A Physician on the Nile: A Description of Egypt and Journal of the Famine Years

Flora, fauna, and famine in thirteenth-century Egypt A Physician on the Nile begins as a description of everyday life in Egypt at the turn of the seventh/thirteenth century, before becoming a harrowing account of famine and pestilence. Written by the polymath and physician ʿAbd al-Laṭīf al-Baghdādī,...

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Bibliographische Detailangaben
1. Verfasser: ʿAbd-al-Laṭīf al-Baġdādī 1162-1231 (VerfasserIn)
Weitere Verfasser: Mackintosh-Smith, Tim 1961- (ÜbersetzerIn)
Format: Elektronisch E-Book
Sprache:English
Veröffentlicht: New York, NY New York University Press [2022]
Schriftenreihe:Library of Arabic Literature
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Zusammenfassung:Flora, fauna, and famine in thirteenth-century Egypt A Physician on the Nile begins as a description of everyday life in Egypt at the turn of the seventh/thirteenth century, before becoming a harrowing account of famine and pestilence. Written by the polymath and physician ʿAbd al-Laṭīf al-Baghdādī, and intended for the Abbasid caliph al-Nāṣir, the first part of the book offers detailed descriptions of Egypt's geography, plants, animals, and local cuisine, including a recipe for a giant picnic pie made with three entire roast lambs and dozens of chickens. ʿAbd al-Laṭīf's text is also a pioneering work of ancient Egyptology, with detailed observations of Pharaonic monuments, sculptures, and mummies. An early and ardent champion of archaeological conservation, ʿAbd al-Laṭīf condemns the vandalism wrought by tomb-robbers and notes with distaste that Egyptian grocers price their goods with labels written on recycled mummy-wrappings. The book's second half relates his horrific eyewitness account of the great famine that afflicted Egypt in the years 597-598/1200-1202. ʿAbd al-Laṭīf was a keen observer of humanity, and he offers vivid first-hand depictions of starvation, cannibalism, and a society in moral free-fall. A Physician on the Nile contains great diversity in a small compass, distinguished by the acute, humane, and ever-curious mind of its author. It is rare to be able to hear the voice of such a man responding so directly to novelty, beauty, and tragedy.An English-only edition
Beschreibung:Includes bibliographical references (pages 230-234) and index
Aus dem Arabischen übersetzt
Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 04. Okt 2022)
Beschreibung:1 Online-Ressource (LVII, 201 Seiten)
ISBN:9781479820085
DOI:10.18574/nyu/9781479820085.001.0001

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