Ibn w's (d. 664/1266) was a famous Sh?'? scholar and bibliophile. This book portrays his intellectual world and working methods, and reconstructs, as far as possible, his extensive library, which included many works now lost. Kohlberg's monograph is an important contribution to Sh?'? studies and to the history of Arabic literature.

Etan Kohlberg, Ph.D. (1971) Oxford University, is Professor of Arabic language and literature at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. His publications deal mainly with Shī'ī literature, doctrine and history. Studies include Immam and Community in the Pre-Ghayba Period, Aspects of Akhbārī Thought in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries, and Western Studies of Shī'a Islam.