There are also fountains that change shape at intervals...

There are also fountains that change shape at intervals, a “hurricane” lamp, self-trimming and self-feeding lamps, a gas mask for use in polluted wells and a grab for recovering objects from the beds of streams. This last is of exactly the same construction as a modern clam-shell grab. The trick vessels have a variety of different effects. For example, a single outlet pipe in a vessel might pour out first wine, then water and finally a mixture of the two.

Although it cannot be claimed that the results are important, the means by which they were obtained are of great significance for the history of engineering. The Banu Musa were masters in the exploitation of small variations in aerostatic and hydrostatic pressures and in using conical valves as “in-line” components in flow systems, the first known use of conical valves as automatic controllers.

In several of these vessels, one can withdraw small quantities of liquid repeatedly, but if one withdraws a large quantity, no further extractions are possible. In modern terms, one would call the method used to achieve this result a fail-safe system. The second major treatise to have come down to modern times was written by al-Jazari at the close of the 12th century. He was a servant of the Artuqid princes, vasals of Saladin (who vanquished Richard the Lion Heart during the Third Crusade).

His work places him in the front rank of mechanical engineers from any cultural region in pre-Renaissance times. Several of al-Jazary’s machines have been reconstructed by modern craftsmen working from his specifications, which provided far more detail than was customary in the days before patent law was invented. Such openness has rarely been encountered until recent times. Leave a Comment Leave a Comment Leave a Reply Cancel reply Your email address will not be published.

Required fields are marked * Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Name * Email * Comment * Δ Newest Video View All The Succor of Patience and Prayer Why is mercy mentioned twice in Bismillah? You Are Constantly Being Tested Fatimah Zahra (a.s): The Defender of Wilayah Eid al-Ghadir Khumm The Succor of Patience and Prayer Why is mercy mentioned twice in Bismillah?