{"product_id":"mission-to-the-volga-paperback","title":"Mission to the Volga - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eAḥmad Ibn Faḍlān\u003c\/b\u003e (Author), \u003cb\u003eJames E. Montgomery\u003c\/b\u003e (Translator), \u003cb\u003eTim Severin\u003c\/b\u003e (Foreword by)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe earliest surviving instance of sustained first-person travel narrative in Arabic\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eMission to the Volga \u003c\/i\u003eis a pioneering text of peerless historical and literary value. In its pages, we move north on a diplomatic mission from Baghdad to the upper reaches of the Volga River in what is now central Russia. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn this colorful documentary from the tenth century, the enigmatic Ibn Fadlan relates his experiences as part of an embassy sent by Caliph al-Muqtadir to deliver political and religious instruction to the recently-converted King of the Bulghars. During eleven months of grueling travel, Ibn Fadlan records the marvels he witnesses on his journey, including an aurora borealis and the white nights of the North. Crucially, he offers a description of the Viking Rus, including their customs, clothing, body painting, and a striking account of a ship funeral. Together, these anecdotes illuminate a vibrant world of diversity during the heyday of the Abbasid Empire, narrated with as much curiosity and zeal as they were perceived by its observant beholder. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAn English-only edition.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAḥmad ibn Faḍlān (Author) \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eAḥmad ibn Faḍlān \u003c\/b\u003ewas a member of a diplomatic mission sent by the Abbasid caliph al-Muqtadir in 309-310\/921-922 to the king of the Volga Bulghars. His is the only existing record of that mission. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eTim Severin (Foreword by) \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eTim Severin \u003c\/b\u003eis a British explorer, film-maker, and lecturer. He received the Thomas Cook Travel Book Award for his 1982 non-fiction book The Sindbad Voyage and is noted for his Viking historical fiction series (2005). \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eJames E. Montgomery (Translator) \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eJames E. Montgomery\u003c\/b\u003e is Sir Thomas Adams's Professor of Arabic at the University of Cambridge and Fellow of Trinity Hall. His latest publications are \u003ci\u003eFate the Hunter: Early Arabic Hunting Poems\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eKalīlah and Dimnah: Fables of Virtue and Vice\u003c\/i\u003e, with Michael Fishbein. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 108\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.5 x 8.2 x 5.4 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e April 04, 2017\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51760685089056,"sku":"9781479899890","price":17.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0974\/9764\/5344\/files\/f978e5a70e95e3933ca1b08cf9069290.webp?v=1780186818","url":"https:\/\/ebocreations.com\/products\/mission-to-the-volga-paperback","provider":"The E-Book Oasis LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}