Hide
Show all
Email this article 
Magnificent City or a ”Golden Basin Filled with Scorpions”? Jerusalem in Al-Muqaddasi’s ”The Best Divisions for Knowledge of the Regions”
Abstract
Shams al-Din Abu ‘Allah Muhammad bin Ahmad bin Abi Bakr al-Banna al-Shami al-Muqaddasi al-ma’ruf bi al-Bashshari, a Muslim traveler, geographer and a writer known as Al-Muqaddasi (i.e. the man from Jerusalem) was born in Jerusalem ca. 945. He spent two decades traveling through the Islamic empire. As a 40-year-old man he wrote a book entitled The Best Divisions for Knowledge of the Regions. In a huge volume he described provinces and important cities of the Islamic empire. As a man from Jerusalem he presented his home-town as a place blessed by God. The Sacred City, ornamented with the Dome of the Rock and magnificent buildings, had clean markets with luxury products and enjoyed the moderate climate. On the other hand, Muslim inhabitants of Jerusalem are not pious and well educated. There were huge communities of Christians and Jews in Jerusalem as well. So Al-Muqaddasi called the city a golden basin filled with scorpions.
Keywords
Full Text:
PDF (Język Polski)References
Abu-Munshar M.Y., Islamic Jerusalem and its Christians. History of Tolerance and Tensions, London–New York 2007.
Adolf H., Christendom and Islam in the Middle Ages: New Light on “Grail Stone” and “Hidden Host”, „Speculum” 1957, 32, 1.
Al-Gazali M., Zasady moralności Islamu, Białystok 1994.
Al-Kilani S., The Muslim Fascination with Jerusalem: The Case of the Sufis, „Islamic Studies” 2001, 40, 3/4, Special Issue, Jerusalem 2001.
Al Muqaddasī, The Best Divisions for Knowledge of the Regions. Ahsan al-Taqāsīm fī Ma’rifat al-Aqālīm, Al Muqaddasī, transl. by B. Collins, reviewed by M. Hamid Alta’i, Reading 2001.
Allen R., An Introduction to Arabic Literature, Cambridge 2000.
Armstrong K., Jerozolima. Miasto trzech religii, Warszawa 2000.
Ashtor E., Le coût de la vie dans la Syrie médiévale, „Arabica” 1961, 8, 1.
A Source Book in Geography, ed. G. Kish, Cambridge, Mass., London 1978.
Atiya A.S., The Crusades in the Later Middle Ages, London 1938.
Avner R., The Dome of the Rock in Light of the Development of Concentric Martyria in Jerusalem. Architecture and Architectural Iconography, „Mukarnas” 2010, 27.
Avni G., From Hagia Polis to Al-Quds: The Byzantine-Islamic Transition in Jerusalem, w: Unearthing Jerusalem – 150 years of Archaeological Research in the Holy City, ed. K. Galor, G. Avni, Winona Lake 2011.
Avni G., The Byzantine-Islamic Transition in Palestine. An Archaeological Approach, Oxford 2014.
Bahat D., The Illustrated Atlas of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 1996.
Bashear S., Qur’ān 2:114 and Jerusalem, „Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies” 1989, 52, 2.
Berkey J.P., The Formation of Islam. Religion and Society in the Near East, 600–1800, Cambridge 2003.
Bielawski J., Islam, religia państwa i prawa, Warszawa 1973.
Bielawski J., Klasyczna literatura arabska, Warszawa 2012.
Bielawski J., Książka w świecie islamu, Wrocław 1961.
Boas A.J., Jerusalem in the Time of the Crusades. Society, landscape and art in the Holy City under Frankish rule, London–New York 2001.
Bosworth C.E., Travel Literature, w: Encyclopedia of Arabic Literature, ed. J.S. Meisami, P. Starkey, London–New York 1998.
Browne L.E., The Eclipse of Christianity in Asia. From the Time of Muhammad Till the Fourteenth Century, Cambridge 1933.
Carruthers D., Routes in Middle Arabia, „The Geographical Journal” 1922, 59, 4.
Colby F.S., Narrating Muhammad’s Night Journey. Tracing the Development of the Ibn ‘Abbas Ascension Discourse, New York 2008.
Collin B., Le problème juridique des Lieux-Saints, Paris 1956.
Collins B.A., Preface, w: Al-Muqaddasi, The Best Divisions for Knowledge of the Regions. Ahsan al-Taqāsīm fī Ma’rifat al-Aqālīm, Al Muqaddasī, transl. by B. Collins, reviewed by M. Hamid Alta’i, Reading 2001.
Dougherty R.P., A Babylonian City in Arabia, „American Journal of Archaeology” 1930, 34, 3.
El-Sayed El-Bushra, Perspectives on the Contribution of Arabs and Muslims to Geography, „GeoJournal” 1992, 26, 2, History of Geographical Thought.
Elad A., Medieval Jerusalem and Islamic Worship. Holy Places, Ceremonies, Pilgrimage, Islamic History and Civilization, Studies and Text, vol. 8, ed. by U. Haarmann, Leiden–Boston–Köln 1999.
Gil M., A History of Palestine, 634–1099, Cambridge 1997.
Goeje M.J. de, Bibliotheca Geographorum Arabicorum, pars 4, Lugdunum Batavorum 1879.
Goldhill S., The Temple of Jerusalem, London 2006.
Gottheil R., A Distinguished Family of Fatimide Cadis (al-Nu’mān) in the Tenth Century, „Journal of the American Oriental Society” 1906, 27.
Grabar O., The Umayyad Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, w: Late Antique and Medieval Art of the Mediterranean World, ed. by E.R. Hoffman, Oxford 2007.
Haas J. de, History of Palestine. The Last Two Thousand Years, New York 1934.
Herzfeld E., Damascus: Studies in Architecture: II, „Ars Islamica” 1943, 10.
Hitti P.K., Syria. A Short History, New York 1959.
Hozayen S.A.S., Some Contributions of the Arabs to Geography, „Geography” 1932, 17, 2.
Idinopulos T.A., Jerusalén. Historia de la más santa de las cuidades, vista a través de las luchas de los judíos, cristianos, y musulmanes, Barcelona–Buenos-Aires–Mexico DC–Santiago de Chile 1995.
Kenaan N., Local Christian Art in Twelfth Century Jerusalem, „Israel Exploration Journal” 1973, 23, 3.
Khoury N.N.N., The Dome of the Rock, the Kaʿba, and Ghumdan: Arab Myths and Umayyad Monuments, „Muqarnas” 1993, vol. 10.
Khusraw N., Sefer Namèh. Relation du voyage de Nassiri Khosrau en Syrie, en Palestine, en Égypte, en Arabie et en Perse, pendant les années de l’Hégire 437–444 (1035–1042), publié, traduit et annoté par Ch. Schefer, Paris 1881.
Kolesnikov A., The Early Muslim Geographers on the Ethnic Situation in Khurasan (IX–XIII Centuries A.D.), „Iran & the Caucasus” 1997, 1.
Kowalska M., Średniowieczna arabska literatura podróżnicza, „Zeszyty Naukowe Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego. Prace Historycznoliterackie” 1973, 25.
Kühnel B., Reich M., Crusader Sculpture at the Ascension Church on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, „Gesta” 1977, 16, 2.
Lapidus I.M., A History of Islamic Societies, Cambridge 1991.
Le Strange G., Palestine under the Moslems. A Description of Syria and the Holy Land From A.D. 650 to 1500, London 1890.
Levy-Rubin M., New Evidence Relating to the Process of Islamization in Palestine in the Early Muslim Period: The Case of Samaria, „Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient” 2000, 43, 3.
Lewis B., Islam from the Prophet Muhammad to the capture of Constantinople, London 1976.
Lundquist J.M., The Temple of Jerusalem. Past, Present, and Future, London 2008.
Mackensen R.S., Moslem Libraries and Sectarian Propaganda, „The American Journal of Semitic Languages and Literatures” 1935, 51, 2.
Macpherson J.R., The Church of the Resurrection, or of the Holy Sepulchre, „The English Historical Review” 1892, 7, 27.
Matthews C.D., Palestine, Holy Land of Islam, „Journal of Biblical Literature” 1932, 51, 2.
McNeely B.E., The Mi’raj of Muhammad in an Ascension Typology, http://www.bhporter.com/Porter/PDFFiles/The_Miraj_of_Muhammad_in_an_Asceneion_Typology.pdf [dostęp: 11 I 2016].
Migeon G., Jérusalem musulmane d’après Max van Berchem, „Syria” 1928, 9, 1.
Mikesell M.W., A Propos du Nom Del’Oasis de Koufra chez les Geographes Arabes du XIe et du XIIe Siècle, „Geographical Review” 1969, 59, 1.
Miquel A., Jérusalem arabe. Notes de topographie historique, „Bulletin d’Études Orientales” 1958–1960, 16.
Moshe G., A History of Palestine, 634–1099, Cambridge 1997.
Necipoğlu G., The Dome of the Rock as Palimpsest: Abd al-Malik’s Grand Narrative and Sultan Süleyman’s Glosses, „Muqarnas” 2008, 25, Frontiers of Islamic Art and Architecture: Essays in Celebration of Oleg Grabar’s Eightieth Birthday.
Petersen A., The Towns of Palestine under Muslim Rule AD 600–1600, Oxford 2005.
Petry C.F., Travel Patterns of Medieval Notables in the Near East, „Studia Islamica” 1985, 62.
Pourahmad A., Tavallai S., The Contribution of Muslim Geographers to the Development if the Subject, „Geography” 2004, 89, 2.
Richter-Bernburg L., Al-Muqaddasi, w: Encyclopedia of Arabic Literature, ed. J.S. Meisami, P. Starkey, London–New York 1998.
Richter-Bernburg L., Geographical Literature w: Encyclopedia of Arabic Literature, ed. J.S. Meisami, P. Starkey, London–New York 1998.
Schick R., Archaeological Sources for the History of Palestine: Palestine in the Early Islamic Period: Luxuriant Legacy, „Near Eastern Archaeology” 1998, 61, 2.
Schick R., Jordan in the Fatimid and Seljuq Periods, „Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research” 1997, 305.
Shani R., Chen D., On the Umayyad Dating of the Double Gate in Jerusalem, „Muqarnas” 2001, 18.
Siddigi A.H., Muslim Geographic Thought and the Influence of Greek Philosophy, „GeoJournal” 1995, 37, 1, The Muslim World.
Siddiqi A.H., The Impact of the Qur’an on the Development of Muslim Geographic Thought, „Islamic Studies” 1991, 30, 4.
Stern H., Recherches sur la Mosquée al-Aqṣā et sur ses Mosaïques, „Ars Orientalis” 1963, 5.
Theophanes, The Chronicle of Theophanes Confessor. Byzantine and Near Eastern History AD 284–813, transl., ed. C. Mango, R. Scott, Oxford 1997.
Tsafrir Y., Foerster G., The Dating of the ‘Earthquake of the Sabbatical Year’ of 749 C.E. in Palestine, „Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies” 1992, 55, 2.
Tsafrir Y., Muqaddasi’s Gates of Jerusalem – A New Identification Based on Byzantine Sources, „Israel Exploration Journal” 1977, 27, 2/3.
Vuckovic B.O., Heavenly Journeys, Earthly Concerns: The Legacy of the Mi’raj in the Formation of Islam, New York 2005.
Waleed A.A., Muslim Contributions to Geography until the End of the 12th Century AD, „GeoJournal” 1991, 25, 4.
Wightman G.J., The Walls of Jerusalem: Synopsis of a New, Detailed Study, „The Biblical Archaeologist” 1994, 57, 4.
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17951/rh.2018.45.71-86
Date of publication: 2018-06-29 13:17:54
Date of submission: 2018-06-29 11:07:23
Statistics
Indicators
Refbacks
- There are currently no refbacks.
Copyright (c) 2018 Wojciech Mruk
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.