Letter to Sahlān ben Abraham

This Judeo-Arabic letter was sent from the head of the academy in Jerusalem, Solomon ben Judah, to Sahlān ben Abraham of Fustāt (Old Cairo). On behalf of the Jewish community of Jerusalem, Solomon thanks Sahlān for his financial support. The Jerusalem community faced a heavy tax that had to be paid if Jewish pilgrims were to be allowed to visit the Mount of Olives and to pray facing the ruins of the Temple. Jews living in Jerusalem borrowed money to pay the tax, and Jews from around the region—and perhaps beyond—were frequently asked to support them. Solomon uses two honorific terms given by the heads of the Babylonian academies to their leading representatives in the diaspora: alluf and rosh kallah (head of the row). The ellipsis indicates a lacuna in the manuscript.