Title
Recycled Fatimid State Documents from the Cairo Geniza
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Description or Abstract
Among the many unexpected finds the Cairo Geniza has yielded are hundreds—possibly thousands—of medieval documents of state in Arabic script, including decrees, rescripts, petitions, tax receipts and fiscal accounts from the Fatimid period. Most were reused for Hebrew-script texts, hence their survival in the discarded manuscript chamber of a medieval Egyptian synagogue. They yield an unexpectedly detailed picture of the complexity and sophistication of medieval techniques of state administration. Perhaps paradoxically, their survival outside of an archive has allowed a better glimpse of medieval Egyptian practices of archiving and deacquisition. They also shed light on the proximity and palpability of state institutions to ordinary Fatimid subjects.
Keywords
Cleveland Bayard Dodge 2017
Department
Arab & Islamic Civilizations Department
Performance Date
2017-03-07
Content Type
Other
File Type
Video
Extent
1:19:04
Language
eng
Recommended Citation
Rustow, Marina Khedouri A. Zilkha Professor of Jewish Civilization in the Near East at Princeton University and the director of the Princeton Geniza Lab, "Recycled Fatimid State Documents from the Cairo Geniza" (2017). Audio & Video by Faculty: Webinars, interviews, documentaries, etc.... 49.
https://fount.aucegypt.edu/audiovisual_faculty_work/49