Geniza Lab

The names of the tribes of Israel transcribed into a cipher based on the alphabetic equivalents of Greek/Coptic numerals.

A miscellany. On recto there are very elaborate praises for God in Judaeo-Arabic. On verso there are three different keys to Hebrew ciphers. The first is the same as in Bodl. MS heb. f 102/28, the second is simply atbash, and the third is based on the mnemonic הקץ עצל דיך מנום כזב גרש פן תסף חטא, a Hebrew version of "the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog." On the facing page there is a prescription for a medicinal syrup ("sharāb mudabbir") (cf. Chipman, The World of Pharmacy and Pharmacists, p. 189).

Recto: Letter from a son, in Qūṣ, to his mother, presumably in Fustat. Written in Judaeo-Arabic and a cipher (lines 7-12; noticed by OZ; probably this is also in Judaeo-Arabic). The portion of the letter not in cipher mostly consists of regards, and a complaint that the addressee had sent no letter ever since Abū Manṣūr had left her, and he is angry at her. Verso: Another letter, in Arabic script mixed with Judaeo-Arabic (e.g., الכתאב, وשלום רב والسلام), possibly written by the same pen, but not by the same hand. Needs examination/decipherment.

Magical spell in Hebrew, written in a cipher. Khatun the daughter of Qatzur adjures the jinn in her house to tell her where the gold coins are hidden. Similar ciphers may be found in T-S K5.7, T-S Misc.10.60, T-S Misc.11.91, T-S Misc.22.218, T-S K24.23, and ENA 3211.1–2 Information from Gideon Bohak, “Cracking the Code and Finding the Gold: A Dream Request from the Cairo Genizah,” in Juan Antonio Álvarez-Pedrosa Núñez and Sofía Torallas Tovar, eds., Edición de Textos Mágicos de la Antigüedad y de la Edad Media (Madrid: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, 2010), 9-23.

Aggressive and erotic magical spells. Formulary. In Judaeo-Arabic, written in part with a cipher. Information from FGP

Magical fragment, perhaps. Unidentified alphabet or cipher.

Recto: Medical prescription in Arabic script. Verso: Possibly a coded letter in Hebrew characters or (less likely) writing practice.

Both sides of this folio are filled with miscellaneous jottings mainly in Judaeo-Arabic written in an idiosyncratic (unique?) cipher. Dating: no earlier than mid-13th century, based on handwriting and formularies used, plus the citation of a poem by al-Būṣīrī (dates: 1213–95). There are also two lines from the opening of a petition written in Arabic script, a few scattered words in Arabic script, and a single word(?) written in Hebrew script (כסתבאן). The text is written higgledy piggledy in various directions, and some Hebrew letters are represented by more than one glyph—perhaps the scribe was using these pages to develop the cipher. The contents include: (1) the alphabet written several times, both right to left and left to right; (2) the scribe's signature several times, al-faqīr Isḥāq al-yahūdī; (3) two verses from Qaṣīdat al-Burda by al-Būṣīrī (أمِنْ تذَكُّرِ جيرانٍ بذي سلمِ); (4) some legal jargon (jarā dhālika fī ākhir jumādā al-thāmī(!) sanat ar[...]; (5) and two pornographic sections, one of which ends "all this is lies" (כל הדה כדב). ASE