The Mediterranean

Al-Masaalik Wa Al-Mamaalik.

The Mediterranean with Jabal al-Qilāl and the three islands of Sicily, Crete, and Cyprus at the center.

Al-Masaalik Wa Al-Mamaalik, written in Arabic by Mohammad Farsi Istakhri, presents an accurate description of the socio-economic, cultural, and political conditions of Islamic lands – from India to Africa – supplemented by maps. Istakhri describes the countries he travelled to, including Egypt, Syria, Afghanistan, Ethiopia, and Zanzibar, and documents information that was not widely known at the time. It’s one of the most important geographical books from the 10th century CE. Numerous manuscripts exist in several of the world’s libraries and museums and it has been translated into many different languages.