Geniza Lab

Petition/letter of appeal for charity. Addressed to someone titled Ḥemdat ha-Nesiʾut, possibly the same person as Sayyidnā in l. 8. In Judaeo-Arabic and Hebrew. The paper is dark and the text is faded. The sender describes his poverty ('weakness') and the losses he suffered for 4 months. He has 'uncovered [his face]' seeking help from God and from Sayyidnā. Mentions someone 'shutting (a figurative door) in our faces.' Mentions Abū l-Bayān. The sender has pawned his clothing (thawbī marhūn). AA. ASE.

Long strip from the right side of a letter written and signed by Yosef b. Arah.

Minute fragment, probably from a letter.

Formulary for letters in rhymed Judaeo-Arabic. Mostly contains words of honor and blessings. Recto ends with פצל אכר ("another section").

Letter in Judaeo-Arabic. Fragment. Contains mostly blessings for family members. The margin of recto contains some business instructions ("do not sell it for that price [or for] less than 3 dinars, since there is demand for it here from me"). The sender asks for the news from Sicily. Mentions people such as "his brother Barakāt Ibn al-Maqdisī"; ʿEli; Menashshe the cantor; and Efrayim. AA. ASE.

One side: A brief letter to Abu l-Rabīʿ Sulaymān consisting of greetings and blessings. (A man by the same name is known from India Book 4, as one of Yehuda ha-Levi's companions in his trip to Alexandria, but the name is common, and there is no sign that this is the addressee here.) The other side: Seems to be in the same hand, also consisting entirely of deferential blessings (kissing hands and feet, etc.)

Much damaged letter, most of it too faded to decipher.

A letter, probably business, with a list of some items(?) at the bottom. Damaged.

A legal document regarding a poor man called Ishaq Nafisi (נפיצי) dated Rabi’ al-Akhir.

Fragment of a letter in Judaeo-Arabic. Colloquial register. Refers twice to a young woman or girl (ṣabiyya). There is some reported dialogue, including the sender telling someone that he or she has repaid the dinar.

Damaged fragment containing two documents- one is a much damaged letter. On the margin of verso part from a legal deed involving Moshe and his wife.

Letter in Judaeo-Arabic. Dating: Late, likely Mamluk-era. From a person to his brother in Egypt (spelled מסרים)

Letter, looks 14th century and later.

Fragment from a letter in Judaeo-Arabic. A reference is made to רבינו המעוז המגדול (our Rabbi, the Great Fortress), a title usually reserved for Maimonides or his son. Mentions: "if he is still owed anything by my son, let me know." The sender asks for news about the capitation taxes. There are a few words in Arabic script on verso. AA

Letter in Judaeo-Arabic. Narrow paper. Fragment (bottom part only). The script is unique. The content is unclear. Mentions that Abū Naṣr knows about something. The sender swears by the temple (וחק אלמקדש) that he is not writing to criticize (? נקד) but only out of his love and longing for the addressee, and also because the addressee had said that he wished to turn a third person away from the path he was following. On verso there are few words in Arabic script, and Hebrew pen trials.

Letter fragment. In Judaeo-Arabic with the address in Arabic script. The addressee may be [...] b. Abū l-Manṣūr.

Small fragment of a personal letter in Judaeo-Arabic. Mentions ‘one of my (deceased) brothers’ and gives an excuse for why the sender didn't write earlier. (Information in part from CUDL)

Letter fragment in Judaeo-Arabic. Mentioning the [Head of?] the Yeshiva, the countryside, and the capitation tax (al-jāliya). (Information from CUDL)

Personal letter. (Information from CUDL.) See also T-S AS 16.194.

Letter in Arabic script. Fragmentary (upper right corner). The beginnings of 12 lines are preserved. Probably a join with T-S AS 16.190, but it is hard to read enough to be sure of exactly how they match up. (Information in part from CUDL)