Historical Arabic solar astronomy. Historical table of astronomical observations of the Sun, written in Arabic. The script is read from right to left. The period of Arabic (also called Islamic) astronomy dates from the 8th to the 17th century. Ancient texts from India and classical texts from Greece and Rome, were translated into Arabic, and much pioneering work was carried out. Observatories from Damascus to Baghdad, and later Spain, took detailed observations of the sky, including the Sun. Part of the motivation was to enable accurate calculations of the timing of religious festivals. This table is part of a work known as 'The Shining Pearl, or the Operations of the Sun', by Muhammad al-Akhasai al-Muwaqqit.