Title: A Treatise on the Canon of Medicine of Avicenna: Incorporating a Translation of the First Book
Author: Avicenna (Ibn Sina, the legendary Persian polymath who authored what is arguably the most influential medical encyclopedia in human history)
Translator/Editor: O. Cameron Gruner, M.D. (Lond.)
Publisher: The Classics of Medicine Library (A Division of Gryphon Editions, Ltd., Birmingham, Alabama)
Publication Date: 1984 (Special Edition Copyright)
Edition Type: A premium deluxe facsimile reprint of the rare 1930 London edition originally published by Luzac & Co.
Binding & Deluxe Features:
Full premium royal blue leather binding with a hubbed spine.
Intricate, interlocking 22kt gold gilt border framework decorating both the front cover and spine compartments.
Features a beautiful full-color historical frontispiece illustration opposite the title page.
All edges gilt (gilded page edges) with a matching blue silk ribbon page marker and marbled/moire endsheets.
Includes the original, separate "Notes from the Editors" softcover insert booklet (a massive bonus for collectors, as these are frequently lost).
Condition Notes: Very Good / Fine overall. The binding remains structurally tight, square, and solid. The gold gilt on the covers, spine, and page edges is bright and reflective.
Minor Flaws to Note:
Corners: Shows minor shelf rubbing on the corner tips, revealing slight color softening/fading to the leather grain underneath (common for these heavy volumes). There is no structural tearing or exposure of the raw board beneath.
Spine Edges: Very minor rubbing visible at the extreme top and bottom headcaps of the spine.
Leather: The textured grain leather is clean, supple, and free of deep gouges or liquid staining.
Interesting Notes about this title:
For over 500 years (from the 12th through the 17th centuries), this exact text served as the undisputed, primary textbook of medicine in European universities.
Avicenna managed to synthesize the ancient medical traditions of Galen and Aristotle, combine them with Islamic medical advancements, and organize them into an incredibly logical system. He was so far ahead of his time that in this 1,000-year-old text, he correctly deduced that diseases could be spread through contaminated water, accurately detailed the difference between human facial paralysis of central versus peripheral origin, and was the first to propose the concept of quarantine to limit the spread of infectious plagues.
Title: A Treatise on the Canon of Medicine of Avicenna: Incorporating a Translation of the First Book
Author: Avicenna (Ibn Sina, the legendary Persian polymath who authored what is arguably the most influential medical encyclopedia in human history)
Translator/Editor: O. Cameron Gruner, M.D. (Lond.)
Publisher: The Classics of Medicine Library (A Division of Gryphon Editions, Ltd., Birmingham, Alabama)
Publication Date: 1984 (Special Edition Copyright)
Edition Type: A premium deluxe facsimile reprint of the rare 1930 London edition originally published by Luzac & Co.
Binding & Deluxe Features:
Full premium royal blue leather binding with a hubbed spine.
Intricate, interlocking 22kt gold gilt border framework decorating both the front cover and spine compartments.
Features a beautiful full-color historical frontispiece illustration opposite the title page.
All edges gilt (gilded page edges) with a matching blue silk ribbon page marker and marbled/moire endsheets.
Includes the original, separate "Notes from the Editors" softcover insert booklet (a massive bonus for collectors, as these are frequently lost).
Condition Notes: Very Good / Fine overall. The binding remains structurally tight, square, and solid. The gold gilt on the covers, spine, and page edges is bright and reflective.
Minor Flaws to Note:
Corners: Shows minor shelf rubbing on the corner tips, revealing slight color softening/fading to the leather grain underneath (common for these heavy volumes). There is no structural tearing or exposure of the raw board beneath.
Spine Edges: Very minor rubbing visible at the extreme top and bottom headcaps of the spine.
Leather: The textured grain leather is clean, supple, and free of deep gouges or liquid staining.
Interesting Notes about this title:
For over 500 years (from the 12th through the 17th centuries), this exact text served as the undisputed, primary textbook of medicine in European universities.
Avicenna managed to synthesize the ancient medical traditions of Galen and Aristotle, combine them with Islamic medical advancements, and organize them into an incredibly logical system. He was so far ahead of his time that in this 1,000-year-old text, he correctly deduced that diseases could be spread through contaminated water, accurately detailed the difference between human facial paralysis of central versus peripheral origin, and was the first to propose the concept of quarantine to limit the spread of infectious plagues.
