*SOLD*

A scarce and remarkable relic of Jewish history in Spain. 

 
Medieval Deed
Lleida, Catalonia Spain 1355.
 
Sale certificate from Catalan tailor Samuel Andali and his wife Çecri, Jews from the provincial capital Lleida(Lérida in Spanish), to priest Guillelmo Çagraha for leasing rights on their house in Lacuyraçola(in the Jewish quarter of town). The voluminous document is dated March 4th and 6th, 1355 and written with sepia ink in neat Gothic chancery script occupying a rectangular space of about 620 × 295 mm. It’s a window into late-medieval private life in Catalan Spain, and provides deep insight into the difficult situation that Lérida's Jewish inhabitants found themselves in, especially when dealing with Christians. It’s written in Latin, and in accordance with a 1301 law in which King James II ordered that all contracts binding a Christian to a non-Christian be written by a Christian notary.
Vellum with a total size of 680 x 370 mm. Verso browned, minimally creased, with tiny abrasions. The text is very crisp and rich, nicely contrasting with the vellum. Near Fine. Housed in a modern leather case. A stunning piece that would be excellent framed. Medieval notarial deeds of this magnitude and in such an impressive state of preservation are rare. This survival is particularly scarce considering the heavy losses suffered by the Jews of Spain during the Black Plague persecutions of 1348-51, the genocide of 1391, and their expulsion in 1492 - along with centuries of destruction in Lerida brought by various wars.
 
Samuel Andali seems to need cash. He has a house, but doesn’t want to sell it(if he sells it to a Christian, he could be forced to pay a tax equal to one-third of the selling price). The Christian priest Guillelmo Çagraha may not lend money with interest. So, they embark upon a very complicated financial package with shifting funds – presumably intended to confuse tax officials.
 
Andali sells leasing rights to his home(an emphyteusis lease) to Çagraha 
for 6 livres and 15 sous(1620 total sous) with Andali to pay an annual rent of 3 deniers and 11 sous(135 sous). This provides Andali a cash infusion and Çagraha an annual return of 8 1/3%. Five witnesses and a notary are involved. Given the sharp contrast between the relatively modest amounts at stake, the large number of parties involved, and the material quality of the document, one wonders if the transaction did not involve more money. Perhaps, it was also a means for Andali and his wife to guard against losing their home by giving a priest virtual ownership of it?
 
Names of persons cited, in order of appearance:
 
Jews:
 
Samuel Andali - tailor, seller
Çecri - wife
Abcaym Affrangi 
Içach Arusti 
Maymonus Andali 
Bonanatus Savoga - guarantor of Samuel Andali
Salamon Dido - witness
Bonnin Cinffa - witness
Astruch Maceronus - witness 
Natan Bellsom
 
Christians:
 
Guillelmo Çagraha - priest of Saint-Laurent de Lérida, buyer 
Petrus della Raç - furrier, witness 
Thomas de Melons - witness 
Nicholas Jordana - notary drafting the agreement
Pedro IV - the Ceremonious King of Aragon 
 
 
Ref: A New Document Regarding the Jews of Lerida in the Mid-XIV Century, Jean Letrouit