Accounts of an India Trader
Abraham Ben Yijū wrote these accounts in Fustāt (Old Cairo) in around 1152, after he returned from traveling in India and Yemen. He wrote in both Arabic and Hebrew characters.
Credits
Halper 472, fol. 1r. University of Pennsylvania, Center for Advanced Judaic Studies Library, Cairo Genizah Collection.
Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 3: Encountering Christianity and Islam.
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After he began, they were able to comfort him and console him. And neither my grief nor the situation I was in was concealed. Except that my agony and harsh situation increased when Abu Yaqūb went to…
Letter to Abraham Ben Yijū
Your servant, Maḍmūn b. al-Ḥasan b. Bundār—may he rest in Eden!
In Your name, O Merciful.
Your letter has arrived, my lord, the eminent, most illustrious elder. May God lengthen your life, make…
Letter to His Brother-in-Law, Abū Zikrī
In Your Name, O Merciful.
Your hand shall prevail over your foes, and all your enemies shall be cut down (Micah 5:8).
I am writing to you, my lord and master, my chief, the illustrious elder—may God…
Letter to Her Brother, Moses
[To] the esteemed sage, our sage Moses, may God preserve him, [from] Miriam, your sister, who continuously praises you.
May God make permanent the honor of my lord and master, the crown of my head…
Letter to His Brother, Peraḥyā
To my dear brother—may God give you long life, protect you and guard you, not deny you His superior gift of success, be for you a guardian and protector in all your affairs, avert from you anything…
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Letter to Ḥalfon ben Nethanel (II)
After he began, they were able to comfort him and console him. And neither my grief nor the situation I was in was concealed. Except that my agony and harsh situation increased when Abu Yaqūb went to…
Letter to Abraham Ben Yijū
Your servant, Maḍmūn b. al-Ḥasan b. Bundār—may he rest in Eden!
In Your name, O Merciful.
Your letter has arrived, my lord, the eminent, most illustrious elder. May God lengthen your life, make…
Letter to His Brother-in-Law, Abū Zikrī
In Your Name, O Merciful.
Your hand shall prevail over your foes, and all your enemies shall be cut down (Micah 5:8).
I am writing to you, my lord and master, my chief, the illustrious elder—may God…
Letter to Her Brother, Moses
[To] the esteemed sage, our sage Moses, may God preserve him, [from] Miriam, your sister, who continuously praises you.
May God make permanent the honor of my lord and master, the crown of my head…
Letter to His Brother, Peraḥyā
To my dear brother—may God give you long life, protect you and guard you, not deny you His superior gift of success, be for you a guardian and protector in all your affairs, avert from you anything…
Drawing of a Boat
This sketch of a boat, only about half of which survived in the Cairo Geniza, depicts a trireme or longship, a sea vessel that is propelled by rowing. The image shows several individuals standing on…