Geniza Lab

Recto: Statute for tenants of the Qodesh. Dating: ca. 1215 (according to Gil, but his handwriting comparison may not be sound, and this document could be as late as ca. 1300). The document preserves a number of conditions imposed upon the lessees of the qodesh. It proclaims 1) a ban (herem) against anyone who defaults on the monthly payment, for any reason whatsoever. Therefore, exactly as one would beg money for food, one should do so, if necessary, in order to pay rent. 2) The ban will also operate also on anyone who does not accept the amount of the rent as established by three Jews, the muqawwimin. 3) The lessee is obliged to present his deeds of lease whenever asked to do so in the name of the waqf. 4) The ban will also be applied to anybody making use of a Muslim's intervention in order to obtain a lodging in the houses of the qodesh or a reduction of rent imposed on him. (Information from Gil, Documents, pp. 411 #112.) On verso there is a Hebrew poem in the hand of Nāṣir al-Adīb al-ʿIbrī (d. after 1298).

Account (draft) of the Qodesh ca. 1213. This account is written on the verso and also on the remaining space of the recto of a document concerning the sale of a female slave to a certain Elazar ha-Kohen. Different kidns of revenue and expenditures are recorded together. There are items of charity, for the local poor and for foreigners, and repairs to buildings of the qodesh, and also to the synagogues of Fustat and Dammuh. Several sums that were emoluments for scholars are included as well. Some revenue from rent is listed, as it is also income from collections for charity, among them one "light" dinar paid by Rayyis, i.e. the Nagid, Avraham Maimuni, the son of Maimonides. (Information from Gil, Documents, pp. 403 #109)

Recto: Lease of a compound in Ascalon, ca. 1120(?)-1147. A compound in Ascalon is leased by the representatives of the qodesh to to Shelomo ha-Zariz b. Ḥalfon. Verso: Record of the yearly rent paid to the elders of the Heqdesh, kept by the tenant. The yearly rent was one quarter of a dinar or 8.5 wariq dirhams, which covered the rent from Tishri to Elul. The payments were generally made several months after the end of the year. Records of ten such parments are preserved, from a period extending from 1131 through 1147. The lease itself bears four signatures, whereas the yearly payments are confirmed by two members of the court. The document includes writing in three different languges: Hebrew, Aramaic, and Arabic. Confirmations of the payments are listed in chronological order. (Information from CUDL and Gil, Documents, pp. 277 #57)

Lease of a plantation owned by the Qodesh, ca. 1150 CE. A deed of lease is drawn up by the court, by which a plantation of date palms is taken over for cultivation by a certain Hiba. The plantation belongs to the qodesh, and is probably located near the synagogue of Dammuh. The tenant will pay the qodesh 88 dinars, in annual payments of 11 dinars each, for eight years, i.e. the period of the lease. Out of the 11 dinars, 1.33 dinar will be paid in eleven monthly installments, whereas 9.67 dinars will be paid in the month of Tishri (when the harvest is over). The tenant will also have to carry 1000 palm branches to the Nile (apparently also in the month of Tishri, intended for the feast of Sukkot). The tenant agrees to run the ox-driven irrigation water wheel continuously, and will not cut down any plants aside from necessary pruning. The deed is written in the hand of Judge Natan b. Shemuel. (Information from CUDL and Gil, Documents, pp. 262 #50)

Legal document: a deed of gift, ca. 1117. A woman, whose name is not preserved, bequeaths a house partly owned by her, to another woman, Sitt al-Dar, probably her daughter. This is a will made "by a healthy person," and therefore irrevocable. As appears from the deed, another part of the duwayra (small compound) was owned by al-'aniyim, i.e. by the qodesh. To prevent any loss to the qodesh, the recipient of the estate was forbidden to sell it to non-Jews or to build an additional floor over it. In case she sold it (to a Jew, of course) the same restrictions would have to be applied to the purchaser. The deed is written in the hand of Ḥalfon b. Menashshe; its upper part is missing. (Information from Gil, Documents, pp. 232 #41) Alternative description: Two legal documents: The first is a deed, dated 1117 CE, in which an unnamed woman gifts part of a house to her housekeeper Sitt al-Dār bt. Shaʾul, and the second is a bill of release. The rest of the compound was owned by the Heqdesh, and to keep the property in Jewish hands, Sitt al-Dār is forbidden to sell her inheritance to non-Jews, and future buyers of the property are instructed to continue this policy. It is also stated that Sitt al-Dār will serve and care for the her benefactor, until her benefactor's death. (Information from CUDL)

Legal document(s) in the hand of Ḥalfon b. Menashshe. Recto: Decision of the court on repairs in a compound partly owned by the Qodesh. Dated: 1134 CE. A certain Obadiah, co-proprieter of a compound of which a quarter belonged to the qodesh, carried out repairs in that compound. The repairs were agreed upon by the representatives of the qodesh, their urgency having been recognized. Abū l-Faraj Yeshuʿa b. Ṣedaqa al-Ramli was appointed to supervise the building operations, and Obadiah advanced the sums that were necessary. A total expenditure of 24 dinars was now recognized by the court. Obadiah was given the right to collect rent from the part of the compound belonging to the qodesh, up to a total of 6.25 dinars, which included the sum due him from the qodesh, and a former debt of .25 dinar. Verso: Approval of the court record. The verso, which is very deteriorated, includes details of an accounting between the qodesh and the same Obadiah, here called 'Abdallah, the Arabic equivalent of the former. This accounting obviously represents the fulfillment of the agreement between the two parties. The representative of the qodesh is Abū l-Maʿālī, which nickname most probably referred to Judge Natan b. Shelomo ha-Kohen ha-Meʿulle, who is also a signatory of the agreement. (Information from Gil, Documents, pp. 254 #47 and CUDL)

Account of the Qodesh: building expenditures, ca. 1044 SH [11-12-86] Fragment of a leaf written by Yefet b. David b. Shekhanya, torn at its upper and right edges. Materials for carpentry work are mentioned, acacia and sesbania, nails, locks, and doors. The grapes bought for the sum of one dinar were apparently for the synagogue, where they were probably made into wine to be used in the synagogue services, and stored in jugs. August, the month in which this took place, was the vintage month in Egypt. (Information from Gil, Documents, pp. 207 #29)

Statement of payments to a tenant of the Qodesh, ca. 1160. A certain al-Nadiv, otherwise known as the perfume maker, tenant of a compound partly owned by the qodesh known as al-Burj, receives several sums from the funds of the qodesh. This money is to be used for completing repairs in his apartment and some others. The statement is in the hand of the judge Mevorakh b. Natan. (Information from Gil, Documents, pp. 289 #60)

The beadle as cashier of the Qodesh, ca. 1162. The beadle Mahfuz, of the Synagogue of the Palestinians, receives the revenue from the orchard of the qodesh. This is a short entry, signed by two members of the court. In another entry, the revenue from rent collected from tenants of the qodesh by the parnas Abu'l-Ma'ali is also received by the same beadle. The record also mentions the person under whose authority these operations take place, namely the Gaon Netaniel b. Moshe. (Information from Gil, Documents, pp. 291 #61)

Account of the qodesh, ca. 1165. A detailed accounting written in the hand of Judge Mevorakh b. Natan. The first part contains different expenditures for the maintenance of the buildings and various other expenditures, such as gifts to Muslim officials. The second part contains the final part of an accounting of revenue for six months; the sum paid to the parnas as a collection fee is also mentioned. The account is said to have been made in the presence of the head of the yeshiva, Nataniel b. Moshe, and elders. Dated Kislev 1476 of the Seleucid Era (= 1165). (Information from CUDL and Gil, Documents, pp. 300 #67)

Account of the Qodesh: building expenditures and revenue from rent, ca. 1039. This record contains details about sums of rent collected from "the Estate of the Synagogue of the Palestinians" for A.H. 429 and 430. It was written at the end of 1039. The revenue list mentions the first period during which Dar Qutayt was inhabited whereas before it had been empty. The building expenditures refer in part to the synagogue. The three parts of the document have found their way into three different boxes of the Taylor-Schechter Collection. Written in the hand of Yefet b. David b. Shekhanya. (Information from Gil, Documents, pp. 167 #11)

Record of the activities of the qodesh at the end of the 10th and the first half of the 11th century, up to 1034 CE. Written ca. 1040 CE. This record which was intended for public display, lists the achievements of the qodesh, as far as the properties dedicated to the Synagogue of the Palestinians are concerned. For each stage the names of the parnasim who were in charge of the qodesh are listed. At the end of the 10th century apparently only two or three compounds comprised the real estate dedicated to the Synagogue of the Palestinians. During the seven administrations of parnasim listed in this record, new compounds, apartments, and shops were added either by purchase or by construction, made possible by the revenue from the earlier ones. Several major repairs of the extant buildings and also repairs and improvements in the synagogue are listed. The main part of the document deals with the period of the persecuations under al-Hakim. The synagogues were destroyed and the materials they were made of sold by the Muslim authorities. Later, the period of reconstruction is recorded. The concluding part stresses the custom of giving full publicity to the accounts of the qodesh; also, the duty of any dissatisfied person to file his claims before the court, otherwise risking excommunication. Gil includes ENA 2738.1 as part of this join, even though it is a distinct manuscript containing a draft of the document, of which T-S Ar.18(1).35 + T-S 20.96 is an improved copy. The first word in line 1 of ENA 2738.1 is the last one in line 19 of T-S 20.96. All three fragments are in the hand of hazzan Yefet b. David b. Shekhanya (according to Gil). ENA 2738.1 may actually be in the hand of Efrayim b. Shemarya. (Information from CUDL and Gil, Documents, pp. 136-137 #3)

Account: building expenditures and revenue from rent, ca. 1039. This record contains details about sums of rent collected from "the Estate of the Synagogue of the Palestinians" for A.H. 429 and 430. It was written at the end of 1039. The revenue list mentions the first period during which Dar Qutayt was inhabited whereas before it had been empty. The building expenditures refer in part to the synagogue. The three parts of the document have found their way into three different boxes of the Taylor-Schechter Collection. Written in the hand of Yefet b. David b. Shekhanya. (Information from Gil, Documents, pp. 167 #11)

Accounts, mentioning houses, sums of money in dirhams and names such as [...] b. Sulaymān and Ibn Bashāra. According to Bareket it is a register of received rent for houses owned by the Heqdesh. (Information from CUDL)

Letter in Judaeo-Arabic. Refers to the heqdesh; possession of a house and a three-month period. Not much more is preserved. (Information in part from CUDL.)

Account of the qodesh ca. 1234. This is a double leaf from a notebook, containing four columns of items. Both revenue from rent and building expenditures are included. There are Muslims and Christians among the tenants listed. The document is typical of a first recording of revenue and expenditures for private reference. Details on revenue from apartments are mixed together with accounts of bricks and baskets for building purposes. Mentions a wind catcher (bādhanj). (Information from Gil, Documents, pp. 435 #131)

Account of the qodesh, ca. June 1201. A relatively ample list of revenue and expenditures. The first part contains details of revenue from 17 compounds, inclusive of the dakakin (shops) and the funduq. These are shown to comprise 54 apartments and tenants. Out of these 54, ten are mentioned as unoccupied. The relatively large number of vacant apartments may indicate the beginning of the terrible famine period of A.H. 597 when whole neighborhoods and villages were deserted. (Information from Gil, Documents, pp. 378 #101)

Account of the Qodesh: building expenditures and revenues from rent, ca. 1037. The expenditures listed are for clay work, carpentry, sewage work. In this early period, the qodesh is already in charge of cleaning operations and removal of garbage. Some of the expentitures, such as the candlesticks, are probably related to the synagogue, but the majority pertain to the compounds of the qodesh. The revenues are mostly for longer periods, in some cases even a whole year. Several occupations are listed, of people who had their businesses in shops of the qodesh: a jeweler, a donkey driver, a spindle-maker, and a shoemaker. Written in the hand of Yefet b. David b. Shekhanya. (Information from Gil, Documents, pp. 154 #8)

Autograph order in the hand of Avraham Maimonides. Abū l-Majd is to expedite the payment of 81 dirhams to the Muslim Judge Shams al-Din. This is the remaining balance due for the capitation tax of the poor for the Muslim year 614 (ended March 29, 1218) for Shams al-Din. T-S K25.240 consists of small written orders, partly in Hebrew and partly in Arabic script, for monthly payments, made out of the rent-revenue from the pious foundation (waqf) 'Compound of the Poor' or from the pious foundation made by the physician al-Muhadhdhab. All dated orders are from spring and summer, 1218. (Information from Mediterranean Society, II, pp. 420-421, App. A 48-92; pp. 449-450, App. B 39b [dated 1210-1225]; Cohen, Poverty and Charity in the Jewish Community of Medieval Egypt, pp. 218-220)

Verso: Autograph order in the hand of Avraham Maimonides. Abū l-Majd is to send to al-Shaykh al-Thiqa quickly ('and by any stratagem') the payment of 35 dirhams, the remaining balance due for the capitation tax of the poor(?) for the Muslim year 614 (ended March 29, 1218) to the diwan of the Sultan. T-S K25.240 consists of small written orders, partly in Hebrew and partly in Arabic script, for monthly payments, made out of the rent-revenue from the pious foundation (waqf) 'Compound of the Poor' or from the pious foundation made by the physician al-Muhadhdhab. All dated orders are from spring and summer, 1218. (Information from Mediterranean Society, II, pp. 420-421, App. A 48-92; pp. 449-450, App. B 39b [dated 1210-1225]; Cohen, Poverty and Charity in the Jewish Community of Medieval Egypt, pp. 218-220)