Geniza Lab

Business letter in Judaeo-Arabic from Moshe (b.?) Avraham Bibas to Yaʿaqov Bibas and his partner Shomal (Shemuel?) Azulay, dated 3 September 1818 (2 Elul 5578). There are accounts underneath.

A calligraphic get (bill of divorce) dated 5 March 1879 (10 Adar 5639), במתא במבי דעל כיף ימא, which may be Bombay (!). See #5 here for a ketubba from Bombay (or at least במבי) from the same period: http://notrikon.blogspot.com/2019/12/blog-post.html. The spouses divorcing are Sulaymān Ḥayyim b. [Eliyya?]hu Ḥayyim and Esther bt. Yosef. It is signed by Yiṣḥaq b. Raḥamim and Yehuda b. Avraham.

Accounts in Ladino mentioning the year 590 = 1829/30 CE.

From a ledger of donations arranged by the parshiyot of the year 1803/1804 (5564); most of the ledger ended up in Paris, but this fragment ended up in Manchester. In fact, this segment of JRL Series B and AIU.VII.F seem to have been acquired from the same stratum of the Genizah and then sorted by genre (in this case, accounts and donation lists)

A record that Me'ir ben Naʿim paid the rent for a qāʿah somehow related to "Argaz Sefaradim" (?) from 26 August 1812 (18 Elul 5572) through January 1813 (Shevat 5573). Signed by Yehudah Pietro (?).

Letter in Ladino to Yehuda Gatenio, from a business partner in Alexandria, dated 10 August 1823 (3 Elul 5583). Deals entirely with business transactions; Yehuda is to send something to the writer in Alexandria. "The ship is in Alexandria."

Fragment of a letter in Judaeo-Arabic to ha-Dayyan ha-Meẓuyan, Me'ir ben Naʿim, dated Aug/Sept 1824 CE (Elul 5584).

"The three fragments known as JRL SERIES A 1053, JRL SERIES B 2699, and JRL SERIES B 2977 are from three copies of another invitation, printed in French, to the wedding of Mr. Moise Mosseri (c. 1855-1933) and Miss Henriette Nahmias (1868-1943). The Mosseris were a famous Cairene banking family,[2] which may give a sense of who could afford to have invitations professionally printed in the late nineteenth century. French documents are also rare in the Genizah,[3] but someone – a young Mosseri being the likely culprit – has re-used the back of these invitations to practice the Hebrew alphabet." Nick Posegay, FOTM June 2020.

Letter in Judaeo-Arabic dated 5 July 1836 (20 Tammuz 5596), from Rashid, addressed to Moshe Bunān, Fusṭāṭ. The address is in Arabic (al-Muʿallim Mūsā Bunān. . .). Verso also contains numerous lines and dots.

"The three fragments known as JRL SERIES A 1053, JRL SERIES B 2699, and JRL SERIES B 2977 are from three copies of another invitation, printed in French, to the wedding of Mr. Moise Mosseri (c. 1855-1933) and Miss Henriette Nahmias (1868-1943). The Mosseris were a famous Cairene banking family,[2] which may give a sense of who could afford to have invitations professionally printed in the late nineteenth century. French documents are also rare in the Genizah,[3] but someone – a young Mosseri being the likely culprit – has re-used the back of these invitations to practice the Hebrew alphabet." Nick Posegay, FOTM June 2020.

From a ledger of donations arranged by the parshiyot of the year 1803/1804 (5564). See joins.

Rent receipt in Judaeo-Arabic documenting that Yaʿaqov Maṣliaḥ has paid three years' rent for his ṭabaqa in advance, from July 1819 through July 1822 (Av 5579 through Av 5582). The total comes to 8360, half of which is 4180. The scribe is Yehuda Pietro (?).

List in Judeo-Arabic of monetary amounts and calculations related the communal "chest / ארגז" of the Mustʿarabīm in the end of Nisan 5590 which is April 1830CE. The monetary figures are expressed in two columns, one in "silver / פצה" and the other "גה" which must be an abbreviation but is unclear in meaning. Many individuals of the community are listed such as: Efrayim Hakīm, Shemuel Mizraḥi, Yaʿacov Yaʿabeṣ Saraf, Ḥayyim Ḥazaq, Yosef Manṣuri, and many others. On the verso another list appears that is recorded with a similar structure as the recto. MCD.

Ledger fragment in Judeo-Arabic in three folios from across the year 1239AH which is 1823/24CE. The ledger's heading on the first scan begins with the blessing "דפטר מובארך אן שא אללה / may this register be blessed God willing" and goes on to depict the first series of entries as being related to sales "מוביע ". This first series of sales is in dirāhim and related to four individuals: Sayyid Aḥmed al-Sāde[?], Manṣūr al-Jihāmi, Nasla[?] Yūsuf, and Aḥmed Sa'ūdi. These individuals are mentioned on subsequent folios long with others such as Daūd Sulaymān, though it is unclear if the later document content is related to the same purchases or other business dealings. MCD.

Accounts related to various coinage types such as gold mahmudiye and kuruş thaqīl (heavy kuruş). The former helps date this fragment as no earlier than 1808CE when Sultan Mahmud II ascended to the Ottoman throne. MCD.

Lists in Judaeo-Arabic and pen trials of the Arabic alphabet that can be dated on the recto to the night of Simchat Torah of [5]586JC which is October 4 1825CE. On the recto, the community of the "מיצירין / Egyptians" is listed and throughout there are monetary values listed in silver kuruş (indicated by a "ق" symbol on many occasions). The bifolium's inner crease contains two holes that suggest it was once bound as part of a broader ledger or notebook. MCD.

Accounts in Arabic on a large fragment that may originate from a broader financial ledger that is dated on the lower right corner of the recto as 8 Shawwal 1238AH which is June 1823CE. Many of the monetary figures are in silver kuruş which is indicated throughout by a "ق" symbol. MCD.

List of "מצרופ/expenses" related to food/household items that is dated in Cheshvan [55]97JC which is 1836CE. The fragment may have been folded and sent from Cairo to one Binyamin de Curiel in Alexandria. The hands on the recto and verso, however, are very distinct and therefore the address on the verso may be a remnant of an earlier letter that was reused for the recto's list. The latter expresses monetary figures in eastern Arabic numerals and Ottoman silver "قرش / kuruş" which stands as the only Arabic-script portion of the fragment at the top of the recto's right column. Among the items listed, there is mention of "מלח / salt" (l. 9r), "צאבון / soap" (l.11r), and many other goods. MCD.

List of payments in the name of S[eñor] Yeshuʿa related to ownership or a lease for a house that is dated in the years [55]97AM–[5]600AM which encompasses 1836-1840CE. In line 11r the fragment clearly switches hands to a less orderly style yet the same form/content of recordkeeping continues. The verso is blank except for staining. MCD.

Account of calculations for Se[ñores] Pinto and Bibas on 27 Tevet 5566JC which is 17 January 1806CE. The calculations cover a wide array of coinage types such as "נמס קטעה / Austria coin" and the Ottoman gold "פנדוקלי / fındıklı". When this wide variation in coinage types is read in connection with the heading's opening words "עלם צאפי / purity notice" it seems that this document may have been issued by a money assayer. MCD.