Conveners
S.4.2. The Movement of Science: Optical, Astronomical, and Horological Knowledge Across Cultures
- Víctor Pérez-Álvarez
- S. Ceren Özdemir
- Sena Aydın
Description
Chair: Gaye Danışan
The 16th-century polymath Taqi al-Dīn Muḥammad ibn Maʻrūf wrote a work in the science of optics that would enable him to be recognised as one of the peak figures of the Ottoman classical period. This work, entitled ‘Nawr ḥadīqat al-abṣar wa-nūr ḥaqīqat al-Anẓar’, cites Ibn al-Haytham's Kitāb al-Menāzir as one of its main sources in its introduction. Taqi al-Dīn's work uses numerous...
Abstract
The study of astronomical instruments has been central to the development of Ottoman astronomy, a tradition shaped by both theoretical writings and practical applications. Among the various works in this literature, studies on the Zâtü’l-Halak (the Spherical Armillary) stand out as significant contributions. Our literature review reveals that authors predominantly drew on Turkish...
The technology behind the hydraulic clocks dates back to the Antiquity and was transmitted to the Christendom and the Islamic world. From Siria to Morocco and Al-Andalus, Islamic engineers developed further that technology mastering the construction of complicated water driven time pieces and automata. Surviving Arabic treatises are testaments of that refined technological tradition....
