Travels of Ibn Battuta

Ibn Batuta (1304-1377) was the greatest of the Arabian travellers of the Middle Ages. Born in Algiers, he spent the years 1325-54 in overland traverse throughout Europe, Asia and much of Africa. He visited Mecca, Persia, Mesopotamia, Arabia, North and East Africa, Asia Minor, Bukhara, Afghanistan, India, Sumatra and China. He eventually settled in Fez in 1354 where he began to write an account of his travels. The resulting narrative is among the most important of the early Arabic texts, providing a primary source for the history and geography of the medieval Arab world. Moreover, the 'Travels' have retained their compelling fascination despite the passage of centuries. Reverend Samuel Lee (1783-1852), English Orientalist and Professor of Arabic at Cambridge was the first to provide an English translation of this text, in 1829. His annotations add greatly to our understanding of the work and provide the student with useful background information. Thus, both for its intrinsic and its historical value, this handsome facsimile of the first edition will be greatly welcomed.