Drugs and treatments from Ottoman Egypt

Dawud ibn 'Umar Antaki (David of Antioch). Tadhkirat uli al-albab wa-al-jami' lil-'ajab al-'ujab.

€ 7,500.00

A North African medical manuscript of "Tadhkirat uli al-albab" by Dawud Antaki (d. 1599 CE), often anglicized as David of Antioch, and in his time a chief physician and famous pharmacist in Antioch, Cairo, and Mecca. He is credited with introducing guidelines for the medical industry and its use of drugs: standardizing names of medications, specifying appropriate dosages based on the patient, noting interactions with other foods and drugs, explaining how to use two or more medications at once, and even including in his works such seemingly modern details as shelf life and substitutions.

A fervent admirer of Ibn Sina (Avicenna), Dawud's "Tadhkirat" goes into immense detail on a wide range of ailments, cementing his fame as one of the greatest Ottoman physicians, and one of the most famous medical men to come from Egypt. The manuscript discusses childbirth, sexual health, and even mood disorders, and gives detailed recommendations for intervention through diet or drugs.