In 2015, as war raged in Syria, Lowe set off on an 11,000 kilometre journey through Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Sudan, the Gulf and finally to Iran. Full of humour, anecdote and the abun... read more
Numerous contributors discuss different aspects of seafaring in the spread of Islamic culture, from its origins to the present. Well illustrated and fascinating.
In the C13th, the largest library in Europe contained fewer than 2000 books. Baghdad alone contained five libraries with between 200,000 and a million books.
How Mohammed-Reza Shah's close relationship with the US and his desire for autocratic rule sowed the seeds for the collapse of the Pahlavi dynasty and helped foment the Iranian revolution of... read more