Science Source ftp Apr 2015

An elaborate multi-colored table from a copy of the alchemical treatise Kitab al-Burhan fi asrar ilm al-mizan (Proof Regarding the Secrets of the Science of the Balance) by al-Jaldaki. The undated and unsigned copy was made in Morocco and is typical of products made in the scribal workshops of Marrakesh during the second half of the 19th century. This treatise is concerned in large part with the alchemical theory of the balance, but it also includes an elaborate classification of animals, plants, and minerals. In essence it is a summary of knowledge up to al-Jaldaki's day, not only in alchemy but also in cosmology, physics, astrology, and numerology. Izz al-Din Aydamir al-Jaldaki (died 1342) was a Persian Alchemist from Khorasan, he fled his native country due to the Mongol invasion. He was one of the last and one of the greatest of medieval Islamic alchemists. His treatises, which reflect interests much broader than simply alchemy, preserve extensive quotations from earlier authors.