Geniza Lab

Bill of divorce. Written and signed by Ḥalfon b. Menashshe. Dated: Friday, 25 Iyyar 1439 Seleucid, which is 1128 CE. Husband: Natan b. Shela. Wife: Sitt al-Dalāl bt. Mevasser known as Bishāra the freedman. Also signed by Ḥalfon b. Ghālib. There is confirmation of receipt on verso.

Bill of divorce. Dated: Tuesday, 8 Nisan 1435 Seleucid, which is 1124 CE. Written by Ḥalfon b. Menashshe. Husband: Yeshuʿa b. Shelomo ha-Kohen. Wife: Sitt al-Banāt bt. Nuʿmān ha-Kohen. Signed by the teacher Yiṣḥaq b. Ḥayyim Nafūsī. Menashshe b. ʿAmram is the witness for the delivery of the bill of divorce to the wife (on verso). See also T-S NS 226.21.

Legal document in the hand of Ḥalfon b. Menashshe. year 1131/2 (?). Very hard to read. On the back of some literary text

Deathbed declaration in the hand of Ḥalfon b. Menashshe, right upper corner. An old widow who had given her maidservant half of a house and the rest of her belongings asks her to renounce one eight of the share in the house, which she wishes to give to her sister's daughter, Najiya. (Information from Mediterranean Society, V, pp. 134, 442)

Legal agreement (FGP). Or letter. In Hebrew and Judaeo-Arabic. Opens with a string of titles very similar to those given to the Nagid Moshe b. Mevorakh in T-S 24.55. Then goes into the case of the youth Abū l-Ḥasan and 35 dinars.

Legal testimony. Probably in the hand of Ḥalfon b. Menashshe. Conveying a blow-by-blow narrative of a dispute over a house and a sum of money. Needs examination.

Segment of a prenuptial agreement, in the hand of Ḥalfon b. Menashshe ha-Levi.

Legal document. Small fragment from a beginning of a legal document, probably bill of gift, written by Halfon b. Menashshe Halevi, under the authority of Masliah Gaon, whose name is not mentioned but his father and grandfathers are. It is probably from the first years of his rule, ca. 1127. Elazar [… son of …] Iskandrani is also mentioned. Hebrew, Aramaic, Judeo-Arabic. AA

Legal fragment. In the hand of Ḥalfon b. Menashshe. Involving someone named Ṣadaqa, wine, 100 dinars, and a period of a year. May be an indirect join with T-S NS J401i.

Minute fragemnt from a legal deed written by Halfon b. Menashshe Halevi (date: 1100-1138) concerning an agreement involving the wife of Abu Sulayman David. No further details are preseved.

Bottom of a court record in the hand of Ḥalfon b. Menashshe ha-Levi. Signed by him and also by Ḥalfon b. Yosef ha-Kohen. Dating: 1127–38 CE, based on the conjunction of the years of Ḥalfon b. Menashshe and the years of Maṣliaḥ Gaon.

Detailed deathbed declaration made by Abu al-Tahir Mevorakh b. Shela al-murid (government supplier), written by the scribe Ḥalfon b. Menashshe. The testator declares his second wife, Sitt al-Dar b. Yosef, responsible retroactively to the time of their marriage, as well as for the future, with the exception of the 'principals', by which he meant immovable property and merchandise, namely, pepper, lead, jewelry of silver and pearls. Concerning these, those of his children from this second marriage could request an account from her upon reaching maturity. If needed for the household, or 'cases of illness, school fees, clothing or unforeseen expenses,' she was allowed to sell some of the 'principals,' but only with the permission of a relative named in the document or two witnesses appointed by the court. The wife was allowed to spend the money thus obtained however she saw fit. (Information from Mediterranean Society, III, pp. 255-256, 483). (Written by Halfon b. Menashshe Halevi [Date: 1100-1138]. AA)

Legal settlement of 1113 between husband and wife written by Ḥalfon b. Menashshe Halevi. Not much preserved. Sigend by Nathan c. Shelomo the cantor b. Yair and [...] b. Yosef

Small fragment of a legal document in the hand of Ḥalfon b. Menashshe (1100–38 CE). Involves Netanʾel ha-Sar ha-Nikhbad, Abū l-Surūr, a sale, and orphans and their family.

Legal document. A small fragment, written by Ḥalfon b. Menashshe Halevi, regarding a settlement between a couple, probably after their divorce (a bill of divorce is mentioned). A sum of 10 dinars will be paid in installments. The husband’s name is Abdallah known as al-mashtub (scar face?). On verso one line אתצל יאשיך אבו אסחק and an ink trial in a different hand. Judeo-Arabic, Hebrew and Aramaic. AA

Two tiny legal fragments in the hand of Ḥalfon b. Menashshe.

Prenuptial agreement in the hand of Ḥalfon b. Menashshe ha-Levi (dated documents from 1100-1138). It is possible that the agreement reflects special circumstances: the marriage is mentioned in future tense and since there are no betrothal deeds in which the time of marriage is set, it must be assumed that this is a general Prenuptial agreement. However, due to the lacunas in the text it is difficult to ascertain the exact unfolding of events. The condition which forbids the husband to have sexual intercourse (with his wife? With the servant?) is especially intriguing.

Recto: Fragment of a large ketubba in the hand of Ḥalfon b. Menashshe. "The primary purpose of providing a woman with real estate was the creation for her of enduring economic security, which would make her financially independent. This is self-evident in the numerous cases in which a woman possessed more than one piece of property. For example, when a widow (or, less likely, divorcee, l. 10) brings into the marriage, besides a valuable bridal outfit, 'an entire large house in the Fortress of the Candles' (l. 7), another 'large house in the Grand Bazaar opposite the Funduq' (l. 9), and quarter of a house somewhere else (where, not preserved)." Med Soc, III, 326. Verso: Small fragment of a legal document, also in the hand of Ḥalfon b. Menashshe, written on the back of the ketubba, dealing with money which was not included in an inheritance.

Legal document. In the hand of Ḥalfon b. Menashshe. Involving Abū Saʿīd Makhlūf ('al-Ne'eman') and Moshe ha-Zaqen and ʿAmram ha-Zaqen.

Legal document in the hand of Ḥalfon b. Menashshe (Date: 1100-1138). Fragment (upper right corner). In which Ṣedaqa ha-Meshorer ('the singer/poet') makes a declaration in favor of [...] b. Shemuel ha-Levi. Ṣedaqa ha-Meshorer is presumably Ṣedaqa b. Ṣemaḥ known from documents such as T-S 8.131 and Bodl. MS heb. d 66/7. No details of the present case are preserved.