Al-Jazari spent more than twenty years in the service of the Artuqid princes of northern Mesopotamia, building clocks, automata, and hydraulic devices before committing everything he knew to paper. The result was the Kitab fi Ma'rifat al-Hiyal al-Handasiyah (Book of Knowledge of Ingenious Mechanical Devices), completed around 1198 and copied many times within years of his death in 1206[1].
Key facts
- Lived
- 1136–1206[1]
- Wikipedia
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Biography
His work stood in deliberate dialogue with his predecessors. He acknowledged the Banu Musa, the ninth-century Baghdad engineers, and Apollonios of Tyana, but claimed to have improved on both through direct experiment. Modern historians of science have taken that claim seriously. One of his most elaborate devices was a blood-measuring instrument in which blood flowed into a basin, draining to a float counterbalanced by weights and pulleys linked to a revolving wheel, calibrated to record volumes up to 120 dirhams during bloodletting procedures.
More theatrically, he designed a monumental water clock whose façade featured seven mechanical musicians: five percussionists and two trumpeters, built from jointed wood with hollow limbs and copper wire actuators, clothed in fine garments to conceal the mechanism. The clock marked the solar hours. A manuscript of his book made under his own supervision at Diyarbakir in 1205–6 survives in the Topkapi Sarayi Muzesi in Istanbul.
His full name was Abu al-Izz b. Ismail b. al-Razzaz al-Jazari. Whether he is properly an artist, an engineer, or a scientist depends on what you think a medieval Islamic scholar should be.
Timeline
- 1136Born: Abu al-Izz b. Ismail b. al-Razzaz al-Jazari
- 1176Began service to the Artuqid princes of northern Mesopotamia
- 1198Completed 'Book of Knowledge of Ingenious Mechanical Devices'
- 1205Supervised manuscript of his book in Diyarbakir
- 1206Died in 1206
Notable Works
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is Al-Jazari known for?
Al-Jazari is known for his work on clocks, automata, and hydraulic devices, which he documented in his Kitab fi Ma'rifat al-Hiyal al-Handasiyah. One of his most elaborate devices was a blood-measuring instrument, and he also designed a monumental water clock with mechanical musicians. He claimed to have improved on the designs of his predecessors through direct experiment.Who was Al-Jazari?
Abu al-Izz b. Ismail b. al-Razzaz al-Jazari was a medieval Islamic scholar who spent over twenty years working for the Artuqid princes of northern Mesopotamia. He designed clocks, automata, and hydraulic devices, documenting his knowledge in the Kitab fi Ma'rifat al-Hiyal al-Handasiyah (Book of Knowledge of Ingenious Mechanical Devices). Whether he was an artist, engineer, or scientist depends on one's interpretation of a medieval Islamic scholar.How did Al-Jazari die?
Al-Jazari died in 1206[1] at the age of 70.
Sources
Editorial draws on the following primary and tertiary references for Al-Jazari.
- [1] wikipedia Wikipedia: Al-Jazari Used for: biography, birth dates, death dates, identifiers, movement attribution, nationality.
- [2] book Getty, Getty - The Topkapi Scroll Geometry and Ornament in Islamic Architecture Used for: biography.
- [3] book Milwright, Marcus, Islamic Arts and Crafts: An Anthology Used for: biography.
- [4] book The glory of Byzantium Used for: biography.
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