Rashid al-Din al-Suri
Rashidun al-Suri | |
|---|---|
| Personal | |
| Born | 1177 CE |
| Died | 1241 CE |
| Religion | Islam |
| Era | Ayyubid |
| Region | EgyptandSyria |
| Main interest(s) | Medicine,Botany |
| Notable work(s) | al-Adwiyat al-Mufradah |
Rashid al-Din al-Suri(Arabic:رشيد الدين الصوري,romanized:Rashid ad-din as-Sury,1177–1241) was a leading physician and botanist in theIslamic worldin the 13th century. He served the leading figures of theAyyubid dynasty.[1]
Biography
[edit]Al-Suri was born and brought up inTyre,then part of theCrusader-ruledLebanonand derives his nameal-Surifrom the name of the city inArabic"Sur". After completing his preliminary education in Tyre, he moved toJerusalem,underAyyubidcontrol, where he served as a physician at a hospital. He later met and greatly impressed the Ayyubid sultanal-Adilin the early 13th century. Al-Adil brought al-Suri toCairoand made him his personal physician. He also served al-Adil's son,al-Mu'azzamand grandson,an-Nasir Dawud,the successive governors ofDamascus.[1]
Besides medicine, al-Suri held an interest for plant life and was a botany researcher. He used to roam about and study herbs and plants in their natural surroundings.[1]He employed a professional painter to sketch and paint for him the plants in different stages of their growth as specific as possible by the use of various colors and dyes. His book, entitledal-Adwiyat al-Mufradah( "The Simple Medicines" ) is not extant.[2]
References
[edit]Bibliography
[edit]- Ali, Abdul (1996),Islamic Dynasties of the Arab East: State and Civilization During the Later Medieval Times,M.D. Publications Pvt. Ltd,ISBN978-81-7533-008-5
