Al-Idrisi drew inspiration from a number of sources, most of which are dated to the Golden Age of Islam during the Abbasid caliphate, when scholarly work was flourishing in the Islamic world. on which there was complete agreement and seemed credible, excluding what was contradictory.' King Roger II would occasionally participate in these interviews himself, reflecting his desire to compile information about his realm. To produce the work, Al-Idrisi started gathering information for the maps by interviewing experienced travelers on their knowledge of the world, keeping 'only that part.

During the meeting, Al-Idrisi briefed Roger II on his familiarity and personal experiences traveling around North Africa and Western Europe, which prompted Roger II to commission an atlas from Al-Idrisi. Sicily's vibrant multicultural environment led al-Idrisi to accept King Roger's invitation to his court. Creation of the Atlas Īround 1138, the Norman King of Sicily, Roger II, invited Al-Idrisi, a Muslim geographer, to his court in Palermo, in search of help pursuing his political agenda.

Sixth section of the fourth clime from the oldest extant manuscript of al-Idrisi's Nuzhat al-mushtaq, copied c. Armenia is shown in the bottom center, Azerbaijan in the lower left corner, and West Central Iran in upper left and a small portion of the Caspian Sea at the bottom left, with the Zagros Mountains at the bottom.

The Broken Earth Book 1 by Roger Colby