{"product_id":"lost-maps-of-the-caliphs-by-emilie-savage-smith-9781851244911","title":"Lost Maps of the Caliphs","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAbout a millennium ago, in Cairo, someone completed a large and richly illustrated book. In the course of thirty-five chapters, our unknown author guided the reader on a journey from the outermost cosmos and planets to Earth and its lands, islands, features and inhabitants. This treatise, known as \u003cem\u003eThe Book of Curiosities\u003c\/em\u003e, was unknown to modern scholars until a remarkable manuscript copy surfaced in 2000.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLost Maps of the Caliphs\u003c\/em\u003e provides the first general overview of \u003cem\u003eThe Book of Curiosities\u003c\/em\u003e and the unique insight it offers into medieval Islamic thought. Opening with an account of the remarkable discovery of the manuscript and its purchase by the Bodleian Library, the authors use \u003cem\u003eThe Book of Curiosities\u003c\/em\u003e to re-evaluate the development of astrology, geography and cartography in the first four centuries of Islam.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eEarly astronomical 'maps' and drawings demonstrate the medieval understanding of the structure of the cosmos and illustrate the pervasive assumption that almost any visible celestial event had an effect upon life on Earth. \u003cem\u003eLost Maps of the Caliphs\u003c\/em\u003e also reconsiders the history of global communication networks at the turn of the previous millennium.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eNot only is \u003cem\u003eThe Book of Curiosities\u003c\/em\u003e one of the greatest achievements of medieval map-making, it is also a remarkable contribution to the story of Islamic civilization.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Hachette Aotearoa New Zealand","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46849525219564,"sku":"9781851244911","price":140.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/3004983482847.jpg?v=1759048616","url":"https:\/\/bookhero.co.nz\/products\/lost-maps-of-the-caliphs-by-emilie-savage-smith-9781851244911","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}