5/5 abdulmalek S. 4 years ago on Google • 595 reviews
The
first
medical
college
in
the
Arab
world...
Bimaristan
Al-Nouri
in
Damascus
It
is
located
in
the
heart
of
the
Old
City
of
Damascus
in
Al-Harika,
southwest
of
the
Umayyad
Mosque,
east
of
Al-Hamidiyah
Market.
It
is
one
of
the
three
Bimaristans
for
which
the
city
is
famous.
It
was
built
by
King
Al-Adil
Nour
al-Din
Zengi
in
the
year
543
AH/1154
AD,
and
designated
it
as
a
hospital
for
the
poor
and
the
poor.
Then
it
turned
into
one
of
the
most
famous
hospitals
and
schools
of
medicine
and
pharmacy
in
Islamic
countries,
and
great
doctors
such
as
Ibn
Sina
and
Al-Zahrawi
studied
there.
Historical
overview:
The
first
was
built
before
him
and
was
known
as
(Bimaristan
Al-Daqqaqi),
then
it
was
called
Al-Atiq
after
the
construction
of
Bimaristan
Nour
Al-Din,
and
the
other
was
built
in
the
Salihiya
area
(Bimaristan
Al-Qaymari).
It
had
a
capacity
of
one
thousand
three
hundred
beds,
and
doctors
came
to
it
from
all
countries.
The
rich
are
not
forbidden
from
it,
if
some
medicines
are
not
available
except
in
it,
and
whoever
comes
to
him,
he
is
not
forbidden
from
drinking
it,
whoever
he
is,
and
when
Nour
al-Din
came
to
Bimaristan,
he
brought
him
a
drink,
so
he
drank
it
and
said:
This
is
permissible
for
me
and
for
all
Muslims
like
me.
In
addition
to
treating
patients,
Bimaristan
performed
an
important
function,
which
was
teaching
and
preparing
students
to
be
doctors.
The
most
famous
Arab
doctors,
including
Ibn
Sina
and
Al-Zahrawi,
worked
in
medicine
there.
Patients
received
free
medicine,
food,
and
clothing
until
they
recovered.
Ibn
Jubayr
visited
Bimaristan
in
the
twelfth
century
and
said:
(Doctors
come
to
him
early
every
day,
inspect
the
patients,
and
order
the
preparation
of
medicines
and
food
that
are
appropriate
for
each
person.
Detained
lunatics
also
receive
a
form
of
treatment.)
During
long
historical
periods,
Bimaristan
was
subjected
to
various
changes
and
modifications.
The
doctor,
Badr
al-Din
Ibn
Qadi,
came
to
Baalbek
(Who
was
the
chief
physician
and
surgeon)
in
the
year
1239
AD
-
637
AH,
he
expanded
the
Bimaristan
and
added
a
second
heavenly
hall
with
five
rooms.
In
the
year
795
AH,
Sahib
Shams
al-Din
al-Bahnasi
renovated
one
of
its
halls.
In
the
year
803
AH,
it
was
destroyed
by
Tamerlane,
and
after
his
departure
it
returned
to
receiving
patients,
but
on
a
small
scale.
Around
the
year
850
AH,
Sheikh
Yusuf
Al-Baouni
controlled
the
Bimaristan,
built
a
great
place
in
it
that
he
is
known
for,
and
bought
places
and
added
them
to
his
endowment.
In
the
Ottoman
era,
Shurbaza
Hassan,
who
built
the
Yaghoushiyya
Mosque
and
the
Khan
of
Al-Muradiyeh,
took
over
as
its
overseer.
He
established
its
rituals
after
they
had
disappeared,
maintained
its
endowments,
and
brought
about
more
and
more
good
development.
Some
of
the
historical
writings
inscribed
on
it
indicate
that
some
parts
of
it
were
restored
during
the
Mamluk
period
during
the
days
of
the
sultans,
King
al-Zahir
Baibars,
Qalawun,
and
al-Nasir
Muhammad.
The
Bimaristan
continued
in
this
state
until
the
early
fourteenth
century,
and
its
era
ended
after
the
construction
of
the
new
hospital
in
Damascus,
and
its
twenty
doctors
left
it
forever.
In
the
year
1318
AH,
it
was
transformed
into
a
girls’
school
during
the
reign
of
Sultan
Abdul
Hamid,
and
in
the
year
1358
AH,
it
was
transformed
into
a
commercial
school
until
it
was
finally
restored
in
1396
AH
and
became
a
museum
of
medicine
and
science
for
the
Arabs.
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