Maldives High Sea

The Maldives are a long chain of low coral atolls in the central Indian Ocean. Among the goods carried from the islands were coir fibre and cowrie shells, the latter used as currency in Bengal and many other distant markets. In the fourteenth century the Moroccan traveller Ibn Battuta spent nine months in the Maldives, serving as chief judge and marrying into the ruling family. His account preserves a visitor's view of the island court and its customs.