al-Faqīh al-Hamadhān⁄, Kitāb al-Buldān, p. 270; Ibn Khurdādhbih,
al-Masālik, pp. 153–4.
576. Gil, Palestine, II, p. 179, No. 485a; Gil, In the Kingdom; Goitein, A
Mediterranean, see indices.
577. Gil, Palestine, III, p. 179, no. 485.
578. Al-Shayzarī, Nihāyat, p. 54; al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur, p. 16; al-Qurashī,
Maʿālim, p. 126.
579. Al-˝abari, Firdaws al-Óikma, p. 398; Ibn al-Rasūl, al-Muʿtamad fī al-ʾAdwiya,
p. 346.
580. Levey, The Medical Formulary, nos 6, 106. Compare Ibn Sīnā, Kitāb,
pp. 298–9; Ben Maimon, Aphorisms, 21: 75; Ben Maimon, Sexual,
Introduction, pp. 15, 16; Ben Maimon, Regimen, 2: 10; 3: 11; Ibn al-Bay†ār,
Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, III, p. 143; al-ʾAn†ākī, Tadhkirat, pp. 241–2; Lev and Amar,
Practical, pp. 97–8. For more medicinal uses from Arabic sources, see:
Dietrich, ‘ʿŪd’.
585. For a wide range and detailed monograph on camphor, see: Donkin, Dragon’s
Brain.
586. Al-Qalqashandī, Kitāb Íubª, II, p. 131.
588. Al-Qaddumi, Book of Gifts, pp. 61–2.
589. Miller, ‘The spice trade’, pp. 25, 41; Aëtius of Amida, Libri Medicinalis,
XII, 63.
590. Al-Qalqashandī, Kitāb Íubª, I, p. 159.
591. Al-ʾIshbīlī,ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, p. 301; al-D⁄nawar⁄, Kitāb al-Nabāt, II,
pp. 229–30.
595. McCormick, Origins, pp. 714–15.
597. Ibn Khurdādhbih, al-Masālik, pp. 153–4.
599. Riddle, ‘The introduction’, pp. 190–1.
600. Dietrich, ‘Kāfūr’; Morton, Major, p. 103.
601. Al-Kindī, Kitāb f ⁄ K ⁄miyāʾ, p. 50.
602. Sbath, ‘Mukhta‚ar fī al-˝ibb’, pp. 196–8.
605. Ibn al-Faqīh al-Hamadhān⁄, Kitāb al-Buldān, p. 16.
609. Al-Qalqashandī, Kitāb Íubª, V, pp. 79–80; Ibn Khurdādhbih, al-Masālik,
pp. 96–7; al-ʾIdrīsī, Kitāb Nuzhat, I, p. 77.
610. Al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, I, p. 302; al-Qazwīnī, ʿAjāʾib, p 135; Ibn

al-Jazzār, al-ʾIʿtimād, p. 140; Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, IV, p. 43; Ibn
Shahriyār, Livre des Merveilles, p. 117.
611. Al-ʾIdrīsī, Kitāb Nuzhat, I, pp. 61, 80–1.
612. Ibid., p. 54.
615. Levey, ‘Ibn Māsawaih’, p. 402; al-Qazwīnī, ʿAjāʾib, p. 299.
616. Ibn al-Jazzār, al-ʾIʿtimād, p. 140; al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, II, p. 302; Ibn
al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, IV, p. 43; Ibn Shahriyār, Livre des Merveilles, p. 117.
617. al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, II, p. 302; Ibn al-bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, 4, p. 42;
al-Qaddumi, Book of Gifts, p. 234.
619. For details: Levey, ‘Ibn Māsawaih’, p. 402. A summary of the plant and its
medical uses in Arabic literature is in Dietrich, ‘ʿŪd’.
620. Gil, Palestine, I, pp. 565, 615, 622; II, 519; Goitein, A Mediterranean, I,
pp. 154–5; IV, p. 176; Gil, In the Kingdom, IV, p. 930, see indices.
622. Nuovo Archivio, IV, 285; Beugnot, ‘Les Assises’, II, p. 173; Prawer, The
Crusaders, p. 480; regarding the prices of camphor in medieval Europe, see:
Freedman, Out of the East, p. 128.
623. Riddle, ‘Methodology’, p. 13.
624. Lev and Amar, Practical, pp. 123–5; Levey, The Medical Formulary,
nos 11, 24, 61, 77, 89, 91, 104, 152; Ibn Sīnā, Kitāb, pp. 336–7; Ben
Maimon, Aphorisms, 21: 83; Ben Maimon, Sexual, 18: 1, 2, 4; Ibn al-Bay†ār,
Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, IV, pp. 42–4, IV, p. 136. Compare al-ʾAn†ākī, Tadhkirat,
p. 235.
625. Al-˝abarī, Firdaws al-Óikma, p 398.
626. For more medical uses, see: Dietrich, ‘Kāfūr’; al-Rāz⁄, al-Óāw⁄, VIIb, p. 150;
Ibn al-Rasūl, al-Muʿtamad fī al-ʾAdwiya, pp. 404–5.
628. Al-Qazwīnī, ʿAjāʾib, pp. 174–5.
629. Ruska, ‘ʿAnbar’.
630. Riddle, ‘Amber’; Riddle, ‘Pomum ambrae’.
631. Aëtius of Amida, Libri Medicinalis, I, p. 131.
632. Al-Thaʿālib⁄, Thimār, II, p. 771.
633. Al-Kind⁄, Kitāb f ⁄ K ⁄miyāʾ, pp. 6–7; Sbath, ‘Mukhta‚ar fī †-˝ibb’, pp. 191–3.
634. Amikam, Medieval Jerusalem, p. 55 (translation of information by Sib† ibn

al-Jawzī).
635. Dannenfeld, ‘Ambergris’.
636. Ibn al-Rasūl, al-Muʿtamad fī al-ʾAdwiya, pp. 339–40; al-Qalqashandī,
Kitāb Íubª, II, pp. 122–3; al-Qazwīnī, ʿAjāʾib, pp. 164, 281; al-Damīr⁄,
Óayāt al-Óayawān, I, p. 163, II, pp. 214–16; al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XII,
p. 17; al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Óayawān, V, p. 362, VII, p. 109; al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb
al-Taba‚‚ur, p. 18.
637. Al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Óayawān, V, p. 362.
638. Al-Muqaddasī, ʾAªsan al-Taqāsīm, pp. 101–2.
640. Al-Qalqashandī, Kitāb Íubª, II, pp. 122–5; al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XII, p. 18.
642. Al-Masʿūdī, al-Dhahab, I, p. 366.
644. Al-Masʿūdī, al-Dhahab, I, pp. 150–1; Ibn Khurdādhbih, Al-Masālik, p. 90.
645. Al-Qalqashandī, Kitāb Íubª, II, pp. 122–5; al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XII, p. 16.
646. Al-Masʿūdī, al-Dhahab, I, pp. 150–1.
647. Ibid.; al-ʾI‚†akhr⁄, Masālik al-Mamālik, p. 154.
648. Al-˝abarī, Firdaws al-Óikma, XII, pp. 394
649. Ibn al-Rasūl, al-Muʿtamad fī al-ʾAdwiya, pp. 339–0.
650. Al-Masʿūdī, al-Dhahab, I, pp. 150–1; al-ʾIdrīsī, Kitāb Nuzhat, I, pp. 52, 66,
77; Ibn al-Faq⁄h, Kitāb al-Buldān, p. 72; al-Thaʿālib⁄, Thimār, II, pp. 771–2.
651. Al-Qalqashandī, Kitāb Íubª, II, pp. 122–5; al-ʾIdrīsī, Kitāb Nuzhat, III,
p. 221; al-ʾI‚†akhr⁄, Masālik al-Mamālik, p. 42.
652. Al-Masʿūdī, al-Dhahab, I, p. 366.
653. Ibn Khurdādhbih, Al-Masālik, p. 95; Ibn al-Faq⁄h, Kitāb al-Buldān, p. 12.
654. Al-Muqaddasī, ʾAªsan al-Taqāsīm, pp. 97.
656. Al-Masʿūdī, al-Dhahab, I, pp. 150–1; for details on the ambergris from al-
Shiªr, see: Qaddumi, Book of Gifts, p. 234; on the kind that comes from al-Zanj
(written there mistakenly as al-Zabjī) see: al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur, p.18.
657. On the history of the ambergris in India from the eighth to the twentieth
century, see: Gode, ‘History of ambergris’.
660. Al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XII, p. 20; al-Qalqashandī, Kitāb Íubª, p. 124.
661. See, for example, Ibn Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, IV, p. 91.
663. Al-Thaʿālib⁄, Thimār, II, pp. 7712.
665. Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, III, p. 134–5; al-Qazwīnī, ʿAjāʾib, pp. 174–5,
281; al-Qalqashandī, Kitāb Íubª, II, pp. 122–3; Ibn Sīnā, Kitāb, pp. 298–9.
667. Amar and Serri, al-Tamīmī’s, p. 51; al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XII, p. 64.
668. Riddle, ‘The introduction’, p. 190; McCormick, Origins, pp. 714–15.
671. Steiner, ‘Linguistic traces’.
672. Gil, In the Kingdom, I, p. 693, IV, p. 934 – see indices; Ben-Sasson, The Jews,
p. 445, no. 92, p. 508, no. 103; Goitein, A Mediterranean, I, 153–5, 200; II,
78; Prawer, The Latin Kingdom, II, p. 402.
675. Freedman, Out of the East, pp. 63, 88.
676. Al-Qurashī, Maʿālim, pp. 125–6; al-Shayzar⁄, Nihāyat, pp. 50–1.
677. Lev and Amar, Practical, pp. 331–3; Levey, The Medical Formulary, no.
77; Ben Maimon, Medical Responses, 21: 75; Ben Maimon, Regimen, 2: 20;
Ben Maimon, Medical Responses, 3: 19; al-Qazwīnī, ʿAjāʾib, pp. 214–15;
Ibn al-Rasūl, al-Muʿtamad fī al-ʾAdwiya, pp. 339–40; al-˝abarī, Firdaws
al-Óikma, XII, pp. 394, 397; al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XII, p. 22.
680. Al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, II, pp. 504–5.
681. Wren, Potter’s New Encyclopaedia, p. 242.
682. Hoogervorst, ‘If only’, pp. 69–70.
684. Ibid.
685. Al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, I, p. 159.
687. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 17; Ibn Rushd, Kitāb al-Kulliyyāt, p. 270;
al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, II, p. 405.
688. McCrindle, The Christians Topography, p. 366.
689. Al-Rāz⁄, al-Óāw⁄, VIIb, p. 65.
690. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 17; al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, II, p. 404;
al-Qazw⁄n⁄, ʿAjāʾib, p. 294; Ibn Khurdādhbih, al-Masālik, p. 104; Ibn Qā∂ī
Baʿalbakk, Mufarriª al-Nafs, p. 98.
691. Al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, II, pp. 130–1; al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XII, pp. 39–40.
Trading in these substances appears in a Genizah commercial letter sent from
Alexandria to Cairo at 1065, see: Gil, In the Kingdom, p. 588, no. 794.
692. Levey, ‘Ibn Māsawaih’, p. 40. (Sofala in India); Ibn al-Faq⁄h, Kitāb al-Buldān,
p. 251; Ibn Khurdādhbih, al-Masālik, p. 98. Other sources mention mainly
the white sandalwood, see: al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur, pp. 25–6; al-Thaʿālīb⁄,
La†āʾif, p. 215.
693. Ibn al-Jazzār, al-ʾIʿtimād, p. 136; Ibn al-Faq⁄h al-Hamadhān⁄, Kitāb
al-Buldān, p. 16 (Zābaj); al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, II, p. 405; Ibn al-Rasūl,
al-Muʿtamad fī al-ʾAdwiya, p. 293.
698. Gil, In the Kingdom, II, p. 853, no. 284, III, p. 865, no. 562.
702. Ibn Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, IV, p. 57.
703. Al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, II, pp. 130–1; al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XII, p. 41.
705. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 17; al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XII, p. 41; al-˝abar⁄,
Firdaws al-Óikma, p. 397.
707. Ibn al-Rasūl, al-Muʿtamad fī al-ʾAdwiya, p. 294.
709. Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, III, p. 89.
711. Ibn Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, I, p. 333, III, p. 227.
713. Bhattacharya and Bhattacharyya, ‘Rapid’.
714. Babylonian Talmud, Shabbat 50b.
717. Ben Maimon, Glossary of Drug Names, no. 356.

719. Al-Qazwīnī, ʿ Ajāʾib, p. 237.
722. Al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur, pp. 30–2.
723. Ibn Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, II, pp. 77, 179.
724. Al-Qalqashandī, Kitāb Íubª, V, p. 306.
725. Aziz, ‘Arabs’ knowledge’, p. 227.
726. Al-ʾIshb⁄l⁄, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, II, pp. 623–4.
732. Levey, The Medical Formulary, nos 14, 107, 188. Compare Said, al-Bīrūnī’s,
I, p. 340; II, p. 105.
733. Ibn Māsawayhi, Kitāb al-ʾAzmina, pp. 247, 249–50.
734. Ben Maimon, Sexual (Introduction), 19; 6: 4; 8: 1; 12: 2; Ben Maimon,
Aphorisms, 21: 75.
737. Al-Qazwīnī, ʿAjāʾib, p. 413
738. Groves and Grubb, ‘Relationships’, pp. 21–59.
740. Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, IV, p. 155; al-Qazwīnī, ʿAjāʾib, p. 413;
al-Masʿūdī, al-Dhahab, I, pp. 157–9; for more sources and detailed citations,
see: King, ‘Tibetan musk’.
741. Chizik, Otsar, pp. 29–30; Shapira, ‘On perfume’, p. 95.
742. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 16; Ibn Rushd, Kitāb al-Kulliyyāt, p. 271;
According to Ibn Zuhr, Kitāb al-ʾAghdhiya, p. 89, The musk is not mentioned
by Galen; only the ‘late’ Physicians mentioned it. Who claims that Galen men-
tioned it in his book ‘Monks’ Advices’; this book is mistakenly attributed to him.
743. King, ‘The importance’, p. 182–7.
745. Compiled in Mesopotamia in the Holy Land (respectively) during the fourth
and fifth centuries.
746. Babylonian Talmud, Berachot 43a; in fact it was mentioned before in

the Jerusalem Talmud, in the name of Rav Óisda, a Babylonian scholar
(d. 309 AD). See Jerusalem Talmud, Berachot, 6, 10d.
747. McCrindle, The Christians Topography, pp. 360, 366. See also McCabe,
‘Imported materia medica’, p. 282.
748. Prawer, The Latin Kingdom, I, p. 402.
752. Al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Óayawān, V, p. 304; al-Damīri, Óayāt al-Óayawān, II,
p. 144.
753. From Sib† ibn al-Jawzī, see: Elad, Medieval Jerusalem, p.55.
754. Ibn Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, I, p. 423.
758. Meyerhof, ‘Medieval Jewish physicians’, p. 436.
759. Al-Kindī, Kitāb f ⁄ K ⁄miyāʾ, pp. 1–6.
760. Sbath, ‘Mukhta‚ar fī †-˝ibb’, pp. 187–90.
761. See, for example, the discussion about musk and its origin in al-Damīrī,
Óayāt al-Óayawān, II, pp. 143–4.
762. Al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Óayawān, V, p. 304.
763. Al-Damīr⁄, Óayāt al-Óayawān, II, p. 144.
766. Al-Shayzarī, Nihāyat, pp. 48–50; al-Qurashī, Maʿālim, p. 124.
768. Al-Qaddumi, Book of Gifts, p. 234; al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur, p. 17; see also
a detailed description in: Polo, The Travels, p. 173.
770. Ibn al-Faq⁄h, Kitāb al-Buldān, p. 70; Ibn Khurdādhbih, al-Masālik, p. 103.
772. Al-Qalqashandī, Kitāb Íubª, II, p. 121; Bosworth, The La†āʾif, p. 142;
al-Thaʿālib⁄, La†āʾif, p. 224; al-Thaʿālib⁄, Thimār, p. 785.
773. Akasoy and Yoeli-Tlalim, ‘Along the musk’. For more details regarding the
origin and trade of musk, see Dietrich, ‘Musk’.
774. See especially al-Qalqashandī, Kitāb Íubª, II, pp. 120–1; al-ʾI‚†akhr⁄, Masālik
al-Mamālik, p. 280.
776. Akasoy and Yoeli-Tlalim, ‘Along the musk’.
778. Freedman, Out of the East, pp. 63, 88.
779. Gil, In the Kingdom, I, pp. 616, 623, 689, IV, p. 930 (twenty references to
trading in musk); Beugnot, ‘Les Assises’, II, p. 174; Goitein, A Mediterranean,
I, pp. 153–5, 219, 373, IV, p. 316.
780. Ibn al-Faq⁄h al-Hamadhān⁄, Kitāb al-Buldān, p. 79; Ibn Khurdādhbih,
al-Masālik, pp. 153–4.
781. For a complete historical survey, see: Chizik, Otsar, pp. 29–30; Shapira, ‘On
perfume’, pp. 95–101.
782. al-Rāzī, al-Óāwī, VIIb, p. 217; al-˝abar⁄, Firdaws al-Óikma, p. 397; Ibn
al-Rasūl, al-Muʿtamad fī al-ʾAdwiya, pp. 496–7.
783. Amar and Serri, al-Tamīmī’s, p. 51; al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XII, pp. 64, 90;
Lev and Amar, Practical, pp. 215–17; Ben Maimon, Aphorisms, 3: 11; 4:
11; 9: 30; 14: 49; 21: 75; Ben Maimon, Sexual, 18: 3; Levey, The Medical
Formulary, nos 16, 56, 93, 147; Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, 4, p. 155;
al-ʾAn†ākī, Tadhkirat, pp. 297–8; Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 16. See also:
Levey, ‘Ibn Māsawaih’, pp. 398–9.
784. Ibn Rushd, Kitāb al-Kulliyyāt, p. 271; for more medicinal uses, see: Dietrich,
‘Musk’.
787. Jong and Chau, ‘Antioxidative activities’.
788. Wood, A Handbook, p. 122.
789. ʿAfīf et al., al-Yamaniyya, II, pp. 780–2.
790. Strabo, The Geography, XVI, 4, 19.
794. Al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝abīb, I, p. 299; al-Rāzī, al-Óāwī, VII, p. 149; Ibn
al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, IV, p. 45.
795. Al-Nuwayrī, Nihāyat, XI, p. 131; al-D⁄nawar⁄, Kitāb al-Nabāt, II, p. 228.
796. Al-Rāzī, al-Óāwī, VIIb, p. 149; al-ʾIshbīlī, ʿUmdat al-˝ab⁄b, p. 299.
797. Ibn Juljul, ˝abaqāt, p. 17.

800. The term ‘jawhar’ in Arabic has various meanings: jewelry, gem stone or pearl;
see: Keene, and Jenkins, ‘Djawhar’.
801. Among them we should mention: Pseudo Aristotle, al-Tamīmī, Ibn
Māsawayhi, al-Bīrūnī, al-T⁄fāsh⁄ and Ibn al-ʾAkfānī. Vast information
can also be found in medical treatises written by practitioners such as Ibn
al-Bay†ār and in encyclopaedias written by scholars such as al-Qazwīnī and
al-Qalqashandī and al-Maqrīzī (Käs, al-Maqrīzīs).
802. Wiedemann, ‘Zur Mineralogie’; Ruska, ‘Die Mineralogie’; al-Muraikhi, ‘The
Arab trade’, p. 58.
803. Among all the works written we will mention the following authors: Marbode
of Rennes (Riddle, Marbode of Rennes (1035–1123)); Hildegard of Bingen
(Hildegard von Bingen, Physica) [1098–1179]; Albertus Magnus (Albertus,
Book of Minerals) [d. 1280]; Bartholomaeus Anglicus (Anglicus, On the
Properties, pp. 825–81) [d. 1272] and in encyclopaedias that were written by
Jews, see: Zonta, ‘Mineralogy’.
804. See, for example, works by Clément-Mullet (Clément-Mullet, ‘Essai sur
la Minéralogie Arabe’) and the tables at the end of the work of al-T⁄fāsh⁄
(al-T⁄fāsh⁄, Kitāb ʾAzhār).
805. Ballūr or billawr or bilawr.
806. However, according to other scholars, the name ballūr kept the ancient name
verliru, a pronoun for colourless stones, such as rock crystal, in Hindu’s lan-
guages; see: Biswas, ‘Vaidurya’.
807. We would mention here only a small part of the vast literature dealing with
this issue: al Muraikhi, ‘The Arab trade’; Sezgin and Neubauer, ‘Mineral and
fossils’; Käs, Die Mineralien; Sersen, ‘Gem minerals’; Keene and Jenkins,
‘Djawhar’; and the various entries in the present book.
808. See: Theophrastus, On Stones, and Pliny, Naturalis Historia, XXXVII.
809. Al-Dimashqī, Nukhbat; al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur.
810. These are collective nouns. For example, a few quartz stones, such as the helio-
trope and the agate, were considered to be part of the jaspers. Regarding the
emerald and the peridot, these were two different precious stones that were
called the same name for a while, due to the opinion that they derive from the
same origin; see: Ruska, Steinbuch, p. 98. Another example is the red karkand,
which was identified as a kind of carnelian or red corundum (yāqūt), see:
al-Bīrūnī, Kitāb al-Jamāhir, p. 51; Ibn Māsawayhi, Kitāb al-Jawāhir, p. 52.

812. Gil, In the Kingdom, IV, pp. 933–4.
813. The phrase ‘luʾluʾ marjān’ is mentioned in several Genizah fragments. It
means a small pearl named marjān; see: Gil, In the Kingdom, III, p. 338, line
7 (document no. 394). This is in contrast to other places in which the phrase
‘luʾluʾ’ appears (ibid., line 18). When the name marjān appears alone without
an adjective, it designates a coral.
814. Gil, Palestine, III, p. 168, appearing there as bijātī. The beads called ªabb
rummān [seeds of pomegranate] may be a phrase for the rock crystal of the red
garnet, which look alike. Rabbi Don Isaac ben Judah Abravanel (Abarbanel)
identified this stone as the Biblical Odem (ruby) (Exodus, 28, 17). These
beads are mentioned in 10 Genizah fragments; see: Gil, In the Kingdom, IV,
p. 933. We suspect they were in great demand, see ibid., III, p. 252, docu-
ment 373, line 17.
815. Gil, In the Kingdom, IV, p. 933.
816. Al-T⁄fāsh⁄, Kitāb ʾAzhār, pp. 52–3; al-Bīrūnī, Kitāb al-Jamāhir, p. 131.
818. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, pp. 19–20; Ibn Rushd, Kitāb al-Kulliyyāt, p. 269.
819. Al-Muraikhi, ‘The Arab trade’, pp. 55–7, 70.
820. Ruska, Steinbuch, p. 96; compare with al-Bīrūnī, Kitāb al-Jamāhir, p. 81.
821. Al-Dimashqī, Nukhbat, p. 25.
822. On the vast number of anecdotes about special precious stones that the
Roman rulers possessed, see: Pliny, Naturalis Historia, XXXII, 1–29.
823. See summary: al-Muraikhi, ‘The Arab trade’, pp. 45–8.
824. Keene and Jenkins, ‘Djawhar’; al-Bīrūnī, Kitāb al-Jamāhir, pp. 62–3.
825. Al-T⁄fāsh⁄, Kitāb ʾAzhār, p. 106.
826. Sīrāfī, Relation des Voyages, p. 147.
827. Al-Muraikhi, ‘The Arab trade’, pp. 49–50.
828. Ibid., p. 69.
829. Ibid., pp. 48–9.
830. Óasan, Kunūz al-Fā†imiyyīna, pp. 40–3.
831. Sīrāfī, Relation des Voyages, p. 179.
832. Shalem, ‘Jewels and Journeys’.
833. Óasan, Kunūz al-Fā†imiyyīna, p. 41.
834. Al-Qaddumi, ‘Yāk·ūt’.
835. See entry for corundum.
836. Pliny, Naturalis Historia, XXXVII, 62, 204.
837. Al-T⁄fāsh⁄, Kitāb ʾAzhār, pp. 106–7; al-Muraikhi, ‘The Arab trade’, p. 60; Ibn
al-ʾAkfānī, ‘Kitāb Nukhab’, p. 757.
838. See entry for bezoar-stone.
839. Ruska, Steinbuch, p. 107; al-Dimashqī, Nukhbat, pp. 28–30; Ibn al-Bay†ār,
Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, III, p. 172.
842. This stone was also called al-zumurrud al-rayªānī; see al-T⁄fāsh⁄, Kitāb ʾAzhār,
p. 83. Today it is known as zumurrud ʾazraq, zabarjad, that is, the blue emerald.
844. Ibn Māsawayhi, Kitāb al-Jawāhir, p. 15.
845. Ibn al-ʾAkfānī, Kitāb Nukhab, p. 754; al-Bīrūnī, Kitāb al-Jamāhir, pp. 49–50.
846. Lev and Amar, Practical, pp. 518–19, and see the entries in detail.
847. Ibid., p.553.
848. Muntner, Saladino d’Ascoli, p. 116.
849. Shefer-Mossensohn, Ottoman Medicine, p. 63.
850. Lev, ‘Healing with minerals’.
851. Lev and Amar, ‘Ethnopharmacological survey of traditional drugs sold in the
Kingdom’; Lev and Amar, ‘Ethnopharmacological survey of traditional drugs
sold in Israel’.
852. al-Qaddumi, Book of Gifts, p. 115, paragraphs 100, 101.
853. See Levy, Sefer ha-Teʿuda, pp. 418–19; Beaded necklaces are well-known
among the Yemenite Jews. The author’s family (Z. Amar) possesses a beaded
necklace that was used to treat sore throat. The owner of the necklace, origi-
nally brought from Yemen, Mr Yosef Amar, testified that the Yemenite ʾImām
(1940s) had a beaded necklace called misbaªat al-ʾamn that was used to ease
women’s labour. In special cases, laywomen would apply to the king and ask
to wear it in order to have a safe and easy labour.
854. Goitein, Joseph Halevy’s Journey, p. 40.
855. Al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, II, p. 100; al-T⁄fāsh⁄, Kitāb ʾAzhār, p. 84; inter-
estingly enough, a similar legend was recorded by fourth-century Epiphanius,
see: Blake, Epiphanius de Gemmis, p. 221.
856. Albertus, Book of Minerals, p. 77.
857. Al-Qaddumi, ‘Yāqūt’; Käs, Die Mineralien, pp. 1,107–111.
858. Al-Bīrūnī, Kitāb al-Jamāhir, p. 79; Schönfeld, Über die Steine, p. 97.
859. Al-Qazwīnī, ʿAjāʾib, p. 212.
860. Bradley and Creagh, Physical Techniques, I, p. 21.
861. Pliny, Naturalis Historia, XXXVII, 125–6.

862. Casson, The Periplus Maris, pp. 84–5, 223.
863. Isidore of Seville, The Etymologies, p. 324.
864. Pliny, Naturalis Historia, XXXVII, 119–20, 139.
865. Higgins, Greek and Roman, pp. 177, 179, 184.
866. Tomber, ‘Indo-Roman trade’, pp. 76, 85; Wendrich et al., ‘Berenike
Crossroads’, p. 62.
867. Song of Songs Rabba 5, 14; Lamentation Rabba 4, 7.
869. Ruska, Steinbuch, pp. 99–100.
870. Riddle, Marbode of Rennes (1035–1123), p. 52; more stones and several other
hues beyond these three were described there. It shows the confusion in
identification of the corundum. See in-depth discussion in: Albertus, Book of
Minerals, p. 97.
872. Al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, II, p. 100; al-Thaʿālib⁄, La†āʾif, pp. 214–15;
al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur, pp. 25, 38; Ibn al-Faq⁄h al-Hamadhān⁄, Kitāb
al-Buldān, p. 251.
873. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 19; al-T⁄fāsh⁄, Kitāb ʾAzhār, pp. 64–77; Ibn
Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, IV, pp. 81–3; Ibn Khurdādhbih, al-Masālik,
p. 94; Ibn al-ʾAkfānī, ‘Kitāb Nukhab’, pp. 752–4; Said, al-Bīrūnī’s, I, p. 94;
Ibn Shahriyār, Livre des Merveilles, p. 179; Ibn al-Faq⁄h al-Hamadhān⁄, Kitāb
al-Buldān, p. 16.
874. Al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, V, p. 78, II, 100; al-ʾIdrīsī, Kitāb Nuzhat, I,
p. 73; Ibn al-ʾAkfānī, ‘Kitāb Nukhab’, p. 754.
878. Al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, II, p. 100; al-T⁄fāsh⁄, Kitāb ʾAzhār, p. 84; inter-
estingly enough, a similar legend was recorded by fourth-century Epiphanius,
see: Blake, Epiphanius de Gemmis, p. 221.
879. Al-ʾIdrīsī, Kitāb Nuzhat, IV, p. 487.
880. Keene and Jenkins, ‘Djawhar’.
881. Al-Bīrūnī, Kitāb al-Jamāhir, p. 67.
882. Saadia Gaon’s Judaeo-Arabic translation of Exodus 28, 17–20; 39, 10–13.
883. Schönfeld, Über die Steine, p. 39.
884. Ruska, Steinbuch, p. 99.
885. Ibn Māsawayhi, Kitāb al-Jawāhir, pp. 46–7.

886. Al-Bīrūnī, Kitāb al-Jamāhir, pp. 75–6.
887. Al-T⁄fāsh⁄, Kitāb ʾAzhār, pp. 67–9, 76; Ibn al-ʾAkfānī, ‘Kitāb Nukhab’, pp.
752–3.
891. Ibn al-ʾAkfānī, ‘Kitāb Nukhab’, p. 754.
892. Al-Qaddumi, Book of Gifts, p. 179; Ibn al-Zubayr, Kitāb al-Dhakhāʾir.
894. Ibid., pp. 191, 217.
901. Goitein and Friedman, India Book, III, p. 390.
902. Al-ʾI‚fahānī, Kitāb al-ʾAghānī, XVI, p. 138.
904. Al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur, pp. 13–14; however, at the end of the tenth
century Tāj al-Dawla Abū al-Futūª Yūsuf ibn Abī al-Óusayn, the ruler of
Sicily, possessed a seven dirham yāqūt stone, which was compared with the
‘Jabalī’ stone worth 11,000 dīnārs. The stone was sold later for 4,000 dīnārs.
See: al-Qaddumi, Book of Gifts, p. 193.
906. Meyerhof, ‘On the transmission’, p. 26; Dodge, The Fihrist, II, pp. 826–7.
907. Al-Thaʿālib⁄, Thimār, p. 770.
908. Ibn al-ʾAkfānī, ‘Kitāb Nukhab’, p. 754; it was also said about the Emir Yamīn
al-Dawla that he took from the pagan temple in Nāhūra a green yāqūt stone
weighing thirty-five mithqāl, which had been brought from India (al-Bīrūnī,
Kitāb al-Jamāhir, p. 78).
910. Al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, II, p. 103; Óasan, Kunūz al-Fā†imiyyīna, p. 41.
911. Ibn Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, pp. 81–3.
912. Al-T⁄fāsh⁄, Kitāb ʾAzhār, p. 73–74.
913. Ibn Ba††ū†a, Riªlat Ibn Ba††ū†a, I, p. 395, II, p. 48.

915. Ibid., p. 75.
918. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 19; Schönfeld, Über die Steine, p. 41; Ibn
al-ʾAkfānī, ‘Kitāb Nukhab’, p. 755; Ruska, Steinbuch, p. 100.
921. Polo, The Travels, pp. 272–3, italics in the original.
922. Ruska and Plessner, ‘ʾAlmās’.
924. Tolansky, The History, pp. 53, 56; Dickinson, The Book of Diamonds, p. 50–2.
925. Exodus 28, 18; Ezekiel 28, 13.
926. Pliny, Naturalis Historia, XXXVII, 57.
927. Higgins, Greek and Roman, pp. 37, 175.
928. Manilius, Astronomica, IV, p. 926.
929. Pliny, Naturalis Historia, XXXVII, 204 ; interstingly ‘adama’ means ground
or soil in Hebrew.
930. Ibid., XXXVII, p. 55.
931. Ibid., XXXVII, pp. 55–60.
932. Casson, The Periplus Maris, pp. 84–5, 223.
933. Wendrich et al., ‘Berenike Crossroads’, p. 62.
934. Indeed some sources assumed that the smuris lithos mentioned by Diascorides
(V, 166) and called in Arabic sunbādaj is equivalent to the al-Mās (Ibn Wāfid,
for example). However, Ibn al-Bay†ār disagreed (Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ,
III, p. 40), suggesting that was a hard stone that jewellers used to polish other
stones and that it may have been a kind of corundum.
935. Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung, p. 20; imaginary mention of lead as a metal stronger
than diamonds appears in the ancient literature; see summary in: Laufer, The
Diamond, pp. 26–8.
936. See summary: Laufer, The Diamond, pp. 5–14; Dickinson, The Book of
Diamonds, pp. 1–3.
938. Schönfeld, Über die Steine, pp. 111–13.
939. Al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, II, p. 61; al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur, p. 38;
Ibn Māsawayhi, Kitāb al-Jawāhir, pp. 38, 47; Ibn al-Faq⁄h, Kitāb al-Buldān,
p. 251.
940. Al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, II, p. 78; Ibn Khurdādhbih, al-Masālik, pp. 94,
104; Ibn Shahriyār, Livre des Merveilles, p. 179.
941. Al-T⁄fāsh⁄, Kitāb ʾAzhār, p. 106; Ibn Māsawayhi, Kitāb al-Jawāhir, p. 48.
942. See: al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, II, p. 106.
945. Said, al-Bīrūnī’s, p. 41; Ibn Māsawayhi, Kitāb al-Jawāhir, p. 48.
947. Al-Muraikhi, ‘The Arab trade’, p. 60.
950. Ibn Māsawayhi, Kitāb al-Jawāhir, p. 49; al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, II,
pp. 102, 106–7; Ruska, Steinbuch, pp. 105, 107; Ibn Juljul, Die Ergänzung,
p. 20; Ibn al-ʾAkfānī, ‘Kitāb Nukhab’, pp. 756–7.
952. Laufer, The Diamond, pp. 28–31.
953. Exodus, 28, 18.
954. In Abraham Ibn Ezra’s Commentary on the Pentateuch (Exodus 28, 9) and
in a similar way that he wrote in his short interpretation for Exodus 28, 30.
Rabbi Don Isaac ben Judah Abravanel (Abarbanel) of Lisbon also known as
“diamante”, completed his interpretation for the Bible in Italy.
955. Jeremiah, 17, 1; Ezekiel 3, 9; Zechariah, 7, 12.
956. Schechter, Saadyana, p. 60. It seems that the basis of this identification
is found in some Greek translations such as Aquila and Symmachus for
Jeremiah, 17, 1, and in the Vulgata as admantinus and this is the term in the
Greek literature for diamond of which they gained knowledge, along with all
the other precious products of India, only after the conquests of Alexander the
Great.
958. Albertus, Book of Minerals, pp. 70–1.
959. Al-JāªiÕ, Kitāb al-Taba‚‚ur, p. 16; al-Bīrūnī, Kitāb al-Jamāhir, p. 97.
960. Óabb is a grain (of wheat or barley), representing a unit of weight of average
0.05 gram. In most cases it was a hundreth mithqāl. In Egypt it was 0.068
gram, and in Iraq 0.046 gram. It was used as the smallest unit of weight in the
East.
961. Schönfeld, Über die Steine, p. 111.

966. Al-T⁄fāsh⁄, Kitāb ʾAzhār, p. 111; al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, II, p. 107.
967. Al-T⁄fāsh⁄, Kitāb ʾAzhār, p. 110–11; al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, II, pp.
106–7; Ibn al-Bay†ār, Kitāb al-Jāmiʿ, IV, p. 127.
968. Al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, II, p. 107; al-Bīrūnī, Kitāb al-Jamāhir, pp. 41–2.
970. Leibowitz and Marcus, The Book, p. 202.
972. Ben Maimon, Poisons, p. 19.
973. Ibn Juljul, Die Erganzung, p. 20; Ibn Rushd, Kitāb al-Kulliyyāt, p. 269; com-
pare: Ben Maimon, Poisons, p. 18; and al-T⁄fāsh⁄, Kitāb ʾAzhār, p. 131.
974. Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged, p. 377; on the bezoar stone in the Arabic
mineralogical literature, see: Käs, Die Mineralien, pp. 299–306; Ben Mrād,
Al-Mu‚†alaª al-Aʿjamī, pp. 172–3.
975. ‘and it is famous and found amongst the most prestigious kings’; Ibn Juljul,
Die Erganzung, p. 20; evidence regarding its early use in Egypt, see: Bos, ‘The
976. See in detail: Dietrich, ʿŪd.
977. Said, al-Bīrūnī’s, p. 123.
978. On the books and translations of al-Bi†rīq see: Dunlop, ‘The translations’.
980. Ibid., p. 83.
982. Óasan, Kunūz al-Fā†imiyyīna, p. 45.
983. Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged, pp. 377–8; Said, al-Bīrūnī’s, I, p. 69;
Ruska, Steinbuch, p. 105; al-Qazw⁄n⁄, ʿAjāʾib, p. 202; Schönfeld, Über die
Steine, p. 115.
984. Al-T⁄fāsh⁄ wrote an extensive review on these two varieties; see: al-T⁄fāsh⁄,
Kitāb ʾAzhār, pp. 11–141.
985. A port city on the western shore of the Red Sea through which commercial
goods were transferred from Yemen to Egypt.
986. For example, al-Rāz⁄ wrote about the inorganic bezoar-stones: ‘I realised that
it is of a great power that neutralises the poisonous aconite (Aconitum ssp)’,
al-Rāz⁄, al-Óāw⁄, pp. 310–11.
987. Ben Maimon, Poisons, pp. 18–19; Schönfeld, Über die Steine, pp. 115–17.

991. Al-Qalqashand⁄, Kitāb Íubª, II, p. 124–5.
992. Meaning: material built of layers.
993. Ben Maimon, Poisons, p. 18.
996. Nowak, Walker’s Mammals, II, pp. 1220–2.
997. Meyerhof and Sobhy, The Abridged, p. 377.
998. The medieval physicians were aware of the differences between the various
toxins (for example, snakes bites versus scorpions), their effect on the body
and the specific treatment required by each of them. This is corroborated
in Maimonides’ book; see Ben Maimon, Poisons, p. 17; see also Muntner,
‘Gedulato ve-h.iddushav’.
999. Ruska, Steinbuch, p. 105; it seems to be twelve grains of oat, 0.6 grams each.
1000. Barroso, ‘Bezoar stones’.
4
Discussion and Conclusions
D ols rightly remarks in his article that despite the great contribution
of the Indians to the inventory of medicinal substances in the early
Islamic period, their documentation is very vague: ‘Consequently, although
Indian medicine made a substantial contribution to early Islamic medi-
cine, these men remain shadowy figures.’1 Indeed, even though remnants of
the Indian medical legacy can be found in the medical books of al-˝abarī,
al-Rāzī and others, it is the Greek medical tradition that predominates in
their writings. The two authors named represent physicians hailing, geo-
graphically, from the margins of influence of the Indian legacy. The Indian
healing tradition was deferred to the Greek tradition at an early stage during
the rule of the Abbasids in Baghdad. One of the reasons for this, as men-
tioned previously, was the influence of many of the translators of the Bayt
al-Óikma, who were typical representatives and propagators of the Classical
school. After all, this was an ancient heritage in the Middle Eastern sphere
and was well-known for its culture, languages, customs and patterns of
thought.
The Christians had already ‘rendered’ Galenic medicine, in which, in
their opinion, pagan traces remained. They translated it selectively and in
such a way that Judaism and Islam could adopt it without demur. True, the
Arabs appreciated the Indian legacy, but it was too foreign in its spiritual,
physical and philosophical culture. Al-Bīrūnī, a physician whose writings
embody a great deal of Indian knowledge and who was well acquainted with
Indian medicinal substances unknown to the Greeks, describes the case quite
well. Notwithstanding the contribution of the Indian medical legacy, in the
end it seems as if al-Bīrūnī believed that precedence should be given to the
Greeks, not only because they were more advanced and superior in their
228
d iscussi on a nd conclusi o n s | 229
medical knowledge and practice, but also because their legacy better suited
the people of the Near East and their mentality:
Every nation has specialised in one art or technology. The Greeks, before
the Christians, surpassed the latter in the discussion of this art and took it to
the pinnacle of perfection. Were Dioscorides living amongst us, he would
have searched our mountains and forests for herbs. All our wild plants
would have become drugs and used as cures. The people of the West have
surpassed us in such arts and, through scholarly and experimental work,
have benefited us. Amongst the people of the East no one but the people of
Hindustan has advanced in this field. Their principles, however, are differ-
ent from those of the West. Moreover, they and we are at different poles
with regard to language, religion, customs, ceremonies and habits. As they
overemphasise cleanliness to the point of exaggeration and avoid uncleanli-
ness as much as possible, there is no possibility of a dialogue between us.2
Indeed, the influence of Indian physicians can barely be found in the medi-
eval Arabic glossary of drugs.3 Some of these physicians and translators were
retained in historical memory and were perpetuated in a minor way in late
Arab medical historiography, namely by Ibn Abī U‚aybiʿa and al-Qif†ī.
However, the others have faded from the pages of history. Still, according
to Ibn al-Nadīm, the Sasanians (during the rule of Ardeshir and his son
Shahpur, and later rulers) copied and translated various books from India
into Persian.4 Also, as we have seen, some were re-translated later into Arabic
while others were translated directly from Hindi into Arabic.5 The picture
differs with regard to the medicinal substances themselves. The dominance
of the Galenic approach failed to erase the contribution of the competing
doctrines, specifically the Indian, Persian and Babylonian. As we have men-
tioned, a multiplicity of ‘new’ medicinal substances from India and Persia
penetrated Galenic–Arab pharmacology. Some even came to hold a central
position in the practical medicine of the medieval period, such as various
kinds of myrobalan and sugar. This undoubtedly happened – first due to their
effectiveness and, then, because they filled a gap or were better alternatives
to ancient ‘Greek’ drugs. Furthermore, there was an inverse movement of
Greco-Arab drugs permeating into Indian medicine due to the influence of
Arab pharmacology on Indian physicians.6
The influence of the Indian–Mesopotamian region on the inventory of

Arab drugs or, even more, on the Greek drugs can be learnt from the names
of drugs in common use among physicians at that time, as found in medi-
cal books. Having multiple synonyms for each medical substance is a well-
known phenomenon that has even created a literary genre.7 Nevertheless,
each substance had one or two more common names that in most cases ‘gave
away’ its origin. With all of the challenges posed by this issue, an analysis
of plant names can still provide a primary indication of their origin. Several
scholars have already dealt with this issue. Levey demonstrates this from
al-Kindī’s book: 31 per cent of the substances’ names are of Mesopotamian
origin (Aramaic, Syriac and Hebrew), 23 per cent Greek, 18 per cent Persian,
13 per cent Indian, 5 per cent Arabic and 3 per cent Egyptian; the rest are
unknown. He states that the Persian and Indian names should be taken
together, totalling 31 per cent, equal in fact to the Mesopotamian percentage.
In that case, the Greek names take third place.8 Similar data, for example, the
connection between the Greek, Persian and Sanskrit terms, are derived from
the analysis made mainly by Oliver Kahl of the prescriptions found in the
books of Sābūr Ibn Sahl,9 Ibn Tilmīdh,10 al-˝abarī11 and al-Rāz⁄.12 In addi-
tion, Ben Mrād made a statistical linguistic analysis regarding the origin of
the names of drugs mentioned in medieval Arabic literature.13
This trend is even more evident in the pharmacological book of
al-Samarqandī (died in Herāt, Persia, in 1222). Although this book appears
considerably later, it points to a strong Indian–Persian influence, account-
ing for 54 per cent of all medicinal substances, followed by Mesopotamian
20 per cent and Greek 17 per cent, with the rest being ancient Arab, Egyptian
and Chinese.14 Table 4.1 displays this information:
Table 4.1 Greek vs Persian/Sanskrit names of drugs in various medical books
Author Greek Persian/Sanskrit

Sābūr ibn Sahl 12.5 % 30.7%
Ibn al-Tilmīdh 12.7 % 34.9 %
Al- ˝abarī 14.4% 38.3 %
Al-Kindī 23% 31%
Al-Samarqandī 17% 54%
It appears that in the beginning, the main attraction to the Asian medicinal
substances was caused by Arab contact with India and its treasures. This pro-
cess also generated a new literary genre named ‘News of India’ or ‘Wonders
of India’.15 This genre dealt mainly with gifts, objects and precious articles
that were brought from the newly occupied territories (that is India) to the
Umayyad and Abbasid rulers.16 Nevertheless, the dramatic change occurred
when these prestigious articles, which were originally designated for the
upper socio-economic strata, became available, over time, to a wider public.
This was due to the market forces (supply and demand) that facilitated their
distribution in large quantities, thus lowering the prices. Typical examples of
this phenomenon are commercial documents from the Cairo Genizah, espe-
cially those dealing with India trade17 and trading posts along these routes,
such as Aden.18
These drugs were distributed due to the ‘strong market forces’, namely
the new trading routes and economic conditions created by the Arab con-
quests and their governmental policies. The vast majority of these substances
were fully accepted, first, as spices, perfumes, incense and ingredients for
dyeing and tanning and, later, as medicines. Literature and translations were
just one way to transmit medical knowledge from the Classical to the Arab
world and from there to the West; others were trade, diplomacy, pilgrimage
and waves of conquests. These exposed the population to a new medical
tradition, new physicians from various schools of thought and new medicinal
substances.19 As noted above, the Arabs rendered a transformation of the
entire medieval world, including the comprehensive dominance of Greek
pharmacology along with Persian and Ayurvedic drugs. This was the case
until the eighteenth century. At that time, a disengagement from Galeno-
Arab medicine began first in Europe and later in the Middle East. Its ‘relics’
can still be seen in traditional societies in different parts of the world: North
Africa, the Middle East and Arabia.20 However, in the culinary world of
the West, Indian spices such as coconut, turmeric and nutmeg dominate
to this day. The ‘triumph’ of the Galenic legacy during the Abbasid period
stands out, therefore, mainly on the theoretical level. At the same time, the
Indian medical legacy ‘conquered’ its own vast domain in a practical way by
introducing a notable representation of medicinal substances that became
assimilated into Galenic medicine.
The pace of the distribution of the substances was undoubtedly

inconsistent chronologically and regionally.21 The waves of distribution of
the ‘Indian’ plants were known to the Arabs and in the Middle East from
early times.22 For example, cinnamon and nard were known there during
the Biblical period. Pepper, cardamom, aloe and the Indian agarwood were
known from Classical times.23 So, some of the Indian substances mentioned
in the Arab sources were probably known to a limited extent in earlier periods
and spread again, later, in a second and more substantial wave during the
Middle Ages.24 Nevertheless, even in that period there were some substances
whose medicinal uses were introduced relatively later, such as those used to
preserve the Egyptian mummies. In passing, we should note that medicinal
substances were distributed in the opposite direction, too, from the West
(Middle East and Europe) to the East, as exemplified by poppy and saffron,25
two plants with a long and rich history.
As previously mentioned, Arab sources assumed that some of the above-
mentioned substances were Chinese.26 To these we should add such plants
as Chinese species of rhubarb, rose, castor oil plant and celadine. Some sub-
stances are mentioned as Yemenite though their primary origin is Indian:
warras (wars; Flemingia grahamiana = Flemingia rhodocarpa), mungo bean
(māsh; Phaseolus mungo) and screw pine (duhn al-kādhī; Pandanus odoratis-
simus). Since Yemen and Eastern Africa (Ethiopia) were on one of the main
trading and distribution routes of these substances, it is likely that they were
culturally very deeply integrated there, perhaps even before the Islamic con-
quests. In this group we should include some Indian precious stones such as
diamond, agate, cornaline, pearl and corundum.27
While most of these substances are tropical plants and only their dry
products were distributed, certain plants were introduced into the Middle
East as agricultural crops in places where the tropical and subtropical climate
allowed for their cultivation, including oranges, lemons, bananas, mangos,
eggplants and cucumbers. A close investigation of the ‘Indian’ substances and
crops reveals that not all of them were ‘new’ to the territory of the Muslim
empire. Some had been in use in Persia and Mesopotamia even before the
rise of Islam.28 In sixth-century Persia, spinach (ʾisfānākh; Spinacia olera-
cea), apple cucumber (dastabuya; Cucumis melo var. dudaim) and sugar cane
appear to have been known. The last-mentioned is an example of a product
already appearing in the Classical sources. However, as an agricultural crop,

it was introduced to the Middle East much later.29 By the same token, we
may mention substances probably known in Mesopotamia before the Islamic
conquests, including jasmine (yāsamīn; Jasminum sp.), musk (misk; Moschus
moschiferus), coconut palm (al-jawz al-hindī; Cocos nucifera) and lacca (lakk;
Laccifer lacca). All of these appear in the Babylonian Talmud, dated to the
fourth and fifth centuries AD, in which valuable practical data can be found.30
This means that the Arab erasure of the border between the Sasanian and
Byzantine domains furthered the spread of these products and crops which
had begun beforehand. The use of other crops known on a limited scale in the
Middle East before the Islamic conquests expanded after it, as is the case of
cotton (qu†n; Gossypium herbaceum), sebesten (sabistān; Cordia myxa), hemp
(qunnab; Cannabis sativus var. indica), and indigo (nīl; Indigofera tinctoria).
Persian substances (in some cases identified by their names), the use of which
expanded due to the Arab conquests, include berberry (ʾamīrbārīs; Berberis
sp.), perfumed cherry (maªlab; Prunus mahaleb), neem (ʾazādadrakht; Melia
azedarach), manna (taranjubīn; Alhagi maurorum) and bezoar-stone (ªajar
al-bādazuhr) (Map, p. xiv).
Not all medicinal substances defined as ‘new’ are identified with cer-
tainty. From writings as far back as Ibn Juljul and Ibn Rushd one learns
that some of the substances were unknown in the tenth century or their
identification was open to debate among contemporary scholars.31 Some
of these substances were featured on Ibn Juljul’s list under the category of
those ‘not used but will not be forgotten.’32 This seems to reflect the fact
that in early times, the influence of the Ayurveda and the Mesopotamian
legacy, especially in the first half of the ninth century, was strong. So the
omission of some of them from the inventory of practical drugs in later
periods may testify to their rejection, possibly as part of the competition
with Galenic pharmacology. Nevertheless, in the test of time and actual
circumstances, the vast majority of the new substances from southern and
eastern Asia became the most common and sought-after drugs in medieval
practical pharmacology.
A study based on documents from the Cairo Genizah, which are a reflec-
tion of Mediterranean society as a whole, shows that different categories of
information emanating from the fragments may be distinguished as theoretical
medical writings, contained primarily in medical books (translated Classical

books as well as original Arabic), and practical medical knowledge, customarily
found in prescriptions, lists of drugs and letters. The differences between the
practical and theoretical inventories may be learned and even quantified.
Sure enough, this study shows that, in the eleventh to thirteenth centuries,
only two-thirds of the substances (278) out of a fuller list based on theoreti-
cal sources as well (414) were actually used in practical medicine.33 It stands
to reason that some medicines and medicinal substances were used more
often than others, depending on price, availability, practitioners’ choices and
even local medical trends. Analysis of the inventory of practical medicinal
substances shows that it contains the vast majority of the ‘Indian’ substances,
which were described as ‘new.’
The most striking example of this are the various species of myrobalan,
which appear among the most prevalent practical medicinal substances in
prescriptions in the Cairo Genizah34 and symbolically appear as leading
substances on the lists of Ibn Juljul, al-ʾIdrīsī and Ibn Rushd.35 Furthermore,
the foodstuffs and medicinal substances were fully adopted by and assimi-
lated into the Galenic theories. Arab physicians categorised and classified
them according to the Greek theories and doctrines, for instance by deter-
mining their nature and degree according to the doctrine of temperament.
The major achievement of Arab medicine is, therefore, the incorporation of
the practical aspects of both Indian and Persian medicine into the Galenic
frame. The theories of the Indian medical tradition, however, did not sig-
nificantly influence medieval Arab medical thinking and, in fact, left no
long-range impact.
Notes
1. Dols, ‘The origins’, p. 383.
2. Said, al-Bīrūnī’s, I, p. 7 (in the Arabic source, pp. 10–11); the translation of this
important paragraph was already published by Meyerhof, ‘On the transmission’,
p. 27.
3. Serri, Arabic Medical Dictionaries, p. 130; Levey, Early Arabic, pp. 10–19.
4. Dodge, The Fihrist, II, pp. 575–8, 581.
5. Ibid., II, pp. 589–90.
6. Hameed, ‘History of drugs’, pp. 14–19.
7. See: Ben Maimon, Un Glossaire, mainly the introduction, pp. 62–7; Maimonides,
in his book on the names of the drugs named twenty substances of Indian origin
and, in one case, even cites the Indian name; see Ben Maimon, Glossary of Drug
Names, no. 112.
8. Levey, Early Arabic, p. 63.
9. Kahl, Sābūr ibn Sahl, pp. 24–5.
10. Kahl, The Dispensatory, p. 32
11. Schmucker, Die pflanzliche.
12. Kahl, The Sanskrit.
13. Ben Mrād, Al-Mu‚†alaª al-Aʿjamī, pp. 212–13.
14. Levey and al-Khaledy, The Medical Formulary, p. 27.
15. Flood, Objects of Translation, p. 19.
17. Goitein and Friedman, India Traders.
18. Margariti, Aden.
19. Conrad, ‘The Arab-Islamic’, p. 93.
20. Mahdihassan, Bazar Drugs, pp. 82–9. Lev and Amar, ‘Ethnopharmacological
survey of traditional drugs sold in the Kingdom’; Lev and Amar, ‘Ethno
pharmacological survey of traditional drugs sold in Israel’; Ahmed et al., Herb
Drugs; Honda et al. Herb Drugs; Ducros, ‘Essai sur le droguier’; Hooper, Useful
Plants; al-Rawi and Chaakravarty, Medicinal Plants of Iraq.
21. Waves of the continuous dissemination of substances and plants from southern
Asia in biblical times and in the Hellenistic and Roman periods are beyond the
scope of this article; see, for example, Zohary, ‘The diffusion’.
22. Nadvi, ‘The early relations’.
23. Scarborough, ‘Roman pharmacy’.
24. Before the Islamic conquests, from biblical times to the seventh century, Arab
tribes (the Nabataeans) had a ‘history’ of trade and of being middlemen for
spices on the incense routes from India through Arabia to Egypt, Syria and
Byzantium; see Meyerhof, ‘The background’, p. 1,852; Watson, Agricultural
Innovation, pp. 77–83; Amar, ‘The ancient trade’; Dan, The City, pp. 187–8; De
Lacy, How Greek Science, pp. 68–9.
25. Amar and Lev, ‘The significance’; Abulafia, ‘Crocuses and crusaders’.
26. On the transport of Arabic drugs to China (such as jasmine, saffron, fenu-
greek and henna) see: Aziz, ‘Arabs’ knowledge’; Ambergris is another example
of a substance that the Arabs introduced into India (probably from Yemen and
Oman), see: Gode, ‘History of ambergris’.
27. See entries in Chapter 3.

28. On the connection between Iran and Tibet see: Melikian-Chirvani, ‘Iran to
Tibet’.
29. Watson, Agricultural Innovation, pp. 24–30.
30. Lacca in Bavli Óullin 28a; Pesaªim 42b; Jasmine in Shabbat 50b; Musk in
Berachot 43a; Coconut palm in ʿEruvin 58a.
31. Amar et al., ‘On Ibn Juljul’, nos 15–18, 22–3, 50, 52 in the table; Amar et al.,
‘Ibn Rushd’, nos 12, 19 in Table no. 2.
33. Lev and Amar, Practical, pp. 71–4; Lev and Amar, ‘Practice versus theory’.
34. Lev and Amar, Practical, pp. 79–85; Amar and Lev, ‘The significance’.
35. Amar et al., ‘On Ibn Juljul’; Amar et al., ‘Ibn Rushd’.
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Index of English Names
Abbasids, 1, 140, 228 alum, 28, 30, 85, 122, 126, 129
Abou Hershkovitz, Karen, 8–9 aluminium, 173–4
Abulafia, David, 18, 20 aluminium oxide, 173
acorn, 190 Amalfi, 27, 30, 36
Acre, 77n, 84, 98, 113, 118, 160 amaranth, 67
Adam’s Peak, 176 amber, 134, 164
adamas, 182–3 ambergris, xiv, 18, 21, 23, 28, 31, 49, 67,
Aden, 17, 20–1, 23–4, 34–5, 84, 93, 101, 110, 133, 135–6, 139, 148–52, 159,
111, 113, 119, 122, 129, 145–6, 162, 213n, 235n, 246, 250, 266
149–50, 153, 231 amethyst, 164–5, 175
Aelian, 121 amethystus, 175–6
Aëtius of Amida, 31, 73, 110, 145, 148 gammonia salts, 146
Afghanistan, 75, 84, 116, 176, 190 ʿAmram ha-Rofe, 84
Africa, 1, 11, 14–16, 18, 20–2, 27–8, anacardium, xiv, 67, 88–90
33, 35, 50, 58, 60, 63–4, 70, 74–5, Andalusia, 28, 57–60, 77n, 95, 102, 117,
77n, 79n, 83, 93, 98, 101, 105, 111, 128–9, 147, 149–51, 160
117–18, 120, 125–7, 129, 131, 133, Andaman, 106
137–9, 146, 149–51, 160–1, 166, 182, antimony, 172
231–2 Antioch, 28, 33, 39n
agallochon, 140 apple cucumber, 232
agalochon xylon, 140 aquamarine, 169, 176
agarwood, xiv, 21, 31, 33, 68, 110–11, Arabian Hartwort, 68
132–6, 140–3, 150, 153, 209n–10n, arae tree, 68
232 arar, 118
agate, 169, 219n, 232 Ardeshir, 229
ʾaholim, 140 areca nut, 67, 106
ʾaholot, 140 Aristotle, 3, 60, 164, 166, 175, 183, 219n
ajwain, 67 Armenia, 121–2
Akasoy, Anna, 160 Ascalon, 27, 84
Alexander the Great, 1, 16, 139, 174, ash, 28, 68, 94–5, 110, 125
182–3, 225n Ashkelon, 126
Alexandria, 4, 6–7, 12, 17, 22, 24, 27–9, Ashtor, Eliyahu, 17, 26, 34, 37, 51, 102
32, 35, 37, 39n, 84–5, 98, 102, 106, Asia, x, xiii, 1–2, 7, 14–15, 17–18, 22, 33,
113, 117–18, 129, 143, 147, 151, 160, 37, 48, 51, 53, 55, 57–8, 61, 65,
215n 73–4, 83, 93, 95–6, 104–6, 110,
almog wood, 126 112–13, 120, 123, 126, 130–1,
almond oil, 90 138–9, 144, 152, 157–8, 167, 183,
aloe, 24, 28, 124, 133, 232 233, 235n
275
Assaf, 98–9 Burzo, 7

Assyrian plum, 63 butcher’s broom, 67
ʾava†iaª (pl. ʾava†iªim), 53–5, 57
Avierinos, Christo D., 87 Cadiz, 90
Ayurveda, 7, 11, 233 Caesar Leo VI, 143, 145
Azerbaijan, 115 Caesarea, 29
Cairo, 19–20, 22–3, 25, 28–9, 32–6, 59,
Baghdad, 3–5, 7–10, 12, 16, 19, 32–3, 62, 74, 86–7, 92–3, 95–6, 98, 100, 102–3,
70, 102, 123, 179, 186, 228 106–7, 110–11, 113–16, 118, 122–3,
Bahrain, 149, 160 126, 129, 137–8, 143, 148, 151–4,
balsam, 31, 50, 131–2, 134, 137–9, 147 156, 161, 165, 172, 179–80, 215n,
bamboo, xiv, 21, 24, 28, 67, 83, 94–5, 97, 231, 233–4
110, 124–5 calamus, 131, 138
banana, 51–2, 67, 73, 100, 123, 232 Cambodia, 140, 142
Barcelona, 26 camphor, xiv, 21, 23–4, 28, 31, 33, 49,
bareket, 176 60, 67, 88, 93, 103–4, 110–12, 115,
Barroso, D. S. Maria, 190 122, 125, 134–9, 144–8, 211n–21n,
basil, 67–8, 155, 172 247
basswood, 96 Canary Islands, 115
bdellium, 132, 134, 138 Cape Guardafui, 91
beaver testicles, 90, 103 cardamom, 22, 68, 111, 130, 232
belleric myrobalan, 66, 83, 87 carnelian, 163–6, 169–70, 219n
Ben Mrād, Ibrāhīm, 78n, 205n, 230 carob, 97–8, 125
Ben Nissim, Óabīb, 147 caryophyllon, 100–1
Ben Nissim, Naharay, 84 Caspian Sea, 33, 61
Ben-Sasson, Menahem, 28 castor oil, 115–16, 232
Ben Shlomo, Rabbi Yitzªak (the ʾAri), 99 celadine, 232
Ben Yeªezkel, ʿEli ha-Kohen, 98 chalk, 67, 92, 94–6
Ben Yoel Falaquera, Nathan, 92, 94, 96 Chamba, 142
Ben Yosef, Yaʿakov, 126 chamomile, 90, 129
Benevenutus, 103, 114 Champa, 140
Benjamin of Tudela, 21 Chanf, 142
berberry, xiv, 67, 117, 233 Charles the Great (Charlemagne), 143,
Berenike, 22, 83, 175 145
beryl, 163 Chatoyancy, 164
betel palm, xiv, 67, 106–7 chebulic myrobalan, 66, 84–5, 87
betel pepper, xiv, 67, 104–6 cherry plum, 83
bezoar, xiv, 67, 79n, 116, 164, 166, 168, chestnut, 89
172–3, 187–90, 221n, 226n–7n, 233, China, x, xiv, 1, 6, 15–16, 18, 21–3, 31,
241 33, 49, 61, 64–6, 73–5n, 83, 88,
bezoar ibex, 190 96–7, 101, 106–7, 109, 111–13,
birthwort, 97 116–17, 119, 121, 125, 136, 142–7,
black myrobalan, 66, 83, 86 152–3, 155–6, 159–60, 166–7, 184,
black pepper, 15–6, 90 188–9, 195n, 199n, 206n, 209n,
blue corundum, 174–5, 177–8, 183 235n
Bombay, 142 Chinese Castor Oil, 116
Brahmin, 169, 177–8 Chinese cinnamon, 131–2
Brazil Wood, 24, 67, 125 Christ’s jujube thorn, 101
Bresel Wood, 126 cinnabar, 193n
Browne, G. Edward, 7 cinnamon, 14–15, 22, 31, 33, 64, 74, 100,
buffalo, 50 110–11, 130–2, 134–5, 137, 144,
Burma, 83, 88, 121, 199n 232
i ndex of eng li sh name s | 277
citron, 67 doronicum, 66
citronella, 131, 138 dragon’s blood, xiv, 67, 90–2, 123, 193n,
clove, xi, xiv, 14, 18, 22, 24, 28, 31, 49, 66, 211n, 241, 251, 253
90, 100–4, 110–13, 124, 132, 135, Ducros, M. A. H., 72
197n dudaʾim melon, 51, 53, 57–8
coconut, 24, 31, 51–2, 64, 67, 83, 100,
103–5, 107, 110–11, 231, 233 earth almond, 64, 68
coconut palm, 24, 31, 51–2, 64, 67, 76n, ebony, 24, 123
83, 100, 103–5, 107, 110–11, 231, eggplant, 51–2, 68, 73, 79n, 232
233, 236n Egypt, xiv, 7, 14, 16–20, 22–3, 26–7,
colcasia, 52 29–30, 32–7, 53–6, 61, 69n, 77n, 79n,
collyrium, 67, 117 83–4, 92–3, 95, 97–9, 111–13, 116,
colocynth, 53–4, 58 118–19, 121–2, 127, 129–30, 137,
common jujube, 63, 68 142–3, 147, 150, 153, 158, 167, 171,
Constable, R. Olivia, 25–7 178, 188, 225n–6n, 235n
Constantinople, 33, 37, 62 Ein Gedi, 137
coral, 164–5, 171–2, 176, 220n elephant, 67, 95 123–4, 180
Cordoba, 26, 57–8, 62, 65 elephant bones, 67, 95
corindon, 67, 110 embelic myrobalan, 66, 83, 87
cornaline, 68, 232 emerald, 68, 163–70, 172, 176, 178, 181,
cornelian, 163 185, 219n, 221n, 232
corundum, xiv, 31, 67, 79n, 110, 124, emetic nut, 120
163–6, 168–70, 172–81, 183–6, Equator, 174
219n–20n, 222n, 224n, 232 Ethiopia, 14, 99, 101 105 109 128 156 175
Cosmas, 24, 31, 101, 153, 158, 209n 183
costus, 130–2, 134–5, 137 Europe, 18, 20–1, 25–31, 33, 36–7, 46n,
cotton, 22, 26, 36, 51–2, 128, 233 48, 51, 53, 59–61, 64, 70, 73–4,
Crone, Patricia, 138 83–4, 95, 100, 102, 108–9, 111,
Crusaders, 59, 84 102 113–14, 117, 119, 122, 125–7,
Ctesias, 121 142–3, 145, 147, 151, 160, 190, 212n,
Ctesiphon, 145 231–2
cubeb pepper, xiv, 28, 66, 101, 111, 113, European aconite, 116
119
cucumber, 51, 53, 56–8, 67, 77n–8n, 125, Farama, 33, 145
232, 239, 263 Fez, 26
Cyprus, 183 Fischel, J. Walter, 34
fluorine, 174
Damascus, 12, 17, 28, 33, 113, 189 Forbes, R. J., 122
deer, 64, 124, 157–9, 189–90 fossil crab, xiv, 69, 117
Delhi, 109 Franz-Murphy, Gladys, 17
diamant, 185, 225n Friedman, Mordechai A., 24
diamond, xiv, 67, 79, 110, 163–8, 170, 173,
175, 177, 181–7, 224n–5n, 232, 246, galangal, 88
258, 272 galbanum, 130, 132
Dietrich, Albert, 57, 63n Galen, xii, 3, 13, 42n, 60–1, 63, 65–6, 69,
Diocletian, 24, 132 71, 73, 79n–80n, 83, 93, 105, 107,
Dioscorides, xii, 24, 57, 60–6, 69–71, 73, 110, 128, 141, 152, 155, 161, 183,
78n–80n, 83, 91, 107, 112, 123, 125, 187, 216n
128, 131–2, 140–1, 152, 155, 162, galingale, xiv, 20, 31, 66, 101, 110–13
175, 183, 187, 201n, 229 gall nut, 87, 117, 126
dodder, 68, 126 garnet, 68, 163–5, 170, 176, 220n
Dome of the Rock, 139, 151, 158 gastropods, 132, 134
Genizah, xii, 20, 23, 25, 28–9, 32, 34–5, 148–50, 152–3, 155, 158–9, 161–2,
46n, 74, 84, 86–7, 92–6, 98, 100, 166–7, 169, 174–7, 179–85, 188,
102–4, 106–7, 109–11, 113–16, 118, 195n, 210n, 213n, 215n, 223n, 225n,
122–3, 126, 129, 133–5, 138, 143, 229, 231, 235n
147–8, 151–7, 160–1, 165–6, 172, Indian aconite, xiv, 10, 116
179, 215n, 220n, 231, 233–4 Indian agarwood, 133–4, 136, 140–1, 232
Ghazna, 180 Indian cane, 95
Gil, Moshe, 133, 165 Indian chate melon, 98
ginger, 24, 90, 96–7, 108 Indian crab, 117
gingerhorse ginger, 96 Indian garden cress, 91
girofle, 102 Indian laburnum, 97
Gocha, 33 Indian myrobalan, 68, 83, 86
gofer wood, 126 Indian Ocean, 112, 136, 143, 145, 149–50,
Goitein, D. Shlomo, 23, 134 153, 160, 199n
gold, 1, 19–20, 28, 30, 105, 125–6, 144, Indian saffron, 108
150, 170, 178, 180, 182, 190, 210n indigo, 22, 26, 233
Goldberg, L. Jessica, 20, 24–5, 27 Indonesia, 1, 64, 66, 100–1, 125, 152–3
Gondēshāpūr, 4–7, 12, 40n Iraq, 5, 8–9, 11, 17, 19, 22, 33, 50, 57, 71,
grains of Paradise, xiv, 66 73, 79n, 106, 108–9, 117, 120, 123,
Greek, x–xi, 3–8, 10–13, 18, 31, 33, 41n, 138, 148, 150, 155, 158, 171, 177–8,
48, 56–7, 60–62, 69n, 74, 77n, 83, 88, 185–6, 225n
91, 100–1, 121, 123, 129, 138, 161–3, iris, 24, 131–2, 138
173, 182, 187, 225n, 228–31, 234 iron, 18, 20, 24, 29, 53, 124, 150, 173, 183,
green watermelon, 54 185–6
Greif, Avner, 35 Isaac Judaeus, 58
Gujarat, 93 Isidore of Seville, 141, 175
Israel, 14, 37, 52–4, 59–60, 72–3, 76n,
Haggeher Mountains, 91 172
Óamath, 109 Italy, 26–7, 30, 36–7, 111, 118, 127, 205n,
Hanafu, 160 225n
Hasselquist, Fredrik, 71, 99 ivory, 22, 24, 124
Óayyim Óabshūsh, 173
hazel nut, 87, 107, 112, 170, 186 Jacoby, David, 37
heliotrope, 169, 219n Japan, 125, 144
hemp, 233 jasmine, xiv, 67, 76n, 79n, 134–6, 155–7,
henna, 115, 235 233, 235n–6n
Herodotus, 15 jasper, 164–5, 171, 219n
Himalayas, 155, 157 Java, 101, 106, 110–11, 113, 119, 126, 142,
Hippocrates, 3, 13, 65 144
honey, 29, 88–90, 93, 99, 103, 154 Jericho, 50, 137
honey-dew melon, 121 Jericho balsam, 50
Hormuz, 21, 123 Jerusalem, 37, 50–1, 56, 58, 73, 84, 90, 98,
Óoshen, 176, 182, 185 102–3, 109, 131, 143, 148, 151, 158
Óula Lake, 50 Jordan, 53, 172
hyakinthos, 173 Jordan Valley, 50
Judaea, 137–8, 207n
iacinthus, 175 juniper, 128
India, x–xii, xiv, 1, 3–4, 6–18, 20–1, 23–6,
30–1, 33–4, 48–51, 54, 56, 61, 63–4, kahl, 230
66, 69n, 73, 75, 79n, 83, 86, 88–9, Kalkh, 33
91–8, 100–2, 104–7, 109–13, 116–28, kamala, 120
130, 133, 136, 139–42, 144–6, karkom, 108
Kashmir, 140, 210n mango, 51, 232

kermes, 122 Manka, 7–8
Khalileh, Hassan, 24, 30 manna, xiv, 68, 118, 121, 233
Khazar, 33 Marcus Manilius, 182
Khmer, 142 Margariti, Roxani, 23, 34
Kish, 21 marjoram, 131–2
kishuʾim, 53, 55–6, 77n marking-nut, 67, 88
kney de-ªizra, 95 marsh-nut, 67, 88
Kolzum, 33 mastic, 24, 135
McCabe, Anne, 24, 26, 31
lacca, xiv, 23, 28, 68, 85, 92–3, 120–3, 126, Mecca, 93, 113, 127, 138, 150, 176
129, 146, 204n, 233 medical skink, 109
ladanum, 132, 135 Medina, 93, 150
lakkha, 121 Mediterranean, x–xi, xiv, 14–17, 21–33,
laksha, 121 35–7, 42n, 46n–7n, 51, 56–9, 70, 83,
Laos, 123 86–7, 95, 108, 115, 117–18, 122, 126,
lapis lazuli, 175–6 131–2, 134–6, 143, 145, 148, 150–1,
Laufer, L. Berthold, 10 160, 165, 171, 174, 233
laurel, 131 melafefon, 56–7
lazurite, 164–5, 169, 171–2, 175 melon, 52–8, 77n
lead, 24 Meloy, 16
Lebanon berberry, 67 Mesopotamia, 17, 49, 64, 75, 129, 136,
Lebanon, 65, 67, 115, 117 158, 216n, 232–3
lemon, 51, 67, 232 Mexico, 93
lentisk, 132, 134 Meyerhof, Max, 72, 120
Leo VI, 31, 143, 145, 159 Middle East, x, 15, 17, 26, 36, 48, 51–3,
leopard’s bane, 66 56–7, 59, 61, 64, 70, 72–5, 83, 98,
Levant, 21, 23, 26, 37, 47n, 53–6, 65, 84, 111, 114–15, 121–3, 125, 130, 136,
95, 97–8, 102, 108–9, 111, 113, 115, 144, 151, 159, 172, 174, 182, 190,
127, 147, 151 205n, 228, 231–3
Levey, Martin, 87 milk, 87, 103, 115
Lewicka, Paulina, 4 Miller, J. Innes, 108
Lewis, Bernard, 17 mint, 103
lichen, 68, 80n, 120, 256 mollusk, 134
lily, 132 moonstone, 174
long pepper, 90, 130 Moscha, 21
Lopez, S. Roberto, 30 Moses, 185
lotus, 101, 120, 134 Moshe Poriat, 109
Motupalli, 181
mace, 101, 112–14, 135 mountain goat, 190
Madagascar, 1, 15, 64, 66, 73, 83, 100 Mozambique, 126
mahaleb cherry, 114 Muluk Islands, 100
Mahdiyya, 20, 27–8, 84–5, 95, 98, 102, mungo bean, 51, 68, 83, 128, 232
113, 151 musk, xiv, 24, 28, 31, 33, 49, 52, 64, 67–8,
Maimonides, 60, 69–70, 79n, 93, 96, 99, 75–6n, 88, 91–2, 111, 117, 124–5,
103, 108, 111–12, 114–15, 117, 119, 133–6, 138–9, 145, 148, 150–1, 153,
155–5, 188–9, 209n, 227n 157–62, 209, 216n–18n, 233, 236n,
Malabathrum, 132 238, 247, 257, 261, 272–3
malachite, 164–5 musk deer, 157–9
Malaysia, 125, 142, 155, 161 Muziris, 175, 183
Maldive Islands, 1, 64, 66, 154 Myanmar, 123
Mandari, 142 Myos Hormos, 16, 22
myrobalan, xi, xiv, 24, 28, 32, 50, 66, 68, 55, 57–8, 75, 95, 98, 119, 121, 124,
84–8, 90–1, 110–11, 122, 126, 129, 136, 148–50, 153, 155–6, 158–9, 190,
229, 234 229–30, 232
myrrh, 24, 31, 130–2, 134 137–9 209n Persian Gulf, 16–7, 20–1, 166
myrtle, 131, 135, 179 Persian manna, 118
Petra, 15
nard, 14, 31, 64, 80n, 103, 124, 130–1, Philippines, 153
135, 157, 232 pinecone, 96
narwhal, 67 Pisa, 27
Nasiri Khosraw, 59 pistachio, 87, 187
nauchali, 134 Plato, 3
Necho, Pharaoh, 15 Pliny, 63, 73, 91, 100, 131–2, 137, 175,
neem, 119, 233 182–3
Nicobar islands, 101, 126 plum, 93–4
Nile, 21–2, 34–5, 46n Polo, Marco, 93, 101, 111, 113, 126, 142,
Noah, 158 153, 176
nutmeg, xi, xiv, 15, 22, 31, 49, 66, 100–1, poppy, 232
111–14, 125, 201n, 231 pudding-pipe, 97
purging cassia, 28, 66, 88, 97–100
oak, 190 purging croton, 116
Obolla, 33 purple murex, 122
odem, 176, 220
Olaf, Celsius, 71 Qayrawān, 20, 27–9, 32–3, 58, 84, 92, 95,
oleaster, 59 102, 113, 115, 151, 160
olive, 30, 143, 156, 184, 187 quartz, 169, 219n
olivine, 68 Qunzhou, 142
Oman, 21, 24, 33, 79n, 93, 95, 124, 126,
129, 146, 149–50, 153, 160, 162, 176 Rādhānites, 19, 31, 33, 46n
Omana, 123 Ramla, 29, 33, 84, 98, 102, 109, 113, 116,
onyx, 24, 164–5, 169, 171, 185 127, 147
orange, 49, 51, 67, 73, 79n, 232 Ramses II, Pharaoh, 15
rashey besamim, 112
pain ginger, 96 red corundum, 166, 168, 173–4, 177–80,
Pakistan, 50, 54, 73, 75, 121, 210n 184, 219n
Palermo, 26–7, 92, 95, 102, 111, 113, 118, red garnet, 68, 163–5, 220n
151, 153 Red Sea, 14–17, 20–2, 25, 34–5, 83, 91,
Palestinian watermelon, 54 146, 175, 226n
Palmira, 15, 121 rhinoceros, 69n, 124
panther strangler, 66 rhubarb, 68, 88, 91, 232
Parma, 143, 160 rice, 51–2, 83
parrot, 124 rock crystal, 90, 163–5, 171–2, 174, 179,
Paulus Aegineta, 101 183–5, 219n–20n
pearl, 22, 24–5, 68–9n, 124, 133, 163–6, Roman, 14–16, 21–2, 51–3, 57, 61, 77n,
168–70, 172, 176, 178, 180–1, 183–5, 83, 88–9, 91, 121, 124, 129–32, 138,
219n–20n, 232, 258 144, 162–3, 168–9, 174–5, 177,
Pegolotti, F. Balduccio, 26 182–3, 220n, 235n
pepper, 15–6, 21–4, 26, 29–32, 64, 85, Romanus I, Emperor, 62
100–1, 110–11, 113, 124, 130, 142, rose, 24, 103, 105, 131–2, 134–5, 137, 139,
153, 232 143, 147, 154–6, 158, 232
perfumed cherry, xiv, 67, 79n, 114–15, 233 ruby, 163, 166, 168, 173–4, 176, 220n
peridot, 164–5, 219n rush-nut, 64,68
Persia, 1, 3, 6, 10, 12–3, 18, 21, 33, 49, rye, 69, 79
Saadia Gaon, Rabbi 176, 185, 209n, 222n Socotra, 91–2

sabaj, 164 Sofala, 101, 126, 146, 150
sacred fig, 121 Somalia, 91, 116
Safed, 99 sour cherry, 115
safflower, 129, 177 Sous al-Akza, 33
saffron, 24, 28, 85, 91, 103, 108–9, 122, Spain, 1, 11, 19, 27–8, 33, 48, 65, 69n–70,
124, 126–9, 131–2, 134–5, 137, 139, 115–16, 118, 127–39, 151, 188
232, 235n spikenard, 22, 101, 111, 113, 132, 134, 137
saga, 123 spinach, 51, 68, 232
sagun, 123 spinel, 163–4
saka, 123 spurge, 59
Saladino d’Ascoli, 100, 172 Sri Lanka, 1, 6, 24, 31, 64, 66, 68, 95,
Saliba, George, 2, 6 105, 112, 125–6, 131, 140, 142, 146,
salt, 93, 144–6 166–7, 173, 176, 180, 183–4
Samandūr, 142 stain-pod, 127
Samarqand, 155 stick-lacca, 121–2
sandalwood, xiv, 10, 21, 24, 31, 49, 67, 107, Stillman, A. Norman, 24
110, 112, 123–5, 134–6, 142–3, 147, storax, 132, 135
152–4, 215n, 244, 260 Strabo, 162
sandarus, 24, 118 Suez, 21, 33–4, 143, 145 160
sapir, 176 sugar, 29–30, 54, 63, 90, 103, 146, 229,
sappan wood, xiv, 28, 67, 85, 110, 121–2, 232
124–7, 129, 204n sugar cane, 52, 232
sapphire, 24, 133, 168, 174–6 sukk, 117
sapphirus, 175 Susa, 27
sarcocolla, 154 sweet basil, 68
sardonyx, 164 sweet lime, 101
Sbath, Paul, 87 Syria, 12, 15, 17–18, 22, 27, 33–4, 37
scarlet scale, 122 Syrian watermelon, 54
screw pine, xiv, 67, 91, 134, 161–4, 232
sea crab, 117 tabashir, 67, 94
seal ring, 170, 179, 186 Taiwan, 161
sebesten, 68, 233 tamarind, xiv, 23, 66, 88, 92–4, 99, 122,
senna, 49, 61, 68, 116 146
senna maki, 61 tambur, 104
Serapion, 129 Tangier, 33
sesame, 115, 128, 155–6 tarangabin, 118
Seville, 65, 97–8 taro, 52
Shahpur, 229 tarragon, 68
Shalheh Island, 101 tarshish, 176
shamīr, 185 teak, xiv, 24, 67, 123–5, 205n
shampoo ginger, 66, 96 Temple Mount, 148
Shatzmiller, Maya, 17–9, 22 Thailand, 121, 123
Shefer-Mossensohna, Miri, 8–9 Theophrastus, 60, 63, 73, 131, 201n, 205n
shoham, 185 thyme, 90
Sicily, 20, 26–8, 32, 36, 84–5, 93, 95, 102, Tibet, 1, 49, 61, 64, 66, 73, 157–60, 236n
109, 111, 115, 117–19, 122, 126, 129, tidhar, 124
143, 147, 151, 153, 160, 172, 223n Tigris river, 33
Sidon, 27 titanium, 173
Sinai, 143, 145, 160 topaz, 166, 174, 176
snapdragon, 59 Topkapı Palace, 172
Sobhy, G. P., 120 triphala, 87
Tripoli, 26–7, 84, 102 water lily, 134, 136

trivrit, 118 watermelon, 51–6, 59
Turkistan, 125 Watson, 38n, 49, 51–3, 55–6, 76n, 82, 113
turmeric, xiv, 68, 108–10, 231 wax, 29–30, 93, 141, 152, 159
turpeth, 118 Whitcomb, David, 22
turquoise, 164–5, 169 white corundum, 174, 176, 179
Tustaris, 19, 31–2 white-behen, 67
Tyre, 27, 84 wormwood, 59–60
Tzinista, 101
Xiamen, 142
Udovitch, L. Abraham, 30
Usceri, 35 yahalom, 182, 185
yellow corundum, 174, 178, 181
Vallet, Eric, 34 yellow melon, 54
van Berquem, Ludwig, 182 yellow myrobalan, 28, 66, 83–6, 122, 126,
Venice, 27, 30, 36–7, 47n 129
vetch, 68 Yemen, xiv, 14, 23, 34–5, 61, 84, 91, 98–9,
vinegar, 93, 158 101, 105, 109, 117, 120, 122, 127–9,
violet, 134, 136, 177 145, 149–50, 152, 154, 161–2, 169,
visha, 116 173, 206n, 221n, 226n, 232, 235n
Yoeli-Tlalim, Ronit, 160
wallflower, 134
walnut, 87, 89, 97, 120, 123 Zaiton, 142, 153
Wansbrough, John, 34 zedoary, 116
warras, xiv, 28, 68, 127–9, 135, 207n, 232 zircon, 164
Index of Arabic Names
ʿAbd Allāh Ibn Íālih, 95 bahman ʾabya∂, 64, 67

ʿAbd al-Maliq ibn Marwān, 102 bahman ʾaªmar, 64, 67
ʿAbd-Allāh Ibn ˝āhir, 55 baht, 68
ʿAbd-Allāh Ibn ˝āhir, 55 Bāl, 148
ʿAbdallāwī melon, 55 balādhur, 67, 88–90, 243
ʿAbdallī melon, 55 al-Balādhurī, 89
Abū al-ʿAbbās al-Nabātī, 70, 98–9, balakhsh, 164
128 balīlaj, 66, 83, 85, 87
Abū al-Óusayn Bajkam al-Makānī, 178 ballūr, 163–5, 179, 184, 219n
Abū al-Qāsim al-Maghribi, 180 Baluza, 33
Abū Man‚ūr Muwaffaq, 10 banafsh, 164
ʿaf‚, 68, 117 baqqam, 67, 88, 121, 125–6
al-ʾAhwāz, 32 Barmakid, 7–8, 11–12, 40n, 140
ʾamīrbārīs, 67, 117, 233 Bar†ayīl, 101, 197n
ʾamlaj, 66, 83, 85, 87 basbāsa, 112–13
ʿAmr ibn al-Layth al-Íaffār, 150 Ba‚ra, 16–18, 33, 93, 98, 109, 120
ʿanbar, 67, 148–9, 152, 267 ba††īkh ʾakh∂ar, 54
ʿanbarī, 164 ba††īkh ʾa‚far, 54
al-Andalus, 33, 62, 70, 90 ba††īkh hindī, 54
ʿAqaba, 22 ba††īkh shāmī 54
ʿaqīq, 68, 165, 169 ba††īkh shatawī, 54
ʾās, 179 ba††īkh sindī, 54, 77n
al-ʾA‚maʿī, 128 ba††īkha, 186
ʾa†mā†, 106–7 Bayt al-Óikma, 3–5, 228
ʾa†rīfal, 87 bāzahr, 67, 164, 187
ʾa††, 107 bijādī, 68, 164–5
ʾaydaʿ, 90 binnī, 50
ʿayn al-hirr, 164 al-Bīrūnī, 9–10, 57–8, 69n, 77n, 88–9,
ʿAyn Shams, 137 98–9, 115, 153, 164, 171, 177, 219n,
ʾazādadrakht, 119, 233 223n, 228
ʾaÕfār al-†īb, 135 bīsh, 10, 116
Bukhārā, 55
ba††īkh filas†īnī 54 Bukhtīshūʿ, 5, 12
Bāb al-Dhirāʿ, 53 Būlus, 97
Badakhshān, 176 bunduq hindī, 107
bādhinjān, 68 bussad, 164
bādzahr, 164, 166, 168, 187 bustān ʾabrūz, 64, 67, 69n
al-Baghdādī, 55, 77n būzīdān, 64, 67, 69n
283
al-daf ʿ, 120 Óarrān, 5, 12, 39n

dahnaj, 164 Hārūn al-Rashīd, 4, 7–8, 11, 36, 145, 149,
dam al-ʾakhawayn, 90, 123 167, 179, 188
dand, 116 Óasan ibn Sahl, 141, 188
darawnaj, 66 Óays, 161
dārkīsa, 112, 114 Herāt, 10, 230
dār‚īnī, 74 Hieronymus, 158
dastabuya, 58–9, 232 Óijāz, 117, 124, 129, 150, 176
al-Dayr al-Baªrī, 15 al-Óīra, 5
al-Dimashqī, 20, 111, 126, 146, 154, ªisba, 91, 95, 99, 146, 151
163–4, 166, 171, 184–5 Hishām ibn ʿAbd al-Malik, 179–80
Dīnār al-Marwāniyya’, 102 Óubaysh ibn al-Óasan, 5
al-Dīnawarī, 124–5, 127 ªumar, 93
dullāʿ, 54 Óunayn ibn ʾIsªāq, 5, 12, 62
durr, 164, 166, 169 hurd, 108
Óusayn ibn Barmak, 140
fādzahr, 164, 187
Fan‚ūr, 147 Ibn Abī U‚aybiʿa, 11, 229
faqqūs, 77n Ibn al-ʾAkfānī, 164, 171, 178, 186, 190,
Farama, 33, 145 219n
Fāris, 188 Ibn al-ʿAwwām, 115
fawfal, 67, 105–7 Ibn al-Bannāʾ, 58
fayrūzaj, 164 Ibn al-Bay†ār, 58–61, 69n–70, 77n, 79n,
fulayfila, 67 85–7, 97–9, 109, 111, 114, 123–5,
fulūs, 99, 146 127, 154, 156, 219n, 224n
Fus†ā†, 17, 20, 22, 27–9, 35, 84–5, 126, Ibn al-Faqīh, 124
143, 179 Ibn al-Jazzār, 89, 106, 109
fu‚ū‚ī, 90 Ibn al-Qif†ī, 229
Ibn al-Shiªna, 54
al-Ghāfiqī, 60–1, 70–1, 119, 127, 206n Ibn al-Tilmīdh, 230
ghāliya, 134–6, 139, 151 Ibn al-˝uwayr, 180
GhayÕa, 84 Ibn ʿAqīl al-Baghdadi, 159
ghazāla, 159 Ibn ʿAwkal, 25, 45n
Ibn Ba††ū†a, 55, 94, 101, 104–6, 109, 113,
ªabaq qaranfulī, 68 124, 150, 153, 155–6, 158, 180–1
ªabb al-ʿarūs, 119 Ibn Dahn, 7
ªabb al-mulūk, 116 Ibn Ezra, 185, 225n
ªabb al-zalam, 63, 68 ibn Óawqal, 58
Óa∂ramawt, 149 Ibn Juljul, 57, 60, 62–6, 69n–70, 73,
al-ªāfir, 168, 180 79n–80n, 83, 85–7, 89, 92–9, 103,
ªajar al-ʿaqīq, 68, 164–5, 169 105, 107–11, 114, 124, 127–8, 137,
ªajar al-bijādī, 68, 164–5 147, 149, 152, 154–6, 158, 162, 171,
ªajar al-zabarjad, 68, 164, 166, 221n 175, 186, 233–4, 254, 256
halīlaj ʾa‚far, 66, 83, 86 Ibn Kaysān, 117, 135, 146, 159
halīlaj ʾaswad, 83 Ibn Khaldūn, 2, 5, 39n
halīlaj kābulī, 50, 65–6, 69n, 75, 83–6, Ibn Khurdādhbih, 33, 111, 124, 145
192n Ibn Māsawayhi, 5, 9, 12, 58, 85, 103, 128,
halīlaj, 66, 83 134–5, 137, 141, 147, 156, 164, 171,
Óamā, 109 176, 184–6, 219n
Óamza ibn Bī∂, 179 Ibn Qā∂ī Baʿalbak, 86, 88
ªanÕal, 54 Ibn Rasūl, 154
harnuwa, 67 Ibn Ri∂wān, 59, 79
i ndex of ara bi c names | 285
Ibn Rushd, 60, 65–6, 69–70, 73, 79n–80n, jazʿ baqarānī, 164
83, 85–8, 94, 96–9, 107, 110–11, 114, Jibrīl ibn Bukhtīshūʿ, 179
122, 150, 155–6, 161, 190n, 204n, al-Juªfa, 91
233–4, 240, 254 Jūkhā, 33
Ibn Samajūn, 61 julubbān, 68
Ibn Sīnā, 9, 69n, 71, 103, 105, 118, 122, al-Junayd ibn ʿAbd al-Raªmān al-Murrī, 180
154 jūr, 139
Ibn Waªshiyya, 9, 106–7, 115, 125 jūrī rose, 137
Ibn Yaªyā al-Barmakī, 8, 179
Ibn Zuhr, 60, 70, 73 kabāba, 66, 119
ʿĪdhāb, 22, 34, 188 Kābul, 50, 75, 84, 86–7, 98
al-ʾIdrīsī, 60, 63, 66, 69n, 73, 78–80n, 101, kādhī, 67, 161–2, 232
104–5, 107, 111, 113, 128, 234 kāfūr, 49, 67, 144–5, 147, 247
kahrubāʾ, 164
ʾihlīlaj ʾa‚far, 83, 85 Kamarī agarwood, 140
ʾihlīlaj ʾaswad, 66, 69n, 83, 85, 192n Kārimī, 26, 31, 34–3
ʾihlīlaj hindī, 68, 83, 85–6 kashūth, 68
ʾihlīlaj kābulī, 50, 65–6, 69n, 75, 83–6, Khālid al-Barmakī, 8
192n khālīdūnyūn †ūmāghā, 108
ʾihlīlaj zaqqūmī, 50 khall (stone), 68
ʾihlīlaj, 50, 65, 66, 68, 69n, 75, 83, 85–6, kharrūb, 97–8
88, 192n khawlanjān, 110
ʿĪsā ibn ʿAlī, 5 khayzurān, 67, 95
ʾI‚fahān, 55 khirwaʿ ‚īnī, 116
al-ʾI‚fahānī, 129 khiyār shanbar, 66, 97–9
ʾisfānākh, 64, 68, 232 khiyār, 56–8, 67, 77n–8n
ʾIsªāq ibn Óunayn, 58 khūlanjān, 66, 110
Isªāq ibn Sulaymān al-ʾIsrāʾīlī, 58 Khurāsān, 33, 57, 59, 118, 120, 159, 179,
al-ʾIshbīlī, 54, 69n, 88, 93, 95, 98, 107–9, 183, 185, 188
115, 127, 141, 162 Khusraw I ʾAnūshīrwān, 7, 136
ʾi†rifil, 87 Khusraw II, 136
ʾi†rīfil, 87, 111 Khūzistān, 32
ʾi†riful, 87 Khwārizm, 55
ʾi†rīful, 87 al-Kindī, 9, 42n, 92–3, 95, 103, 111, 113,
128, 134–5, 137, 142, 146, 154–6,
al-jabal, 179 159, 162, 167, 184, 186, 230
Jabal al-Nār, 88 Kirmān, 188
al-Jābiya, 33 Kūfa, 17, 33
jadwār, 116 kurkam, 108
Jaʿfar ibn Yaªyā al-Barmakī, 8, 179 kurkum, 68, 108
al-JāªiÕ, 8, 134–5, 149, 155, 163–4, 171,
177–8, 186 lakk, 68, 121–2, 233
Jamast, 164 lakkāʾ, 120, 204n
jāmūs, 50 laymūn, 67
jawhar (pl. jawāhir), 162, 167, 219n lāzward, 165, 175–6
jawz al-balādhur, 88 lisān al-ʿa‚āfīr, 68, 80n
jawz hindī, 67, 233 luffāª, 58–9
jawz jundum, 68, 80n, 120 lukk, 120
jawz kundum, 120 luʾluʾ, 68, 164–5, 220n
Jawz al-qayʾ, 120
jawz al-†īb, 112 al-Madāʾin, 145
jawzbuwā, 66, 112–13 al-Madīna, 124
madkhīr, 127 Nūª ibn Man‚ūr al-Sāmānī, 186

Ma∂mūn, 23 Nu‚aybīn, 6
maghra, 92 nushādur, 146
Maghrib, x, 18, 28–30, 32–3, 35, 70, 93, al-Nuwayrī, 103, 107, 146, 155–6
97, 143, 147, 151, 155, 171
mahā, 176 qafr, 150
māhī zahra, 64, 68 al-Qalqashandī, 105, 149–50, 159, 219n
maªlab, 67, 79, 114–15, 233 qanbīl, 68
maʿjūn ʾanaqardiyā, 89 Qan‚ūr, 112, 144, 147
al-Malik al-ʾAshraf, 189 qāqulla kabīr, 66
al-Maʾmūn, 3–5, 11, 13, 41n–2n, 55, qāqulla ‚aghīra, 68
158–9, 162, 169, 178, 181, 187–8 qāqullī, 142
Mandalī agarwood, 140, 142 qaranful, 66, 100–2
al-Man‚ūr, 2, 7–8, 140, 142, 179 qarn al-khutuww, 67, 69n
maqā‚īrī, 153 qas†al, 89
marjān, 164–5, 220n al-Qazwīnī, 101, 103, 155, 174, 219n
Marw, 59 qinā, 95–6
mās, 67, 79n, 164, 181, 183, 185–6, 224, qinbīl, 119
267 qirfat qaranful, 102
mās ballūrī, 186 qirmiz, 121
Māsarjawayh, 3, 88, 98, 145, 153, 159 qiththāʾ hindī, 97–8
māsh, 51, 68, 128, 232 qiththāʾ, 56–7, 77n
al-Masʿūdī, 79n, 149 Qumār, 140, 210n
Ma†ariyya, 137 qunnab, 233
mawz, 67 al-Qurashī, 86, 91, 93, 95
misk, 49, 67, 68, 157, 233 Quraysh, 138
Muªammad ibn al-ʿAbbās al-Misqī, 102 qurunful, 101
Muªmmad ibn ˝ughluq, 156, 181 Qū‚, 35
Muʿizz al-dawla ibn Buwayhi al-Daylamī, Qu‚eir al-Qadīm, 22, 34
186 Qu‚eir, 22
Multān, 141, 210n Qus†ā ibn Lūqā, 5
Mu‚ʿab ibn al-Zubayr, 178 qu†n, 233
mūsh dārbandī, 67
Muʿtazila, 159 Rahūn, 176
al-Muqaddasī, 23–4, 124, 149–50 Rāminī, 125
al-Muqtadir, 151, 179 rāmiq, 135
al-Mustaʿīn bi-llāh, 189 al-Rāzī, 9, 89, 103, 154, 162, 228
al-Muʿta∂id, 150 rībās, 68
al-Muʿta‚im, 188 Rukn al-Dawla, 186
al-Mutawakkil, 4–5, 11, 62, 89, 141, 168
sabaj, 164
al-Nābulsī, 55 sabistān, 63, 68, 233
nadd, 134–6, 151 Sābūr ibn Sahl, 5, 58, 230
al-Nadīm, 6, 229 al-Íaʿīd, 159
Nahāwand, 177 sāj, 67, 123–4
Najaf, 158 Íalāª al-Dīn, 71, 168
nāranj, 49, 67 Íāliª ibn Bahla, 8
nard, 14,31, 64, 80n,103, 124, 130–1, 135, Samarqand, 155, 230
157, 232 al-Samarqandī, 230
Na‚ir ʿAbd al-Raªmān, 62 sanā makkī, 116
nīl, 233 Íanʿāʾ, 127–8
Nisibis, 6 sanā, 68, 116
i ndex of ara bi c names | 287
‚andal, 10, 67, 107, 152 al-Tīfāshī, 115, 164, 167, 169, 171, 168,
Sandān, 124 180, 184, 189, 219n
sandarūs, 24, 68, 118 Tinnīs, 27
Íanf, 113, 140 al- ˝ūr, 34
Íanfūr, 147 turbad, 118
Sarandīb, 173, 176, 180 turunj, 67
sara†ān baªrī, 69 Tustar, 32
sara†ān hindī, 69, 117
al-Sarī ibn Muªammad al-Raffāʾ, 135–6, ʿūd al-†īb, 68, 140
138 ʿūd Hindī, 140
Sayf al-Dīn ibn Muªammad ibn ˝ughluq, ʿūd qumārī, 142
156 ʿūd Samandūrī, 142
Sayf al-Dīn Qalaj, 189 ʿūd ‚anfī, 142
Sayf al-Dīn Qalaj, 189 ʿūd ‚anfī, 142
shajarat al-kaff, 68 ʾūmālī, 118
shajarat al-kha†ā†īf, 108–9 ʿUmān, 24
Shām, 7, 11, 27, 50, 55, 61, 65, 79n, 98, ʿUmar ibn al-Kha††āb, 39n, 124
108, 114, 142, 149 ʿUmar II, 39n
shammām, 58–9 ʿunnāb, 63, 68, 233
Shankārah, 190 ʾurjuwān, 126
shaqāqul, 68 ʿurūq ‚ufr, 108
al-Sharīf al-Jawharī, 180
shayyān, 67, 90 al-Walīd ibn ʿAbd al-Malik, 124
al-Shayzarī, 92–3, 95 wars, 68, 127, 134, 206, 232
Shiªr, 105, 133, 148–9, 213 Wāsi†, 50
Shīrāz, 190 al-Wāthiq, 55
shiyyān, 90
Sind, xiv, 33, 49–50, 73, 75, 95, 110–11, Yaªyā (Yūªannā) ibn al-Bi†rīq, 187, 226n
113, 124, 141, 146, 158, 180–1, 188 Yaªyā ibn Khālid al-Barmakī, 8
Íiqilliya, 88 yākand, 173
Sīrāf, 21–2, 142, 146, 153 Yamīn al-Dawla, Maªmūd ibn Subuktikīn,
sqanqūr, 109 180
‚ubbār, 93 yāqūt (place), 180
sukk al-ʿaf‚, 68, 117 yāqūt (stone), 67, 79n, 164, 166, 173–81,
sukk al-misk, 68 184, 186, 219, 223n
sult, 69, 79n yāqūt ʾabya∂, 174
yāqūt ʾaªmar, 174, 176
al-˝abarī (historian), 8 yāqūt ʾakhab, 177
al-˝abarī (physician), 9, 96, 228, 230 yāqūt ʾa‚far, 174, 176
†abāshīr, 67, 94 yāqūt ʾasmanjūnī, 174
Taʿiz, 35, 161 yāqūt ʾazraq, 174, 176
Tāj al-Dawla, 172, 223n yāqūt bahramānī, 177, 180
al-Tamīmī, 50, 58, 99, 103, 114, 140, 151, yāqūt banafsajī, 177–8
162, 186, 219n yāqūt jullanārī, 177
tamr hindī, 66 yāqūt kuªlī, 174
tānbūl, 67, 104–6 yāqūt laªmī, 177–8
taranjubīn, 68, 118, 207n, 233 yāqūt mahāwī, 174
†arkhūn, 68 yāqūt rummānī, 176–7, 180
al-Thaʿālibī, 124, 133 yāqūt ʾurjuwānī, 177–8
†ibb al-nabī, 5 yāqūt wardī, 177–8
†ibb nabawī, 5 yāsamīn rāziqī, 155–6
Tibrīz, 155 yāsamīn, 65, 67, 79, 155, 233
yashb, 164, 169 zaʿfarān hindī, 108

yashm, 164 zanbaq, 155–6
yast, 164 Zanj, 50, 125, 148–9, 213n
Yazīd I, 176 zaqqūm, 50
Yazīd ibn al-Muhallab, 179 zarnab, 67
zirishk, 117
al-Zābaj, 112, 197n, 215n zujāj Firʿawnī, 184
zabarjad, 68, 164, 166, 221n zumurrud, 68, 164, 221n
Zabīd, 35 zumurrud, 68, 164, 221n
zadwār, 116 zurunbād, 66, 96–7
Êafār, 105 zu††, 50
Index of Scientific Names
Aconitum anthora, 116 Cassia sp., 116

Aconitum ferox, 116 Centaurea behen, 67
Aconitum napellus, 116 Cheiranthus chiri, 134
Aconitum sp., 226n Cinnamomum camphora, 67, 134
Alhagi camelorum, 118 Cinnamomum cassia, 132
Alhagi maurorum, 68, 118, 233 Cinnamomum citriodorum, 132
Alpinia galanga, 66, 110, 256 Cinnmomum zeylanicum, 132
Amaranthus sp., 67 Cistus ladaniferus, 132
Amomum melegueta, 66 Citrullus colocynthis, 53, 58
Anamirta paniculata, 68 Citrullus lanatus, 53–4
Antirrhinum siculum, 59 Citrullus vulgaris, 53
Antirrhinun majus, 59 Citrus aurantium, 67
Aquilaria agallocha, 68–9n, 134, 140 Citrus limon, 67
Aquilaria malaccens, 140 Citrus medica, 67, 101
Areca catechu, 67, 106 Cocculus indicus, 68
Aristolochia sp., 97 Cocos nucifera, 67, 233
Artemisia arborescens, 59–60 Commiphora gileadensis (= opobalsamum),
Artemisia dracunculus, 68 132, 134
Commiphora mukul, 132, 134
Commiphora myrrha, 132, 134
Balanites aegyptiaca, 50
Cordia myxia, 63, 68, 233
Bambusa arundinacea, 94, 195n
Costus speciosus, 132, 134
Bambusa sp., 67
Crocus sativus, 108, 132, 134
Bambusa vulgaris, 67, 94
Croton gossypifolium, 193n
Berberis libanotica, 117
Croton lechleri, 193n
Berberis sp., 67, 117, 233
Croton tiglium, 116
Berberis vulgaris, 117
Cucumis melo, 53, 56
Boswellia carteri (= sacra), 132, 134
Cucumis melo var. chate, 55–6
Cucumis melo var. dudaim, 57, 232
Caesalpinia sappan, 67, 121, 125, Cucumis sativus, 56–8, 67
204n Curcuma longa, 68, 108
Callitris quadrivalvis, 68, 118 Curcuma zedoria, 116
Cannabis sativus var. indica, 233 Cuscuta sp., 68, 126
Capra aegagrus aegagrus, 190 Cyperus esculentus, 64, 68
Carthamus tinctorius, 177
Carum copticum, 67 Daucus carota ssp. Maximus, 67
Cassia acutifolia, 61, 68, 116 Doronicum sp., 66
Cassia acutifolia, 61, 68, 116 Dracaena cinnabari, 90–1, 193n
Cassia fistula, 66, 97–8, 238 Dracaena draco, 67, 90, 123, 193n
289
Elaeagnus angustifolia, 59 Ocimum basilicum var. pilosum, 68–9n

Elettaria cardamomum, 68 Operculina turpethum, 118
Embelic officinalis, 66 Origanum hortensis, 132
Emblica officinalis, 66, 83
Eugenia caryophyllata, 66, 100 Pandanus odoratissimus, 67, 134, 161, 232
Euphorbia dendroides, 59 Pastinaca schekakul, 68
Phaseolus mungo, 68, 128, 232
Ferula galbaniflua, 132 Phyllanthus emblica, 66, 83
Ficus religiosa, 121 Phyllanthus emblica, 66, 83
Flemingia grahamiana, 68, 127, 232 Physeter catodon, 67, 134, 148
Flemingia rhodocarpa, 68, 127, 134, Piper betel, 67, 104
232 Piper cubeba, 66, 119
Fraxinus sp., 68, 80n Pistacia lentiscus, 132, 134
Prunus cerasia, 115
Gossypium herbaceum, 233 Prunus mahaleb, 67, 79n, 114, 233
Pterocarpus santalinus, 67, 153
Indigofera tinctoria, 233
Ipomoea turpethum, 118 Rheum sp., 68
Iris florentina, 132 Rosa canina, 132, 134
Iris Mesopotamica, 132 Rottlera tinctoria, 120
Ruscus aculeatus, 67
Jasminum fruticans, 155
Jasminum officinale, 155 Santalum album, 67, 134, 152
Jasminum sambac, 155 Scincus scincus, 109
Jasminum sp., 67, 79n, 134, 233 Secale cereale, 69, 79n
Juniperus sp., 128 Semecarpus anacrdium, 67, 88
Senna alexandrina, 116
Kermes sp., 122 Solanum melongena, 68
Spinacia oleracea, 68, 232
Laccifer lacca, 68, 121, 233 Strychnos nux-vomica, 120
Lathyrus sp., 68
Lawsonia inermis, 115 Tamarindus indica, 66, 93
Lily candidum, 132 Tectona grandis, 67, 123
Liquidambar orientalis, 132 Terminalia arjuna, 68, 83
Terminalia bellerica, 66, 83
Malabaila secacul, 68 Terminalia chebula, 50, 66, 75, 83
Mallotus philippinensis, 120 Terminalia citrina, 66, 83
Melia azedarach, 119, 233 Terminalia emblica, 66
Memecylon tincrorum, 68 Terminalia sp., vii, 50, 83
Menispermum cocculus, 68 Trichilia emetica, 120
Moghonia grahamiana, 134
Moschus moschiferus, 67, 134, 157, Vigna mungo, 51
233 Vigna radiata, 51
Murex brandaris, 122 Viola odorata, 134, 177
Musa paradisiaca, 67 Vitex agnus castus, 67
Myristica fragrans, 66, 112
Zingiber zerumbet, 66, 96
Nardostachys jatamansi, 80n, 132, Ziziphus spina-christi, 101
134 Ziziphus vulgaris, 63, 68

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ZohAr AMAr and E frA iM l Ev

Zohar Amar and Efraim Lev

© Zohar Amar and Efraim Lev, 2017

Edinburgh University Press Ltd

Typeset in 11/15 Adobe Garamond by

ISBN 978 0 7486 9781 6 (hardback)

Published with the support of the University of Edinburgh Scholarly Publishing

List of Plates vii

2 Agricultural and Pharmaceutical Innovations: Milestones in

4 Discussion and Conclusions 228

Between pages 82 and 83

1 Fruits of two varieties of terminalia trees: yellow (Terminalia ­­citrina)

22 Stick-lacca – secretion of lacca (Laccifer lacca)

1.1 Comparison of some of the theoretical characteristics of Greek

substances about which sufficient information was accumulated and that

Zohar Amar Efraim Lev

Indian Ocean Indonesia

The Origin of the Main Medieval Arabian Drugs

F our generations after the death of the Prophet Mohammad, founding

Arab Attitude to Science

Translation of Greek Science into Arabic

Assimilation of Theoretical and Practical Medicine into Arab Culture

We have meagre knowledge regarding the Arabs’ attitude towards medi-

Persian and Indian Medicine

According to Arab historiography and numerous modern scholars, most of

intermediary centre for the transmission of medical knowledge to the Arabs,

Indian Medicinal Substances

and Greek cultures;76 however, in his medical book he mentions many

Further examples of physicians who mention Persian medicinal sub-

Baghdad as an Intercultural Centre and the Triumph of the Galenic

Table 1.1 Comparison of some of the theoretical characteristics of Greek

Characteristics Greek–Arab medicine Indian medicine (Ayurveda)

The Greek and Indian medical schools practised medicine concurrently,

As stated earlier, the ascendancy of the Galenic school derived from

The Commercial Aspect

Cultural contacts, trade and biological translocations between societies widely

The Fatimid Caliphate was formed thanks to economic prosperity in

to southern Spain. Moreover, due to the flourishing trade, industrial centres

An increase in monetisation, money supply and circulation; the formation

The second period (950–1500) coincides with the political separation of

luxury products such as perfume, silk and gemstones, bringing wealth to

A. Western maritime route connected trading towns of southern Europe,

commercial centres ( eleventh to twelfth centuries )

Caesarea to Ramla and Carthage to Qayrawān.201 In this way Cairo-Fus†ā†,

Several groups of merchants were operating in these commercial activities, in

Kārimī – According to standard definitions, the Kārimī were a ‘group of

european groups of merchants

Venetians – The rise of Venice from a ‘small community scattered over

Mediterranean in the 12th century was furthered by a conjunction of politi-

3. Maqbul, ‘Hind’; see also: Yoeli-Tlalim, ‘Islam and Tibet’.

31. According to Conrad there is no evidence for the existence of hospitals in

124. Lev, ‘A Mediterranean encounter’, p. 143.

155. See in details: Cooper, The Medieval Nile.

186. Abulafia, ‘The Levant trade’; Day, ‘The Levant trade’.

218. Aëtius of Amida, Libri Medicinalis.

medicine and pharmacology. To do so, we will first propose a ­­methodology

Indian Pharmacology and Galeno-Arab Medicine

The field of materia medica is of leading importance in an assessment of

The ‘Agriculture Revolution’ and the Watson Thesis – Cucurbitaceae

The oil is produced, as in the ghawr of Jericho found in the range of

The Umayyad conquered Kābul in the mid-seventh century, thus opening

Land of Israel). This literature, which contains many Persian ­­expressions,

Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) and melon (Cucumis melo) – Watson

List of Plates vii

4 Discussion and Conclusions 228

1 Fruits of two varieties of terminalia trees: yellow (Terminalia citrina)

22 Stick-lacca – secretion of lacca (Laccifer lacca)

medicine and pharmacology. To do so, we will first propose a methodology

Land of Israel). This literature, which contains many Persian expressions,

materia medica and six prescriptions). It was also widely mentioned in