At the beginning of the fourth century of the hijra, al-Andalus was divided up by the Umayyads’ opponents and the ṭawāʾ if came into being, with each king taking one of the country's cities as his own capital. The kings of the great civilisation of Cordova became preoccupied with these taxing revolts, and the civil war forced them to sell the treasures that remained in the palace of Cordova, the collection of books, and the other furnishings. They were sold at trivial values and at the cheapest prices: as a result, those books were scattered all over al-Andalus. Among them, people have found nuggets of ancient wisdom, saved from the hands of the inquisitors that had censored the intellectual endeavours of al-Ḥakam [II], in the days of al-Manṣūr b. Abī ʿĀmir. Also, those who so desired have now disclosed what they possess of these [ancient scientific works]. Since then, interest in learning the ancient sciences has continued to grow little by little, and the capitals of the ṭawāʾ if have increasingly become centres of civilisation, until today.

The current situation in al-Andalus – praise be to God – is better [than in the past], since the ancient sciences are now permitted, and all restrictions to their study have been removed.