Loan Contract (Barcelona)

[Latin:] In the name of the Lord.

I, Regina, a Jewish woman, and my son David, a Jewish man, give a pledge to you, Bernard Oliban. We declare that we owe you one hundred solidi of good pure silver, with their interest at the rate of one-fifth, which is twenty-five solidi. We pledge you as collateral four modiatas of vineyard with the land where they are planted, which we own within the boundaries of Barcelona in the area called Mager. It came to us from our parents and through a tenth [per decimum], and with full authority.

These vineyards have the following boundaries: on the east, the river; on the south, the vineyards of Solomon, a Jewish man; on the west, the paved road; on the north, the vineyards of the nuns of St. Peter Cenobius and of Veimund Gordeballo. We pledge as collateral the land enclosed by these boundaries, the four modiatas of vineyard with the land where they are planted, in entirety, along with the ways in and out of them. We convey them from our lawful right into your possession and control. We shall continue to hold them, by your good will. On the day of the Feast of St. Michael a year from now, we shall repay the debt already mentioned, as set forth above, and you shall return this document to us, without delay.

If we do not make good and repay, then you are entitled to all the above which we pledge to you, to take possession of the property, hold, sell, lend, and do whatever you wish with it, in complete right.

If we the borrowers, or any person of either sex, shall attempt to break or infringe this pledge agreement, the attempt shall not stand. That person shall pay, or we shall pay, double the sum named above, with the price of any improvements to the property, and this agreement shall remain firm and unchanged at that time and any other time.

Done on the 10th day before the kalends of October, in the 28th year of the reign of King Philip.

[Hebrew:] I, Reina bat Eleazar, and my son, David ben Meir, have issued this document of mortgage of our vineyards to Don Bernard Oliba for one hundred properly refined dinars, for the period of a full year, including twenty-five refined dinars, all as written above in their script. I agreed to sign it.

Joseph ben Nathaniel Ḥazan

Isaac ben Nathan