Catalog
Reference
8: 310, 19 - 312, 6
Text
ربيع الاول اوله الثلاثاءاستهل و الناس فى قلق زائد من علو الاسعار فى سائر ما يباع و قد بلغ فيه
سعر الدينار الى اربعمائة و ستين درهما و اما الفضة الطيبة فعدمت بالكلية و صارت المعاملة مقتصرة
على الفضة الردية فتضرر الناسمن ذلك غاية الضرر فلما كان يوم الخميس ثالثه جمع السلطان و
الامراء و اعيان الدولة بالحوش من القلعةو كلم السلطان الحاضرين بسبب ما الناس فيه من علو سعر
الذهب و زيادة الغش فى الفضة فاشار الجميعبابطال هذه المعاملة و اجتمعوا فى ذلك على كلمة واحدة
فرسم السلطان فى الحال بالنداء بان يكون سعر الاشرفى الذهب ثلاثمائة فى المعاملة و الصرف و
سائر وجوه الانتفاعات و الفضة المغشوشة كل درهم بستة عشر و الطيبة التى شرع السلطان فى
ضربها الآن باربعة و عشرين فعلى هذا فالنقص من المغشوشةو كذا الذهب الثلث و حكم السلطان بذلك
و نفذه القضاة و نودى فى الحال بذلك بين يدى السلطان ثم فى الشوارع فشق ذلك على من عنده من
الذهب و الفضة القديمة شىء لنقص الثلث من كل منهما غير انه علم انالمصلحة فى ذلك و الا تفسد
الاحوال ثم فى الحال نودى بنقص الثلث من ثمن جميع المبيعات من الملبوس و المأكول و غير ذلك من كل
صنف فلما نزل المنادى بذلك و خلفه القضاة و الحكام زال عن الناس ما كانوا فيهو سكن ما كان بهم و
قال كل احد فى نفسه كأن السعر الاول باق فان نقص المال فقد نقص ثمن ما كان يشترى به و شرع
الناس فى الحال فى شراء ما يحتاجون اليه بثلثى ما كان يباع به قبله فتقلق ارباب البضائع فى هذا
اليوم ثم من الغد فلما صمم الحكام على ذلك و شرعوا فى تهديد من غلق دكانه من اربابالمعايش و
تسمير حوانيت من لم يجدوا اربابها ثم ركب حاجب الحجاب برسباى البجاسى و معه القاضىصلاح
الدين امير حاج المكينى محتسب القاهرة فشقوا بمن معهم من الحجاب شوارع البلد و اوقعوا بالسوقة
و اردعوهم بانواع العقوبة ضرب المقارع فما دونه و شهروا جماعة كثيرين بالقاهرة و مصر و بولاقو
استمر ذلك فى كل يوم و السلطان يحرض الحكام فى امر الباعة و ردعهم و قد شمر العامة ساعدهم ى
مرافعتهم الى الحكام حتى ابادوا الباعة شرا فعند ذلك شرع ارباب البضائع فى بيع بضائها بثلثى ما
كانوايبيعونه اولا من جميع الاشياء حقيرها و جليلها و مشى ذلك و نسى الناس ما نقص من سعر
ذهبهم وفضتهم بهذه الفعلة قلت و عدت هذه الفعلة من افعال السلطان الصالحة و شكره ارباب العقول
على ذلك فانهلو ترك الناس على ما هم عليه لزاد سعر الدينار حتى يبلغ الف درهم فكان فعله هذا
صوابا فلله الحمد إن وقفه لهذا
سعر الدينار الى اربعمائة و ستين درهما و اما الفضة الطيبة فعدمت بالكلية و صارت المعاملة مقتصرة
على الفضة الردية فتضرر الناسمن ذلك غاية الضرر فلما كان يوم الخميس ثالثه جمع السلطان و
الامراء و اعيان الدولة بالحوش من القلعةو كلم السلطان الحاضرين بسبب ما الناس فيه من علو سعر
الذهب و زيادة الغش فى الفضة فاشار الجميعبابطال هذه المعاملة و اجتمعوا فى ذلك على كلمة واحدة
فرسم السلطان فى الحال بالنداء بان يكون سعر الاشرفى الذهب ثلاثمائة فى المعاملة و الصرف و
سائر وجوه الانتفاعات و الفضة المغشوشة كل درهم بستة عشر و الطيبة التى شرع السلطان فى
ضربها الآن باربعة و عشرين فعلى هذا فالنقص من المغشوشةو كذا الذهب الثلث و حكم السلطان بذلك
و نفذه القضاة و نودى فى الحال بذلك بين يدى السلطان ثم فى الشوارع فشق ذلك على من عنده من
الذهب و الفضة القديمة شىء لنقص الثلث من كل منهما غير انه علم انالمصلحة فى ذلك و الا تفسد
الاحوال ثم فى الحال نودى بنقص الثلث من ثمن جميع المبيعات من الملبوس و المأكول و غير ذلك من كل
صنف فلما نزل المنادى بذلك و خلفه القضاة و الحكام زال عن الناس ما كانوا فيهو سكن ما كان بهم و
قال كل احد فى نفسه كأن السعر الاول باق فان نقص المال فقد نقص ثمن ما كان يشترى به و شرع
الناس فى الحال فى شراء ما يحتاجون اليه بثلثى ما كان يباع به قبله فتقلق ارباب البضائع فى هذا
اليوم ثم من الغد فلما صمم الحكام على ذلك و شرعوا فى تهديد من غلق دكانه من اربابالمعايش و
تسمير حوانيت من لم يجدوا اربابها ثم ركب حاجب الحجاب برسباى البجاسى و معه القاضىصلاح
الدين امير حاج المكينى محتسب القاهرة فشقوا بمن معهم من الحجاب شوارع البلد و اوقعوا بالسوقة
و اردعوهم بانواع العقوبة ضرب المقارع فما دونه و شهروا جماعة كثيرين بالقاهرة و مصر و بولاقو
استمر ذلك فى كل يوم و السلطان يحرض الحكام فى امر الباعة و ردعهم و قد شمر العامة ساعدهم ى
مرافعتهم الى الحكام حتى ابادوا الباعة شرا فعند ذلك شرع ارباب البضائع فى بيع بضائها بثلثى ما
كانوايبيعونه اولا من جميع الاشياء حقيرها و جليلها و مشى ذلك و نسى الناس ما نقص من سعر
ذهبهم وفضتهم بهذه الفعلة قلت و عدت هذه الفعلة من افعال السلطان الصالحة و شكره ارباب العقول
على ذلك فانهلو ترك الناس على ما هم عليه لزاد سعر الدينار حتى يبلغ الف درهم فكان فعله هذا
صوابا فلله الحمد إن وقفه لهذا
Summary
01/03/0862:
This month started with a Tuesday.
The month started and the people were increasingly disquieted, because of the high prices of all items sold.
During this month, the price of the dinar reached 460 dirham, and the good silver went fully out of circulation. Business was then done only with the corrupt* (raddī) silver. The people suffered much losses thereof.
On Thursday 03/03, the sultan, amirs and ʾaʿyān al-dawla assembled at the Ḥawsh of the Qalʿa, and the sultan spoke to those present, because of the (distress) the people were in due to the high price of the gold and the increase of the debasement in the silver.
Everybody suggested abolishing this business, and all were unanimous over this.
Then the sultan immediately ordered a proclamation to be made that the price of the ʾAshrafī gold is 300 in business, in money transer and it all of its use, that each dirham of debased silver stood at 16; and that the good silver, that the sultan had now started coining, stood at 24. So the decrease through the debased (silver) stood at 1/3, as was (the case with) the gold.
The sultan ordered for that, the qadis reinforced it, and thus the diminition by 1/3 was immediately proclaimed before the sultan and then in the streets.
This was most harsch for all those who had some of the old gold of silver, given the diminition by 1/3. Yet, they knew that this was a sound (decision), and that conditions would then not longer worsen.
Then, immediately a diminition by 1/3 was proclaimed of the price of all goods of sale, clothing, fooding etc., of all sorts.
As the proclaimer descended, followed by the qadis and the ḥukkām,
the people calmed down*, all saying to themselves, ‘It is as if the price hasn’t changed at all! If he has first diminished the price of the capital, he has now diminished the price of whatever one buys with it.’
The people started buying whatever they needed 1/3 cheaper than the price at which these items were sold before.
Now the owners of the goods became anxious this day and the following. As the ḥukkām were determined and as they started threatening them with closing the shop of the owners of items of livelihood and with fastening the shops the owner of which was not be to be found with nails, the ḥājib ḥujjāb Barsbāy al-Bajāsī started riding through the streets of the country, together with qadi Ṣalāh al-Dīn ʾAmīr Ḥājj al-Makīnī, the muḥtasib of Cairo and ḥājibs, they attacked the subjects and reprimanded them with all sorts of punishment, by beating them with whips and others. A lot of people they slandered in Cairo, Miṣr and Būlāq. This happened every day, while the sultan instigated the ḥukkām in the matter of the selling and their preventing it. The populace bared the upper arm for bringing their case before the ḥukkām, and even destroyed the goods as an evil act. At that point, the owners of the goods started selling all of their goods at a price 1/3 lower than the price at which they ued to sell at first.
Thus it happened, and the people forgot the diminition of the price of their gold and silver through this act.
I say, this deed of the sultan is to be counted as a sound deed of his, and those endowed with sense thank him for that. If the people would not have abandoned the idea of doing to him what they wanted to do, then the price of the dinar would have risen until it would have reached 1,000 dirhams! This deed of his is a just one. Praise be to God if He has instructed him to do so!
This month started with a Tuesday.
The month started and the people were increasingly disquieted, because of the high prices of all items sold.
During this month, the price of the dinar reached 460 dirham, and the good silver went fully out of circulation. Business was then done only with the corrupt* (raddī) silver. The people suffered much losses thereof.
On Thursday 03/03, the sultan, amirs and ʾaʿyān al-dawla assembled at the Ḥawsh of the Qalʿa, and the sultan spoke to those present, because of the (distress) the people were in due to the high price of the gold and the increase of the debasement in the silver.
Everybody suggested abolishing this business, and all were unanimous over this.
Then the sultan immediately ordered a proclamation to be made that the price of the ʾAshrafī gold is 300 in business, in money transer and it all of its use, that each dirham of debased silver stood at 16; and that the good silver, that the sultan had now started coining, stood at 24. So the decrease through the debased (silver) stood at 1/3, as was (the case with) the gold.
The sultan ordered for that, the qadis reinforced it, and thus the diminition by 1/3 was immediately proclaimed before the sultan and then in the streets.
This was most harsch for all those who had some of the old gold of silver, given the diminition by 1/3. Yet, they knew that this was a sound (decision), and that conditions would then not longer worsen.
Then, immediately a diminition by 1/3 was proclaimed of the price of all goods of sale, clothing, fooding etc., of all sorts.
As the proclaimer descended, followed by the qadis and the ḥukkām,
the people calmed down*, all saying to themselves, ‘It is as if the price hasn’t changed at all! If he has first diminished the price of the capital, he has now diminished the price of whatever one buys with it.’
The people started buying whatever they needed 1/3 cheaper than the price at which these items were sold before.
Now the owners of the goods became anxious this day and the following. As the ḥukkām were determined and as they started threatening them with closing the shop of the owners of items of livelihood and with fastening the shops the owner of which was not be to be found with nails, the ḥājib ḥujjāb Barsbāy al-Bajāsī started riding through the streets of the country, together with qadi Ṣalāh al-Dīn ʾAmīr Ḥājj al-Makīnī, the muḥtasib of Cairo and ḥājibs, they attacked the subjects and reprimanded them with all sorts of punishment, by beating them with whips and others. A lot of people they slandered in Cairo, Miṣr and Būlāq. This happened every day, while the sultan instigated the ḥukkām in the matter of the selling and their preventing it. The populace bared the upper arm for bringing their case before the ḥukkām, and even destroyed the goods as an evil act. At that point, the owners of the goods started selling all of their goods at a price 1/3 lower than the price at which they ued to sell at first.
Thus it happened, and the people forgot the diminition of the price of their gold and silver through this act.
I say, this deed of the sultan is to be counted as a sound deed of his, and those endowed with sense thank him for that. If the people would not have abandoned the idea of doing to him what they wanted to do, then the price of the dinar would have risen until it would have reached 1,000 dirhams! This deed of his is a just one. Praise be to God if He has instructed him to do so!
Related properties
12
ID
https://ihodp.ugent.be/mpp/informationObject-3959