What did the British know about Islam before the modern period? In this essay published in 2008, Andrew Petersen reviews evidence which shows that there was contact with, and appreciation of, Muslim culture from almost the time of the Hegira in the seventh century. This appreciation varied and was reflected in different choices of material culture: coinage, ceramics and architecture, in successive periods from the eighth century to the nineteenth.

Read More: The Archaeology of Islam in Britain, by Andrew Petersen