Letter: T-S 16.100

Description

Letter requesting help for a woman originally from Narbonne, sent from Muñó (מניו) in northern Spain and signed by a number of people (the names have been largely lost). In Hebrew. Dating: probably late 11th century. The woman was originally from a wealthy Christian background, had converted, and married a certain rabbi David Ṭodros of Narbonne. Forced to flee her vengeful family, they had ended up in a new community (Muñó), where David was killed in an act of violent anti-Semitism perpetrated in the synagogue itself. Two of the couple’s children – Jacob and Justa – were taken captive by the perpetrators. The letter is an appeal for the widow and the infant remaining to her, who are now in abject poverty. Earlier scholars believed that the woman came from Monieux in Provence. Information from Ben Outhwaite, "The letter of ‘The Convert’: T-S 16.100," Cambridge Genizah Research Unit Fragment of the Month (July 2020). See also T-S NS 323.31 + T-S 12.532 (PGPID 7257), written by the same scribe and likely referring to the same events.