One of Seven Known Copies Chronicles Ibn Battuta’s Journeys Through the Hejaz and Gulf.
Abu Dhabi: Nearly seven centuries after Ibn Battuta documented his remarkable travels across the Hejaz and the Gulf, a rare manuscript of his celebrated Rihla has sold for nearly Dh1 million at the 35th Abu Dhabi International Book Fair (ADIBF 2026).
Only seven complete or partial copies of the Rihla are known to survive worldwide, making the manuscript an exceptionally rare historical record of one of the medieval world’s most extraordinary journeys.
Presented at the fair by London-based rare book dealer Peter Harrington, the manuscript chronicles the Moroccan medieval explorer’s travels between 1325 and 1333. It contains some of the earliest surviving eyewitness accounts of places in present-day Oman, the UAE and other parts of the Gulf.
The manuscript’s price of nearly Dh1 million reflects its rarity, age and historical importance. Its value is further enhanced by its preservation of significant early accounts of the Hajj and the Gulf, including descriptions of Nizwa, Qalhat, Kalba and Khorfakkan. As a handwritten record of one of history’s most celebrated journeys, it also holds considerable significance for collectors and scholars of Islamic history, travel and exploration.
Born in Tangier in 1304, Ibn Battuta is estimated to have travelled around 120,000 kilometres over roughly three decades, crossing much of the Islamic world and journeying as far as China and Sumatra. The distance he covered significantly exceeded the recorded travels of his contemporary, Marco Polo.
The manuscript begins with Ibn Battuta’s departure from Tangier and follows his journey through Cairo, Damascus, Medina and Mecca before continuing across Iraq, Persia, the Red Sea, East Africa, the Gulf, Anatolia and Central Asia. It concludes with his account of Neyshabur, now known as Nishapur in present-day Iran.
Among its most significant passages is Ibn Battuta’s description of the Hajj, regarded as one of only three major first-hand medieval accounts of the pilgrimage, following those of Nasir Khusraw and Ibn Jubayr.
The manuscript is particularly important to Gulf history. Ibn Battuta’s account is considered the earliest description of the southern Gulf following the rise of New Hormuz in 1300. He documented visits to Qalhat and Nizwa in Oman, as well as Kalba and Khor Fakkan in present-day Sharjah, and recorded pearl fishing off the coasts of Bahrain and Qatif.
The quarto manuscript, measuring 250 by 190mm, is written on laid paper in Maghribi script and bound in black-brown calf, featuring a blind-tooled panel design and gilt-stamped fleurons.
The earliest surviving incomplete manuscript of the Rihla, written by Ibn Battuta’s scribe Ibn Juzayy and dated 1356–57, is held by the Bibliothèque Nationale de France. Another surviving copy is held in Cambridge.
Peter Harrington has participated in the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair since 2016, regularly showcasing rare and historically significant works in the UAE. Previous offerings have included a Shakespeare First Folio valued at Dh20.8 million, the Rothschild collection of explorer Richard Burton’s works valued at Dh9.2 million, and a manuscript of Ibn Sina’s Canon of Medicine priced at Dh464,550.
