Geniza Lab

Letter from Semah from Palermo, to Nahray b. Nissim, Alexandria. Around 1055. Mentions import of flax from Egypt to Palermo and exports of silk and lead from Sicily to Egypt. Also mentions the ship of Ibn al-Baʿbāʿ (r19 and v7), the qunbār of the amīr (v7) and the qārib of the vizier (v7). (Information from Gil, Kingdom, Vol. 4, #789)

Letter from the head of the court of Palermo (perhaps Maṣliaḥ b. Eliyya) to his counterpart in Qayrawan, ca. 1050 CE. The letter details a legal suit between Shemu'el/Ismaʿīl, who is overseas, and his brother Abū Zikrī, who has been in Palermo and managing Ismaʿīl's store, and it seems that Abu Zikri or his mother sold Ismaʿīl's courtyard. Ismaʿīl appointed Shemuel b. Ḥayyim to represent him (?) in the case against Abū Zikrī. Part of the issue was whether Abū Zikrī had been conducted business as a partnership with his brother or with his own money. One witness, Ṣāliḥ b. Yūsuf al-Ṣabbāgh, witnessed and took an oath that it was a partnership. Abū Zikrī's brother-in-law is attempting to mediate a settlement involving a transfer of 20 gold coins and 800 qelafim (sheets of parchment?), which have already been sent with Nissim b. Menaḥem. Ismaʿīl is now to draw up a document in Arabic ("let it be witnessed by Gentile witnesses in Mahdiyyah and Qayrawan") and in Hebrew ("in the beit midrash of rabbenu," i.e., the recipient) releasing Abū Zikrī from all claims relating to the store and the courtyard. However, if Ismaʿīl does not accept this settlement, he should write as much, and the court in Palermo will proceed with the implementation of justice. Information from Menahem Ben Sasson's edition. ASE.

Fragment of a letter in Judaeo-Arabic mentioning Abū l-Faraj several times and the writer's great distress and worry. On parchment (hair side only); could be from Sicily.

Letter from Ismaʿīl b. Faraḥ (Alexandria) to Nahray b. Nissim (Fustat), 9 September 1056. Confirms the arrival of goods and letters and sends information about the arrival of ships from Palermo and about some terrifying events in the Maghreb, especially in Susa (see details in Goitein notes linked below). Includes orders for goods that are expected in Alexandria, where many foreign traders are present, as well as details of money transfers. (Information from Gil, Kingdom, Vol. 3, p. 628.)

Letter from Ṣadaqa to the Abū l-Najm the Parnas, in Fustat. In Judaeo-Arabic. The sender announces his intention to travel to Sicily (in "Bilād al-Rūm") and asks the addressee to help him settle the payments of the capitation tax ("al-mas"). On verso there is a note in another hand (that of Abū l-Najm? preceding the letter on recto?), requesting that the addressee send a letter regarding his need for deliverance from the capitation tax (jāliya), "lest you once again blame me when I have no fault." Information in part from Goitein's note card.

Mid-11th-century letter from Umm Faḍā'il, a widow in Fustat, to a family friend, Abū Zikrī b. Yosef (Yehuda b. Yosef Rosh ha-Seder), in the West. The letter deals with her son Fakhr's intended travel to Sicily. She requests that the addresee assist him. She mentions a power of attorney document that she gave to her son, so that he will dispose of their remaining property in Sicily. She also mentions an ongoing divorce of her daughter. Information from Ben-Sasson's edition via FGP.

Letter from Nahray b. Nissim (Misr) to Abu Ishaq Barhūn b. Salih at-Tahirti (Busir).

Letter from Yiṣḥaq bayt ʿAṭṭān, in Syracuse, to Moshe b. Yehuda, in Alexandria. In Judaeo-Arabic. Dating: Last quarter of the 15th century. Contains a colorful tale of the writer's voyage. His ship was taking on too much water, so they had to stop in Rhodes. He and his party stayed there for a couple months before resuming the journey. They landed in מדון/MDWN, probably Methoni (aka Modone) in Messenia, to do business in bread and wine. The locals were about to steal the boat, so they took off in a hurry and abandoned their companion R. Ṣuriel who was still in town. Then the purpose of the letter: it is a letter of introduction ("a benefit for you and for him") for the Catalan Messer Bernard Lo Azina (לו אזינה), "a good Christian," who is bringing 500 kosher cheeses the writer saw him purchase, along with a hekhsher letter from the local judge. There are several curious linguistic aspects, too, including באש for "in order to."

Letter from Maymūn b. Khalfa, Palermo, to Nahray b. Nissim, Fustat. 18 August 1056 (Gil). Describes the movement of goods and ships to and from Sicily. The government of Sicily imposed on Jewish merchants in Palermo a customs import duty (ʿushr), normally imposed only on foreign merchants, because resident Jews cooperated with their foreign partners and declared incoming goods as their property. A judge and other Jews were sent to prison. The writer reproaches Nahray for his dealings with a resident of the island, Sulaymān b. Shaʾul. Also mentions "the ships (plural!) of Abū ʿAbdallah Ibn al-Baʿbāʿ:

Business letter from Abū al-Surūr b. David (al-Mahdiyya) to his cousin Abū al-Afrāḥ ʿArūs b. Yosef (Fustat), ca. 1095. The writer sent to the recipient 100 Murābiṭī dinars, worth 267 less 1/3 dinars in the currency of al-Mahdiyya, and now gives instructions to buy jewellery. His other purchase requests from Fustat are for indigo, blue and green “fayyūmī clothes, pearls and more. The letter also mentions Abū al-Surūr’s purchases in al-Mahdiyya, including that of lapiz lazuli for which he was unable to find a buyer and intended to send it to Sicily. (Information from Gil, Kingdom, Vol. 4, p. 312.)

Letter from Avraham ha-Ḥazzan b. Yaʿaqov, in Tūnis, to his brother Peraḥya b. Yaʿaqov, in Palermo ("Sicily"). The letter deals with a matter of ḥaliẓa (release from levirate marriage) in which the brother is still a minor. It also discusses the uses of communal funds and the high price of wheat. Information from Ben-Sasson, Jews of Sicily, p. 643 and from Goitein's index cards.

Letter from Abū l-Ḥayy b. Ḥakīm, in Sicily, to Ḥananya ha-Kohen Av Bet Din. Dating: ca. 1025 (unclear on what basis; Gil says ca. 1020, and Simonsohn says before 1020). Written on parchment. The sender reports that the letter of the Rosh Yeshiva Yoshiyyahu arrived, and it was read aloud in the synagogue. Apparently Yoshiyyahu was soliciting funds for the Jerusalem Yeshiva, and this letter is excusing the congregation for failing to donate anything. The reason is that the capitation tax has been increased to 4 1/3 טריים per head. There may be reference to a specific family (his own?) that owes the tax for four people. He claims that many of the Jews of Sicily have fled "due to fear from the rulers of the land." The community does not like to send a letter to the Rosh Yeshiva without a little money enclosed. The letter was written in Elul, and the sender says he will try to raise some funds in Tishrei. This document was edited by Gil and earlier by Mann (see discussion in Mann, Jews in Egypt and Palestine, I, 73–74).

Important business letter sent from Alexandria to Fustat by a Maghribi merchant named Nissim who, coming from al-Mahdiyya, had arrived in Alexandria at time of a civil unrest. The writer describes the difficult situation in Alexandria and al-Mahdiyya, attaches valuable price lists and assures the addressee that his wife and baby daughter are perfectly comfortable. Dated 1060-1070. (Information from Mediterranean Society, IV, p. 168; V, pp. 50, 51, 519.) A letter from Alexandria, in the hand of Salāma b. Mūsā b. Iṣḥaq Safāquṣī, to an unknown recipient. Summer of 1062. Lists prices in Alexandria. Mentions trade links with Byzantium, Genoa, Crete, Sicily, and Spain. (Information from Gil, Kingdom, Vol. 4, p. 445-446.)

Deed, commercial, attesting to Alexandria's importance in international trade. The document mentions traders from Venice and Constantinople, as well as Sicilian coins. Apparently the deed is from the beginning of the twelfth century, to judge by the names, which appear in documents from the circle of Nahray b. Nissim. The document also contains an important report on a dispute between people from the Maghrib and local Alexandrians, headed by the Alexandrian Ben Nahum family. (Information from Frenkel. See also Goitein, Med. Soc. 3:159)

Letter in Hebrew to the communal leaders of Sicily (maybe Palermo?). On the back is a writing trial from the book of Esther and some sort of large text boxed in by a line.

Letter from Ḥayyim b. ʿAmmār Madīnī of Palermo, Sicily, to Abū Zikrī Yaḥyā b. Menashshe Ḥalfon (Fustat). Ca. 1060. The sender, who is writing from Alexandria, has visited Fustat and stayed with the family of the recipient. In the letter his expresses thanks for their hospitality and asks to send him next year the silver spoon he had forgotten. (Information from Gil, Kingdom, Vol. 4, p. 163-164 and Goitein notes linked below.)

Letter from Salāma b. Mūsā of Sfax, in Mazar, Sicily, to his partner Yehuda b. Moshe b. Sughmār, in Fustat. In Judaeo-Arabic. The longest letter in the Geniza. Dating: Early 1060s according to Ben-Sasson, based on the military disruptions mentioned. 7 September 1064 according to Gil, based on his identification of the battle discussed as that between the Qā'id of Sfax and the Zīrid ruler Tamīm b. Muʿizz on that date. Many details about a wide variety of commodities are mentioned, as well as financial transactions. "In essence, this long letter had a single purpose: to convince Yehuda b. Sughmār, Salāma's partner, not to dissolve the relationship between them." Salāma in fact agrees to the dissolution of the formal partnership (ṣuḥba), "I got your letters this year, and you swore that you wanted to dissolve. I want this to happen even more than you do. If the partnership continues there will be discord. . . . Now we no longer feel as we used to, when we relied on each other" (v4–5, 30). Despite this, Salāma suggests other ways of continuing their relationship, including Yehuda's mentoring of Nissim, a new junior associate Salāma is sending to him, and Yehuda's sending Salāma some goods in agency. Jessica Goldberg, Trade and Institutions, pp. 296–99 ("Salāma b. Mūsā's Disastrous Year"). Salāma opens with his shock and dismay at the letters full of blame that he had received from Yehuda. "I had expected you to congratulate me on my survival in al-Mahdiyya, my deliverance from destruction, and the terrible ordeal (al-mawqif al-ʿaẓīm, also mentioned in r23) that I would not wish on anyone. I was bound (kutiftu) and almost killed (or executed, ʿuriḍtu ʿalā l-sayf) four times (or five—the ink is flaked here). Even if there were no partnership (sharika), love, (mawadda), or association (ṣuḥba) between us, this would have been incumbent on you. Now, more than one year later, the terror has not subsided, rather the fright remains in my heart. My greatest trial in al-Mahdiyya was my concern for your business. . . ." Interestingly, when Salāma mentions Yehuda's illnesses of last year (mā laḥaqak tilk al-sana min al-ḍuʿf wa-l-tawajjuʿ, r75), there is not a word of the usual sympathy or congratulations on his recovery. Gil understands Halper 414 to be a follow-up from this letter; Goldberg believes that Halper 414, a small sheet, was inserted into Halper 389, which seems to agree with Goitein, who calls it a "continuation" of Halper 389 (see Goitein notes linked to PGPID 35364). Information from Goldberg, Ben-Sasson, and Gil. ASE; MR

Letter from Salāma b. Mūsā Safāquṣī (Māzar) to Yehuda b. Moshe b. Sughmār, 1064. This letter is a follow-up from the letter in Halper 389 (Gil) that hints at the possibility of breaking up the partnership between the sender and the recipient. In this letter, Salāma b. Mūsā Safāquṣī demonstrates his readiness to make concessions in settling their accounts and is prepared to bear himself the loss of 60 dinars. He expresses his wish to continue with the partnership. (Information from Gil, Kingdom, Vol. 4, p. 475. See also Goitein notes.) (Formerly PGPID 5735)

Letter from Labrāṭ b. Moshe b. Sughmār, the chief judge in al-Mahdiyya, to Nahray b. Nissim, in Fustat. Dating: Ca. 3 August 1057 CE (Gil) or 1061 CE (Goitein). Goitein explains, "Our letter was written after 1057, the date of the ruin of Qayrawān, when R. Nissim (b. Yaʿaqov) and other inhabitants of that city had found refuge in Sūsa, a seaport on the Tunisian coast north of al-Mahdiyya. R. Nissim died in 1062.The reference to the Sicilian city whose male inhabitants were put to sword by the conquering Normans fits the fall of Messina in 1061." Labrāṭ extols the great rabbinical authority R. Nissim b. Yaʿaqov, and his pupil the enigmatic "Rav" of Egypt. At the time of the writing of this letter, R. Nissim lived in Sūsa. There he supervised the copying of his writings, which was done for the Qayrawān scholar, Nahray b. Nissim, who then lived in Egypt. The letter relates how R. Nissim's writings were transferred to Egypt, an important detail, which sheds light on the value of the Geniza fragments of these writings, which have been published by Sheraga Abramson. Labrāṭ reports on the progress of the court case that Nahray b. Natan brought against his brother Yisrael b. Natan (both of them the cousins of Nahray b. Nissim) regarding the inheritance of their father's estate. The letter hails the zeal and progress made in Jewish learning by a son of R. Natan b. Avraham, Av ha-Yeshiva, the sometime Gaon of the Palestinian academy. The letter concludes with a report of the conquests made by the Normans in Sicily. The reference is to their taking of Messina by assault, and the losses suffered by Jews and, in particular, by Muslims. The writer expresses apprehensions with regard to the import of grain from Sicily, since Tunisia itself, a primarily agricultural country, had been laid waste by the invasion of the Arab tribes. Labrāṭ opens the letter with copious well wishes to Nahray because of his eye disease (wajaʿ ʿayn and ḍuʿf ʿayn) and conveys well wishes to Nahray on behalf of R. Nissim (r4–11). Goitein cites this letter as an excellent example of the convention of expressing preoccupation for a sick correspondent and conveying congratulations upon his recovery: "After having read the bad tidings in Nahray's missives, [Labrāṭ] had become disquieted and frightened, and passed his sleepless nights in asking God to accept himself as Nahray's ransom and to heal him. He had also passed the news on to "the Light of the World" (the spiritual leader of the Tunisian Jews), who was also very worried about it; his prayer for Nahray, Labrāṭ is confident, would be accepted. Finally, the merchants arriving from Egypt reported that Nahray was well and his eyes restored, whereupon Labrat praised and thanked God. He would be set at rest, however, only by a personal letter from Nahray confirming this happy turn of events" (Goitein, Med Soc V, p. 111). Labrāṭ goes on to describe the serious illness of R. Nissim himself (r14–18). All had despaired, "but God looked upon us and did not afflict us and blind our eyes." R. Nissim recovered, but the remnants of the illness did not leave him for a long time. Information from Goitein and Gil. There are photostats and an edition in Goitein's notes (to be uploaded). ASE.

Letter from Salāma b. Mūsā Safāquṣī, probably from Mazara, Sicily, to Yehuda b. Moshe b. Sughmār (Alexandria), ca. 1055. Salāma b. Mūsā intends to buy a house in Mazara. The letter describes the writer’s conflict with local Jews who are plotting against him, and mentions a ban of excommunication declared against them. Salāma b. Mūsā asks for goods to be sent with various people and expresses a wish to renew the partnership agreement with Yehuda b. Moshe b. Sughmār. (Information from Gil, Kingdom, Vol. 4, p. 431. See also Goitein notes linked below.) There are photostats and an edition in Goitein's notes (to be uploaded).