First printed edition

Busiri, Muhammad ibn Sa'id al- / Uri, Johann (ed.). Carmen mysticum Borda dictum Abi Abdallae M. B. S. Busiridae Aegyptii: e codice manuscripto B. L. B. Latine conversum. Accedunt origines Arabico-Hebraicae.

€ 1,500.00

First printed edition of the famous and influential 13th century ode "Al-Burda", a religious poem in praise of the Prophet Muhammad, known in English as "The Poem of the Mantle" or under its original title "al-Kawakib ad-durriyya fi Madh Khayr al-Bariyya" ("Luminous Stars in Praise of the Best of Mankind"). Written by the Sanhaji Berber poet Abu Muhammad ibn Sa'id al-Busiri (1212-94) from Egypt, the "Qasida al-Burda" remains one of the most widely known and beloved poems of the Muslim faith. According to legend, al-Busiri wrote the poem while ill, and thanks to his literary effort was miraculously healed in a dream.

Printed in Arabic type, with a Latin translation on facing pages, the book would see a second issue in 1771, at Utrecht. The edition was the work of the Hungarian orientalist János Uri (1726-96), who died at Oxford whilst labouring on the catalogue of oriental manuscripts at the Bodleian library.