Geniza Lab

Literary text with a signature: Peraḥya b. Ṭarfon ha-Kohen. The same man appears in T-S 8J11.15 and T-S 24.74 (early 12th century). Information from the Penn catalog.

Literary text with a signature: Yefet b. ʿAmram. See Penn catalog (https://openn.library.upenn.edu/Data/0002/html/h293.html) for detailed description and potential identifications of this Yefet.

Panegyric dedicated to Yaḥyā b. Avraham. See Penn catalog (https://openn.library.upenn.edu/Data/0002/html/h318.html) for detailed description and potential identifications.

Debate poem between wine and water. In Hebrew. Likely in the hand of Nāṣir al-Adīb al-ʿIbrī. Composed by Yehuda b. Eliyyahu (per the acrostic). A complete version of the same poem may be found in T-S 8K15.9 (copied in a different hand). Information in part from Penn Catalog.

Panegyric by Yeshuʿa b. Dunash b. Moshe Av Bet Din dedicated to the brothers Simḥa and Netanel b. Mesabar(?). See Penn catalog (https://openn.library.upenn.edu/Data/0002/html/h325.html) for further description and potential identifications.

Megillat Miẓrayim, here called "Megillat ha-Saṭan ha-Yaduaʿ." Retelling the events of the rebellion of Ahmad Basha against Suleiman I of Turkey in 1524, and its effects on the Jews of Cairo; A complete copy of this "Megillah", in which the Arabic translation appears in a parallel column, is found in London, British Library Or. 7768 (Margoliouth no. 1170). Information from Penn Catalog.

Two folios of poetry in an unusual mixture of Hebrew, Judaeo-Arabic, and Arabic. 2.5 of the 4 pages are filled with a Judaeo-Arabic & Arabic poem, which is a lament addressed to a communal leader "Rabbi David." The first and last line read: "O Rabbi David, the Jews are suffering in your absence, our friends are stricken and our enemies are gloating." At the bottom of fol. 1r, more of the story emerges: the speakers repent of having wronged Rabbi David (niḥnā qad asaynā fī ḥaqqak) and mourn that those who have replaced him in leading prayers and giving the sermon are no match for him. It is tempting to connect this poem to the deposition and later reinstatement of David I Maimonides (cf. the English edition of Goitein and Friedman, India Traders, pp.115–16 and BL Or. 5549.4). The two folios under this shelfmark also contain half a page of a Hebrew poem and a full page of a macaronic Hebrew/Arabic poem consisting of verses rhyming on "حو/חו." There are five verses per stanza, and there is no clear pattern dictating which verses are Hebrew and which are Arabic. ASE

Literary. Late. "Book of letters. The ends of the letters are in written in graphic form, using inverted triangles; The bottom of two folios from a book of letters, apparently composed for literary value. Florid Hebrew prose, heavily decorated with biblical phrases, and some Talmudic ones. The letters are copied successively into a codex; One of the letters is signed על הכתב[...] צבי ה״ה בן לביא probably a pen name." Information from Penn Catalog.

List of angels' names. In Judaeo-Arabic.

Recipes in Judaeo-Arabic and Hebrew. "Number of lines varies according to content; text breaks in fols. 1-3 denoted by three puncti; 1r remedies extracted from dogs, from foxes, in Hebrew, starting סגולות השועל; 1v remedies extracted from ducks. in Hebrew; 2r two paragraphs of cures, in Judeo-Arabic; 2v record of words, maybe a magical chant, in Aramaic; 3r instructions in Judeo-Arabic for the preparation of different remedies, followed by Hebrew instructions for the preparation of an amulet, engraved into a heart; 4r in a different hand; contains instructions in Hebrew for preparing parchment for a Torah Scroll. Headed: עיבוד גויל של ספר תורה מן מעשה. The term מעשה usually infers a unit of transmitted practical Halakhah, most common among the literature of the Erets Israeli tradition. This too is not written as a Halakhic monograph, but rather as a recipe, in second person format:תקח עפץ. This is a complete, distinct essay, ending towards bottom of recto: תם תם; 4v (in the same hand as recto) contains the same, in Judeo-Arabic. The heading: הדא עמל אלריק." Information from Penn catalog.

Literary. Medical recipes in Judaeo-Arabic and Hebrew, including one for how to fatten onself. Dating: Late, based on the hand. "Fol. 1r, under the heading פזמון, is Abraham ben Samuel Abulafia's kabbalic poem for Shavuotאשתעשע במש(א)ל קדמון, which ends in praise for Maimonides. See Steinschneider, Koṿets ʹal yad, sidrah 1, kerehh 1 (1885), p. 4, 15. Followed by Hebrew instructions for preparing a prescription for sorts of leprosy. Together they are 17 lines, the remainder of the page is empty; Fol. 1v contains various remedies in Judeo-Arabic; Fol. 2v contains a potion in Hebrew for a thin man or woman who wishes to be fat; remainder of the page is empty." Information from Penn catalog.

Genealogical list from Ezra to Adam. On verso there are pen trials, including the beginning of a letter in Judaeo-Arabic and a basmala in Arabic script.

Siddur with colophon by Obadiah the Proselyte. "Obadiah the Norman Proselyte who entered the covenant of the God of Israel in the month of Elul, year 1413 of [the era of] Documents [=1102 CE] which is 4862 of [the era of] Creation — he, Obadiah the Proselyte, has written [this prayer-book] with his own hand." See https://johannes-obadiah.org/, Obadiah Siddur.

Three poems by Avraham Ibn Yiju in honor of Madmun b. Ḥasan, Aden, ca. 1140, who was expecting his third son.

Literary. Astronomical or calendrical work in an unusual mixture of Arabic (in Arabic script) and Hebrew.

Arabic poetry: a close variant of this poem, praising the tongue/speech over other forms of beautyرأيت العز في أدب وعقل وفي الجهل المذلة والهوانوماحسن الرجال لهم بحسن إذا لم يسعد الحسن البيانكفى بالمرء عيباً أن تراه له وجه وليس له لسان

Literary text in Arabic script.

Literary text in Arabic.

Unidentified text in Arabic script. Probably literary based on layout.

Arabic tale? The words 'fi-s-safina' (in the ship) and 'al-miyah' (the waters) are legible. Another line was written at the bottom of this fragment upside down to the rest of the text. Another text has its imprint on this fragment. (Information from JRL catalogue.)