ABSTRACT

This chapter deals chiefly with the history of the myth that Muhammad's iron tomb was suspended in the air at Mecca. Matthew Paris, the Lives of Muhammad, and the Dominicans James Powell Jean Richard has long been identified with the study of Christian missions to the East. In order to pursue this question, we need first of all to examine briefly its content. A major part of this account is taken up by the legend of Muhammad's discussion of the ark of Noah. Daniel did not claim that the Matthew Paris material was from the Risala, but only that it showed similarities to it. The degree of accuracy in this account is much greater than that found in the life of Muhammad. The attacks on the prophet are stronger than in the previous texts, leaving little doubt that this work was intended for a polemical purpose.