This illuminated page with its illustrations of a coiled serpent and a hare, comes from the manuscript ‘Aja‘ib al-Makhluqat wa Ghara‘ib Maujudat or ‘The Marvels of Things Created and the Wonders of Things Existent’, written by Qazwini (1230-1283). Qazwini’s book is like an encyclopaedia of his time, containing all available knowledge of the world – the heavenly bodies, geology, flora and fauna, and even mystical animals. Factual information, and myths and legends were included in the book. This genre of classical Arabic literature is known as ‘aja‘ib (wonders), with Qazwini’s book being the most popular of that genre. These manuscripts were often copiously illustrated.
