On Poisons and the Protection against Lethal Drugs was written in the year 1199 at the request of al-Qadi al Fadil, the famous counselor and secretary to Saladin.
While the subject of poisons and antidotes was often addressed in medieval Arabic medical literature, al-Qadi al Fadil wanted something a little different-a layman's handbook of easily obtained antidotes and first aid for victims who might otherwise die before a physician could attend them. Maimonides' resulting treatise mined the existing literature, his own experience, and the experience of others. It proved very popular and highly influential in both Jewish and non-Jewish circles, being translated at least twice into Hebrew and three times into Latin and quoted by many medieval scholars in their own writings.
Although this text survives in several manuscripts, both in Arabic and Judeo-Arabic, this is the first finished critical edition of the Arabic. The book also includes critical editions of the medieval Hebrew and Latin translations and a glossary of material medica and technical terms. It is an important addition to the shelves o those interested in Maimonides and pre-modern medicine.
Edited, translated, and annotated by Gerrit Bos, along with critical editions of Hebrew and Latin; medieval translations by Gerrit Bos and Michael R. McVaugh
