Abu Abdullah Muhammad al-Idrisi al-Qurtubi al-Hasani as-Sabti, or simply Al-Idrisi /æl??dri?si?/ (Arabic: ??? ??? ???? ???? ???????? ??????? ?????? ???????; Latin: Dreses; 1100 – 1165), was an Arab Muslim geographer, cartographer and Egyptologist who lived in Palermo, Sicily at the court of King Roger II.
Al-Idrisi incorporated the knowledge of Africa, the Indian Ocean and the Far East gathered by Islamic merchants and explorers and recorded on Islamic maps with the information brought by the Norman voyagers to create the most accurate map of the world in pre-modern times. The Book of Roger, also known as The Pleasure Excursion of One Who Is Eager to Traverse the Regions of the World, was published in 1154 upon King Roger's death. It is considered perhaps the most important work of the Middle Ages.
The map from The Book of Roger is shown below, upside down as it was originally drawn with North at the bottom.
See Attachment
Al-Idrisi's life beyond this amazing contribution is a bit of a black box, including his own travels. It's believed he ended up in Sicily to avoid religious persecution, and engage with more progressive cultures than those in other parts of Europe. While it is believed he was born in Spain or perhaps Africa, there's little else known about how much world knowledge he himself had, or if he was simply the task master who taught his staff of 12 the methods to combine and display all information provided by others.
As of this posting, @Peter Horsbøll Møller? is the sole community member who has achieved Al-Idrisi status on Li360!