The magnificent Astrolabe of Al-Khujandi, a thousand-year-old jewel, is reborn at the University of Sharjah
A fascinating artifact from the Islamic Golden Age has just been brought back to life at the University of Sharjah, the third largest city in the United Arab Emirates. During a captivating workshop, researchers revealed the secrets of the astrolabe designed by Abu Mahmud Hamid ibn al-Khidr Al-Khujandi, a brilliant 10th-century Persian astronomer and mathematician from what is now Tajikistan.
Participants were amazed to discover how this medieval precision jewel made it possible to read local time and follow the path of the sun through the constellations of the zodiac. A real smartphone from the year 1000, in a way.
Faced with the instrument, the scientists’ explanations brought to life the genius of Al-Khujandi and his contemporaries. These 10th century scientists were already handling mathematics and astronomy with disconcerting finesse, far from the clichés about the “long sleep” of Eastern sciences.
The event goes beyond the simple university setting. At a time when the Emirates are investing massively in space research, this rediscovery of Islamic scientific heritage takes on a particular flavor in this rapidly expanding Emirati metropolis. She reminds us that the quest for knowledge has never known borders.
More than a simple technical demonstration, this workshop illustrates the relevance of ancestral knowledge in our modern world. The astrolabe, with its mathematical precision and technical complexity, bears witness to a time when astronomy was already a major science in the Islamic world. This meeting between past and present opens up new perspectives on the history of science.
This revival of the Al-Khujandi astrolabe also resonates with contemporary challenges. In the age of digital technologies, he reminds us that innovation often arises from the encounter between different traditions of thought. The students present at the workshop understood this well: yesterday as today, scientific progress is nourished by exchanges and mutual curiosity.
