A Confirmed Bachelor Wishes to Marry

Jelly Bruning “My first words to you are those of a tradition on the authority the Prophet—God bless him and grant him peace—, which relates that …” With these quite unusual words begins P.Khalili I 18, an Arabic letter written on papyrus in the late ninth century CE. Arabic letters of this time usually start withContinue reading “A Confirmed Bachelor Wishes to Marry”

The Governor’s Orders

Eline Scheerlinck *This blog post was originally posted on the website of the European Research Council project, “Embedding Conquest”, and was reposted on the Leiden Islam Blog. With many thanks to the author and the original hosts for allowing the story to be reposted here. Have you ever wondered what the Arab conquests of Egypt meantContinue reading “The Governor’s Orders”