Itinerarium Beniamini Tudelensis [Travels of Benjamin of Tudela]. Translated from Hebrew to Latin by Benedictus Aria Montano

The author set forth in 1159 from Tudela, Spain to traverse across Europe, Asia Minor, and Upper Egypt. He noted in his travels the manners and commerce of the various nations he came into contact with, and made detailed reports of the political situation of his fellow Jews, particularly in Constantinople. Furthermore, Benjamin supplies the names of the principal Jews of each city visited, and surveys the activities of communal organizations. Probably no account - Jewish or non-Jewish - of the Mediterranean and the Middle East in this period can equal the level of detail provided by Benjamin of Tudela. The translator, Benedictus Aria Montano, a Spanish churchman, was the director of the Escorial Library and Chief Editor of the second Biblia Polyglotta