رسالة: AIU VII.E.161

الوصف

Recto and verso contain two different letters to "sayyidnā" from a certain dour Menaḥem. The one on recto is more legible. He says that he met with al-Nushū' (?) the aide of the accountant (muʿīn al-mustawfī). Menaḥem asks for instructions regarding what to do following the arrival of the superintendent (nāẓir) and the accountant and the workers and encourages the addressee, sayyidinā, to come himself. The synagogue is in danger and surrounded by evildoers. It is tempting, but there is no proof, to surmise that Menaḥem was a caretaker of the synagogue at Dammūh. T-S 6J5.14 (dated 1340/41 CE) may be related: it is partly about Dammūh and partly about the trouble a certain Menaḥem has been giving the writer. Another small point of similarity is that both writers invoke the convention of being shy/shamefaced about saying something to sayyidinā ("istaḥaytu min sayyidinā" & "wa-l-mamlūk khajlān min sayyidinā").