Earlier Information on The Book of Ingenious Devices

Abstract

This work enjoyed a great reputation in medieval Islam. The earliest reference we have is in the Fihrist “Book of Ingenious Devices (ḥiyal) by the Banū Mūsà b. Shākir the astronomer, and it contains a number of movements”. (F. 397). Ibn al-Qiftī says that “their book on ḥiyal is marvellous and famous”. (Q. 208). Bar Hebraeus is the first to mention Aḥmad as having been concerned largely with this subject: he says. “Aḥmad was lower than him [i.e. Muḥammad] in all the sciences except in the construction of ḥiyal, in which things were revealed to him such as had been revealed to no-one [else]”. (H. 264). Ibn Khallikān, having mentioned at the beginning of his article that the Banū Mūsà were famous for their book on ḥiyal, says later “their book on ḥiyal is wonderful and rare, and includes every strangeness. I have studied it and found it the best and most delightful of books. It is one volume.” (K. 161–162). Ibn Khaldūn (734/1333–780/1378–9) writes “there exists a book on mechanics that mentions every astonishing remarkable and nice mechanical contrivance. It is often difficult to understand, because the geometrical proofs occurring in it are difficult. People have copies of it. They ascribe it to the Banū Shākir.”6 The only comment we have by a technical man is that of al-Jazarī,7 in the introduction to that section of his book (composed 602/1206) that deals with fountains. He says “I did not follow the system of the Banū Mūsà, may God have mercy upon them, who in earlier times distinguished themselves in the matters covered by these subjects.” He goes on to make his criticism of the Banū Mūsà’s fountains, which he considered to be unreliable; in particular he thought that the intervals between the changes of shape of the fountains were too brief.