Geniza Lab

Letter addressed to al-Shaykh al-Ajal al-Raʾis Abū ʿĪmrān Mūsā (Shelomo b. Mūsā al-Mahdāwī in al-Mahdiyya) from his business associate (Peraḥya b. Yosef in Fusṭāṭ) regarding diminution of his wages and distribution of work. He expresses his fear of being left with nothing if he is asked to vacate the store. He pleads that he be associated with Nāṣir so that he isn't left without a place or position when the master decides to assign new duties and extend his benevolence today as revealed to him by ẓāhir. Towards the end, he extends greetings to the addressee's father and a Shaykh al-Ajal Abū l-Ḥasan. See also T-S 10J14.16.

Calligraphic banners in nastaʿlīq calligraphy. On verso of ENA 3904.12 there are 4 verses each of Arabic poetry and Persian poetry. Presumably this is not from the Geniza, but rather from Adler's acquisitions further east.

Page from a compilation in Ottoman Turkish of excerpts of elegant letters and poetry attributed to specific authors (whose names are indicated in red ink). The quotation on the left of the recto is dated 1172 AH, which is 1758/59 CE, and the author's name in red below it is "يحيى چاوش / Yaḥya Çavuş." Much of the text appears to rhyme given the repetition and alternation of suffixes across line pairings. Although the format of this page fragment is suggestive of the existence of a wider bound compilation, the empty columns on the verso may indicate that this was an unfinished work in progress. MCD.

Legal document, in Arabic script, dated 18 Dhū l-Qaʿda 750 H. An agreement between two parties with witnesses, probably rental, for a period of two years.

Marriage contract between a Rabbanite man Khalfā b. Saʿūd, son of Farajallah b. Nafīs and a divorced Rabbanite woman Fāṭima. The marriage was commemorated upon the agreed sum of 7 dīnārs of Sulṭānī al-jadīd and 400 half Sūlaimānī dirhams.

Literary text in Arabic script.

Literary text in Arabic script.

Accounts in Arabic script and Greek/Coptic numerals. The ghulām of the Rayyis is mentioned at least twice.

Legal document, 13 lines, in Arabic script. Dated: 9 Ramaḍān 883 AH, which is December 1478 CE (if read correctly). Mentions the Mālikī court (majlis al-ḥukm) in the Ṣāliḥī mosque in l. 2. Needs further examination.

List of entries in Arabic script that include names, locations, and possibly goods such as "ʿaṭr/عطر" or "perfume" which appears throughout the recto and verso. Many of the figures are expressed in Coptic numerals but on occasion an Arabic "5" appears in certain entries. For an example of the appearance of a name and location, on the recto's left section "Skenderiye/Alexandria" is mentioned, as is the name "Yūsuf" in the same entry (l. 18r). MCD.

Arabic, literary.

Arabic, literary.

List of entries that designates names in Arabic script and expresses figures in Coptic numerals. For example, on the lower recto there is mention of al-Hajj Ahmed Ibrahim amidst a complex array of numerical figures. Throughout the document there are elongated ligatures typical of headings in accounting documents. The verso features the same documentary format. MCD.

Prayer in Arabic script with geomancy jottings. Late.

Legal document(s) in Arabic script. Dating: Probably late Mamluk or Ottoman. Narration of commercial trade accounts. The word 'qabaḍ' appears in prolific numbers associated usually with commodities and sometimes with their price. Measures of some commodities in terms of their monetary value and sizes are also mentioned. Needs examination.

Commercial accounts in Arabic script and Greek/Coptic numerals. Mentions pepper.

Accounts in Arabic script.

Tafsir in Arabic on Genesis 37:23 – 38:19 (according to FGP). On the verso the text ends with an elaborate section marker in red ink.

Detailed accounts in Arabic script and Greek/Coptic numerals, with at least one word in Judaeo-Arabic (al-Kohen). Mentions 'al-maṭbakh' several times - the sugar factory? Mentions many names.

Receipt or legal document in Arabic script. Mīkhāʾil al-Dabbāgh (the tanner) sold cow hide(s) to Jaʿfar b. Muḥammad. "30 hides" is mentioned lower down. On verso accounts/sums in Greek/Coptic numerals.