Court Deposition (Fustāt, Egypt)

This entry about an incident in court, written (and witnessed) by the scribe Abraham ben Isaac, reflects the complexities of women’s advocacy in medieval Fustāt (Old Cairo). A woman formerly married to a man named Ṣāliḥ was accused in an anonymous tip of entering her ex-husband’s house. When confronted in court, she protested that the divorce was only approved due to a bribe and that she was still in possession of the house. She threatened to take the case “to the government,” meaning that she would appeal to the Muslim authorities. Jewish men worried about this potential recourse, since women did occasionally win their suits before the Muslim court. The ellipsis indicates a lacuna in the manuscript.