Scholarship on Legal document: T-S 13J8.31

Translated by Dora Zsom

Nuḥaym ibn Maymūn and Khulayf ibn Furaḥ Zibrij presented themselves at the court of law in the week in which Surūra, the daughter of Nuḥaym and the wife of Khulayf ibn Furaḥ, died, and asked us to assemble for their case in connection with the betrothal of Sitt al-Dār, the daughter of Nuḥaym, to Khulayf, the husband of her deceased sister, Surūra, in her place. We assembled on Wednesday night, when eight days remained from the month of Sivan, in the year [4]‌802 of creation.

Someone said: How do you betroth this girl when she has been betrothed to the husband of her deceased sister before? And he is Khulayf ibn Yeshu‘a Nārūz. And when the court and all those present heard this, the matter was discovered, and the court cautioned those who were present if they had knowledge about it, or someone was present there, or someone witnessed it. And the cantor R. Sahl ibn Moses N. N. and Naḥmān bar Tsedakah and Sarī bar Ḥayyim, the teacher, and Azhar ibn Simeon and Mevasser bar Naḥum and others who were there testified that this Khulayf ibn Yeshu‘a was married to the daughter of Nuḥaym and she died. There were quarrels between them concerning the property, and they decided that Nuḥaym would betroth this girl, Sitt al-Dār, and she was then seven years old. They agreed on a period of three years, and that when he would come and ask for this girl and pay the entire dowry, which is four dinars and sixteen dinars that Khulayf paid to Nuḥaym, she will be his wife. And if he does not come during this period of three years, her matter will be . . . it was a conditional betrothal. And when the court assembled and the community . . .