182 AsTeR History; THE ARABS 
ARABIC WRITERS. XXV. RuHAZEs 
Rhazes, Rhasis or Arrazi, Arabic author of Persia and Bagdad, 
who died 932, A. D. (fide Abul-pharagius), was writer of works 
combining medicine, astrology, alchemy, etc., printed, in translation 
in barbarous Latin by Feragium of Salerno, under the name Con- 
tinens, as at Brixiae, by Jacobus Britannicus, 1486 ; including many 
plant-references in books 21, 22 and 23, with their properties 
mostly transcribed from Dioscorides and Galen. Among these 
plants Aster Atticus appears, Continens, 1. ult. 95. Rhazes was so 
named from his birthplace, Raiz in Persia; was the first Arabic 
writer to treat medicine in encyclopaedic manner ; and was the first 
writer to give any accurate description of measles or of smallpox. 
XXVI. AVICENNA 
Avicenna or Ibn Sina, born 980 A. D., son of an official of 
Bokhara under the last of the Samanides (Nuh’ Ben Manssur, ruling 
976-997); went into Dahistan, 1012, and lived afterward chiefly in 
Persia, where he died, at Hamadan, 1037. His books, though brief, 
number over 100, including his celebrated works on medicine, and 
on plants, animals and astronomy; with commentaries on Aristotle ; 
especially his Qantin, or book of the Canons of Medicine,* in which 
occurs his chapter + on Aster Atticus, book ii, 2, ¢. 27. His 
works formed the scientific code of the middle ages, eclipsed the 
fame of Hippocrates and Galen, and took the place in European 
universities of the Greek authorities from whom they were extracted 
—in France till about 1700. 
“By Avicenna,” remarked Fuchs,{ ‘Canon 2, c. 17 [27 
recte], Aster Atticus is wrongly written Atratisus; and in like 
manner almost all names of herbs are by Avicenna corrupted.” 
* First dated edition, 1473, Milan, in Lat., prob. tr. by Arnald ; printed earlier by 
Mentelin at Strasburg, twice at least. Printed at Rome, 1§93, in Arabic ; in 1595» " 
tr. by Gerardus Cremonensis ; in 1658, one by Plempius at Louvain of the Ist, 2d and 
part of the 4th books ; in German translation, 15 books, by Sontheimer, 1844, at Freiburg: 
t The 27th of the 757 chapters (mostly plants) of Avicenna’s matert1 medica. I 
quote it from signature 44.77 of my unpaged copy of Arnald de Villanova’s tr., printed 
Venice, 1486, by Pierre Maufer ef socii. “ De atratisus, Ca. 27. -Atratisus qui 
Est medicina cognita cum chali [7. e. cum nomine chali?]. Natura. In ipsa est pO 
infrigidationis et non est in ea stipticitas. Operationes et proprietates. Desiccat see 
equalitate et eius virtus est resolutiva cum infrigidatione. Apostemata et bothor [?- . 
ulcera}]. Confert apost it F epee ‘ta et suspensa- 
} Brunfels’ De vera, 155. 1531-2. 
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