[Manuscript] The Book of Knowledge of Ingenious Mechanical Devices describes the construction, components, and functions of 50 mechanical devices, or automata. The illustrator invested the figures with a sense of movement, suggesting their dynamic nature.

This page describes a device used during formal drinking sessions. After removing the automaton's cap, servants poured wine into a reservoir inside its head and brought it before guests. The liquid, flowing through a series of tubes, would fill the goblet, delighting onlookers.

Courtesy of the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery: Smithsonian Unrestricted Funds, Smithsonian Collections Acquisition Program, and Dr. Arthur M. Sackler

Manuscript page from the Kitab fi ma'rifat al-hiyal al-handasiyya (Book of Knowledge of Ingenious MechanicalDevices), A.D. 1354, Egypt, Mamluk dynasty (1250-1517), by Al-Jazari (active late 12th-early 13th centuries), watercolor, ink, and gold on paper

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