Ismail al-Jazari’s (1236-1206 CE) design for a water-clock
ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper 30x19.7cm
illustration by Farrukh ibn `Abd al-Latif from The Book of Knowledge of Ingenious Mechanical Devices (1315 CE)
al Jazari wrote: "The elephant represents the Indian and African cultures, the two dragons represent Chinese culture, the phoenix represents Persian culture, the water work represents Greek culture, and the turban represents Islamic culture"
READ https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/451402
https://www.europeana.eu/en/blog/ismail-al-jazari-the-muslim-inventor-who-may-have-inspired-leonardo-da-vinci
This page comes from a treatise on fantastic devices invented by the author al‑Jazari. His elephant clock was especially intricate: every half hour, the bird on the dome whistled; the man below dropped a ball into the dragon’s mouth; and the driver hit the elephant with his goad. While illustrated manuscripts were growing increasingly popular at the time, this folio is a rare survival from Syria, where few such manuscripts are known from this date.
