Geniza Lab

Letter from Berakhot b. Avraham Ibn al-Ḥājja (aka Abū l-Barakāt Hibatallāh b. Ibrāhīm al-Ṣāʾigh), in Būsh, in northern Upper Egypt (בעמאל אלצעיד אלאדנא/بعمال الصعيد الادنا), to his mother, in Alexandria. The letter is dated: Sunday, the fast day of 17 Tammuz 4918 AM, which is 1158 CE. The address is made out to Alexandria, the goldsmiths' market, to be given to Abū Zikrī Yehuda b. Yiṣḥaq, who is to forward it to the house (or wife) of Abū l-Wafāʾ b. Ḥalfon al-Ḥaddād in the Bīr Jabr neighborhood, at the Iraqi synagogue (simply called Kanīsat al-Yahūd in the Arabic version). One of those men is the brother-in-law of the sender. The letter is written in Judaeo-Arabic, in a beautiful hand. The address is written in both Judaeo-Arabic and Arabic script. He opens with a complaint about the lack of letters from his mother and from his brother Abū Saʿd and even says that he took an oath not to write again, which he clearly failed to keep. He says he is sick and tired of working in Upper Egypt (bilād al-ṣaʿīd), which is why he came down to Būsh, but he is still not content there, so he hopes to move on to Fustat after the holiday. He says that caravans from Alexandria frequently come to Būsh to buy flax. He wants to find a trustworthy man with whom to send some flax to his mother so that she can make him a nice linen garment for Shabbat and holidays; he already has plenty of garments for everyday use. He mentions 100 dinars, but the context is not clear. He was told that ʿAmāʾim and Raḥel her maternal aunt are in Fustat, together with her husband Abū l-Faḍl and a certain Abū l-Surūr. The text in the margin contains some juicy gossip: "A letter came for me (with the news) that Hārūn divorced his wife Yaman. Praise God! She married him and divorced him while we were absent. Keep her with you—(away?) from the wife of Abū l-Wafāʾ—in the house until God grants her a livelihood." The situation is unclear, but it appears that the sender is on the side of Yaman, who also has a son to rear. It is not clear how the wife of Abū l-Wafāʾ—who is supposed to receive this letter, according to the address—fits in. In any case, the addressee should shelter [Yaman] and feed her until the sender can arrive and take her to her brother in al-Shām. The best way to contact the sender is to send letters to Fustat to al-Bilbaysī or to Abū Sahl in Darb al-Kharrāṭīn, and they will forward them with the Jewish merchants to Abū l-Barakāt al-Ṣāʾigh the Jew in Būsh. On verso, the letter concludes with greetings to various people, including: Abū l-Bishr and his mother; Yūsuf; Mukhtār who was in Barqa; the teacher Abū Zikrī Yehuda and his children. (The sender's family name, Ibn al-Ḥājja, means 'son of the woman who made the pilgrimage,' but there is a chance it could be Ibn al-Ḥāja and a nickname for someone with many needs). OZ, AA, ASE.

Poem of friendship written by Shemuʾel the cantor b. Avraham ha-sefaradi. On the back the holiday of sukkot is mentioned, which may have served as the occasion for the reading out of this poem. The writer addresses his friends and lords, declares his love and loyalty to his friends who wished him to be married and beget children. "Take this poem, albeit short, and your love will cover my sin."

poems for a groom. the name Ibn Ma'usa (?) is mentioned.

Letter from the office of the Nagid Yehoshuaʿ Maimonides (d. 1355) to a certain Rabbenu Avraham "the diadem of [...]." Yehoshuaʿ informs Avraham that Sayf al-Dīn Bahādur appeared (before the court) and sued ʿIwāḍ the Alexandria for silver that he was owed. ʿIwāḍ had taken a strict oath not to travel without his creditors' consent—but of course he has done just that. Yehoshuaʿ instructs Avraham to inform ʿIwāḍ's wife that if her husband is with her, and he does not come forth, she too will be placed under the ban, and she will be obliged to pay the 'tarsīm' on his account (this probably refers to paying the debt for him, rather than the other meaning of tarsīm, which refers to the government fees for house arrest). Yehoshuaʿ emphasizes that the creditor is a good man, so his word can be believed; plus, he took a mighty oath that he is not playing a trick. On verso there is the response in Hebrew, signed by Avraham ha-Sefaradi. The hand is distinctly sefaradi and would probably have been dated to a couple centuries later if it weren't for the context. The text is very faded, but some information can be extracted: Avraham found either ʿIwāḍ or his wife or at least people who knew him and threatened to place a ban on him the next day under the authority of the Nagid, unless he paid up the 120 silver pieces that he owed—but ʿIwāḍ refused. Then, "people... to us in the name of ʿIwāḍ that he said that if... him, he will pay... the religion. See [what] should be done in the matter, and inform your slave the son of your maidservant. Avraham Sefaradi." (A previous cataloguer also saw the word "convert" somewhere in here.) OZ, AA, ASE.

Verso: Legal document (bill of sale?) involving a Nubian female slave and the daughter of R. Yosef and someone's wife. Very faded. Dated: 1 Elul 1538 Seleucid (i.e., about a week after the main document on recto). No signatures.

Recto: Legal document. Last will of Abū al-Barakāt b. Abū al-Riḍā Yosef Lebdi. This deathbed declaration was made in the presence of his sons and of the partner in his sugar factory. This document is largely damaged, but several interesting points emerge. For instance, when his eldest son reminds him that according to Jewish law the firstborn was entitled to a double share (Deuteronomy 21: 17), the dying man replies: "I do not prefer one child over another." Also, he and his business partner mutually declare that they trust each other completely; Abū al-Barakāt’s account books would speak for him after his death. At the end, a large bag with ʿūd (aromatic wood) was brought in, a purse with gold was put into it; the bag was laid into a Rumī (European) chest, which was locked, and the key was put into the hand of the dying man. Location: Fustat. Dated: 25 Av 1538 Seleucid, which is August 9, 1227 CE. (Information from Goitein’s index card)

Letter addressed to Eliyya b. Mishaʾel ha-Levi. In Hebrew and Judaeo-Arabic. The addressee is called "the mighty prince" (ha-Sar ha-Adir) and his father is called "physician" (ha-Rofe). Almost all of the text is dedicated to praises and blessings. In the remaining text the writer informs Eliyya that ever since he parted from Eliyya and left Fustat, he and his children are suffering from illness (though he may simply be referring to the heartsickness of being parted).

Letter that mentions Avraham Maimonides - it seems that the writer asked him a question regarding legal procedure and now he is asking the recipient to go to him and obtain his ruling (?) . ENA 1822a.4 is possibly related to this document.

Recto: Two fragmentary legal records or drafts, perhaps from a court notebook. The lower one refers to Abū l-Maḥāsin [...] b. Abū l-Riḍā [...] and the purchase of a shop with all its equipment and scales for a sum of 46[.]. Verso: Draft of a the beginning of a legal document. In a different hand. Dated: 1540 Seleucid = 1228/29 CE, under the authority of Avraham Maimonides. One of the parties is Shelomo ha-Kohen.

Verso: Letter from Moshe b. Levi ha-Levi, in Qalyūb, probably to his father Abū Sahl Levi, in Fustat. He was very sad and wept the night after an elder female family member (al-kabīra) left him and returned to Fustat. He urges his mother to 'do the things that you told her to do for me' without delay. He requests more tutty; אנבר(?); and golden gum-senegal (? קאקיאס דהבי). The addressee is to get from Maḥfūẓ all that he owes to Moshe. As for Dammūh, he suggests that the family members go there first and he try to catch up with them on Sunday, or alternatively he'll try to come to them on Thursday and they can all go to Dammūh together. Note that Moshe cut up ENA 2558.18 + T-S 13J7.12, a legal document dated 1194 CE, and reused the versos of both fragments for letters.

Recto: Legal deed. Location: Qalyūb. Dated: Tuesday, 7 Adar 1505 Seleucid, which is 1194 CE, under the authority of the Gaon Sar Shalom ha-Levi. In the handwriting of Moshe b. Levi ha-Levi. Moshe later cut it very neatly down the middle, yielding ENA 2558.18 and T-S 13J7.12, and wrote a family letter on the verso of each half. The deed concerns the dissolution of a partnership in a house and in a store between Khalaf and Abū l-Faḍl, the sons of Hilāl. It seems that Khalaf retained the store, while Abū l-Faḍl bought out Khalaf's half of the house for 16.5 dinars. (See also Eliyyahu Ashtor, “The Number of Jews in Medieval Egypt,” JJS (1968), 13; Jacob Mann, Jews in Egypt and Palestine under the Fatimid Caliphs, 2:294. An earlier description said the document was dated 1481 Seleucid, but this must refer to a different document, because the date was previously missing.)

Deed of lease. Dating: The year-long lease begins on [Ṭevet] 1525 Seleucid = [Shaʿbān] 610 and ends on Kislev 15[26] Seleucid = Rajab 611 AH. So the document was drawn up in December 1213 CE or shortly before then, under the authority of Avraham Maimonides. Lessor: A woman, unclear if her name is preserved. Lessee: Abū l-Baqāʾ b. Yefet al-Kohen. The terms of the rent are laid down. The house is in the alleyway of the domed mosque (Darb Masjid al-Qubba). On verso there are pen trials and jottings.

Recto: Letter likely sent from Aden to Fustat. (The locations are not specified in the document; this is Goitein's assessment.) In Judaeo-Arabic, written in a Yemeni hand. Dated: 26 Adar 1530 Seleucid, which is 1219 CE. The sender wants mercury and Iraqi roses to be purchased with the proceeds from bamboo chalk (ṭabāshīr). He asks about the value of Yiṣḥaq's pepper and frankincense. ʿAṭiyya al-Dajjājī is to write with an update on the bag (kharīṭa) of aloeswood and the silk fūṭa. Greetings to al-Asʿad. This is document VII, 52 in India Book VII (unpublished). Verso: Draft of a letter written in Edessa (al-Ruhā). In Judaeo-Arabic. In a different hand than the letter on recto. The sender complains that he has been unemployed for 2.5 years, the first of which he spent in Tyre. Then (the French rabbi Yosef) b. Gershom arrived in ʿAkka, and terrible things happened.... (The fragment ends here.) Goitein suggests that this letter is a request for a post.

Acknowledgement of debt in Judaeo-Arabic from Fustat 1230. Joseph b. Avraham known as son of the poet, acknowledges a debt of 600 nuqra dirhems to the sons of Abu al-Munajja, Sa'adya and - name left blank - . He will pay them 80 dirhem every month. On the back is something to do with clothing.

Letter from a woman, in New Cairo, to her brother Abū l-Ḥasan b. Wahb the brother-in-law of [...], in Malīj. In Arabic script. The sender is identified as "his sister" (karīmatuhū) in the address on verso. It was written on her behalf either by a son or a nephew, who calls the addressee "my father" in the letter itself. Ever since the addressee departed, she has been weeping copiously. They have sent him several letters with no response. The addressee's children and the children of his sister send their regards and urge him to come see them ("fa-mā baqiya fī l-ʿumr akthar mimmā maḍā," cf. PGP record for T-S NS J380). The sister urges the addressee to come celebrate the holiday with her. Greetings from Sayyid al-Ahl. There is a note in the margin stating that they have sent with the bearer 3 dirhams.

Legal/communal declaration. Location: Minyat Zifta Jawād. Dated: Middle third of Shevaṭ 1554, which is 1243 CE. The people making the declaration (whose names, probably originally written at the bottom, have been torn away) support the judge al-Shaykh al-Makīn Yosef b. Moshe (b. Peraḥya Ibn Yiju?) the judge in assuming the position of his father as muqaddam of the community after the latter's death. "Whereas we have known [him]... and he grew up among us...." The community has already written to him "singly and collectively" asking him to return and take the leadership. Their testimony is meant to counter those opposing the appointment (though the opponents may simply be hypothetical). They "kiss the ground" before the addressee and ask him to send Yosef b. Moshe (imḍāʾ ḥālih wa-khurūjih ilaynā) to lead them and engage in "enjoining good and forbidding wrong as the Law dictates" (al-amr bi-l-maʿrūf wa-l-nahy ʿan al-munkar ʿalā mā tūjibu al-sharīʿā).

Query and the beginning of the answer in another hand. The question and answer revolve around a commercial partnership involving wine. the respondent hand resembles Shemuʾel b. Eli's.

Letter to “our prince” Ḥalfon. In Judaeo-Arabic. The hand may be known. After many phrases of blessings and deference, the sender apologetically reports that he purchased a Sicilian kerchief (mandīl) for 4 dinars. It is not clear what he wants from the addressee—reimbursement? He then says that he received a letter from Abū l-Fahm(?) b. Avraham Gaʾon(?). The letter seems to have been left unfinished.

Three legal queries to Yiṣḥaq b. Sason with his responsa. At least one of the cases concerns the maintenance of children

Bifolio from a ledger of business accounts. In Ladino and western Arabic numerals. Dated: 26 Kislev [5]503 or [5]505 AM, corresponding to 1742 CE or 1744 CE. The year "[5]503" is repeated two lines further down, so perhaps that is the correct one—or the accounts span a period of 2 years. List of purchases and sales or "copia de compras y vendidas" (l. 2-3r) by Binyamin Abzardil (or Abzaradel). The heading on the verso suggests that this list is a compilation of the entries in Abzardil's own recordkeeping over a period of two years: "conforme todo en sus libritos ke komiensan del 26 Kislev shanat [5]503... [5]505" (l. 3-4r). On the right side of the verso, where the list begins, all values are listed in silver medin coinage (abbreviated "מאי") and this may be the case for all values listed. The list also features a variety of names that represent Abzardil's personal business contacts, such as: Aḥmed Abū Qurra (? l. 11r, right column), Yosef Bilido (l. 12r, right column) Yiṣḥaq Levi (l. 25v on left column). The list continues on the verso. MCD. ASE.