108 Notice of a copy of the fourth volume [No. 2. 



Notice of a copy of the fourth volume of the original text of Tabary ; 

 by A. Sprenger, Esq. M. D. Communicated by Sir Henry Elliot, 

 K. C. B. 



One of the most important books which it was my good luck to 

 find during my late missions to Lucknow, is the fourth volume of 

 the history of Tabary (who died in A. H. 310), of which I believe no 

 other copy is known to exist. In the collection of Colonel Taylor is 

 the 3rd volume, and in the public library at Berlin are the 5th, (which 

 has been printed) 10th, 11th and 12th volumes. 



It is a volume in small 4to. of 451 pages, 15 lines in a page. Out of 

 these 1 pages or five leaves are wanting : the first two leaves, and three 

 from the body of the work : the writing is ancient and bold, and though 

 not without errors generally very correct. I should say from the 

 appearance the copy is five hundred years old. 



The subject of this volume is already known from Professor Kose- 

 garten's preface to his edition of the fifth volume. It contains the 

 life of Mohammad. It ends however with the battle of the Ditch, yet 

 the volume is not defective at the end. 



The intrinsic merits of the work are not so great as might be 

 expected. Two-thirds of the book consist of extracts from Ibn Ishaq 

 and Waqidy, and only one-third or thereabouts contains original tradi- 

 tions. Some of these are very valuable, inasmuch as they contain 

 information not to be found any where else. One of the most interest- 

 ing documents of this description are extracts of letters from 'Orwah 

 to the Khalif 'Abd al Malik b. Marwan. It would appear that the 

 Khalif had entertained doubts on several points in the life of the 

 prophet, and as 'Orwah was the most learned man of his age, he wrote 

 to him to have them cleared up. 'Orwah b. al Zobayr was born in 

 A. H. 22, and he collected traditions respecting the prophet from his 

 father and mother who was a daughter of the first Khalif, and from 

 'Ayishah, a widow of Mohammad, and from other persons who had 

 stood in intimate relation with the prophet, and owing to his extraor- 

 dinary attainments in the science of the traditions and in law he 

 was called one of the seven divines of Madynah. One of the pupils 

 of 'Orwah was Zohry. He lived mostly at the court of 'Abd al 

 Malik b. Marwan and of his son Hisham. Yazyd b. 'Abd al Malik 



