Third Conference of The School of Mamluk Studies The University of Chicago June 23-25, 2016 Recent and bestselling publications from The American University in Cairo Press The American University in Cairo Press Cairo New York www.aucpress.com Distributed by Oxford University Press To order, visit: www.oup.com/us Call: 1-800-445-9714 Email: custserv.us@oup.com For examination copy requests, contact: Tarek El-Elaimy Tel.: 1-212-730-8800, ext. 4546 Email: telaimy@aucegypt.edu
Crowds and Sultans Urban Protest in Late Medieval Egypt and Syria AMINA ELBENDARY An alternative reading of Mamluk politics and society in fifteenth-century Egypt and Syria AMINA ELBENDARY is associate professor of history at the American University in Cairo. Her research interests include Arabic historiography, Mamluk social and cultural history, and Islamic political thought. She is the author of numerous journal articles and book chapters. Hardbound 2015 $49.95 240 pages 6 x 9 in. ISBN 9789774167171 During the fifteenth century, the Mamluk sultanate that had ruled Egypt and Syria since 1249 50 faced a series of sustained economic and political challenges to its rule, from the effects of recurrent plagues to changes in international trade routes. Both these challenges and the policies and behaviors of rulers and subjects in response to them left profound impressions on Mamluk state and society, precipitating a degree of social mobility and resulting in new forms of cultural expression. These transformations were also reflected in the frequent reports of protests during this period, and led to a greater diffusion of power and the opening up of spaces for political participation by Mamluk subjects and negotiations of power between ruler and ruled. Rather than tell the story of this tumultuous century solely from the point of view of the Mamluk dynasty, Crowds and Sultans places the protests within the framework of long-term transformations, arguing for a more nuanced and comprehensive narrative of Mamluk state and society in late medieval Egypt and Syria. Reports of urban protest and the ways in which alliances between different groups in Mamluk society were forged allow us glimpses into how some medieval Arab societies negotiated power, showing that rather than stoically endure autocratic governments, populations often resisted and renegotiated their positions in response to threats to their interests. This rich and thought-provoking study will appeal to specialists in Mamluk history, Islamic studies, and Arab history, as well as to students and scholars of Middle East politics and government and modern history.
Ibn Tulun His Lost City and Great Mosque TAREK SWELIM A fully illustrated history of the man, the mosque, and the city by a leading scholar TAREK SWELIM obtained his Ph.D. in Islamic art and architecture from Harvard in 1994. He leads and lectures to American tour groups from prestigious institutions, and he is the author or co-author of a number of publications on Egypt's Islamic and Roman architecture. He is a lecturer in Egyptology and Islamic art and architecture and has taught at the American University in Cairo and other universities in the region. Hardbound 2015 $49.95 322 pages 7.5 x 9.5 in. 120 illus., including color photos, computer drawings, archival prints ISBN 9789774166914 Ahmad ibn Tulun (835 84), the son of a Turkic slave in the Abbasid court of Baghdad, became the founder of the first independent state in Egypt since antiquity, and builder of Egypt s short-lived third capital of the Islamic era, al- Qata i and its great congregational mosque. After recounting the story of Ibn Tulun and his successors, architectural historian Tarek Swelim presents a topographic survey of al-qata i, a city lost since its complete destruction in 905. He then provides a detailed architectural analysis of the Mosque of Ibn Tulun, which was spared the destruction and is now the oldest surviving mosque in Egypt and Africa, from the time of its completion until today. Rare archival illustrations and early photographs document the changing appearance and uses of the mosque in modern times, while extraordinary 3D computer renderings take us back in time to recreate its architectural development through its early centuries. Plans, drawings, and maps complement the history, while striking modern color photographs showcase the elegant simplicity of the building s architecture and decoration. This definitive and generously illustrated book will appeal to scholars and students of Islamic art history, as well as to anyone interested in or inspired by the beauty of early mosque architecture. "Generously illustrated with 19th-century and newly commissioned photographs, 3-D reconstructions, and evocative drawings. In the first of the book's two parts, the author puts the mosque in its historical and urban contexts; in the second part he meticulously describes the building and its parts, indicating how it changed over time as it was used not only for worship but also to house pilgrims and the poor. Commendably and unusually the author takes the story right up to the present, showing how the "authentic" mosque that tourists see today is really the product of decades of repeated renovations and restorations. Choice
The Medieval Nile Route, Navigation, and Landscape in Islamic Egypt JOHN P. COOPER An interdisciplinary study that draws together geography, historical navigation data, and eyewitness accounts into a comprehensive picture of one of the world s great rivers JOHN P. COOPER is an Arabist and maritime archaeologist specializing in the maritime landscapes of the medieval Islamic world. He is currently a lecturer at the Institute of Arab & Islamic Studies of the University of Exeter. Hardbound 2014 $75 432 pages 6 x 9 in. 89 illustrations, including 7 color; also, 5 tables and 10 graphs and charts ISBN 9789774166143 This ground-breaking view of the navigational landscape of the Nile in medieval Egypt draws on a broad range of sources: medieval Arabic geographies; traveler accounts; archaeology; and meteorological, hydrological, and geological studies. John Cooper first charts the changing geography of the Nile waterways, particularly in the Delta, from the eve of Islam to the early modern period, and logs the rise and fall of these waterways for natural and/or anthropogenic reasons. He then presents a new perspective on the Nile, drawing on traveler accounts and environmental data to portray the river as a uniquely challenging and sometimes dangerous navigational environment requiring extensive local knowledge by skilled and hardworking Nile navigators. Finally, he looks at how the main Delta and Red Sea ports of medieval Egypt fitted into the navigational landscape described, explaining how these ports were affected by changes occurring to the navigational landscape, and how they reflected the navigational conditions of the Nile and surrounding seas. This work is a major contribution to our knowledge not only of the maritime dimensions of the Nile River, but also of the geography of medieval Egypt. Journal of Historical Geography An important contribution to the maritime perception of the Nile. The Mariner s Mirror A remarkable summary of the navigational landscape of Egypt during the medieval period. La revue Nehet A volume that deserves to be read by all scholars of Egypt, regardless of the period they study, for the insights into the river and its people that it brings. International Journal of Nautical Archaeology
Creating Medieval Cairo Empire, Religion, and Architectural Preservation in Nineteenth-Century Egypt PAULA SANDERS How politics and culture shaped the preservation of historic Cairo PAULA SANDERS is vice provost for academic affairs, dean of graduate and postdoctoral studies, and professor of history at Rice University. She is the author of Ritual, Politics, and the City in Fatimid Cairo. She has published articles in the fields of medieval Islamic history and historiography, gender, and the history of conservation in Cairo. Hardbound 2008 $34.95 232 pages 6 x 9 in. 36 b/w photographs ISBN 9789774160950 This book argues that the historic city we know as Medieval Cairo was created in the nineteenth century by both Egyptians and Europeans against a background of four overlapping political and cultural contexts: the local Egyptian, Anglo-Egyptian, Anglo-Indian, and Ottoman imperial milieux. Addressing the interrelated topics of empire, local history, religion, and transnational heritage, historian Paula Sanders shows how Cairo s architectural heritage became canonized in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The book also explains why and how the city assumed its characteristically Mamluk appearance and situates the activities of the European-dominated architectural preservation committee (known as the Comité) within the history of religious life in nineteenth-century Cairo. Offering fresh perspectives and keen historical analysis, this volume examines the unacknowledged colonial legacy that continues to inform the practice of and debates over preservation in Cairo. Breaks new ground, asks new questions, and gives a far more sophisticated, nuanced presentation of preservation and conservation issues for Egypt than I have seen elsewhere. Jere Bacharach, University of Washington
Architecture for the Dead Cairo s Medieval Necropolis GALILA EL KADI and ALAIN BONNAMY Exploring the rich vitality of Cairo s City of the Dead PAULA SANDERS is vice provost for academic affairs, dean of graduate and postdoctoral studies, and professor of history at Rice University. She is the author of Ritual, Politics, and the City in Fatimid Cairo. She has published articles in the fields of medieval Islamic history and historiography, gender, and the history of conservation in Cairo. Hardbound 2007 $39.50 304pp 8 x 9.5 in. 320 b/w illus., 105 maps and plans ISBN 9789774160745 The great medieval necropolis of Cairo, comprising two main areas that together stretch twelve kilometers from north to south, constitutes a major feature of the city s urban landscape. With monumental and smaller-scale mausolea dating from all eras since early medieval times, and boasting some of the finest examples of Mamluk architecture not just in the city but in the region, the necropolis is an unparalleled and until now largely undocumented architectural treasure trove. In Architecture for the Dead, architect Galila El Kadi and photographer Alain Bonnamy have produced a comprehensive and visually stunning survey of all areas of the necropolis. Through detailed and painstaking research and remarkable photography, in text, maps, plans, and pictures, they describe and illustrate the astonishing variety of architectural styles in the necropolis: from Mamluk to neo-mamluk via baroque and neo-pharaonic, from the grandest stone buildings with their decorative domes and minarets to the humblest but elaborately decorated wooden structures. The book also documents the modern settlement of the necropolis by families creating a space for the living in and among the tombs and architecture for the dead.