Two Yemenite manuscripts, each bound into earlier vellum leaves:
I . Contains pizmonim (poetry) both in Hebrew (e.g. Ashirah la-ahuv ve-ha-shir lo asdir [f.6r.], a Yemenite wedding song, see Davidson, Thesaurus of Medieval Hebrew Poetry, Vol. I, no. 8028; Chathanim ke-minhag Teimanim, Aden 1902) and in Judeo-Arabic. Temanic cursive script, unvocalized. According to the colophon on the final page, the booklet was written for the student "Chaim ibn Sa'id ibn Yoseph the Kohen, on Monday, 18th of Av, 2218 [i.e. 1907 c.e.]. ff. 41. Black ink on coarse paper, stained. Stitched vellum. 8vo.
The vellum binding is a leaf from the Pentateuch with the intermittent Aramaic Targum Onkelos. The Yemenite community retained the original custom of publicly reading in the synagogue the Hebrew text followed by the Aramaic translation, verse by verse. The outside of the leaf is from the portion of the Akeidah (the Binding of Isaac) in Genesis XXII; the inside from the following portion, Abraham's purchase of the cave of Machpelah from Ephron the Hittite (Genesis XXIII).
*II. Distinctly Yemenite liturgy for Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot, includes: Hatarath Nedarim; Teki'ath Shophar; Selichoth; Hoshanoth; and Hakaphoth; Chibut Aravah and numerous Pizmonim. Hebrew, square Temanic script, provided with vowel points above the letters, "nikud elyon," or "nikud Bavli." The colophon on the penultimate leaf reads: "Its writing was completed on Thursday, 4th of Ellul, the year 5656, 2207 of Shetarot [i.e. 1896 c.e.]. I am the writer…Meshulam ibn Zechariah ibn Zechariah ibn Oded, called Ozeiri." ff. 60. Black ink on coarse paper. Light stains. Stitched vellum. 8vo.
The vellum binding consists of several leaves. These have not been examined internally. Externally, we have a leaf from the Tafsir, which is the Yemenite version of the Pentateuch, consisting of the Hebrew text, followed by the Aramaic translation of Onkelos, followed by the Judeo-Arabic translation of Sa'adyah Gaon. The external leaves are from the portion of Isaac's agricultural attempts (Genesis XXVI) and Pharaoh's dream (Genesis XLI).
*Inserted is a stitched fascicle. Judeo-Arabic; Hebrew wedding song at very end. ff. 4. Sepia ink on coarse paper. Waterstained. Loose. 8vo.
