(14 of 44) Ibn Firnas 1) In what is now Córdoba Spain, Abbas Ibn Firnas manufactured magnifying lenses, but he did not invent them; magnifying lenses were in use in ancient times, and a museum in Naples has an engravers magnifying lens unearthed in Pompeii. Ibn Firnas did not manufacture any spectacles. 2) Ahmed Mohammed al-Maqqari wrote a book around the year 1630 about the accomplishments of Muslim Spain, summarizing what he had read in other books. Al-Maqqaris claim that in the 9th century Ibn Firnas made fabric from glass created from clay is almost certainly false, but not impossible. A glassy substance can be made from unusual clay that is mostly silicon oxide, and perhaps adding varnish would make the fibers stick to each ozher to make it into a fabric. The ancient Egyptians did decorate statues with glass fiber. 3) Al-Maqqari also wrote that Ibn-Firnas made water clocks (probably of the pre-Islamic Pseudo-Archimedes design) and invented an instrument called al-minkdlah [probably a water clock] by means of which time was marked in music. 4) He also mentions that Ibn Firnas built a machine (likely based on machines of Hero of Alexandria) that produced thunder and lightning special effects. 5) Abbas Ibn Firnas did not construct a flying machine. Each time the story of the flight of Ibn Firnas was retold, more details were added. The oldest surviving version of the story is a poem written prior to the year 886 by Mumin ibn Said. In a translation of the poem, the pertinent verse merely said : He surpassed in velocity the flight of the ostrich, but neglected to arm his body with the strength of a vulture. Another translation of this verse is He flew faster than the phoenix in his flight when he dressed his body in the feathers of a vulture. It may have been a myth or meant as a metaphor, or may have been a description of a historical event. Al-Maqqaris book provides the original poem, and copied from unnamed sources additional information. He mentions silk and eagle feathers, but is unclear about where the feathers were attached, and unclear about how the silk was used. In Al-Maqqaris version of the story, there is no mention of any rigid material such as wood being used. Al-Maqqari quotes Ibn Firnas as saying By guiding these wings up and down, I should ascend like the birds”. This video youtube/watch?v=DuowOfkjR_E about Ibn Firnas from the people who created the 1001 Inventions exhibition contains several false statements. The original Muslim sources did not mention any stiff skeleton made of bamboo or of anything else, and said the feathers were attached to his arms (not to a frame attacnhed to his back). Human muscles are not powerful enough to enable flying by flapping your arms. The later Muslim did not fly across a river but instead fell to his death. 6) Al-Maqqari claims Ibn Firnas flew to a significant height and hung in the air for more than ten minutes. gilgamesh42.wordpress/2012/11/17/ibn-firnas-flies-again/ jasoncolavito/1/post/2012/11/what-early-flight-attempts-tell-us-about-ancient-astronaut-claims.html and jasoncolavito/1/post/2012/10/did-an-andalusian-moor-invent-flight.html Modern Muslims interpret this as the invention of the first hang glider. Writers after al-Maqqari changed the story, claiming that Armen Firman wrapped himself in a loose cloak stiffened with wooden struts. Modern Muslims claim this was the invention of the first parachute. Armen Firman seems to be a later version of the Ibn Firnas story with Ibn Firnas translated into a European language as Armen Firman. Muslims deny that these are 2 versions of the same story that contradict each other. Instead, Muslims either claim that Ibn Firnas made 2 flights or else Ibn Firnas was inspired by the earlier flight of Armen Firman.
Posted on: Mon, 20 Oct 2014 19:26:05 +0000
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