Aden straits. On the eastern African side of these narrow straits was Ethiopia,
endpoint on a trail of several important city ports.
Admittedly, David’s “reputation for veracity does not stand very high,” but
“there is no doubt... that he had first-hand knowledge of Eastern Sudan, for
the details set out in [his] note are remarkably accurate, and could not in his
time be derived from any literary source.”^42 We know that he began in Jiddah,
Arabia, and then crossed the Red Sea to Africa and proceeded from Suaqin to
the Nile Valley, and from there to Egypt. David’s descriptions of the “Blue Nile
region in the Sudan is not only considered accurate, it is also the earliest we
[have] available.”^43
David’s suggestion to involve the Portuguese also made sense to Pope
Clement VII. Indeed, he eventually did send David to them with a letter
requesting that they assist him. In this regard, the pope acted in a manner
similar to that of al-Qayrawan’s Jews after their encounter with Eldad: the pope
turned to the highest relevant authority on the matter in question. Portugal
was the recognized authority on the region featured in David’s stories and the
only European power active in that district of the world. Portugal had knowl-
edge and interests in that region that no one else in Europe shared.^44 In his
letter of September 17 , 1524 , to the king of Portugal, Clement VII specifically
stated that he was interested in information that only the Portuguese could
have had at that point: “We, who are very distant from these places, could not
recognize [as truth] and thoroughly assess the nature of said David’s story. On
the other hand, we did not want to dismiss [him] completely. Therefore we
decided to send him to your highness that has numerous people traveling
frequently to these places and tour[ing] them.”^45
Portuguese involvement in Africa began as early as 1415 , when they con-
quered Ceuta in North Africa. They are, of course, famous for their series of
navigations along the African coasts, the discovery of the route to India and the
Indian Ocean, and the voyages that produced such heroes as Magellan, da
Gama,^46 and Dias. Portuguese maritime activity in Africa was accompanied by
voyages on land that were not insignificant.
On February 4 , 1525 , a few months after he wrote to the Portuguese king,
Clement VII also wrote a letter to the king of Ethiopia, David Alnazarani
(Emperor Lebna Dengel David II). He introduced David Reuveni and his
story and asked for Ethiopia’s general support for David’s plans to fight the
Muslims. Justifying the bizarre letter of recommendation on behalf of a Jew,
the pope explained: “God sometimes uses enemies in order to punish ene-
mies.”^47 Clement VII did not have anything specific to ask from the Ethiopian
emperor with respect to David, and David himself did not even mention
Ethiopia in his plans. Yet, Clement VII clearly saw the African Christian
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