Letter: L-G Misc. 34

Description

Letter of appeal for charity. A needy man from Qayrawan had applied for assistance from his relative, the esteemed Ifrīqiyyan merchant and scholar, Nahray b. Nissim (active in Fustat, 1060–97 CE). Before turning to Nahray he had already received donations from another prominent Ifrīqiyan merchant, Abū Zikri (Yehuda b. Moshe ibn Sughmār). Nahray had become annoyed. It is not clear whether he was angry because he felt that people might have thought he was neglecting his relative or became peeved for some other reason, such as competition over patronage--or perhaps both (Cohen). In any case, the writer promised henceforth to rely only on Nahray. But since then Nahray has only paid him the insufficient sum of 15 dirhams over the course of eight months. Now the writer is too ashamed to address Abū Zikrī, and he has therefore written this note to a third potential patron to solicit support. (Information from Cohen and Gil and CUDL.)