Muḥammad ibn 'Abd Allah al-Azraqi ( محمد بن عبد الله الأزرقي ) was an Islamic historian born in the second century AH, or ninth century CE. Azraqi published this work, Akhbar Mecca, in 251 AH (865 CE), making this text the third earliest extant history of Islam. Al-Azraqi recorded crucial traditions regarding pre-Islamic and early Islamic history, especially regarding Mecca and the Ka'ba. For the first time, entries 1 through 156 of Akhbar Mecca have been translated into English, presenting this important Muslim historical text to greater readership and study around the world. Dan Gibson is a Canadian historian and one of the leading researchers of early Islamic archaeology. After decades of experience and study, Gibson has published several books of original research and a feature documentary on the history and archaeology of early Islam.