Ritual, Politics, and the City in Fatimid Cairo

Paula Sanders is Associate Professor of History at Rice University.

"This is a totally original contribution to the historical research on the Middle East and on the Islamic world. Sanders' book fills an important lacuna in Middle Eastern historiography. Unlike European historical studies, where the semiological approach to the ceremonial of royal and state power has an impressive tradition represented by the landmark work of such luminaries as Ernst Kantorowicz, Ralph Giesey, and Sarah Hanley, the historical literature on the Middle East contains no comparable studies along these lines. There are several reasons for this. Sources on which to base such an inquiry are neither self-evident nor abundant. Even less abundant are scholars who have the skills to identify and exploit such sources and who also possess the sensitivity and sophistication to persuasively accomplish an analysis of the representation of power in an Islamic context. Paula Sanders has succeeded in doing exactly this in a polished and professional manner." — Abraham L. Udovitch, Princeton University

• Abbreviations, Acronyms, and Short Titles Acknowledgments Chapter 1 Introduction Fatimid History: An OverviewApproaching Fatimid RitualsChapter 2 The Ceremonial Idiom Protocols of RankSymbols of AuthorityThe Caliph as CenterChapter 3 The Ritual City The Beginnings of the Ritual CityThe Elaboration of the Ritual City under al-'AzizThe Integration of Fustat into the Ritual CityThe Restoration of al-Amir and the Reinterpretation of the Ritual CityChapter 4 Politics, Power, and Administration: The New Year's Ceremony The Model Procession: Ibn al-Tuwayr's Description of the New YearThe Negotiation of Power in the New Year's ProcessionChapter 5 The Urban River The Highwayman of Egypt: Agriculture and IrrigationThe Ceremony to Cut the CanalLate Fatimid Nile CeremoniesPerfuming the NilometerDating the Nilometer CeremonyThe Urban RiverChapter 6 Ceremonial as Polemic The Event at Ghadir Khumm and Its Importance in Isma'ili ThoughtPopular Celebrations of the Festival of GhadirThe Festival of Ghadir and the Ritual Lingua FrancaCeremonial as PolemicChapter 7 Epilogue Notes Selected Bibliography Maps Index