Wonders and rarities: the marvelous book that traveled the world and mapped the cosmos

Abstract

"During the thirteenth century, the great scholar, geographer, physician, and astronomer Zakariya al-Qazwini (1203-1283) authored what became perhaps the single most influential work of natural history in the Islamic world: a compendium of curiosities entitled 'Aja'ib al-Makhluqat wa Ghara'ib al-Mawjudat, or, loosely translated, Wonders and Rarities. Following the travels of Qazwini's book across time and place, Travis Zadeh examines how Muslim intellectuals and religious authorities conceived of the world before the discovery of the western hemisphere and the rise of heliocentrism: through the language of wonder and rarity"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents

Introduction: Wonder's End -- I. A World within a Book: Stranger Lands -- Measures of Authority -- Astral Power -- II. Wonders to Behold: Cosmic Order -- Terrestrial Designs -- Alchemical Bodies -- III. Distant Shores: Long Divided -- Across the Globe -- On the Edge -- Coda: A Hidden Map.