pickI loved this little book of travellers tales by Arabic (specifically, a Baghdadi of the Abbasid Empire from what is now Iraq, written while he was living in Egypt in 947CE) writer, Abu al-Hasan Ali ibn al-Husayn al-Mas'udi.
His accounts of Persian, Greek, Egyptian, East African,Indian, Central Asian, Chinese, Malaysian, Cambodian, etc. life and cultural practices are fascinating, and there are hints of knowledge of the Americas and Japan, all 👇
al-Mus'ādī is describing some of the wonders of Egypt, including the excavation of a temple lost beneath the desert sands. Uncovering stairs leading to the entrance, a rash man sets foot on the fourth step, triggering two swords to spring out of the walls & slice him to pieces, one of which rolls onto another trigger-step, causing the whole edifice to collapse, burying 2000 people!
I love that Indy's Tomb Raiding has such a venerable lineage! 😃
"... all traces of science have vanished and its splendour is spent; learning has become too general and has lost its depth, and one no longer sees any but people filled with vanity and ignorance, imperfect scholars who are content with superficial ideas and do not recognise the truth."
Written in 947 CE, presumably al-Mas'ūdī had the gift of precognition? Either that, or human nature is constant over the millennia, which is either ? or ?
"We beg our readers' indulgence for any mistakes or negligence which they find in this book; for our memory is weakened and it strength spent as a result of the great weariness brought about by voyages which have taken us by sea from one country to another and by land across extensive desert."
Opening line of a short selection of entries from Baghdad-born Mas'üdī's lengthy account of his 10th C. CE travels.
#FirstLineFridays @shybookowl
From the Meadows of Gold | 
Mas'üdī mentions his Islamic faith and culture, while respecting the faith and cultures of the peoples he meets. He reports hearsay at times, clarifying where he has no evidence, and occasionally commenting on things that seem probable exaggerations or fiction.
I particularly enjoyed his accounts of treasure hunting and excavation of the antiquities of Egypt, and his story of the foolish king of 👇 9h