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The Elephant Clock

ساعة الفيل

A water clock designed by al-Jazari and described in his book of ingenious devices around 1206 CE; an emblem of Ayyubid-era engineering.

Depth

At a glance

Identifiers
Wikidata
Review
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In time

1190120012101220
The Crusades, Ayyubids and Mamluks · The Mongol and Post-Mongol Era

Engineering and technologyScience in Muslim societies today

Overview

A water clock invented by al-Jazari and described in his book on mechanical devices, about 1206 CE; a picture of scientific technology in the Ayyubid period. 1

People and things also explored

The Maʾrib Dam· Islamic lustreware· Joining the Red Sea to the Mediterranean· Blacas ewer· Piri Reis map· Science and Islam· Lorong Waktu· Alif the Unseen

Sources

  1. Wikidata
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “The Elephant Clock”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/object/saat-al-fil/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Accessed 2026-10-18.

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Wing

Objects

Manuscripts, art, architecture and relics from collections worldwide. Related

The Maʾrib Dam

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