Geniza Lab

Medical prescription in Judaeo-Arabic.

Letter fragment in Judaeo-Arabic. Might be from a provincial teacher. "...that which we were hoping for from benefiting the children... on Passover... he brought a teacher with him from Fustat named Ibn [...]... did not heed his words... returning your son to this... what I expected from them... I have sent you (pl.) (letters) from Manṣūr(a?)... (and) from Damīra... (and I have not received a) response, please send me a letter informing me... in Minyat Ghamr, for they said to me, 'Stay... they will make arrangements for you'... (if [...]) I will stay with them, and if not I will enter (Fustat)...." Might also mention al-Maḥalla in l. 2.

Damaged legal deed, probably a settlement, in which a man (Manṣ[ūr]?) accepts a number of stipulations upon himself concerning a house and household goods. He agrees not to annoy (ḍājara) his wife, and he will provide for the two daughters of Yaʿqūb b. M[...] Ibn Jumayʿ, who are named Sitt al-Ahl and Sitt al-Qawām. The situation is not totally clear; this might be a divorce agreement or another kind of agreement based on the conditions that were written in the ketubba. At the bottom of verso, at 180 degrees, there is an unrelated legal note concerning the marriage payments of Elʿazar b. Ṭ[...]. The early installment is 8 dinars and the dowry is 43 dinars. Underneath, there is a note about the conditions agreed upon, involving property in the al-Qālūs neighborhood. There are additional jottings in both Arabic script and Hebrew script. AA. ASE.

List of amounts of money received from al-Shaykh al-Makīn and al-Shaykh al-Nadiv, written by Shelomo b. Eliyyahu (d. 1230s).

Small fragment from a letter, mostly related to business issues. On recto a reference is made for Jews and Muslims, but the context is unclear. Mentions the price of salt.

Legal document. Much damaged. A bill of release granted by a husband (named Sh[...]) to his wife Sitt al-Ḥusn. One document ends two-thirds of the way down the page with some signatures: Pinḥas b. [...]; [...] b. [...] ha-Rofe; Nissim b. [...]. Another document or record then begins, probably related to the same case. Perhaps the top is from him to her and the bottom from her to him.

On recto an Arabic list. On verso Judeo Arabic short note, seems late.

Letter in Judaeo-Arabic. Dating: Probably 11th or 12th century. Torn and damaged. Recto is difficult to read, while verso contains mostly greetings. Mentions people such as Abū l-Bishr, Abū ʿUmar, and Ibn Shaul. There are few Shauls in Goitein's name cards, all of them from 11th- to early 12th-century North Africa. AA

Minute fragment from a legal deed written by Efraim b. Shemarya. One of the parties named Halfon.

Letter from Abū l-Munā b. Yaʿaqov al-Isrāʾīlī al-Ḥāfiẓ al-[...], unknown location, to Abū ʿAlī b. ʿAṭāʾ al-Isrāʾīlī, presumably in Fustat. In Judaeo-Arabic with the address in both Judaeo-Arabic and Arabic script. Dating: Probably 11th or 12th century. Same writer as T-S AS 166.174; may be an indirect join. Discusses various business matters, including a report on a price negotiation involving the figure of 15 dirhams, then a report on some codices (maṣāḥif). The boy Avraham is mentioned. AA. ASE.

Small fragment from a letter. The writer is informing about Bilbays, and refer to the order of 'our master'. Also referring to the Haver may his memory be blessed. On verso few words in vocalized Hebrew script.

See PGP22487

Fragment of a business letter in Judaeo-Arabic. "When he arrived in al-Maḥalla, I inquired from him, and he said that he went to you many times, but your excellence said that they were not ready. I ask that you please give them to the bearer of this letter, Abū l-Thanāʾ al-Kohen, and do not delay at all. . . . they arrived ruined (mufsida), on account of their bad craftsmanship (fasād ṣanʿatihā). . . ."

Much damage fragment. On recto a letter, very hard to read. On verso fragment from another letter. The writer informing that people have arrived from Damascus, and he didn't receive any reply from the addressee. The French (אפרנג) are mentioned in the margins.

Might be a communal letter in Judaeo-Arabic. Faded and damaged. Mentions 'al-Shāmiyyīn' and various numbers and Sayyidnā Moshe. Could also be literary or prognostications. Needs further examination.

Probably literary treatise. TS NS 190.13 is written by the same hand and seems to be from the same manuscript, but it is not a direct join. AA

Digest of a deed of sale for a house. Mostly written by Halfon b. Menashshe ha-Levi in his worst cursive hand. The first few lines were written by another scribe, and Ḥalfon b. Menashshe took over the writing mid-sentence. The house is in Fustat, in Qaṣr al-Shamʿ, Zuqāq al-Yahūd. There follows a detailed description of its boundaries; one is the house of Abū l-Khayr al-Yahūdī known as Ibn אלערקי. A sum of 13 (dinars) is mentioned. The date is Wednesday, 21 Ḥeshvan (plausible options: 1108, 1111, 1115, 1128, or 1135).

Business letter in Judaeo-Arabic. Fragment (upper left corner). Dealing with the silk trade.

Fragment of a divorce contract.

Letter fragment in Judaeo-Arabic. Might be written by Shelomo b. Eliyyahu. Refers to a young woman (al-ṣabiyya); someone who intended to travel to Syria (al-Shām) in (or for?) two months; "her mother"; "her husband"; entering Alexandria; al-Shaykh al-Thiqa; "the sultan intended to...."