The hands of Timbuktu bibliophile Ahmad Bul Araf cradle the pages of a 16th-century Muslim text.

Why Timbuktu's true treasure is its libraries

This storied African city grew from a nomads’ camp into a wealthy cosmopolitan center of wisdom and learning enriched by trade in gold and salt.

The hands of Timbuktu bibliophile Ahmad Bul Araf cradle the pages of a 16th-century Muslim text.
Horst Friedrichs/Alamy
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