Brannon Wheeler is Professor of History at the United States Naval Academy. A recipient of Fulbright Fellowships for research in Jordan, Egypt, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Israel, he has been a visiting scholar at various institutions throughout the Middle East, Europe, and the United States.

• 1. Animal sacrifices in the life of the prophet Muhammad; 2. Burial of camels at the tombs of warriors; 3. Pagan origins of Muslim Ḥajj sacrifice; 4. Abraham as the originator of Ḥajj sacrifice; 5. Distribution of the body of the prophet Muhammad; 6. Martyred bodies and the demarcation of territory; Conclusions: Sacrifice and nostalgia for the origins of religion.

'Wheeler's book is not only timely but also prodigious, as it engages with an impressive range of primary sources and secondary scholarship pertaining to Islam and several other religious traditions of the ancient world … Wheeler's book is an impressive contribution that should appeal to students of early Islam as well as those interested in the significance of sacrifice in religious history.' Journal of the American Oriental Society