The Ultimate Ambition in the Arts of Erudition: A Compendium of Knowledge from the Classical Islamic World

Like the bestiaries and compendiums of medieval Europe, Muhanna’s edited translation of the work of al-Nuwayrıˉ, an Egyptian Muslim secretary and historian of the Mamluk dynasty, is encyclopedic in coverage. Originally compiled during the 14th century, Muhanna explains in the introduction, “al-Nuwayrıˉ’s text... represents one of the tallest peaks... of literary anthologies, cosmographical compendia, dictionaries, and miscellanies.” As such it serves as a window into the medieval Muslim world and its vast storehouse of knowledge that drew on multiple sources, including Greek philosophers, Abbasid scholars, and Andalusian luminaries. Weaving together poetry, proverbs, scientific investigations, mathematical insight, holy books, and theological wrangling, this treasury of learning is a veritable Wikipedia of its time. The sheer vastness of the topics covered—political thought, economics, religion, sex, history, culinary delights, medicine, and more—and the mix of both quotidian and cultured factoids make this a valuable addition to the library of those who are interested in medieval miscellany. Moreover, this text serves as a corrective to narratives that might isolate the Islamic world from the wider cosmos of medieval thinking and instead incorporates Islamic history—in all its stunning diversity—into the narrative of the history of thought. The erudition and breadth of the book is staggering, and it is a positively entertaining collection of anecdotes and flesh-and-blood experience from a time and place sadly neglected by popular scholarship. [em](Aug.) [/em]