and historians to identify its location. One such attempt was when “Caliph al-Wāthiq (1) dispatched one of his commanders at the head of a military expedition to inspect the barrier, see it firsthand, and describe it to him upon their return. They travelled from country to country and from ruler to ruler until they reached it. They saw that it was constructed of iron and copper. They reported seeing an enormous gate fitted with enormous locks, as well as the remaining bricks and honey in a tower there. Guards appointed by the neighboring kings were stationed there. The barrier was lofty and towering, impossible to scale, as were the mountains surrounding it. They then returned home after an absence of more than two years, having witnessed terrors and wonders” (2).

Ibn Kathīr—may Allah have mercy on him—related this account in his tafsīr, but he provided no chain of transmission for it. Allah knows best whether it is authentic.

The foregoing verses indicate that this barrier was built between two mountains, as Allah Most High says: “Until, when he reached between the two barriers.” The two barriers are two facing mountains. He then says: “Until, when he had levelled it between the two mountain sides”; that is, he brought it level with the summits of the two mountains (3), using blocks of iron. He then poured molten copper over it, making it a solid barrier.

Imam al-Bukhārī said: “A man said to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, ‘I saw the barrier; it was like a cloak