rsia and Byzantium. The most successful Meccans of the seventh century were more than just traders: they were a class of busy merchants and investors—protocapitalists who knew how to exploit the opportunities geography and access to ready finance afforded them. But below them sat a disgruntled underclass, cut off from the profits of business and investment, who were increasingly conscious of a deepening gulf between rich and poor.13
Passing trade, however, was not Mecca’s only advantage. It was also a site for pilgrimage to the Ka‘ba, a cubic temple of black volcanic rock first built, or so tradition had it, by the Old Testament patriarch Abraham.14 Pilgrims came many miles to pay o
Powers and Thrones
Dan Jones