Soon after their arrival in Spain the authors realized that the early Muslim art of Seville was curiously different from that of Cordova. This fascinated them and they undertook eight years of study in Seville, making use of the resources available to them in the city’s libraries to bring their audience this history of the Muslims in Spain, first published in 1912. Concentrating on Seville, they provide a chronological narrative of Spain from the Muslim invasion of 711 until the Reconquista of the fifteenth century.

‘“The Thistle that is in Lebanon” is the harassed, weak, yet simple disciple of the Eastern Church; and “the Cedar that was in Lebanon” is the true Church of Christ, whose seeds were first derived from [Syria’s] Holy shores, and are now firmly rooted in England. The Thistle has sent to ask thy daughter, Enlightenment, in marriage to her son, Simplicity. O refuse her not! lest the wild beast in Lebanon should tread down the Thistle and obtain the ascendancy.”’

First published in 1882, this book offers a remarkably unprejudiced account of life in Tunisia towards the end of the nineteenth century. Touching upon oft-described “archaeological curiosities” only briefly, the author instead concentrates his attention on the country’s “present condition, its towns, districts and people”, making the book an invaluable historical document.

First published in 1877, this book recounts the author’s travels from Tripoli in present-day Libya to the city of Kairouan in modern Tunisia. Rae gives detailed descriptions of Tripoli, the plague, the Gulf of Syrte, Tunis, Sfax and the island of Djerba. There is also a chapter on Tripoli’s Jewish quarter and its inhabitants.

Of particular interest, however, is Rae’s daring visit to the holy city of Kairouan (Kairwan). Rae was one of the earliest non-Muslims to visit and offers a stirring account of his reception and a detailed description of the city and its main buildings.