AN ILLUMINATED TITLE PAGE FROM A MANUSCRIPT OF THE THIRD SECTION OF THE MAFATIH AL-GHAYB OF FAKHR AL-DIN AL-RAZI, EGYPT, MAMLUK, 14TH CENTURY

Fakhr al-Din al-Razi was one of the greatest scholars of the medieval Islamic world. A giant among Islamic theologians and philosophers, he was also a celebrated teacher and at one stage persuaded the Ghurid Sultan Ghiyath al-Din to allow him to open a school for the general public within the palace. He was born in Rayy in 543/1148, spent the majority of his career in Central Asia and died at Herat in 606/1209.

The Mafatih al-Ghayb (also known as the Kitab al-Tafsir al-Kabir) is his most important work, containing the most complete expression of his knowledge of religion and philosophy. It was a monumental work - the printed edition runs to eight volumes, each of 600 pages. The present folio is the opening of chapter three: The Book of Paradise.

For further information see EI2, article "Fakhr al-Din al-Razi".