Letter: T-S Ar.42.121

Description

Letter of recommendation. In Arabic script. Sent from Damascus to two high-placed addressees (al-majlisayn al-sāmīyayn) presumably in Cairo, al-Majlis al-[...] and al-Majlis al-Nūrī. Dating: Perhaps Ayyubid or Mamluk era. The letter opens with two lines of poetry. The sender then reports that the bearer, al-Ḥājj Aḥmad from the city of [...] has been living for some time in Damascus. He traveled to the Ḥijāz with Ibn Shādī Bedouins but apparently lost a sum of money and has petitioned the government for help. The addressees are asked to assist him. A ḥadīth is quoted: الخلق كلهم عيال الله واحب الخلق الى الله انفعهم لعياله نفع الله بمعروفه يوم يحتاج الناس الى معروفهم. The honorific "Sayyidnā" is used for multiple people including the addressee(s). Regards to various people, including Najm al-Dīn al-Bahnasī and Ayyūb. The Qāḍī Fakhr al-Dīn b. Abī l-Manāqib(?) was present at the time of the writing of the letter. Needs further examination. ASE