A Poem Concerning the Death of the Prophet Muhammad: Utendi Wa Kutawafu Nabii

Reproduces in photogravure original pages from several manuscripts of the classical Swahili poem on the Death of the Prophet. The poem is an important witnesss to lore concerning death and especially the death of that paradigmatic human being, the Prophet, among African, West Indian Ocean and Islamic people. Complete transliteration and translation of one manuscript, excerpts from others and of a quotation in a woven mat, with notes on how to decipher and edit texts and literature.