Le sultan de papier: Reconstruction d'une lettre mamelouke pour le Sahel

The letter sent in 1440 by the Mamluk Sultan al-Zāhir Sayf ad-Dīn Jaqmaq (1438-1453) to a Muslim ruler of the Sahel to assure him of his protection during his journey to Mecca is a historical document of primary importance which provides information on the political implications of this pilgrimage for the rulers of the Sahel, as well as on the logistical constraints imposed by crossing the Sahara.

This text provides the basis for an original experiment, since it is possible, thanks to chancery manuals and digital humanities tools, to reproduce a pseudo-diplomatic letter that faithfully adheres to the writing standards of Mamluk secretaries. The contemporary creation of a pseudo-Mamluk letter aims to reconstruct an aspect of the materiality of diplomatic exchanges between the north and south of the Sahara and to shed light on the essential role of secretaries in the diplomacy of Islamic states during the medieval and early modern periods.