Geniza Lab

Informal note/order addressed to Abū Saʿīd (al-ʿAfṣī?). In Judaeo-Arabic. Giving him an instruction concerning the cup/jug (kūz) of mercury that is with the bearer of the note.

Letter - probably from the final blessings - playing around with the word shalom.

Recto: Letter draft probably from Shelomo b. Eliyyahu to his paternal aunt Umm Dā'ūd. In Judaeo-Arabic. Congratulating her on the successful delivery of her daughter Sitt al-Yumn (presumably the same whom Shelomo wooed in T-S 13J18.22). The letter seems to have been abandoned after this line. In the upper margin, the writer practices the phrase "al-mamlūk Barakāt yuqabbil al-arḍ" in Arabic script. Verso: List in Arabic script with names and sums. ASE.

Document in Arabic script. Possibly a letter, or possibly a magical text related to verso: wa-yaʿ[..] al-baḥr li-dhālika wa-hāja wa-lā yastaṭīʿ aḥad ʿalayhi. . . .

Letter fragment addressed to 'our brothers' Ibrāhīm and Isḥāq. In Judaeo-Arabic. This fragment contains only the formulaic opening.

Business letter. In Judaeo-Arabic. On verso there is a literary fragment. Two pieces of paper stuck together so the recto and verso are actually not part of the same sheet of paper.

Possibly a letter. In Hebrew. Dating: Late, based on handwriting. Dealing with the relationship between a wife and her husband with some interesting expressions, and quoting rabbinic dicta on how they should behave toward each other.

Fragment of a letter in Judaeo-Arabic. Reports on a legal dispute. Includes the phrase "he arrested me," followed by the sender asking the addressees to intervene.

List? Fragment containing items such as wheat and amounts - either a letter or a list

Letter fragment in Judaeo-Arabic. Consists entirely of blessings and praises addressed to Eliyyahu the Judge. Essentially none of the body remains. Regards to Shelomo in the margin. Good candidate for a join

Letter fragment. In Judaeo-Arabic. Various requests and transactions are mentioned on verso, but they are too vague to understand without some joins. Regards to Abū Sahl al-Kohen.

Letter fragment from Aḥmad b. Muḥammad al-Ḥasanī(?) addressed to a certain Amir. Only the first few lines are preserved. ASE.

Business letter sent from Tripoli, Lebanon. In Judaeo-Arabic. Dating: Probably 11th century. Mentions terrible economic depression in the Levant and asks the addressee to send his letters to Tyre. The address is in Arabic script but it looks like it is just the blessings for the addressee, not his name (baqāhu wa-adāma ʿizzahu). Needs preservation; some of the text is hidden underneath folds.

Letter. fragment. In Judaeo-Arabic. Reporting on the writer's dealings with the amir Nāṣir al-Dawla and handing over a letter (or petition?) to him. This letter is quite damaged but merits further examination. The addressee is asked to 'show favor on the amir' by entering the synagogue(?).

Letter. In Judaeo-Arabic. The writer reports on attending synagogue on Shabbat and hearing the end of the Torah reading, and then the congregation began reading Lamentations. When they reached the second chapter (איכה יעיב באפו), the writer tried to pull up a chair to see better, which caused a scuffle involving Ibn al-Maghribī and Ḥayyūn and Makārim b. al-[...]. Two more people are mentioned later on: [...] al-Qāhirī and Ibn al-ʿAnbarī. Someone said, "You don't know how to recite! Give me the muṣḥaf." The fragment becomes damaged and difficult to read around here, but it seems everyone made peace (wa-baʿd iṣṭalaḥū wa-ṣallaynā). On verso, there are many greetings: to the venerable father, to the mother Sitt R[ayḥān?], al-Shaykh al-Sadīd Abū Zikrī and the ṣaghīra. The writer may be Shelomo b. Eliyyahu, or at least someone of the family. ASE.

Letter to a local dayyan (judge) concerning marital problems of the writer's daughter.

Letter from the 13th century. An angry trader of gems reports that he was forced to provide Muslim witnesses for a Muslim court in Fustat and that his Jewish witnesses were not accepted. He mentions a restriction of R. Yiṣḥaq b. Ḥalfon from Alexandria that one should not make exception to 'gentile manners'. Trade in Lazuward (Lapis lazuli) is also mentioned. (Information from Frenkel. See also Goitein, Med. Soc. 4:208 no. 411)

Letter dealing with a legal matter that was discussed before a Muslim judge (qadi), concerning the consequences of having had Jewish witnesses. (Information from Goitein's index cards.) SEE PGP 5266

Letter of request for help, probably sent to Abu al-Wahsh. The letter begins with words of praise.

Letter from Yeshuʿa b. Yosef (based on the Arabic address). The sender announces the death of a cantor and asks the recipient to send a letter of condolence to the community. He notes that the deceased's son had not learned synagogue chanting. (Information in part from Goitein's index cards)