Ibn 'Asakir's massive Ta'rikh madinat Dimashq (TMD) is a veritable gold mine of information for our understanding of the first five and one-half centuries of Islamic history. This book offers important insights on the mechanics of Arabic historiography, in particular on biographical sources from the Middle period. Moreover, two contributions show that Ibn 'Asakir pursued a political and sectarian agenda within his TMD. 1. James E. Lindsay, Ibn 'Asakir, His Ta'rikh madinat Dimashq and its Usefulness for Understanding Early Islamic History 2. Suleiman A. Mourad, Jesus According to Ibn 'Asakir 3. Fred M. Donner, 'Uthman and the Rashidun Caliphs in Ibn 'Asakir's Ta'rikh madinat Dimashq: a Study in Strategies of Compilation 4. Marianne Engle Cameron, Sayf at First: the Transmission of Sayf ibn 'Umar in al-Tabari and Ibn 'Asakir 5. Steven C. Judd, Ibn Asakir's Sources for the Late Umayyad Period 6. Paul M. Cobb, Community versus Contention: Ibn 'Asakir and 'Abbasid Syria Appendices: Publication History of TMD; Studies Addressing TMD; Major Lacunae in TMD; Pre-Islamic Sacred Biographies in TMD; Muhammad, the Rashidun, and the Umayyad Caliphs in TMD.