Court Testimony

This court record preserves the claim of Abraham bar Sa‘ad against his brother Dhabian, which was presented in the court of Shemariah ben Elḥanan in Fustāt (Old Cairo). Abraham and Dhabian had, apparently, traveled to Egypt in order to sell precious stones. During their time in Egypt, Dhabian began to study alchemy, hiring a “charlatan” teacher. This man fleeced a number of others and then disappeared; it was reported that Dhabian had helped him to escape. The stones were confiscated, but Dhabian later recovered them. His brother sued for his share of the jewels.