Imām Abū Dāwūd on Imām Aḥmad bin Ḥanbal

قَالَ أَبُو بَكْرِ ابْنُ أَبِي دَاوُدَ: سَمِعْتُ أبيِ يَقُولُ: أَحْمَدُ بْنُ حَنْبَلٍ مُقَدَّمٌ على كل من يحمل بِيَدِهِ قَلَمًا وَمِحْبَرَةً- يَعْنِي فِي عَصْرِهِ

Abū Bakr bin Abū Dāwūd (may Allāh have mercy upon then) said:

“I heard my father say that Aḥmad bin Ḥanbal is at the forefront of all who ever carried a pen and an inkpot. i.e., in his time”