1876.] Prof. M. J. de Ooeje's New Edition of Talari. 137 



Jusof Dili j a al-Khalidi at Jerusalem, who promised to procure the requi- 

 site iuformatioii, and Prof. Koch of Schaffhausen wrote to the Sherif of 

 Mekka. 



For the rest, parts of the work, mostly from different copies, are to be 

 found in several libraries. Kopriilii-library in Constantinople possesses 8 

 volumes, the British Museum 3, the Bodleian in Oxford 4, Berlin 6, Paris 

 4, Leiden and Algiers each ,1. A provisional investigation afforded the 

 satisfactory result, that it would be possible to restore a complete copy by 

 help of all these dispersed volumes. From that moment, I firmly resolved 

 to take the preliminary stej)s for preparing an edition of this niost import- 

 ant work, and to see whether it would be possible, with the aid of others, 

 to realise the jjlan. 



The fixst decisive measure was brought about by the late Professor Sta- 

 helin of Basel, whose loss we had to deplore last summer. The 22nd December, 

 1872, I received a letter from Prof. Socin, in which in the name of Stahelin 

 a certain sum was placed at my disposal, if I should feel inclined to take 

 the lead in preparing an edition of Tabari. This contribution (5000 

 francs), together with a sum of 1500 guilders, placed at my disposal by 

 the Minister of the Interior in the Netherlands, enabled me at once, with 

 the assistance of Dr. Mordtmami, to get copied in Constantinople the fij-st 

 part of the first volume and the parts that contained the years 37 — 40, 

 51 — G4 and 158 — 302 of the Hidjra, and in London the second part of the 

 fii'st volume. Thus a beginning could be made with the preparation of the 

 text. To Dr. Barth of Berlin was assigned the part of the first section 

 containing the pre-islamitic history up to the Sassanides, to Prof. Noldeke 

 of Strassbm-g that containing the history of the Sassanides. Prof. Loth 

 of Lei^Dzig undertook the edition of the life of Muhammad and the four 

 " righteous" Khalifas, the latter part of wliich has been published by 

 Kosegarten from the Berlin manuscript (1831 — 53). Prof. Thorbecke of 

 Heidelberg took upon himself the first, and Dr. MuUer of Vienna the se- 

 cond part of the history of the Omayades, Dr. Griinert of Leipzig the first 

 part of the history of the Abbasides, whilst the latter part remained for my 

 own share. PerhajDS it will be necessary to seek one or two more collabora- 

 tors, some parts of the work being very extensive. 



Thus the task is portioned out, and the study of the text has com- 

 menced. But before the whole can be fairly started, there is still a great 

 deal to be done. The third part of the Constantinopolitan manuscripts 

 has been copied, and one volume in London ; we have still to get copied 

 the two thirds in Constantinople and the two remaining volumes in the 

 British Museum. It will, too, be necessary to have the copies made in 

 Constantinople once more collated with tbo originals in the Koprulii by a 

 young Orientalist of capacity. If a copy of the work exists at Medina, we 



