Perfumes from the East (8th century) | Inventions by Muslims
Perfumes
People have enjoyed
perfume for centuries. The hard work of two talented chemists, Jabir ibn Hayyan
(born 722) and al-Kindi (born 801) helped lay the foundations and established
the perfume industry. Jabir developed many techniques, including distillation,
evaporation and filtration, which enabled the collection of the odour of plants
into a vapour that could be collected in the form of water or oil.
Al-Kindi was the real
founder of the perfume industry as he carried out extensive research and
experiments in combining various plants and other sources to produce a variety
of scented products. He elaborated a vast number of recipes for a wide range of
perfumes, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. His work in the laboratory is reported
by a witness who said `I received the following description, or recipe, from
Abu Yusuf Ya’qub b. Ishaq al-Kindi, and I saw him making it and giving it an
addition in my presence.’ The writer goes on in the same section to speak of the
preparation of a perfume called ghaliya, which contained musk, amber and other
ingredients which reveals a long list of technical names of drugs and
apparatus.
Musk and floral perfumes were brought to Europe in the 11th and 12th centuries
from Arabia, through trade with the Islamic world and with the returning
Crusaders. Those who traded for these were most often also involved in trade
for spices and dyestuff's. There are records of the Peppers Guild of London
which go back to 1179; their activities include trade in spices, perfume
ingredients and dyes.
 | Inventions by Muslims){kind=link}
0 Comments