chapter 17

the author refers to an ancient method regarding cautery of the fistula in the inner corner of the eye. After incising the fistula, one "dirham" (derived from the Greek "drachma," which is equal to about 2.97 grams)[19] of melted lead is poured into it through a fine funnel used for cauterization (fig. 3).

[Illustration: Figure 12.--Golden bridge to stabilize shaky teeth. _Top_, from original Arabic manuscript (Tüb. MS. 91), courtesy Universitätsbibliothek Tübingen. _Left_, from Argellata 1531, courtesy National Library of Medicine. _Right_, from Channing, _Albucasis_.]

In like manner, al-Zahrāwī discusses cautery of the stomach and the "cold liver" in chapters 26 and 27, respectively. The drawings therein represent shapes of the burns on the skin (fig. 4) and marks of ink to be drawn beneath the cartilage of the ribs (fig. 5) for the purpose of spotting the area of operation. Here also he describes carefully and clearly the methods of applying cautery and the types, position, and number of tools employed in each case. He likewise depicts (in