1258–1500 CE

Age of Observatories

عصر المراصد

Maragha to Samarkand, Mamluk Cairo and Granada

Notables: 77
Profiles to read: 17
Women: 5
Leading fields: Astronomers, Mathematicians, Historians

The Mongol invasions were a catastrophe, yet science recovered quickly. Nasir al-Din al-Tusi founded the Maragha observatory in 1259, and its astronomers built planetary models that Copernicus would later use. Ulugh Beg's observatory in Samarkand produced the most accurate star catalogue since antiquity.

In Mamluk Cairo and Damascus, hospitals such as the Mansuri treated thousands without charge, Ibn al-Nafis described the pulmonary circulation, and Ibn Khaldun wrote the Muqaddimah. Ibn Battuta crossed the known world. The era closed with the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople and the fall of Granada.

Centres of learning

Maragha
Tabriz
Cairo
Damascus
Samarkand
Granada
Delhi

People of Age of Observatories

Search Field Sort

13th century 1200–1299 CE

d. 1262 Coming soon Abu Ali al-Hasan al-Marrakushi أبو علي المراكشي Major treatise on astronomical instruments and sundials; star catalogue Morocco · Astronomers, Mathematicians

1226–1283 Coming soon Ata-Malik Juvayni عطاملک جوینی Tarikh-i Jahangushay, history of the Mongol conquests Iran · Historians

1211–1282 Coming soon Ibn Khallikan ابن خلكان Wafayat al-A'yan, celebrated biographical dictionary Iraq/Syria · Historians, Jurists

1213–1288 Profile Ibn al-Nafis ابن النفيس First to describe the pulmonary circulation of blood Syria/Egypt · Jurists, Philosophers, Physicians

13th c. Coming soon Khalifa ibn Abi al-Mahasin خليفة بن أبي المحاسن Ophthalmology text with diagrams of the eye and surgical instruments Syria · Physicians, Surgeons

d. 1266 Profile Mu'ayyad al-Din al-Urdi العرضي Built the Maragha instruments; the 'Urdi lemma' later used by Copernicus Syria/Iran · Astronomers

1201–1274 Profile Nasir al-Din al-Tusi نصیر الدین الطوسی Founded Maragha observatory; Tusi couple; trigonometry as its own discipline Iran · Astronomers, Mathematicians, Philosophers

1216–1294 Coming soon Safi al-Din al-Urmawi صفي الدين الأرموي Systematised the maqam scales; early musical notation Iraq · Musicians

1220–1283 Coming soon Muhyi al-Din al-Maghribi محيي الدين المغربي Maragha observatory astronomer; independent solar observations Syria/Iran · Astronomers, Mathematicians

d. 1277 Coming soon Najm al-Din al-Katibi نجم الدين الكاتبي Al-Risala al-Shamsiyya, the most taught logic textbook in madrasas; worked at Maragha Iran · Astronomers, Philosophers

13th c. Coming soon Jamal al-Din (Zhamaluding) جمال الدين Brought Persian instruments to Kublai Khan; founded the Islamic Astronomical Bureau in Beijing Iran/China · Astronomers, Inventors

13th c. Coming soon Abu al-Qasim al-Iraqi أبو القاسم العراقي Kitab al-Ilm al-Muktasab on chemical operations Iraq/Egypt · Chemists

1233–1286 Coming soon Ibn al-Quff ابن القف Major surgical manual; described capillaries' role and the heart's valves Syria · Physicians, Surgeons

1233–1277 Coming soon Yahya ibn Sharaf al-Nawawi يحيى بن شرف النووي Riyad al-Salihin and the Forty Hadith Syria · Islamic Scholars, Jurists

d. 1298 Coming soon Yaqut al-Musta'simi ياقوت المستعصمي Codified the six classical scripts Iraq · Calligraphers

1203–1283 Coming soon Zakariya al-Qazwini زكريا القزويني Aja'ib al-Makhluqat, illustrated cosmography and natural history Iran · Astronomers, Geographers

d. 1295 Coming soon Hasan al-Rammah حسن الرماح Recipes for purifying saltpetre, early rockets and incendiary devices Syria · Chemists, Engineers

1236–1311 Profile Qutb al-Din al-Shirazi Explained the rainbow; astronomy at Maragha; medical commentary Iran · Astronomers, Mathematicians, Physicians

c.1250–1310 Profile Shams al-Din al-Samarqandi Logic, geometry (Ashkal al-Ta'sis) and astronomy Central Asia · Astronomers, Mathematicians

c.1222–1290 Coming soon Al-Mansur Qalawun المنصور قلاوون Mansuri hospital in Cairo: free care for 4,000 patients, specialised wards Egypt · Humanitarians, Politicians

1233–1311 Coming soon Ibn Manzur ابن منظور Lisan al-Arab, the largest classical Arabic dictionary Tunisia/Egypt · Linguists

d. c.1300 Profile Sara al-Halabiya سارة بنت أحمد بن عثمان الحلبية Poet, calligrapher and copyist who won the patronage of kings Syria/Al-Andalus · Poets, Women

c.1238–1320 Coming soon Yunus Emre یونس امره Founder of Turkish-language Sufi poetry Anatolia · Poets

14th century 1300–1399 CE

1253–1325 Coming soon Amir Khusrau امیر خسرو Father of qawwali; early Hindavi/Urdu poetry; musical innovations Delhi Sultanate · Musicians, Poets

1263–1328 Coming soon Ibn Taymiyya ابن تيمية Influential jurist and theologian; works on logic and public policy Syria · Islamic Scholars, Jurists

1256–1321 Coming soon Ibn al-Banna al-Marrakushi ابن البناء المراكشي Talkhis a'mal al-hisab, standard arithmetic of the Maghrib; algebraic symbolism Morocco · Astronomers, Mathematicians

d. 1315 Coming soon Ibn al-Raqqam ابن الرقام Granada astronomer; zij tables and sundial theory Al-Andalus · Astronomers, Mathematicians

1267–1319 Profile Kamāl al-Dīn al-Fārisī كمال‌الدين فارسی First correct explanation of the rainbow; camera obscura experiments Iran · Mathematicians, Physicians

1238–1325 Coming soon Nizamuddin Auliya نظام الدین اولیاء Chishti saint of Delhi; free kitchen (langar) for all Delhi Sultanate · Humanitarians, Islamic Scholars

1247–1318 Coming soon Rashid al-Din Hamadani رشید‌الدین همدانی Jami al-Tawarikh, first world history; founded the Rab'-e Rashidi academic quarter Iran · Historians, Physicians, Politicians

1256–1327 Coming soon Shams al-Din al-Dimashqi شمس الدين الدمشقي Cosmography of the world's lands, seas and minerals Syria · Geographers

1248–1339 Coming soon Zaynab bint al-Kamal زينب بنت الكمال Hadith teacher of Ibn Battuta's generation; 400+ licensed works Syria · Islamic Scholars, Women

d. c.1330 Coming soon Nizam al-Din al-Nisaburi نظام الدين النيسابوري Commentaries on al-Tusi's astronomy; author of a major Qur'an tafsir Iran · Astronomers, Islamic Scholars

1273–1331 Coming soon Abu al-Fida أبو الفداء Prince of Hama; Taqwim al-Buldan geography with coordinates, used in Europe Syria · Geographers, Historians, Politicians

1274–1348 Coming soon Al-Dhahabi الذهبي Siyar A'lam al-Nubala and Tarikh al-Islam Syria · Historians, Islamic Scholars

d. 1342 Coming soon Aydamir al-Jildaki أيدمر الجلدكي Compiled and preserved earlier alchemical/chemical literature Egypt · Chemists

1292–1350 Coming soon Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya ابن قيم الجوزية Al-Tibb al-Nabawi (Prophetic Medicine) and works on psychology of the self Syria · Islamic Scholars, Physicians

d. 1346 Profile Sadr al-Shari'a al-Asghar Hanafi jurist of Bukhara; also wrote on astronomy and logic Central Asia · Astronomers, Islamic Scholars, Linguists

1281–1349 Coming soon Hamdallah Mustawfi حمدالله مستوفی Nuzhat al-Qulub geography and Tarikh-i Guzida history Iran · Geographers, Historians

1304–1369 Profile Ibn Battuta ابن بطوطة Travelled 120,000 km across Africa, Asia and Europe; the Rihla Morocco · Travellers

1301–1349 Coming soon Ibn Fadlallah al-Umari ابن فضل الله العمري Masalik al-Absar encyclopedia; account of Mansa Musa of Mali Egypt/Syria · Geographers, Historians

1282–1349 Coming soon Ibn Luyun ابن ليون Agriculture and garden design in verse Al-Andalus · Botanists, Poets

d. 1369 Coming soon Ibn Khatima ابن خاتمة Treatise on the Black Death describing contagion Al-Andalus · Physicians

1300–1373 Coming soon Ibn Kathir ابن كثير Al-Bidaya wa'l-Nihaya history and the widely read tafsir Syria · Historians, Islamic Scholars

1304–1375 Profile Ibn al-Shatir ابن الشاطر Timekeeper of Damascus; planetary models mathematically identical to Copernicus' Syria · Astronomers, Engineers, Mathematicians

1313–1374 Coming soon Lisan al-Din ibn al-Khatib لسان الدين بن الخطيب Argued plague spreads by contagion; vizier, historian and poet of Granada (verses on the Alhambra) Al-Andalus · Historians, Physicians, Poets

1285–1357 Coming soon Ziauddin Barani ضیاءالدین برنی Tarikh-i Firuz Shahi and political theory of the Delhi Sultanate Delhi Sultanate · Historians, Philosophers

1320–1380 Profile Al-Khalili الخليلي Tables for prayer times and the qibla for any location Syria · Astronomers

c.1325–1390 Coming soon Hafez حافظ Divan of Hafez, peak of the Persian ghazal Iran · Poets

1322–1390 Coming soon Sa'd al-Din al-Taftazani سعد الدين التفتازاني Textbooks on rhetoric, logic and theology still taught today Central Asia · Islamic Scholars, Linguists

1332–1406 Profile Ibn Khaldun ابن خلدون The Muqaddimah: foundations of sociology, historiography and economics Tunisia/Egypt · Economists, Historians, Philosophers

1344–1405 Coming soon Kamal al-Din al-Damiri كمال الدين الدميري Hayat al-Hayawan, encyclopedia of 1,000+ animals Egypt · Zoologists

1329–1414 Coming soon Al-Firuzabadi الفيروزآبادي Al-Qamus al-Muhit dictionary Iran/Yemen · Linguists

1339–1413 Coming soon Al-Sayyid al-Sharif al-Jurjani السيد الشريف الجرجاني Kitab al-Ta'rifat, a dictionary of technical terms Iran · Linguists, Philosophers

14th–15th c. Coming soon Mansur ibn Ilyas منصور بن الیاس Earliest known colour illustrations of the full human anatomical systems Iran · Physicians

15th century 1400–1499 CE

1364–1442 Coming soon Al-Maqrizi المقريزي Topography of Cairo; analysed inflation and the debasement of money Egypt · Economists, Historians

1371–1433 Coming soon Zheng He 郑和 Muslim admiral who led seven Ming treasure fleets to Africa and Arabia China · Travellers, Warriors

1378–1457 Coming soon Gawhar Shad گوهرشاد Patron of the Gawhar Shad Mosque (Mashhad) and Herat's musalla complex Herat/Iran · Humanitarians, Politicians, Women

1372–1449 Coming soon Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani ابن حجر العسقلاني Fath al-Bari, the great commentary on Sahih al-Bukhari Egypt · Islamic Scholars

1365–1447 Coming soon Ibn Majdi ابن المجدي Cairo timekeeper; astronomical tables and instruments Egypt · Astronomers, Mathematicians

c.1380–1429 Profile Jamshid al-Kashi جمشید الکاشانی Calculated π to 16 decimal places; decimal fractions Iran/Samarkand · Astronomers, Mathematicians

1364–1436 Coming soon Qadi Zada al-Rumi قاضي زاده الرومي Directed Ulugh Beg's Samarkand observatory; calculated sin 1° Turkey/Samarkand · Astronomers, Mathematicians

1394–1449 Profile Ulugh Beg الغ‌ بیگ Ruler-astronomer; Samarkand observatory and star catalogue Samarkand · Astronomers, Mathematicians, Politicians

15th c. Profile Aisha bint al-Jayyar al-Sabtiyyah عائشة بنت الجيار السبتية Physician of Ceuta during the Marinid era, sought by rulers Ceuta (Morocco) · Physicians, Women

1411–1470 Coming soon Ibn Taghribirdi ابن تغري بردي Al-Nujum al-Zahira, history of Egypt Egypt · Historians

1412–1486 Profile Al-Qalasadi Pioneer of algebraic symbolism using letters for unknowns and operations Al-Andalus/Tunisia · Mathematicians

1403–1474 Profile Ali Qushji علي قوشجي Freed astronomy from Aristotelian physics; possible Earth rotation Samarkand/Ottoman · Astronomers, Mathematicians, Philosophers

1385–1470 Coming soon Şerafeddin Sabuncuoğlu شرف الدين صابونجي أوغلي Cerrahiyetü'l-Haniye: first illustrated surgical atlas in Turkish Ottoman · Physicians, Surgeons

1414–1492 Coming soon Abd al-Rahman Jami عبدالرحمن جامی Last great classical Persian poet; Haft Awrang Herat · Islamic Scholars, Poets

1428–1497 Coming soon Al-Sakhawi السخاوي Biographical dictionary of the 15th century incl. 1,000+ women scholars Egypt · Historians, Islamic Scholars

1423–1506 Coming soon Sibt al-Maridini سبط المارديني Timekeeper at al-Azhar; widely copied treatises on instruments Egypt · Astronomers, Mathematicians

1441–1501 Coming soon Ali-Shir Nava'i علی‌شیر نوایی Founder of Chagatai Turkic literature; built hospitals and madrasas Herat · Humanitarians, Linguists, Poets

1426–1502 Coming soon Jalal al-Din Davani جلال‌الدین دوانی Akhlaq-i Jalali, popular work on ethics and governance Iran · Philosophers

1445–1505 Coming soon Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti جلال الدين السيوطي Polymath with 500+ works across tafsir, history, language and medicine Egypt · Historians, Islamic Scholars, Linguists

c.1432–1500 Coming soon Ahmad ibn Majid أحمد بن ماجد Master navigator of the Indian Ocean; Kitab al-Fawa'id on navigation Arabia (Julfar/Ras al-Khaimah) · Geographers, Travellers

d. 1506 Coming soon Mihri Hatun مهری خاتون Leading Ottoman woman poet Ottoman · Poets, Women

1436–1520 Coming soon Sheikh Hamdullah شیخ حمدالله Father of Ottoman calligraphy Ottoman · Calligraphers