Geniza Lab

Letter addressed to Abū ʿAlī Yeḥezqel b. Yiṣḥaq. In Judaeo-Arabic. Sent from (or to?) Alexandria. Dating: Mentions the year "499" as a year recently past, so this letter was probably written early in the year 1500 Seleucid, which would be 1189 CE. (But note that Goitein's index card translates "499" as 1088 CE.) 499 could also be a hijrī date (1105/06 CE), which is made less likely—but not impossible—by the use of the Hebrew month Ṭevet in the same sentence. The writer discusses numerous business matters, complains at length about his poor state, including commodities that were damaged by worms), and the general economic depression: "the times are bilious (al-zamān ṣafrāwī), and their representative here who used to work wonders—there is no business for him or for anyone else, and everything is infinite darkness (חשכות) with all manner of hardship, and most of this is on account of the water (מאים=מים)." He brings up his falling out with Abū l-Ḥasan Bishāra, who is currently shunning him because of how the sender behaved toward him int he past. Other people mentioned include Abū l-Ḥasan Ibn al-Bukhtaj and Ismāʿīl Ibn al-Taherti (spelled אלתאהתי, maybe read אלתאהרתי?), perhaps referring to Shemuel b. Barhūn (but this would not fit with the suggested dating of 1189 CE). AA. ASE