Ibn al-Adim

He also published a chronicle version of the work, Zubdat al-Halab fi ta'arikh Halab (زبدة الحلب في تأريخ حلب; The Cream of the History of Aleppo), a copy of which reached the library of Jean-Baptiste Colbert and then the Bibliothèque nationale de France, and selections of which were published with Latin translation by Georg Freytag in 1819. His historical sources are various, some oral and some written, and two of the more famous are Usama ibn Munqidh and Ibn al-Qalanisi (Lewis 1952). Another work is a guide for the making of perfumes, Kitab al-Wuslat (or Wasilat) ila al-Habib fi Wasf al-Tayibat wal-tibb (الوصلة إلى الحبيب في وصف الطيّبات والطيب) (Houtsma 1927). He is an important source of knowledge on the Syrian Assassins, first analyzed by Silvester de Sacy (Lewis 1952). Numerous Ayyubid rulers entrusted Ibn al-Adim as a diplomatic ambassador. On his last mission in 1260, he was sent to Egypt seeking military assistance against the Mongols.

• Name — Ibn al-Adim • Native Name — ابن العديم • Born — 1192 • Birthplace — Aleppo, Syria • Died — 1262 • Place of death — Cairo, Egypt • Occupation — Historian, Biographer, Diplomat • Notable Works — Bughyat al-Talab fī Tārīkh Ḥalab, Zubdat al-Halab fi ta'arikh Halab • Era — Ayyubid period • Main Interests — History, Biography