Indeed...

Indeed, there may be instances of ideas being inherited directly from the Greco-Roman tradition in medieval Europe. Nor can we rule out cases of reinvention. When allowances have been made, however, it seems probable that some elements of the rich vein of Islamic mechanical engineering were transmitted to Europe.

Any such technological borrowing would probably have been mediated by contacts between craftsmen, by the inspection of existing machines working or in disrepair and by the reports of travellers. The most likely location for the transfer of information was Iberia during the long years in which Christians and Muslims coexisted. The diffusion of the elements of machine technology from lands of Islam to Europe may always remain partly conjectural.

This should not in any way be allowed to devalue the achievements of the Muslim engineers, known and anonymous. Nor should we emphasise the relevance of Islamic inventions to modern machinery. Of equal or great importance is the contribution they made to the material wealth, and hence the cultural riches, of the medieval Near East. NOTES: __________________________ 1. D.R. Hill (1991) Mechanical Engineering in the Medieval Near East. Scientific American, May: 64-69. 2. S.M.R.

Musawi Lari (1977) Western Civilisation Throughout Muslim Eyes (Translated by: F.J. Goulding), Publisher: The Author, (Iran). 3. H.P. Rang & M.M. Dale (1993) Pharmacology (2nd ed.), Churchill Livingstone, Edinbburgh, p 3. Leave a Comment Leave a Comment Leave a Reply Cancel reply Your email address will not be published.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.

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