Legal document: T-S 10J7.10
Legal document T-S 10J7.10What's in the PGP
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Copy of the will of Khulla bt. Shabbat in which she lists her assets (three different dārs held in partnership with her two sisters and one of their sons) and her intention to sell her ghulām (enslaved man) and split the proceeds as charity for Dammūh and burial expenses for the poor. The court tries to convince her that her charitable funds should be used to restore a bible codex (muṣḥaf) worth the same amount of money, but Khulla declines. The document also mentions: Yehuda Ibn al-Sofer (as the scribe of the original will), the daughter of Khulla’s brother Abū ʿAlī al-Kohen (as being owed 6 dinārs) and Yeshuʿa b. ʿEli ha-Kohen (as a witness). RR This is folio 1v in a bifolio of a court register in the hand of Ḥalfon b. Menashse consisting of four pages and containing four court cases. Another folio is dated 1135 CE. For transcription see attached edition by Goitein, or see Rivlin, Inheritance and Wills, #47, pp. 371-373
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Translator: Cohen, Mark (in English)
T-S 10J7.10 1v
- This is a copy of the will of Khulla bt. Shabbat which was brought before the court, with everything
- contained therein, written in the hand of Yehuda son of the scribe. We copied it
- with its plene and defectiva spelling and its witnesses letter by letter,
- and word by word. Testimony that took place in our presence, we the under[s]igned, as follows:
- We came into the presence of Khūlla bt. Shabbāt and she said to us, bear witness for me with all the (necessary) firm words and
- types of testimony that I affirm before you that I possess one-third
- of a house in the Fortress of the Candles (Qaṣr al-Shamaʿ) in partnership with my brothers, and one-third of a house next to the funduq (inn) of al-Dhahabi
- in partnership with the son of her sister, and 2 2/3 of the house of the Ikshadiyya in partnership with her brothers.
- She also has a ghulām (slave, business agent) who is to be sold, the proceeds to be divided equally, one-half for the upkeep of
- Dammūh and the other half to remain with the court designated for someone who d[i]es impoverished
- or to a person who gets detained on account of the poll tax and has not the wherewithal to extricate himself. We made to her the suggesion
- of the Diadem, may his Rock [God] preserve him, "the Diadem of the Scholars," that in the synagogue of the Iraqis and in that of the
- Palestinians there is a Bible codex wort[h] a certain sum. We suggested that (the money) be designated for its restoration, but she said
- "No." She acquitted her brothers of all claims and demands, they being as trustworthy
- as two reputable witnesses. She stated that she owes the son of her sister 7 1/2 dinars
- and (another) 4 dinars. The 7 1/2 should be repaid from the sum recieved by her heirs,
- [and the] 4 [di]nars from the sum (recieved by) her two sisters. She also stated that she owes her slave
- 2 dinars, and 6 dinars to the daughter of her brother Abū ʿAlī al-Kohen. We performed the qinyan with
- her brothers that they would stand surety fort the 12 dinars …
- from the sum apportioned to them in the inheritance, and peace. Yeshuʿa haKohen b. ʿAlī, may his soul be bound in the bundle of life
- Yehuda b. Shlomo the scribe, may his soul dwell in prosperity and his descendants inherit the earth. This constiutes everything contained
- in the aforementioned will. We compared it, and it was confirmed in the co[m]par[r]ison, letter... (end of page)
T-S 10J7.10 1r
T-S 10J7.10 2r
T-S 10J7.10 2v
