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Nasir Al Din Al Tousi (1274)
Al Tadhkira al-Nasiriya
(The encyclopaedia of al-Nasir)
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Taken from: Youssuf Kamal Tome III Fasc 5
Note: a special map of his found in a copy of 1331 is found under the year 1331AD.
The all encircling sea passes by the coasts of the part of the land indicated. This is known for the west, the North, most of the south and surely the east. As for the south east they say that those traveling to the sources of the Nile of Egypt reach latitudes south of more then 10 deg and there they see towards the south mountains covered with snow; those are the mountains of al-Qoumr the region where are the sources of the Nile. Those travelers do not reach the sea. We do not know anything either about the sea at the north east��
The all encircling sea �.. gives birth to four gulfs that penetrate the lands of the people; these are the Barbary Gulf who goes the furthest west, the Red gulf, the gulf of Faris and the green gulf��.
It is said that the best region is the fourth climate�.. This is proven by the extreme blackness of the Zandj and the Habash and the very curled hair they have. It is said this is due to the very hot air�.
Nasir al-Din Tusi: Rawda-yi taslim (The paradise of Submission)
Taken from: Nasir al-Din Tusi; The paradise of Submission: A medieval Treatise on Ismaili thought (1201-1274)
P 61 man is superior to all animals on account of the powers of discursive reason and discrimination superadded to him. Now, if one starts at the beginning and follows the (various kinds) of human beings through, one by one, for example, from the negro of Zanzibar (Zangi dar Zangibar) in the extreme south who, apart from having his hands off the ground, does not differ from animals in any particular way � except for that which God wishes, and many have observed that an ape is easier to train and more receptive than a negro of Zanzibar �up through persons who have an upright comportment (ras surat) balanced temperament and physical condition, an even size and stature, and supreme beauty and grace, who have competence and shrewdness in the affairs of live�..
Akhlaq-i Nasiri (the Nasirean ethics)
Taken from: Minoo Southgate: The negative Images of Blacks In some Medieval Iranian Writings. In : Iranian studies 1984
�.the first of the degrees of man is contiguous therewith. Such are the peoples dwelling on the fringes of the inhabited world, like the negroes in the west and others, for the movements and actions of the likes of this type correspond to the actions on animals.
Slaves should be regarded as the pledges of Almighty God, and all manner of benevolence, affability, gentleness and encouragement should be used in their employment. He classifies slaves into: the freeman by nature, the slave by nature, and the slave by appetite. And recommends that the first group should be treated like children and encouraged to acquire a proper mode of conduct. The second should be used like beasts and cattle and kept in training. The third category should be allowed to indulge their appetite in accordance with need, and kept at work by scornful and slighting treatment.
Ilkhani Zij of Al-Tusi by Shihab al Din al Halabi:
Taken from: 'David A. King; Worldmaps for finding the direction and distance to Mecca
Locality : Sufalat al Zanj Longitude 50 deg 0 min, latitude 2 deg 05 min Direction towards Mecca 143 deg 0 min
Reconstructed from Nasir al din al Tusi on astrolabe of Jabal al Kirmani dated 1393 (gazetteer on astrolabe called Jabel)
Taken from: 'David A. King; Worldmaps for finding the direction and distance to Mecca
Barbara: Longitude 65 deg 0 min latitude 14 deg 0 min Direction towards Mecca 39 Hours of daylight 12 H 19 min.
Memoir on Astronomy
Taken from: Nasir al-Din al Tusi's Memoir on Astronomy; F.J. Ragep.
...........the shadows at noon are not southerly in any part except that it has been reported that they are southerly in a few populated regions at the edge of al-Zanj, al-Habasha and some others.............
...............As for the southwest, it has been stated that persons travelling in the direction of he sources of Egypt's Nile have reached locations whose southern latitude is not more than 10deg to 20deg. They saw mountains at a distance to their south white with snow, which were named for the moon, from which (arise) the headwaters of the Nile. They did not reach a body of water.............
..............there is no way the equator is this way, this is indicated by t he extreme blackness in colour of its inhabitants among the peoples of Zanzibar and Abyssinia, the extreme frizziness of their hair, and other things that are brought about by the heat of the air.
