the pulpit (1); after that, the Sultan dispatched with the envoys many precious curios and splendid gifts, and he sent a number of Frankish prisoners in the very attire they had worn in battle. He also sent the Cross of the Crucifixion, which was buried beneath the threshold of the Nubian Gate (2) of the Caliph’s residence, so that it was now trampled underfoot after once being revered (3) and kissed—indeed, people even came to spit upon it after formerly prostrating themselves before it (4). The sound view is that this cross was the one that had stood atop the Dome of the Rock. It was made of copper plated with gold, and Allah cast it down (5) to the lowest rank.

[The Story of Acre and What Befell It]
In the month of Rajab (6) the Franks who were in Tyre assembled and marched to the city of Acre, surrounding it and laying siege to it. The Muslims inside fortified themselves and prepared whatever they would need for the siege. When word of this reached the Sultan, he hastened from Damascus and found that they had encircled it as a ring encircles the little finger (7). He persisted in defending it and warding them off until he opened a path to the castle gate that anyone who wished could reach—soldier, townsman, woman, or child. He then brought into the fortress whatever engines, provisions (8), and fighting men he desired, and he himself (9)—may his noble person (10) be preserved—entered it, ascended its wall, and surveyed the Franks, their host, and the vast numbers of their men, equipment, and supplies that reached them from (11) the sea at every time, evening and dawn (12). All their resources were increasing, and reinforcements arrived continually. The Sultan then returned to his encampment, while troops (13) continued to pour in and present themselves to him from every direction and place, both infantry and cavalry—and Allah knows best what is right.

[The Battle of the Plain of Acre]
When the last ten days of Shaʿbān arrived, the Franks disembarked (14) from their ships in their formations, numbering about two thousand horsemen