First Edition. Black covers with gilt lettering to the spine. With light marks and dents to covers and slight rubbing to corners but overall in very good condition. Clean pages with pencil annotations to sporadic pages throughout the book and three letters from Peter Willey, all in near fine condition. Slight lean to the right. Unclipped dust jacket, with slight fading to the spine and small tear/dent to front panel as seen in photos. xxvii, 321pp. 'Magnificent castles and fortresses in remote, mountainous regions were built for refuge and defensive purposes by the Ismaili Muslims of Iran and Syria fleeing from persecution during the early middle ages. Often superior in construction to those built by the Crusaders, these castles withstood numerous offensives for over two centuries until the middle of the thirteenth century when most were captured and demolished by the Mongols. Peter Willey describes the discoveries he made during the course of more than 20 expeditions to these Ismaili sites spanning the past forty years. The book is illustrated with photographs, maps and plans. As well as being a piece of original scholarship, it is also a readable personal account of the challenges encountered in expeditions to remote, inaccessible and often hazardous locations'.