A document with Hebrew script and an elaborate decorative illustrated border

Ketubbah
1795
Dorot Jewish Division

Ketubbah

The ketubbah, the Jewish wedding contract, outlines the legal and financial responsibilities of a husband to his wife. Signed by witnesses, the document is typically hung prominently in a couple’s home, since Jewish law forbids a couple from cohabitating if their ketubbah is lost or destroyed. This particular contract between a bride named Gentilah bat Yeshayahu Karmi (Gentile Carmi) and a groom, Avraham Mazal Tov ben Zekharyah Fontanelah (Abramo Mazal Tov Fontanella), was signed on Wednesday, 13 Av, 5555 (July 29, 1795) in the city of Reggio Emilia, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. The bride’s family provided a dowry of 20 litrin (small coins) of pure silver, with a supplement of 20 litrin.

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