The Classical Revival in this sphere. Indeed, a “perfect imitation” of the female Companions would likely not have been sustainable in classical Muslim communities. In Chapter 2, 1 pointed out that Ibn Sa‘d, writing during the period of decline of women’s transmission, had little incentive to dwell on the haditb transmission activities of female Companions, including ‘A’isha bint Abl Bakr. By the fourth/tenth century, however, the haditb sciences had come to occupy a different, and central, place in the culture of classical Sunni Islam. In this context, the selective emphasis on the haditb transmission activity of female Companions helped legitimize and secure this practice for future generations. While the development is perceptible in the works of Abu Nu‘aym al-Isbahanl (d. 430/1038) and Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr (d. 463/1071), it becomes more pronounced in the later compilations of al-Mizzi (d. 742/1341), al-Dhahabl (d. 748/1348), and Ibn Hajar (d. 852/1449).' 1 The emphasis that Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr and Ibn Hajar placed on the haditb transmission of female Companions rather than on other activities such as their service on the battlefront led Asma Afsaruddin to conclude that classical scholars constructed a restrictive model of feminine piety. 1 2 When we view the project of these classical scholars in light of prior centuries of women’s marginalization in haditb transmission, however, we can propose another explanation for their heightened attention to the haditb transmission of the female Companions. Namely, their efforts helped validate the participation of women from the fourth/tenth century onward in this arena through reference to the early Islamic past and served to reintegrate women’s activities into the circles of religious learning. This chapter draws on the case studies of two prominent muhaddithas, Karima al-Marwaziyya (ca. 365M63/975-1070) and Fatima bint al-Hasan b. ‘All al-Daqqaq (391 — 480/1000—88), to document how and why women reemerged as haditb scholars beginning in the fourth/tenth century. In what 111 This complex evolution has been analyzed in greater depth in other studies. Lucas’s Constructive Critics is the most thorough study to date of the history and place of the haditb sciences in the sectarian development of Sunnism. 11 We have relatively less data from the late fourth/tenth century, which marks the reemergence of women in the historical records as trustworthy transmitters. However, the evidence from collections from the fifth/eleventh century onward, as cited earlier, is abundant. 12 Afsaruddin, “Reconstituting Women’s Lives.” In this article, Afsaruddin examines the representation of female Companions in Ibn Hajar’s Isdba and Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr’s IstVdb and compares this to Ibn Sa‘d’s portrayal in his Tabaqat. She focuses in particular on the roles of female Companions in battle and demonstrates how such activities receive far less attention in later biographical compilations.