رسالة: T-S 8J26.18

الوصف

Letter from Bayān, probably in Fustat, to his brother Bū ʿImrān the son of the Jewish teacher, in Qūṣ. Dating: likely ca. 12th century. The addressee, a silk weaver, had fled to Aswān to escape the capitation tax collectors. The sender had previously sent a letter to Abū Isḥāq with the warning that the capitation tax collectors would arrest the addressee because of his family members. However God has provided and they have been able to pay the tax. Likewise the addressee's father and brother Abū Sahl have paid. So the addressee should not be discouraged from "coming down" and returning. God will provide a good livelihood, "even if you cry out in the market square" (i.e. the tax collectors won't arrest him?). The silk weaving business is booming. The addressee is urged not to tarry in Aswān. The addressee's mother cries day and night and greets him. The addressee's father had to spend one night in jail because of him. The wife of the addressee's paternal uncle sends her regards; Ṭāhir cries and asks when his brother will return. Wheat is 42 (dirhams) for a low-quality irdabb. (Information in part from Goitein's index card.)