»Open Sesame!« were the words by used by Ali Baba to open the magic treasure cave of the Forty Thieves, in Tales of a Thousand and One Nights (or Arabian Nights), narrated by Scheherezade. We all know that. But what you might not know is that The Nights is a collection of ancient stories from Arabia, India, Persia and Egypt, dating to c. 786 A.D., translated into English by Lane (1840) and Burton (1880). The only reason I bring this up is because I read that as a child, and I'm simply amazed that my brain cells still fire with such admirable accuracy. Now...where did I put my keys...?
