AL KAZWI′NI′.
though Sir H. Elliot must once have had one in his possession. The notice says, “The Bahru-l buldán is not a distinct work, but is a Persian translation of the A′sáru-l Bilád wa Akhbáru-l ’Ibád, well known in the world by the name ’Ajaibu-l buldán, written in Arabic by Zakaríya bin Muhammad Kazwíní.” It is curious, however, that the ’Ajaibu-l buldán[1] is frequently quoted by Kazwíní in the A′sáru-l bilád, as being the work of Mis’ar bin Muhalhil,—a traveller who went to China and India about 331 A.H. (942 A.D.). Several instances of this will be found in the following extracts. It is hard to believe that Kazwíní thus quoted his own work, or that he would refer the authorship of his own book to another person. If then, Kazwíní is really the author of a work called ’Ajaibu-l buldán, it is only reasonable to conclude that he adopted the title of his predecessor's work. Mis’ar bin Muhalhil is quoted by Yákút in his great Dictionary, and the fragments which he and Kazwíní preserved have been selected and published with a Latin translation by M. Kurd de Schlœzer.[2] There is another Persian translation of the A′sáru-l bilád among Sir H. Elliot's MSS., bearing the title “Sairu-l bilád.” This MS. is called an “abstract,” and was copied, and perhaps “abstracted,” expressly for Sir H. Elliot, from a copy in the possession of Mr. J. Bardoe Elliott. The articles relating to India are given in full, but the others are greatly abbreviated. This work is said to be very scarce.
EXTRACTS.
KÚLAM.—A large city in India. Mis’ar bin Muhalhil, who visited the place, says that he did not see either a temple or an idol there. When their king dies the people of the place choose another from China. There is no physician in India except in this city. The buildings are curious, for the pillars are (covered with) shells from
