The Ajaib al-Makhluqat wa-Gharaib al-Mawjudat (Wonders of Creation and Oddities of Existence) is a cosmographical and geographical treatise written in Arabic in 1279-1280 by Zakariyya' al-Qazwini (1203-1283), who was born in Qazvin, Iran. It consists of two volumes: the celestial spheres, including a discussion of chronology, planets, constellations, zodiac, and heavenly inhabitants such as angels and demons; and terrestrial phenomena, including the four elements, geography, the animal kingdom, botany, minerology, and the nature of mankind.
This folio is from a dispersed manuscript reportedly with a colophon dated 1675.
Recto: The Constellations Argo, the ship of Greek mythology (safina), and Hydra, the multiheaded water serpent of Greek mythology (al-timsah). This folio is the left half of a double-page illumination. The right-hand facing page with the continuation of the composition cannot now be traced.
Verso: The Constellations Canis Major (Large Dog; al-kalb al-akbar) and Canis Minor (Small Dog; al-kalb al-asghar).
(Translation by Wheeler Thackston.)
