Ibn Battuta — "The Chinese are skilled in crafts, but they are not a people of religion."
The Chinese are skilled in crafts, but they are not a people of religion.
Get This Quote & Author's Image Illustrated On:
Click any product to generate a realistic preview. Up to 3 at a time.
* Initial load can take up to 90 seconds — revising the preview in another color is nearly instant.
Kitchen
Apparel
Other
More from Ibn Battuta
"I was once given a magic carpet in this land, but it did not fly. It was just a very beautiful rug."
"The women of this country are very beautiful, and they do not veil themselves. They are treated with honor and respect."
"The women of this country are very modest, and they cover their entire bodies."
"The women here are not veiled, and they are not shy. They speak openly with men."
"The women of this country are very beautiful, and they wear silk clothes, but they are not veiled."
About Ibn Battuta (1304-1369)
Moroccan Muslim scholar and explorer whose Rihla (travels) covered ~75,000 miles across the Islamic world from Mali to China — the most-traveled person of the medieval world. Closely associated with Marco Polo (his Venetian counterpart, traveling 50 years earlier in the opposite direction). For an intellectual contrast, see medieval European Christian insularity, the sheltered monastic-feudal worldview of 14th-century Latin Christendom — Ibn Battuta's 30-year journey demonstrates that the 14th-century Dar al-Islam was a single intellectual ecosystem from West Africa to Beijing, while medieval Europe was still tribal and parochial. The cleanest 'connectedness vs insularity' contrast in pre-modern history — Battuta could find a familiar Maliki judge in any city from Mali to Sumatra.