Princess Ummadha Citta is fictitious, although her political context is broadly accurate. The poem I have attributed to her can still be read on the Mirror Wall at Sigiriya, along with many others; my version is based on the translation by Lakshmi de Silva in 12 Centuries of Sinhala Poetry, published by Vijitha Yapa. I must also acknowledge the Penguin anthology Birds Through A Ceiling of Alabaster, the source for Abbas’ poems in Chapter 16.
Ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi and Jabir ibn Hayyan were both real, and important enough to the history of ideas that their names have entered the English language. Al-Khwarizmi, via the eccentric transliteration of the Middle Ages, gives us “algorithm”. Less flatteringly, the mysterious alchemical writings of “Geber”, as the West knew him, are the origin of the word “gibberish”. And of course Abu Nuwas, Harun al-Rashid, and Ja’far the Wazir all existed in fact, before entering the realm of the imagination via the Thousand and One Nights.
The fall of Ja’far ibn Yahya and the Barmakid family haunted the imagination of the Islamic world long after the death of all those who knew what really happened, and why. The story told by Ismail, about the tragic princess Abbasah, was the most popular explanation, and is recounted in the Nights. Al-Tabari though treats it with considerable scepticism; this sort of “harem intrigue” was often put forward to account for mysterious events in the lives of the rich and powerful, but is as implausible as it is appealing. More convincingly, he offers anecdotes about the Barmakids’ wealth, complacency and their lax treatment of Alid prisoners. Ja’far’s planned coup is entirely my invention, but none of the conventional explanations really account for the suddenness, secrecy and violence of Harun al-Rashid’s action against his closest friends and allies.
I am neither a historian nor a linguist, and in writing this novel I have leaned heavily on the scholarship of others. I must thank Professor Hugh Kennedy and Robert Irwin, both for their learned and accessible writings on the history and poetry of the Abbasid Khalifate, and for their personal kindness and support. I am eternally grateful to my editor, Eric Lane, and my agent, Juri Gabriel, for their patience, wisdom and advice during the gestation of this book. Thanks are also due to Marie Lane for the cover design and typesetting, to everyone who read drafts and made suggestions, to the Pow-Wow writing group for their friendship and inspiration, to SF Said for lighting the way, and to Fionn and Oliver for making me proud. Last but most certainly not least, a huge thank you to Noah, Joseph and Karen for putting up with me.
Copyright
Published in the UK by Dedalus Limited,
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First published by Dedalus in 2012
First ebook edition in 2012
The Khalifah’s Mirror copyright © Andrew Killeen 2012
The right of Andrew Killeen to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988.
Printed in Finland by Bookwell
Typeset by Marie Lane
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