Sir Richard Burton was an orientalist explorer, diplomat and eccentric. He was a remarkable linguist, and his mastery of Arabic enabled him to mix with the Arabs disguised as one of them. In 1853 he made Haj, the trip to Mecca that is required of every Muslim, at a time when such an exploit by a European could have meant death. He wrote many books of travel during his time as employee of the Foreign Office, but he is best known for his unexpurgated translation of "The Arabian Nights." He spent the last fourteen years of his life working on a translation of "The Perfumed Garden," but Lady Burton burned it after his death.