Geniza Lab

Letter from the court to the community of Dhū Jibla in defense of Maḍmūn. Aden, ca. 1135.

Draft of a letter in Hebrew, ca. 1043, from Efrayim b. Shemarya to Shelomo b. Yehuda, the Gaon of Jerusalem. Efrayim requests Shelomo to thank “the dear and righteous elder Hesed [al-Tustari], the respected dignitary” for the powerful aid he affords him, and then details the strife occurring in his community. Efrayim directs the Gaon to strongly reprove the disputants and impress upon them the need for unity, furthermore asking Shelomo to write a letter to Hesed thanking him for his part in bringing peace. (Marina Rustow, Heresy and the Politics of Community (Ithaca, 2008), 321; and Jacob Mann, The Jews in Egypt and Palestine under the Fatimids (New York, 1920-22; reprint 1970), 1:108-9) EMS

Letter from a European Jew whose ship sank en route on his way to fulfill a vow to visit Jerusalem, and lost all his belongings by jettisoning. The writer’s appeal to the congregation, written in Hebrew on a piece of vellum, describes his multi-faceted journeys: first to Alexandria, where the Muslims tried to collect the capitation tax from him, and secondly, to (likely) Fustat after being rescued by a Jew and where he was currently hiding out after being harassed by the tax collector and fearing imprisonment. (Mark Cohen, Poverty and Charity in the Jewish Community of Medieval Egypt, 120; and S. D. Goitein, A Mediterranean Society, 1:323, 483) EMS

Letter from the community of Gaza to the court in Fustat, the second quarter of the eleventh century.

Decree of a Coptic official, dated 25 Baʾūnah (?) of the Coptic year 1392 (?).

No. 1: Letter of condolence from a Gaon on the death of the addressee's son. (Bamerkazim, pp. 69-72); No. 2: Letter from Hayya Gaon to Qayrawan. In No. 1, T-S 20.100 begins at end of verso line 22. No. 2 begins with T-S 20.100 and continues on T-S 10G5.8 on line 53. Rotulus, written by the scribe known as Ibn Buqra (early 11th century)

Copy of a letter from Hayya Gaon to Qayrawan, probably to Ya’aqov b. Nissim. (Part of the same letter is T-S 20.100r). The original letter was written in August 11, 1006. Handwriting of Shemarya b. Elhanan. The Gaon writes to the Yeshiva and asks to copy letters and send them to other communities in the Maghreb. (Information from Gil, Kingdom, Vol. 2, #37) VMR

Letter copy from Sherira Gaon to the Maghrib, ca. 970. The writer describes the importance of the Yeshiva (Pumbedita) and asks to renew the communities’ support for the Yeshiva. The letter was written soon after Sherira became the Gaon. (Gil, Kingdom, vol. 2, Doc. #23) VMR

Letter from Shelomo b. Yehuda to one of the personalities in Fustat, concerning the fate of Rabbanite prisoners and the future of the Rabbanite community in Jerusalem. Approximately 1033. (Information from CUDL)

Letter from a penniless woman, the widow of Abū Surrī, to Mevorakh b. Saadya (1094–1111). She begs him to come to her rescue in a litigation brought against her by the relatives of her deceased son-in-law for a modest amount. Her daughter was married to Yosef b. Asad b. Qirqas who left her to travel three and a half years ago. That was prior to al-Afḍal's siege of Alexandria in 1094. The daughter was then ill two years while the mother used her dowry (רחלהא) for nursing her in her illness and for the burial when she died. It has recently become known that Yosef was killed in Nastaro (an island between Damietta and Alexandria), and his cousin claimed his estate—which was non-existent. (Information from Goitein's note card and from M. R. Cohen, Jewish Self Government, pp. 221-260.) For a detailed discussion of the geographical situation of Nastaro, see Khan, "A Copy of a Decree from the Archives of the Fāṭimid Chancery in Egypt," BSOAS, Vol. 49, No. 3, 1986, p. 444.

Account of the Qodesh: building expenditures, ca. 1037-38. The parnasim Husayn (Yefet) b. Da'ud (David) b. Shekhanya and Yaʿaqov b. Bishr al-Arjawani list the expenditures made by them during A.H. 429. The building operations refer to the synagogue and to the "new compound," which is most probably Dar Qutayt. (Information from Gil, Documents, pp. 164 #10)

Letter from Shelomo b. Yehuda to an unidentified personality in Fustat, expressing gratitude for funds sent to the community in Jerusalem, and requesting the intervention of the recipient to persuade a lady to leave Egypt and join her husband in Jerusalem. Approximately 1030. (Information from CUDL)

Letter from Shelomo b. Yehuda, probably to Efrayim b. Shemarya, praising the addressee and complaining about a Fusṭaṭ man, probably Sahlan b. Abraham, particularly concerning the latter’s preference for the title bestowed by the Babylonian yeshiva to that of the Jerusalem yeshiva. (Information from CUDL)

Letter (copy) from pietist disciples in Alexandria to Avraham Maimonides, complaining about persecutions by their co-religionists, who prevented them from practising their prayer rites. (Information from CUDL)

Verso: Letter from Hananya b. Yehuda to Yehi'el the judge b. Elyaqim. The writer asks the addressee to come to Jerusalem and decide in a legal matter. Recto: Part of the (draft of) the opening of a badly written letter. (Information from CUDL)

Letter in Hebrew with introductory phrases of appeal. Closes with verses about the ephemeral nature of wealth and the mitzvah of charity. (Information from Goitein's index cards)

Letter from a man who has been seized with unbearable chills to Mevorakh b. Yiṣḥaq, appealing for his help. The letter ends with extensive prayers to God to protect the recipient and his family. (Information from Goitein's index cards)

Letter from Sahlān b. Avraham perhaps to Efrayim b. Shemarya. Dating: ca. 1030 CE. Written in a calligraphic hand and beautiful biblical style. Only the right side of the letter is preserved. Sahlān refers to his illness, a physician, and going to the synagogue. Information from Bareket and from Goitein's index cards. ASE.

Letter (communal) in the hand of Yosef b. Yoshiyyahu, writing on behalf of the community of Alexandria. Only the elegant rhymed prose opening of the letter has survived. Neither the recipient nor the context is known. (Information from Frenkel.)

Letter (petition) asking for help to free the writer’s brother who apparently had been incarcerated for failing to pay the capitation tax (here, called kharāj). Dating: 11th century. The spelling is phonetic and possibly somewhat archaic: the definite article lacks lām before sun-letters, and many of the short vowels are written plene. (Information from CUDL and Goitein's index cards)