AL-QAZWINI, Book of the Wonders of Creation Aja'ib al-Makhluqat, Ghara'ib al-Mu'allaqat, lithographed, Iran qâjâr, Tehran, Mohammad Hossein (publisher), 1866 Large volume of 272 pages printed in black and white, the text of 31 lines of text per page in Persian nasta'liq. The first and last pages adorned with a poly-lobed mandorla with floral appendages, the first containing formulas of blessings to readers, the last indicating that the work was compiled during the reign of Nasser ed-Dîn Shah Qâjâr (r. 1848-96) in Tehran by Mohammad Hossein in 1283 H / 1866. The text of Les Merveilles is introduced by a sarlow frontispiece with floral decoration surmounted by a crown and profusely illustrated with black-and-white vignettes. On the penultimate page, a triangular colophon surrounded by foliate scrolls indicates the date 1283 H / 1866. Numerous stamps. Brown leather binding titled on the spine with a "Persian Volume" label, printed pages glued to the boards. 33.4 x 21.5 cm Stains, foxing, accidents, minor repairs, binding worn and stained. Zakariya ibn Muhammad al-Qazwini (c. 1203-1283), was a 13th-century Arab physician, astronomer and geographer made famous by his work Ajâ'ib al-Makhluqât wa Gharâ'ib al-Mawjudât (The Wonders of Creation), an Arabic treatise devoted to the various creatures of nature, both real and marvelous. Translated into Persian in the 14th century, the book was copied and illustrated extensively, before being reproduced lithographically in the 19th century. This version is a second edition by Mohammad Hossein, the first dating from 1847-48.