Ch. 5: Clocks - Ibttm.org

c l o c k s 103
clocks

104
Dividers for the determination of prayertimes.
Made after the description in an as yet
unpublished manuscript, authored probably
by Abū ‘Abdallāh MuΩammad b. Mūsā
al-øwārizmī (1st half of the 9th c.).
(cat. III, 85; B 2.08)
sundial
combined with a floating compass; model
after a description and drawing by Abū
‘Abdallāh MuΩammad b. Ibrāhīm ar-Raqqām
(d. 1315), active under the Nasrids in Granada.
(cat. III, 114; B 2.13)
c l o c k s
sundial, known as the ‹locust’s leg›
A simple pocket-sundial, as described by
Abu l-ºasan al-Marrākušī (13th c.).
our model was made according to a syrian
specimen dating from 1159, now preserved in
the Bibliothèque nationale, Paris.
(cat. III, 90; B 2.06)
sundial
After an instrument dating from 1537 ascribed
to Pedro Nunes.
(cat. III, 115; B 2.15)

sundial
Made after a description and
drawing by the Egyptian
mosque-astronomer (muwaqqit)
Zainaddīn ‘AbdarraΩmān b.
MuΩammad Ibn al-Muhallabī al-
Mīqātī, in his book dating from
1426. calibrated for the latitude
of cairo (30°).
(cat. III, 93; B 2.02)
c l o c k s 105
sundial from the Ibn fiūlūn
Mosque in cairo (1296). The sundial,
does not exist anymore. The
model is constructed according the
Napoleonic Description de l’Égypte
from the year 1798.
(B 2.16)
spanish-Arabic sundial
After a description and illustration
in the Libros del saber de
astronomía (1267-1268) by the
castilian king Alfonso X, being
a compilation of predominantly
Arabic-Islamic sciences.
(cat. III, 113; B 2.04)

106
sundialonstructed by al-Malik al-Ašraf
‘Umar b. Yūsuf (reigned 1295-1296), the third
sultan of the Yemeni Rasulid dynasty, for
the latitude of cairo; reconstructed after a
drawing in his book Mu‘īn afl-flullāb ‘alā ‘amal
al-a◊flurlāb.
(cat. III, 87; B 2.03)
c l o c k s
sundial, made by the astronomer
Ibn al-∞āflir (d. 1375 ce) for the
Umayyad Mosque at Damascus. It
represents the apex of the sundial’s
development. The original is broken
in three pieces and now kept in
the National Museum of syria in
Damascus.
(cat. III, 91; B 2.01)

chandelier clock
Replica of a device described by the wellknown
astronomer ‘Alī Ibn Yūnis (d. 1009)
who was active in Egypt; he called this device
for time-measurement ˚uraiya.
(cat. III, 86; B 3.03)
spanish-Arabic candle clock
After the description and illustration of the
Libros del saber de astronomía (1267-1268)
of the castilian king Alfonso X, which
essentially represents a compilation of
Arabic-Islamic sciences.
(cat. III, 112; B 3.08)
c l o c k s 107
The Andalusian “candle clock with
Twelve Doors” for night hours according to
lisānaddīn Ibn al-øaflīb (d. 1374).
(cat. III, 97; B 3.09)
The «candle clock with the scribe»
In his book al-©azarī (ca. 1200) describes a
candle clock made by a certain Yūsuf
al-Asflurlābī. (cat. III, 96; B 3.10)

108
Model of the Water clock from Fez
This is, as far as we know, the oldest extant water
clock. It was constructed in 1362 and belongs
to the room allocated to the astronomer of the
Qarawīyīn Mosque in Fez who is in charge of
the calculation of prayer times. The water inflow
was calculated so exactly that it remained
uniform every second through 24 hours. The
sinking of the float in the basin causes a minute
pointer on a dial to move every four minutes
c l o c k s
construction scheme of the water clock from Fez
and this, on the other hand, causes the pulling
of two carriages, one loaded with small balls,
the other with big ones. By falling into ringing
bowls, the big balls indicate the full hours,
while the small ones indicate intervalls of four
minutes. Moreover, at every full hour one of the
doors behind the bowls opens.
(cat. III, 106; B 1.04)

A Balance clepsydra indicating Minutes
Al-øāzinī describes in his book written in
1121 ce a kind of balance for “weighing”
minutes. suspended on one side of the beam
is a basin which leaks water in a calculated
amount. Its decreasing weight thus becomes a
measure of elapsing time that can be evaluated
by counterbalancing a weight on the other
side of the lever.
(cat. III, 117; B 1.11)
c l o c k s 109
Model of al-©azarī’s Goblet clepsydra
(ca. 1200 ce). The sophisticated water-powered
mechanism is hidden inside.
(cat. III, 103; B 1.10)

110
spanish-Arabic Water clock
After a description and illustration in the
Libros del saber de astronomía (1267-1268)
by the castilian king Alfonso X, being a
compilation of predominantly Arabic-Islamic
sciences.
(cat. III, 109; B 1.03)
c l o c k s
Mercury clock
After a description and illustration in the
Libros del saber de astronomía (1267-1268)
by the castilian king Alfonso X, being a
compilation of predominantly Arabic-Islamic
sciences.
(cat. III, 110; B 3.04)
Water clock with the alarm function described
in a latin manuscript from the 13th
century. The mechanism of the clock betrays
similarity with the water clock described in
al-©azarī’s book.
(cat. III, 116; B 1.05)

Mechanical Weight driven clock made
by the ottoman scholar Taqīyaddīn,
reconstructed according to the description
and illustrations in his book on clocks.
(cat. III, 119; B 3.12)
c l o c k s 111
Mechanical clock with spring Tension and
striking Mechanism made by the ottoman
scholar Taqīyaddīn, reconstructed according
to the description and illustrations in his
book on clocks.
(cat. III, 119; B 3.14)

112
c l o c k s