Letter: Moss. II,146.1

Description

Letter from Barakāt al-Kohen, unknown location, to the parnas Abū l-Ḥasan ʿAllūn (= ʿEli b. Yaḥyā ha-Kohen, active ca. 1057–1107), in Fustat. Mainly in Arabic script (in a skilled hand), with some words and phrases in Judaeo-Arabic and Hebrew mixed in (in a crude hand with some eccentric spellings). Only the upper margin on recto and the address on verso are preserved. He complains of all the things "that are said in the synagogue with impure tongue." The next sentence is tricky to understand, including a mysterious word in Hebrew script; probably something like "may God not punish the one who appointed him (= the congregational leader with an 'impure tongue') over us." After that, the sender reports that Sibāʿ has been leading the سىر (the 'shir'?) and Hiba has been leading the psalms (al-mazāmīr).