This volume brings together seventeen articles reflecting the wide range of scholarly interest in early Shi'ism over the past half century. All major branches of Shi'ism are covered. Some studies are historical in nature, whether dealing with specific events or offering a broad historical perspective. Others focus on literary issues, on the development of doctrine or on the relations between the Shi'a and the non-Shi'i world. The studies have been selected because they represent the best of current scholarship, or are classic works with continuing significance; six appear for the first time in English translation. The editor's introduction reviews the historiography of the field and highlights directions and trends in research and is followed by a bibliography of key further reading.