Fez in the Age of the Marinids by Roger Le TourneauReview by: Oleg GrabarJournal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 85, No. 2 (Apr. - Jun., 1965), p. 247Published by: American Oriental SocietyStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/598015 .

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Reviews of Books 247

Obviously, an introduction is not the place for a full treatment of such basic matters, but what is called for is more guidance and insight. Dr. Shaw appears to be held in thrall by the details he has uncovered, despite his known considerable knowledge of Ottoman history; thus he has failed to take full advantage of his materials in prepar- ing the introductions. However, it must be stated that by his synoptic and incisive narrative in Ijuseyn Efendi of the entire French military expedition to Egypt and Syria, the author shows himself capable of historical writing of a high order, if he would but let himself go.

What we are left with, then, are two works of reference whose overlapping subject matter has already been treated by Dr. Shaw in a prior, more comprehensive book. On balance, however, the net gain is decidedly a positive one. The

texts themselves, the notes, which despite the criti- cism of their presentation must not be under- valued (and which, incidentally, do much to cor- rect erroneous impressions handed down to us by some of the eighteenth-century European travelers in Egypt, particularly the French), the thorough bibliography (who in recent years has extracted and provided us with more archival references for Ottoman history than Stanford Shaw?), the mere fact that Dr. Shaw is so actively filling historical gaps-all these factors outweigh the negative aspects of these works. This reviewer, who has on more than one occasion been the recipient of Dr. Shaw's generous assistance, particularly as re- gards source materials, commends him for his work and looks forward to his future productions.

THOMAS NAFF AMERICAN UNIVERSITY IN CAIRO

Fez in the Age of the Marinids. By ROGER LE TOURNEAU. Norman: UNIVERSITY OF OKLA- HOMA PRESS, 1961.

Together with Sauvaget's masterful study of Aleppo, Roger Le Tourneau's monumental Pes avant le Protectorat is one of the few coherent and complete studies available of the evolution and characteristics of a traditional Islamic city. But for the general public there may be something overwhelming about the considerable scholarly apparatus of the work published in 1949 and therefore the idea of giving a concise statement of the major features of the magnum opus in a minor one was excellent, provided the latter is clear, usable, and interesting. On all accounts this slim volume published in the series "Centers of Civilization" meets the test. Its chapters on Early History, Description of the City, Adminis- tration, Daily Life, Economic Activity, Intellec-

tual and Religious Life cover all apparent charac- teristics of the city with commendable clarity. They are also very useful for understanding other cities of the Muslim world and the author was careful to point out the "pan-Islamic " features of his subject. The text is throughout interesting and its emphasis on social and economic structures and problems in the past makes it particularly suitable for contemporary interests. And finally, even though there are here and there a few rough spots (especially at the beginning), the translation is on the whole quite fluent. It may be regretted only that the series does not print photographs, since Fez in particular is quite clearly understand- able from air photographs. Altogether one cannot but recommend the book to any beginner in the study of Islamic urbanism or to anyone curious about one of the most fascinating cities of the Muslim world.

OLEG GRABAR UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN

The Astronomical Works of Thdbit b. Qurra. By FRANCIS J. CARMODY. Pp. 262. Berkeley and Los Angeles: UNIVERSITY OF CALI-

FORNIA PRESS, 1960.

The absence of properly edited texts has both restricted and distorted our view of the exact sci-

ences in the Middle Ages. For the most part we only catch a glimpse of a small fraction of this enormous activity from a few reliable secondary sources, as well as a host of far less reliable ter- tiary sources. In sharp contrast, the exact sci- ences in Greek antiquity, and even Babylonian antiquity, have had the signal fortune to be

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