Legal document: T-S AS 147.12

Description

Prenuptial contract on the occasion of a betrothal (erusin/shiddukhin). Groom: Moshe b. Yosef ha-Kohen. Bride: [...] bt. Shemarya ha-Kohen (her name is left blank). Stipulating the details agreed upon for the marriage. Dated ca. 1220 (per Goitein). Goitein sets the dating at around 1220 but does not provide proof to it (Med. Soc. 3:403, no. 149). In any case, the handwriting is typical for the 13th century as well as the expression: “matched and engaged” found in line 2 which appears in Geniza documents from the 13th century onward. Marriage payments: 15 + 60. The conditions include living 12 months in Fustat, then Bilbays. The condition that the bride will determine the domicile in Fustat for the duration of one year is noteworthy. After this year the couple intended to move to Bilbays and there the wife will also determine the location of the domicile. More on this matter see Ashur’s dissertation Chapter Four pp. 130-131. (Information in part from Goitein's index card and from Mediterranean Society, III, p. 403. Also from Amir Ashur's dissertation.)