Geniza Lab

Legal document from Fustat/Cairo, dated May 1722 (20 Iyyar 5482). It seems that Shemuel Laros (?) declares that a certain Raḥel does not owe him anything any more.

ENA 1822a.82: Accounts in Ladino and western Arabic numerals that can be dated as c.1732CE through the joins ENA NS 39.2 and ENA NS 27.7. Some of the verso's listed entries begin with the Judeo-Arabic word "wuṣūl / ווצול" which may be listed with a Ladino plural ending as "wuṣūles de" and may indicate incoming payments (l. 5-6v). The verso also lists names, such as: Abd Raḥman and Khalīl Effendi. MCD.

ENA 1822a.83: Accounts in Ladino and western Arabic numerals dated as 21 Shvat [54]92 or 17 February 1732CE. The same name Moshe Ḥason "חסון" listed here (l. 5r) appears in the join ENA NS 27.7. On the recto, a variety of Ottoman coinage types are mentioned such as funduqli, medin, and cinzirli. On the verso, the lower entry includes Shabtai Alpalas in the heading which is followed by a variety of numerical figures. MCD.

ENA 1822a.83a: Accounts in Ladino and western Arabic numerals dated in one recto entry as 8 Tevet [54]92 or 6 January 1732CE. On the recto one Moshe Ḥason is mentioned, who can be traced through this fragment's joins, and another name Martin Tersela[?] appears in the third line up from the bottom of the scan. The latter surname also appears in l. 2r as part of another entry where funduqli coinage is in use. The same accounting format continues onto this fragment's verso. MCD.

Late letter in Hebrew to Abram Segre. The address is found in the next shelfmark. Needs examination.

Letterbook of Alpalas y Costa, preserving mainly (or entirely?) letters addressed to Daniel Bonfil in Livorno. Dating: 5481 AM, which is 1721 CE.

Letterbook of Alpalas y Costa, preserving mainly (or entirely?) letters addressed to Daniel Bonfil in Livorno. Dating: 5481 AM, which is 1721 CE.

Bill of divorce. Dated 13 Sivan 5505 AM which is 13 June 1745 CE. Location: Cairo. The husband's name is listed solely as Menaḥem b. Yosef. MCD.

Page from a compilation in Ottoman Turkish of excerpts of elegant letters and poetry attributed to specific authors (whose names are indicated in red ink). The quotation on the left of the recto is dated 1172 AH, which is 1758/59 CE, and the author's name in red below it is "يحيى چاوش / Yaḥya Çavuş." Much of the text appears to rhyme given the repetition and alternation of suffixes across line pairings. Although the format of this page fragment is suggestive of the existence of a wider bound compilation, the empty columns on the verso may indicate that this was an unfinished work in progress. MCD.

ENA NS 27.7: Accounts in Ladino listed in western Arabic numerals. Dates are provided at the bottom of each entry and indicate what is most likely the year [54]92. The months Temuz and Tevet are also listed which helps to date this fragment as January-July 1732CE, which aligns closely with the join ENA NS 39.2. On the recto of ENA NS 27.7, the first entry also mentions one Moshe Ḥason "חסון" (l. 5r), whose name is repeated on the verso (l. 3v). This fragment's join mentions the usage of silver medin coinage which may carry over to the figures listed here. MCD.

Legal document. In Hebrew: Location: Damietta (קפוטקייא). Dated: Beginning of Sivan 5488 AM, which is 1728 CE. Concerning complex inheritance arrangements upon the death of Hermosa bt. Yosef Ḥazzan. Currencies: fundukli; silver medin (מ״ך). Many people are mentioned: Ḥayyim Kialokos; Yosef Mizraḥi; Avraham Castro.

Pen trials, notes, and a drawing. In Persian and Judaeo-Persian. The least-faded text block reads in part, "I am the ẓaʿir Refa'el b. Ḥanuka(?). I wrote this. . . the month of Adar 5559 AM," which is 1799 CE.

Business letter. Dated: 12 Tamuz 5559 AM, which is 15 July 1799 CE. Dealing mainly with shipments of silk. Niether writer nor addressee are named.

Late accounts in Judaeo-Arabic mentioning "the diwan" numerous times, perhaps dated 1717 CE (1129 Hijri, or conceivably 1139).

Short note by the gabbai Avraham Yuʿbaṣ affirming that Kasīm (?) Meyuḥas will rent a house in "darb al-midrash" (reading ḍarb as darb) somehow reated to the synagogue of the Mustaʿribim from the 7th of Elul II until the end of Elul of the year 1779 (5539) for 300 a month, yielding a total of 2100. The number 1050 is also given, perhaps a down payment?

Recto: Perhaps a letter? Very faded. Verso: A record of the amount of money (35 silver) turned over by Eliyyahu the rent-collector of [...] in ḥārat al-saqālibah for the month of Av in 1784 CE (5544). The name of the renter may be underneath: Moshe Refa'el Hayyim Efron (?).

Legal document dated 1728/9 CE (5489) involving the heirs and dependents of the deceased Eliezer Mayo. Shemuel ben Naʿim is mentioned in the first two lines, but his role is unclear. Eliezer left behind two sons, the elder named Yiṣḥaq Mayo, who lives at present in Livorno (? ליורני), the younger named Shelomo Mayo, who lives with his mother Judika (? גודיקא) bt. Moshe Mayo. Needs further examination.

Accounts in Judeo-Arabic that list a wide array of individuals and quantities which may indicate payments given the recto's heading "עלם אל מדכול מן טיבית" or "Notice of the intake from Tevet". The verso is dated in the upper right corner of the bifolium as 5517 which is 1756/1757CE. The verso perhaps lists the ק׳׳ק of the Maghrebi Jewish community "מערבים" so this fragment may be a page from what once was a broader communal ledger. On the recto some of the names that appear include: Yaʿacov Naḥmias and Moshe Masʿūd. On the verso, many more names appear: Moshe Angel, Shelomo Moznino, Avraham Zin[?], Mordechai al-Sheikh, Menaḥem Kohen, Na'im Heykel, David Na'im, and Moshe Kohen. MCD.

Recto: Engagement (shiddukhin) document, dated 18 June 1795 (1 Tammuz 5555), for Moshe b. [left blank] and Sara bt. David Russo. Verso: A geomancy casting; the question is crossed out but may be legible ("Is . . . good for me or not?")

Bifolium of accounts in Judaeo-Arabic, including for the years 1760–62 CE (1174–75 Hijri).