Rare copie ancienne et complète du livre sur « Le retour à la jeunesse du vieil homme grâce au pouvoir du sexe » (Kitab Rujû’ al-Shaikh ila Sibâh fî al-Quwa ‘ala al-bâh), en deux volumes,

by Shihab al-Din Abu al-Abbas Ahmed ibn Yusuf Al-Tifashi (d.1253), Orient, circa 1300. Arabic manuscript in two volumes, vol. 1 of 61 leaves, vol. 2 of 69 leaves, each with 23 lines per page written in naskh in black ink, titles and important words in an elongated and wider script, comments in the margins and folio numbers in sepia ink. The manuscript opens with a title page followed by a chapter summary. Bound in stamped brown morocco with different decorations. Condition: 8 leaves in a different hand. Some marginal repairs, edge wear, a few scattered stains, annotations in ink and pen. 26 x 18 cm Al-Tifashi, (580-651AH = 1184-1253 AD), was a writer on scientific and literary subjects. Born in Tunisia or Algeria, depending on the source, he studied in Tunis and then in Cairo, where he became a pupil of Abd al-Latif al-Baghdadi. After a stay in Damascus, al-Tifashi settled permanently in Cairo. He is best known as a mineralogist and physician, and wrote numerous works, notably on precious stones ("Azhar al-afkar fi gawahir al-ahgar" = Flowers of thought on precious stones, translated into Italian in 1818), and sexology (Nuzhat al-albab fima la yujad fi kitab = The delights of hearts of what you won't find in any book, and Risala fima yahtaj ilayh al-rijal wa-al-nisa fi isti'mal al-bah mimma yadurr wa-yanfa). The Ruju al-Sheikh is both his most important and most famous work. Associated with bahnâmeh literature (from the Arabic bah meaning lust and the Persian nameh meaning book), it was first translated into Persian by the physician Muhammad Said bin Muhammad Sadek al-Isfihani, then compiled and translated into Ottoman Turkish by the jurist Kemalpasha-zade (Ibn Kemel Pasha) for Sultan Selim in 1519. In the late 19th century, it was also translated into English as "The Old Man Young Again", Paris 1898. Over time, the medical aspect of the Bahnameh lost importance in favor of provocative, obscene narratives. Thus, the Ottoman version of the Ruju Al-Sheikh, which is the most widespread, is almost entirely expurgated of the medicinal part of the treatise. The present copy has the particularity of showing the original and complete version of the treatise, where the medical aspect takes precedence. The work is divided into two parts, each with 30 chapters. The first deals with the physiology of the sexual organs, hygiene and the harmful and beneficial aspects of intercourse, provides a large number of simple and compound medicines that serve as aphrodisiacs, and describes magical practices aimed at increasing sexual potency. It includes numerous quotations from ancient Greek and Arabic physicians. The English translation of 1898 A.D. gives the medical content of Book I. The second book is an erotic guide for men, and deals with women's secrets, physiognomy, cosmetics, aphrodisiacs, sexual practice, and is packed with information and advice.