Geniza Lab

First five lines of a letter in Arabic script from a parent to his son, including basmala and words of prayers. Separate text on verso, also in Arabic script. Verso: Commercial letter starting with a basmala addressed to Muḥammad b. (?) Allah informing him about the goods that have been sent for him. Another person, Abū ʿĀmir is also mentioned. Needs examination.

Arabic script (VMR)

Receipt (fiscal?) for Abū l-Mūnā b. Ibrāhīm al-Malījī (?) Bū l-Ḥusayn b. Sulaymān [tawliya al-shadd??]. Ends with ḥamdala and ṣalwala, with no registration requests or marks. Perforation marks for binding. Needs further examination.

Part of a letter in Arabic script, probably regarding a commercial account. Mentions "al-dīwān". Needs examination.

Magical recipe written in Arabic and Hebrew. The Arabic script reads "ṣifa kāghaḍa (=kāghadh) saḥiḥa wa-hiya lā tataghayyar wa-taṣnaʿ minhā mā shiʾt" on verso. Recto: pen trials and signature practices in Arabic script including taqbīl clause, and cartouches. Late. Perforations for binding.

Two pages from an Arabic literary text on logic (manṭiq), pivoting around the theme of qiyās.

Tax receipt, Fatimid, one registration mark: al-ḥamdū lil-lāh ʿalā niʿamih. Damaged and not easy to decipher bottom lines with date and jahbadh signature. Verso: text and genre unclear, but contains an ʿalāma: al-ḥamdu lil-lāh kamā huwa ahluhu. Dated Ṣafar 436 H.

Fiscal register (possibly equivalent to what al-Makhzūmī and Ibn Mammātī call a rūznāmaj). Contains multiple entries, each with a date and a sum. Each entry has a pair of ʿalāʾim on top, suggesting a process of registration and certification akin to that on the fiscal receipts themselves. The procedure implied here is remarkably congruous with al-Makhzūmī’s claim that the mushārif and ʿāmil signed off not only on the receipts, but on the makhzūma of the jahbadh. (Information from Marina Rustow)

Letter from Barakāt b. Abū l-Faraj al-Dayyān (=Shelomo b. Eliyyahu) to Abū l-Ḥasan. In Arabic script. Pleading for a loan of 20 dirhams against a turban as collateral, so that he and his father can pay the capitation tax. Same sender, addressee, and purpose as P. Heid. Arab. III 42, but written at a different point in time. Verso: Accounts in Arabic script, with possibly Coptic alpha numerals. Needs examination.

Arabic script (VMR)

Legal document in Arabic script. Fragment (upper left corner). Dating: Likely Mamluk-era, based on typical names and titles. Needs further examination.

Letter fragment in Arabic script. From Waliyy(?) to his 'father' ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz (named on recto). The address is made out to Makīn(?) b. Waliyy al-[...] al-Ḥarīrī in the al-Muṣāṣa neighborhood of Fustat. Dating: Likely 13th or 14th century based on the hand, layout, and typical names. The sender reports that 'your brother ʿAfīf departed, and my heart was...." Not much else is preserved.

Arabic script (VMR)

Arabic script (VMR)

Arabic script (VMR)

Arabic script (VMR)

Arabic script (VMR)

Arabic script (VMR)

Arabic script (VMR)

Accounts in Arabic script. Written on the back of a literary text in Arabic script.