gems, Arabic lore, history, Arabic mineralogy,

Storey’s Persian Literature: A Bio-bibliographical Survey is a monumental reference work devoted to Persian writings and their authors, arranged principally by subject and providing biographical information, titles and descriptions of works, manuscript locations, editions, translations, and secondary literature. Rather than a history of Persian literature in narrative form, it functions as an extensive bibliographical guide to the surviving Persian literary tradition, including history, biography, geography, travel, mathematics, astronomy, medicine, the natural sciences, religion, poetry, and related subjects. Of particular relevance to the history of gemology are its references to Persian scientific and mineralogical literature, including works dealing with precious stones, minerals, metals, and associated technical traditions, and its documentation of manuscripts and editions through which these texts are known. The survey is especially valuable for identifying variant titles, authorship and chronology, locating manuscripts in European and Asian collections, and tracing earlier scholarship. Originally begun by Charles Ambrose Storey and subsequently continued and substantially expanded by François de Blois, it remains an important bibliographical tool for the study of Persian manuscripts and the transmission of scientific and technical literature. The entire work is available online at Storey Online.