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A History of Muslim Pharmacy:
Al-Ghafiqi and His al-Jami

The importance of al-Biruni's compendium and the fact that it was not known to Andalusian botanists and physicians should not distract our attention from the part played by al-Jami' of al-Ghafiqi, completed about a century later. Its impact Was immediately felt in al-Andalus and the western region as evident from the work of Ibn al-Baytar and others. Ibn al-Baytar who was once Cairo's chief herbalist under the Ayyubiyyah, copied almost the same title for his herbal as that of al-Ghafiqi's. And in numerous entries he practically quoted al-Ghafiqi verbatim.  As to al-Biruni's work, we already stated that it was most probably unknown to al-Ghafiqi; yet there were hundreds of the same simples that we:re discussed by both authors from cabaret (Asarum europaean, Arabic, Asarun) and savin ( Juniperus sabina L., Arabic, Abhul), to anagyris (Arabic, Yanbut) and jasmin (Arabic, Yasamin); and from henbane (Arabic, Banj) and lilac (Melia azedarac L., Arabic, Jurud), to hellegore (Arabic, Khurbuq) and ambergris (Arabic, 'Anbar).

Although we know little concerning al-Biruni's private life, we practically know nothing about that of al-Ghafiqi. The first and bestsource of information we have available is the very brief, most probably secondhand biography, given by Ibn Abi Usaybi'ah. In it, the Syrian physician-historian praised al-Ghafiqi as one of the most competent Andalusian learned men of the time in the knowledge of drugs, their synonyms, properties, modes of action and their therapeutic values; and his al-jami'a most reliable and trustworthy herbal.