Legal document: T-S 18J2.5

Recto

1. The testimony of what took place before us, we the undersigned witnesses: 

2. Mr. Ghalib the cantor known as Abū Manṣūr b. Mr. Ḥalfon, the seller of olive oil, m(ay he rest in) E(den), quarrelled 

3. with his sister from his father and mother, Bārra ('innocent') bt. Mr. Halfon the seller of olive oil, m(ay he rest in) E(den), regarding a house 

4. that Bārra alleged that her father designated as inheritance for her to the exclusion of her brother, Mr. Ghālib. However, 

5. no right was confirmed to her about the house over which they quarrelled except the upper floor 

6. of //the small// house when she previously pre- sented the court with //a deed// in the hand of our Lord David, 

7. the great nasi, the nasi of all Israel, son of our lord and prince Hezekiah, the head of all the diasporas 

8. of Israel, may they rest in honour, indicating that Mr. Ḥalfon, her father, gave her the upper floor 

9. of the small house. She (also) presented the court with a deed written 

10. in Muslim courts indicating that her father gave her as a dowry the entire aforementioned house, 

11. but (the document) was not confirmed that day, thus her brother said: "This deed is forged, 

12. and no right is confirmed to her by this deed neither in Jewish nor Muslim courts." 

13. Disputes and arguments took place between them and the matter reached the point that 

14. she brought him before a Muslim court. She was deemed deserving of a ban by the (Jewish) court for 

15. her transgression of bringing her brother to Muslim courts and abandoning the living 

16. (16 - 18) laws of God. Just when she was about to be placed under the ban, the elder Abū ‘Alī Mr. Yefet the elder the glory of the congregation b. Mr. Abraham the elder, m(ay he rest in) E(den), was nominated from among peace-loving righteous elders (to reach a compromise between them). He asked the court (or: the judge53) to grant her a delay (from the ban) until he could convene her 

17.  

18.  

19. with her brother in his home and mediate between them. Therefore, we the undersigned entered 

20. the house of the aforementioned elder Abū 'Alī. Mr. Ghālib and his sister were present. 

21. The aforementioned elder spoke to them [at length] and reproached Bārra, saying: 

22. “Only the upper floor is confirmed to you by the Hebrew deed, and 

23. the Muslim [deed] does not confirm to you anything." She responded deceivingly: “No! My father gave me 

24. this house and it is mine!" The aforementioned elder Abū ‘Alī said to her: 

25. “And the other house, the large one, which is adjacent to this house, do you have 

26. something with which you claim your father gave it to you also?" She said: "No, I do not have 

27. any right over the other house at all and no pretext." We spoke gently with her 

28. to take what God made for her lawful and abstain from demanding what is not hers 

29. by right, but she refused and did not accept (this). We wrote down what took place before us, signed it, 

30. and gave it to Mr. Ghālib the cantor so it will be evidence and testimony. This was 

31. a long time ago and when