Geniza Lab

Letter from Sulaymān b. Shaʾul, perhaps in Sicily, to Salmān b. Shabīb al-Kohen, perhaps in Fustat. In Judaeo-Arabic. Dating: mid-11th century. Touches briefly on business matters (he has sent some silk with Abū l-Ḥasan) but most of the letter is an explanation of the difficult circumstances at home. Sulaymān intended to travel this year, but he had to stay home and look after family members. He worries that someone will die and someone else will inherit and a woman will be left without resources. "I cannot describe her condition to you; the stones themselves would weep." The woman has been consoled by the presence of the addressee's son Abū l-Saʿḍ, who has behaved admirably. Sulaymān also reports on the state of Salmān's elderly female niece (al-ʿajūz bint akhūk), which hinges on a matter of inheritance. Uncited in the literature.