Cairo Genizah : Letter

Joseph ʿAfīf b. Ezra

Cairo Genizah

<p style='text-align: justify;'>A letter sent from Joseph known as ʿAfīf b. Ezra, the doctor, in Gaza to a relative in Cairo, around the beginning of the 16th century. ʿAfīf and his family had been living in Safed but had visited Cairo. While returning to Safed they had to stop for two months in Gaza when their son became very ill. ʿAfīf writes that they have sold everything to pay for the son’s medical treatment and now his wife has taken to her bed in desperation, apparently unable to see, hear or speak. ʿAfīf has written other letters to the recipient but none have been answered. He says this will be the last and asks the recipient not to force him to send another, because of the difficulty in finding a carrier to take letters from Gaza to Cairo. He refutes the idea that he has brought the misfortune upon himself.</p>