Murūj al-dhahab wa maʿādin al-jawāhir

…gave the fanciful title of Murūj al-dhahab wa maʿādin al-jawāhir. This book quickly became famous and established the author’s reputation as a leading historian. Ibn Khaldūn, the great 14th-century Arab philosopher of history, describes al-Masʿūdī as an imam (“leader,” or “example”) for historians. Though an abridgment, Murūj al-dhahab is still…

historical writing is al-Masʿūdī’s Murūj al-dhahab wa maʿādin al-jawāhir (“The Meadows of Gold and Mines of Gems”), in which he traces the history of the world up to his own time and shows remarkable knowledge of myth, geography, and history. The tradition of writing histories of enormous scope continued…