1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910792654503321

Autore

King Anya H

Titolo

Scent from the Garden of Paradise : musk and the Medieval Islamic world / / by Anya H. King

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Leiden ; ; Boston : , : Brill, , [2017]

ISBN

90-04-33631-1

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (455 pages) : illustrations

Collana

Islamic history and civilization ; ; v. 140

Disciplina

668/.542

Soggetti

Musk

Aromatic compounds

Perfumes - History

Perfumes - Social aspects

Medicine, Medieval

Islam and culture

Commerce - History - Medieval, 500-1500

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

Preliminary Material -- Introduction -- About Musk and Its Terminology -- Commodities of Further Asia and the Islamic World -- History of Musk and the Musk Trade: From Further Asia to the Near East -- Islamicate Knowledge of Musk and Musk Producing Lands -- The Merchant World and the Musk Trade -- Musk in Daily Life in the Early Medieval Islamic World -- The Symbolic Importance of Musk in Islamic Culture -- Conclusion: Worldly and Otherworldly -- Bibliography -- Indices.

Sommario/riassunto

Since antiquity, musk has been a valued perfume and medicine. Because the musk deer only lives in Central Eurasia, people in other locations had to trade for its musk. For medieval Islamic civilization, musk became the most important of all aromatics. The musk trade thus illuminates the nature of medieval Asian trade and musk's cultural effects on the Islamic world. Scent from the Garden of Paradise: Musk and the Medieval Islamic World examines the history of musk from its origins in Asia to its uses in the medieval Middle East, surveys the Islamic literature on musk, and discusses the roles of musk in



perfumery and medicine, as well as the symbolic importance of musk in Islam.