Geniza Lab

Ketubba from Cairo dated 22 November 1822 (8 Kislev 5583), for Khalīfa Pipa and Sulṭāna bt. Nissim Qanini (?). The grand sum of the ketubba is 32000 medins (מך).

Partnership agreement from Fustat/Cairo, dated 23 July 1819 (1 Av 5579), between Gedalya Mughrabi and Shabbetay Vidal, to begin immediately and to last for a period of 6 months. They are in the sarraflık trade (בעסק הצירפליק).

Partnership agreement. Location: Alexandria. Dated: 19 Tishrei 5575 AM, which is 3 October 1814 CE. Between Yiṣḥaq ha-Levi from Istanbul ["Costa"] who pitched in 10,000 gerushim, Yiṣḥaq de Curiel from Fustat/Cairo who pitched in 17,500 gerushim, Avraham Cesana & Company from Alexandria, who pitched in 17,5000 gerushim, and Eliyyahu Ayilion (?) from Fustat/Cairo, who pitched in 1,500 gerushim, yielding a total capital fund of 46,500 gerushim (it specifies "Egyptian gerushim").

Recto: Legal agreement between Nissim Mosseri b. Ḥayyim and Yosef al-[...] b. [...], from Fustat/Cairo, September 1829 CE (Elul 5589). The document is mostly in Hebrew but is about al-ḥūjjah (the deed?) for al-vīlah (the house?) and a deposit of 500 gerushim arayot. Interestingly the deed is referred to as "the legal deed that is registered in the jāmiʿ al-ḥākimī." Verso: Accounts for 19 Elul 5589.

Letter in Judaeo-Arabic (1819 CE?) from Me'ir ben Naʿim to David ben Naʿim. Information from Wagner, Linguistic Variety of Judaeo-Arabic, 24.

Letter in Ladino signed by David Levi Mondolfo, who may be identical with the relatively well-documented man of the same name who was born in Trieste in 1797 and died outside Treviso in 1864.

Ketubba, illuminated, from 1840/41 CE ([5]601), left half only.

Ketubba, beautifully illuminated, from Cairo, dated 16 April 1821 (14 Nisan 5581) for Ḥayy Dayyān b. David Dayyān and Mazal Ṭov bt. Yehuda Dayyān. The couple are likely paternal cousins. The document is cut in the shape of a dome, with a heading depicting birds, trees, and a building structure overseen by a sun and an eye. The bride and groom sit in one room, holding hands. The border of the document is decorated with the twelve signs of the zodiac. (Information from CUDL)

Receipt in Arabic script for a payment by Mūsā [ben?] Naʿīm, dated 1824/25 CE (Muḥar1240H).

Late letter in Judaeo-Arabic, dated 29 January 1807 (20 Shevat 5567), from Avraham Haman and Gavriel Hefez to Merkado Karo and his partner Avraham ha-Levi.

Legal document from Fustat/Cairo, from the first decade of the 19th century (Heshvan 556[.]), in which Me'ir Ṣabiṣo (?) and his partner Raḥamim Ḥamīs acknowledge an investmnet of 250 reales from Rinah (?) bt. Ḥayyim Shalom. There are some accounts on verso.

Late letter in Judaeo-Arabic, dated 1802 CE (the 9th of the Omer = Matmonim 5562), to Nissim Molcho in Fustat/Cairo, from Yiṣḥaq ben Naʿim. Beautiful handwriting.

Legal document from Fustat/Cairo, dated either February or March of 1810 (Adar I or II of 5570), in which Moshe Shtiwi acknowledges an investment of 15,000 מכ from Merkadah bt. Yaʿaqov. There are two additional notes on verso from 1811 and 1812 CE respectively.

Legal document from Fustat/Cairo, dated 1817 CE (end of Heshvan 5578) in which David Dayyan declares something (acknowledging an investment?).

Accounts in Judaeo-Arabic (and eastern Arabic numerals). Dated: 5582 AM, which is 1821/22 CE. Mentions the mustaʿrib congregation in the header. All the documents in this folder appear to be in the same hand, though this one pertains to the mustaʿrib congregation and the next to the sephardic congregation. Needs examination.

Accounts in Judaeo-Arabic (and eastern Arabic numerals). Dated: 5582 AM, which is 1821/22 CE. Headed: "The expenses (maṣrūf) of the Sephardic [congregation] in Fustat/Cairo for the year 5582." Many names familiar from other Geniza documents of the period feature in this list. Needs examination. VMR. ASE.

Accounts in Judaeo-Arabic (and eastern Arabic numerals). Dated: 5582 AM, which is 1821/22 CE. Mentioning R. Petro and Se. Shemuel, and the holidays of Sukkot, Purim, and Pesaḥ. VMR. ASE.

Letter from an unknown writer in Jerusalem addressed to R. Maʿūẓa and his sons Sālim and Yaḥyā. Written in Judaeo-Arabic. Dating: Probably 19th century, as it is written on grid paper. The hand and all the names are typical of Yemen. The writer provides a report of how he and his wife have fared since arriving in Jerusalem. ASE.

Letter from Mordekhai ha-Levi Mizraḥi, probably in Meron or Safed, to Moshe Ḥayyim and Yiṣḥaq Ḥayyim, unknown location. This fragment also contains the end of the letter from ENA 2634.2 (dated: 7 Av, 5656 AM, which is 1896 CE). Written in Hebrew, by a professional Ashkenazi scribe. The writer is a maker of amulets and segulot who has gone at least partially blind. He complains about his tremendous expenses paying for the scribe who had to repeat the amuletic drawing "50 times" and paying for a postal delivery (הפוסטה), because he initially trusted Agha Baba Tehrani to deliver the letters and amulets, but that man absconded and failed him, leaving no option but to use the post. (All this seems to be by way of exhorting the addressees to reimburse him for his pains.) He mentions the same ʿEzra from the preceding letter and Avraham Dayyan in the context of the amulets and segulot for conceiving a male child. ASE.

Letter from Mordekhai ha-Levi Mizraḥi, probably in Meron or Safed, to Agha Meir b. Eliyyahu, unknown location. The letter continues onto the upper part of ENA 2634.1. Dated: 7 Av, 5656 AM, which is 1896 CE. Written in Hebrew, by a professional Ashkenazi scribe. The writer is a maker of amulets and segulot who has gone at least partially blind. In this letter he describes in detail how to make an amulet for a woman to conceive a male child: it should be engraved on refined silver, the person who makes it must be in a state of purity and fasting, and a human figure should be drawn with the appropriate dimensions (including a large belly) and filled in with the appropriate letters. Psalm 121 should be engraved underneath the figure and the priestly blessing above the figure. When the time of birth comes near, the pregnant woman should dress herself entirely in linen, and the boy should be dressed only in linen until age 3, and even better if that continues until age 10. The addressee is also to light oil lamps for the soul of Rashbi and R. Meir Baʿal ha-Nes. Mordekhai reminds the addressee in a roundabout way to send him money (lirot) for his pains. He also seems to instruct the addressee to name the newborn son Mordekhai after him. He asks again for money, for he and his son Yiṣḥaq are in difficult straits. He also mentions a certain M. ʿEzra b. Yaʿaqov Dā'ūdī in the addressee's location. ASE.