The Perfumed Garden of Sensual Delight, (Or, The Perfumed Garden of the Chiekh Nefzaoui), originally compiled by Muhammad al-Nafzawi on behalf of the Hafsid ruler of Tunis, Abū Fāris ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz al-Mutawakkil. The work was translated into English by British explorer, geographer, translator, and orientalist Sir Richard Francis Burton, and was originally published in 1886.The work presents opinions on what qualities men and women should have to be attractive, gives advice on sexual technique, warnings about sexual health, and recipes to remedy sexual maladies. It gives lists of names for the penis and vagina, has a section on the interpretation of dreams, and briefly describes sex among animals. Interspersed with these there are a number of stories which are intended to give context and amusement.

The Perfumed Garden of Sensual Delight has a bad reputation and a tattered history. For over a century, it has been known in English through Sir Richard Burton’s bizarre translation (from the French) which consistently elaborated and misinterpreted the original. If ever a book needed demystifying, it is this one. Although remarkably lewd at times, it does not linger over details nor does it contrive to excite. It does not, therefore, qualify as pornography. In fact, The Perfumed Garden of Sensual Delight is nothing more than a manual for the ordinary married man of its author’s time and place – Tunisia, in the early part of the 15th century – but one that is not without some entertainment value. The present translation is not only the first, published English version to be based upon an established Arabic text, but also the first to be translated directly from the original Arabic at all. First published in 1999. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

The Perfumed Garden by Muhammad ibn Muhammad al-Nafzawi is a fifteenth-century Arabic sex manual and work of erotic literature. The full title of the book is The Perfumed Garden of Sensual Delight (al-rawd al-'atir fi nuzhat al-khatir). The book presents opinions on what qualities men and women should have to be attractive, gives advice on sexual technique, warnings about sexual health, and recipes to remedy sexual maladies. It has a section on the interpretation of dreams. Interspersed with these there are a number of stories which are intended to give context and amusement. According to the introduction of Colville's English translation, Muhammad ibn Muhammad al-Nafzawi probably wrote The Perfumed Garden sometime between 1410 and 1434. Sheikh Nefzawi, full name Abu Abdullah Muhammad ben Umar Nafzawi, was born in the Nefzawa region in the south of present-day Tunisia. Circa 1420 he compiled at the request of the Hafsid ruler of Tunis, Abu Faris Abd al-Aziz al-Mutawakkil, the present work. The reputation acquired by this work in the Arab world was similar to that of the Arabian Nights.

"The Perfumed Garden of Sensual Delight has a bad reputation and a tattered history. For over a century, it has been known in English through Sir Richard Burton's bizarre translation (from the French) which consistently elaborated and misrepresented the original. If ever a book needed demystifying, it is this one. Although remarkably lewd at times, it does not linger over details nor does it contrive to excite. It does not, therefore, qualify as pornography. In fact, The Perfumed Garden of Sensual Delight is nothing more than a manual for the ordinary, married man of its author's time and place - Tunisia, in the early part of the 15th century - but one that is not without some entertainment value." "The present translation is not only the first, published English version to be based upon an established Arabic text, but also the first to be translated directly from the original Arabic at all." --Book Jacket.

An intriguing look at vintage perfume's powerful past, including reviews of more than 300 scents, with stunning period advertisements throughout.

Kitab al-izah fi'ilm al-nikah b-it-tamam w-al-kamal: literally translated from the Arabic, with translator's foreword, numerous important notes illustrating the text, and several interesting appendices / by an English bohemian. The writing of this treatise is credit to Jalal Addin Al-Siyuti and the book was translated from the Arabic at the beginning of the century by an English Bohemian. It was originally published in France as a limited edition of only 300 copies. An imaginative translation has been accomplished in a fascinating style, attempting to mimic Arabic rhythmic prose.