Legal document: T-S NS J11 + T-S 10J4.16 + T-S 16.158 + T-S 10J4.17

TS NS J 11

1. …
2. […] … ten, and five hundred and fifty and a half Almoravid dinars
3. … silver weighing eighty-two dirhams, and a linen Tūnī cloak with a border, and my agent has a claim
4. for all that from the 4 of them. We sent an inquiry to Fusṭāṭ and the matter remained in his hand such as it is. I am separating (myself)
5. from him concerning what he chooses and effective immeditely, he has … and power in this locale to receive my assets
6. into his hand and to release (someone) from the remainder—he alone. This is roughly the text of the aforementioned document which
7. was brought to us, from beginning to end; and the text of the witnesses letter for letter and word for word: Testimony which was
8. before us—we, the undersigned witnesses. Thus: the Elder Abū Sa‘īd (our) tea(cher) and m(aster)
9. Ḥalfōn the beloved b. (our) tea(cher) and m(aster) Nissim the Elder, known as the Elder Abū Ḥusayn, known as al-Tinnīsī (who) r(ests in) E(den) and the Elder
10. Abū al-Faḍl (our) tea(cher) and m(aster) Amram the beloved b. (our) tea(cher) and m(aster) Ephraim the Elder, known as the Elder Abū Kathīr (who) r(ests in) E(den), and the
11. Elder Abū al-Faraj al-Jubaylī (our) tea(cher) and m(aster) Yeshu‘a the beloved ha-Levi b. (his) h(onor,) g(reatness, and) h(oliness) Manasseh ha-Levi, Head of the Congregation
12. (who) r(ests in) E(den) came before us, and they said to us, “Testify on our behalf and perform a qinyan with us effective immediately, write and sign concerning us with all
13. the appropriate legal formulae and the expressions of certainty, and all the language of claims, and give that to his Excellency the glorious Elder
14. Abū al-Riḍā the agent (his) hon(or,) gre(atness, and) hol(iness,) our teacher and our master Solomon the honored courtier, the Sage and the wise one, b. (his) hon(or,)
15. gre(atness and) hol(iness) our teacher and our master Mevorakh, the Ḥaver (Fellow) of the Great Sanhedrin (may his) m(emory be) f(or a blessing,) in order that he would have from this day forward proof and a legal claim
16. that we attest before you with the most certain and perfect expressions of affirmation, in our good health and freedom of will,
17. willingly, with neither duress nor force nor compulsion, without negligence or error, nor defect of illness within us, nor anything of the like
18. from all the factors which nullify testimony, that we have asked God, may His name be exalted, for guidance, and we have affixed our names,
19. and we have received and accepted from him a basket of Dabīqī cloth, the amount of its value being two hundred and fifty-four
20. dinars, and ten items of clothing amounting to nine dinars less a quarter, and specie amount to thirty-seven dinars and a quarter (dinar),
21. the total being three hundred gold dinars of weighed specie, good and correct, of Fusṭāṭ standard weight. All that came into
22. our possession entirely and in toto, that we would travel with it to Yemen and to other places
23. to which we might turn in travel […] the good fortune therein, and the benefit—if God wills it—

T-S 10J4.16

1. and on our way from Upper Egypt we will buy the merchandise we chance upon with the specie, and we will sell all of it
2. in Yemen and in other places through which we will happen to pass. We will buy that which seems good to us
3. using the proceeds of all the merchandise which we realized in the places to which we were going, and we will return with that
4. to Fusṭāṭ, selling it all. That which exalted God dispatches therein in terms of profit, after repayment
5. of the capital and expenditure on provisions, will be for us—a third for each of us, minus a pittance demanded as compensation for (his) trouble and work,
6. and the (remaining) two-thirds will be for his Excellency the glorious Elder, this Abū al-Riḍā. None of the three of us may demand more
7. than a third of the profit, even the value of a farthing or more. Likewise, also, none of us has a claim upon the
8. glorious Elder, this Abū al-Riḍā for the original accounting for this merchandise—neither regarding deceit in its purchase nor in raising
9. the price of the precious objects, nor anything of the like, since all of us have attested before you effective immediately that he need not add
10. anything. All of us agree to the original accounting, since we have confirmed it and have an understanding about it that none of us has
11. any claim upon him for any reason, nor any claim whatsoever, and none of us is
12. entitled to an oath from the glorious Elder, this Abū al-Riḍā, … (beyond that which) we have already received from him, nor a rider
13. [oath, nor] an oath, nor even ḥerem setam. Each of us has taken upon himself effective immediately, concerning the tota[l]

T-S 16.158

1. See ll.12-13 above.
2. See ll.12-13 above.
3. (value of) the merchandise which he had at his disposal, the faith of the Heavens, and that …
4. and doing as is right and “the voice of justice”, and fulfillment of trust. We will not hide from the glorious Elder, this Abū al-Riḍā
5. anything that comes to us. We wrote this document for him in order that it will be in his hand and in the hand of his heirs after him, upon us
6. and upon our heirs after us, ordered and proper and enduring and durable, conveying to them rights before any court forever,
7. not like formularies or like prototypes of documents, but rather as the most certain and perfect of that which the Sages (may their) m(emory be) f(or a blessing) decreed
8. in the like, and any document in any script or language which would exclude something or nullify this document is nullified
9. effective immediately and considered as a potsherd in the marketplace, lacking any (legal) substance, such that any court which would rely upon them
10. may not rule from them. We have also nullified all secret dispositions and conditions which may be made for us and which we have made concerning this document,
11. as a decree of the Sages. We performed a qinyan with these (individuals, our) tea(cher) and m(aster) Ḥalfōn b. (our) tea(cher) and m(aster) Nissim the Elder (who) r(ests in) E(den) and with (our) tea(cher) and m(aster) Amram
12. b. (our) tea(cher) and m(aster) Ephraim the Elder (who) r(ests in) E(den) and from (our) tea(cher) and m(aster) Yeshu‘a ha-Levi b. (our) tea(cher) and m(aster) Manasseh ha-Levi, Head of the Congregation, (who) r(ests in) E(den),
13. with the glorious Elder Abū al-Riḍā, (his) hon(or,) great(ness,) and holi(ness) our teacher and our master, this Solomon the honored courtier, the Sage and the wise one,
14. b. (his) hon(or,) great(ness and) holi(ness) our teacher and our master Mevorakh the Ḥaver (Fellow) of the Great Sanhedrin (may his) mem(ory be) for a b(lessing), with an item suitable
15. for doing so, concerning everything written and stipulated above. We wrote and signed this testimony
16. and gave it to the glorious Elder, this Abū al-Riḍā, in order that he would have in his hand a title of right and proof. That took place in Fusṭāṭ
17. Egypt in the first ten-day period of the month of Shevaṭ of the year 1426 of the Era of Documents. Proper and enduring.
18. Manasseh ha-Kohen b. Saadiah (may his) s(oul find) r(est) Nathan ha-Kohen b. Ephraim (may his) s(oul find) r(est) Moses b. Amram (who) r(ests in) E(den)
19. Here ends all which comprises the aforementioned document with all the witnesses, as established in the court
20. letter for letter and word for word. We accepted it and it was declared sound after comparing it. On the verso of the aforementioned document
21. is a release for the Elder Abū Sa‘īd and the Elder Abū al-Faḍl regarding what
22. Elder Abū al-Faraj al-Jubaylī their partner. And this is the text of what is written on its verso with all
23. of the witnesses as well, letter for letter and word for word : “We performed a qinyan—we, the court, and one who signed with us
24. below—with the glorious Elder Abū al-Riḍā (his) honor, greatness (and) holiness, our teacher and our master Solomon the honored courtier,
25. the Sage and the wise one (may his) R(ock) p(rotect him) b. (his) honor, greatness (and) holiness, our teacher and our master Mevorakh the Ḥaver (Fellow) of the great Sanhedrin
26. (may his) m(emory be) f(or a blessing), mentioned within this document, a complete and weighty qinyan, with an item suitable for doing so, effective immediately,
27. nullifying all secret dispositions and conditions, that he has released the Elder Abū Sa‘īd (our) tea(cher) and m(aster) Ḥalfōn the beloved b. (our) tea(cher) and m(aster)
28. Nissim the Elder, known as the Elder Abū al-Ḥusayn al-Tinn[īsī] (who) r(ests in) E(den) and the Elder Abū al-Faḍl (our) tea(cher) and m(aster) Amram the beloved
29. b. (our) tea(cher) and m(aster) Ephraim the Elder, known as the Elder Abū Kathīr (who) r(ests in) E(den), both of whom are also mentioned above in (this document)
30. See l.1 below.

T-S 10J4.17

1. from […] what was […] with the exception of their boon companion the Elder Abū al-Faraj al-Jubaylī from the assets of
2. this document, which is two thirds of the total amount therein, and nothing further remains upon either
3. of the two of them due to his relationship (with him)—neither a demand for the original assets nor for the profit, nor for a simple oath nor
4. for a grave oath, even ḥerem setam. He has released each of them effective immediately any claim
5. with which he could have against them, with a complete release, orally and in his heart, in this world and in the world to come, since
6. all that he could had coming to him he had received from the two of them, completely and totally, and
7. nothing remains for him from all the assets of this document except for the third of the amount which was mentioned therein for
8. the Elder Abū al-Faraj al-Jubaylī (our) tea(cher) and m(aster) Yeshu‘a the beloved ha-Levi b. (his) h(onor,) g(reatness, and) h(oliness, our) tea(cher) and m(aster) Manasseh ha-Levi, Head
9. of the Congregation (who) r(ests in) E(den). That which God has sent him from the profit therein, he still owes
10. the remainder, and he has not absolved him from it. We wrote and signed (this document) in order that there would be a title of right and proof
11. since that has remained in his hand until now. That took place in the first ten-day period of the month of Shevaṭ of the year 1429 (of the Era) of Documents,
12. in Fusṭāṭ Egypt. Proper and clear and enduring. Isaac b. Samuel ha-Sephardi (may he) me(rit) the ne(xt) wo(rld)
13. Ḥalfōn ha-Levi b. Manasseh (who) r(ests in) E(den) Here also ends all that which is affixed to the verso of the aforementioned document,
14. and the witnesses, letter for letter and word for word. We also composed it and it was declared sound after
15. the comparison and after our establishing all that and its receipt. This beloved woman,
16. called Sitt al-Sāda bt. our lord Abiathar ha-Kohen Gaon (may his) m(emory be) f(or a blessing,) stated upon the appearance of her husband
17. the Elder, this Abū al-Makārim, “Testify on my behalf and perform a qinyan with me effective immediately, write and sign concerning me
18. using all the appropriate legal formulae and all the expressions of certainty and all of the language of claims, and give it
19. to the Elder Abū al-Ḥasan the Ṣayrafī (his) hon(or,) g(reatness and) h(oliness, our) tea(cher) and m(aster) Manasseh ha-Kohen the Elder (may) his R(ock) pr(otect him) b. (his) h(onor,) g(reatness and) h(oliness, our) tea(cher) and m(aster)
20. Saadiah ha-Kohen, the Elder, (who) r(ests in) E(den,) in order that he would have from this day onward proof that I attest before you with the most certain
21. and perfect expressions of affirmation, in my good health and freedom of my will, willingly, with neither duress
22. nor force nor compulsion, without negligence or error, nor defect of illness within me, nor anything of the like from all