Manuscript, Chupat Chatanim – Pinkas Zechirat HaKetubot handwritten by R. Refael ibn Tzur Rabbi of Fez, documenting close to 300 marriage ketubot scribed by the Beit Din. Fez (Morocco), Tishrei 1859 to Adar 1869.
Neat cursive Sephardic script; two columns per page. From the changes in the writing and ink color, it is obvious that the manuscript was written over the years. Heading at the top of the pages: "Chupat Chatanim". On some leaves, blessings were added in the heading or chronogram.
The present manuscript was seen by R. Yosef Benaim, who quotes it once in his book Malchei Rabbanan (Jerusalem, 1931, p. 30a, entry on R. Chaim Yamin HaKohen) as "R. R. ibn Tzur in Zechirat HaKetubot". To the best of our knowledge, this work has not been published (apart from the quote in Malchei Rabbanan).
The manuscript documents (often in poetic terms) all the marriage ketubot scribed by the Beit Din in Fez in the given period (all ketubot and contracts in Morocco were written by the Beit Din scribes, in accordance with early regulations of the Moroccan Jewish communities). It therefore serves as a rich source of information on the history and customs of the Fez community, its families and rabbis.
The main significance of this manuscript is its function as a Book of Lineage for Moroccan Jewish families (see sidebar on Zechirat HaKetubot by Fez rabbis). The records include the names of the grooms and brides, their fathers and lineage generations back (see also previous item). The names of the witnesses are also documented. In most of the recorded ketubot, R. Refael himself served as one of the two witnesses, as he writes: "Witnesses… and myself, Refael ibn Tzur".
The records also include other information from ketubot: the amounts of the dowry and of the basic and additional ketubah monies; blessings for the couple (usually in poetic terms); and various details about the couple and marital agreements (primarily in second marriages, which involve more complex monetary arrangements, such as alimony for children from previous marriages – see Hebrew sidebar on marital agreements and rules of conduct appearing in ketubot). The manuscript documents many cases of a man remarrying his divorcee, Ketubah DeIrkasa (replacement ketubah), polygyny (practice which was still prevalent in Morocco, unlike Ashkenazic communities who accepted the ban of Rabbenu Gershom), levirate marriages and the marriage of orphans betrothed as minors.
The manuscript includes various mentions of regulations instituted by "Rabbotenu HaMegorashim" – prominent Torah scholars from the first generation of Spanish exiles, who settled in Morocco and particularly in Fez. These Torah leaders served as dayanim in Moroccan cities, and instituted various regulations pertaining to marital and monetary matters, following the customs of Spanish Jewry.
One of the entries, which records the marriage of a woman from Sefrou with a man from Fez, highlights the differences between the customs of various Moroccan communities. The record mentions agreements made before the wedding, such as the condition that the wedding would take place in Sefrou. The woman ultimately waived this requirement and the wedding was held in Fez, though it was stipulated that the couple would return to live in Sefrou, and that any monetary matters would be settled according to the regulations instituted in Sefrou by Rabbotenu HaMegorashim (Iyar 1866; p. [16]b).
R. Refael son of R. Shlomo ibn Tzur (1830-1916), rabbi of Fez. He first served as scribe in the Fez Beit Din, and was later appointed rabbi of the city. Apart from his Torah prominence, he enjoyed material wealth and owned much property. He left behind several halachic works and novellae on various topics. He was also known as a collector of books and manuscripts.
[19] written leaves (approx. 33 pages) + blank leaves. 23 cm. High-quality paper. Good-fair condition. Stains. Worming, affecting text. New binding, with leather spine.

Zechirat HaKetubot by Fez Rabbis – Books of Lineage of Moroccan Jewry
Notebooks with copyings of Ketubot by the dayanim of Moroccan Batei Din, are referred to in various sources as Zechirat HaKetubot or Mazkeret Ketubot.
These works serve as a rich source of information on the history of Moroccan Jewry, and contain detailed genealogical documentation, the likes of which do not exist in any other community. Various sources mention Zechirat HaKetubot manuscripts written by leading Moroccan rabbis, though these works have not been published.
R. Yosef Benaim in his book Malchei Rabbanan (Jerusalem, 1931), biographies of Moroccan rabbis, repeatedly quotes such record books and ketubot, including the present manuscript – see other sidebar. Likewise, in his book Responsa She'erit HaTzon (Part I, sections 96 and 122), R. Yosef Benaim quotes a Zechirat HaKetubot manuscript by R. Refael ibn Tzur (the passage he quotes was not found in the present manuscript, and it presumably appears in a different manuscript, documenting other years).
R. Refael's ancestor – R. Yaakov ibn Tzur Rabbi of Fez, known as the Yaavetz, also had a Zechirat HaKetubot notebook. It is quoted several times in Malchei Rabbanan, as well as in Pirchei Shoshanim by R. Yedidia Monsonego. R. Refael Oved ibn Tzur (son of the Yaavetz) likewise wrote a similar composition, also quoted in Malchei Rabbanan.
In the present manuscript, a composition referred to as "Sefer Yuchasin by my grandfather Geon Yaakov" is quoted repeatedly (see other sidebar), and it is presumably the Zechirat HaKetubot notebook of the Yaavetz.
Such a composition was the primary source for Igeret Yachas Fez by R. Avner Yisrael HaTzarfati, published in Fez VeChachameha (see Part I, pp. 138 and 141).
In Malchei Rabbanan, R. Yosef Benaim relates that he found genealogical records handwritten by R. Natan Memmi, who wrote that when going over an old notebook of ketubot records, he discovered and took note of the lineage of families which have vanished in the Maghreb (Malchei Rabbanan, p. 99a).

Yachas HaKetubah in the Present Manuscript
Many records in the present manuscript include Yachas HaKetubah of the groom or bride, or of both. One record includes Yachas HaKetubah listing 11 generations of the Elbaz family, ancestors of the bride, and 4 generations of the Edery family, ancestors of the groom.
In the present manuscript, R. Refael ibn Tzur occasionally abridges the Yachas HaKetubah by referring to the Yachas already listed elsewhere, in other Books of Lineage, written by him or others. In several places, he refers to the writings of "my grandfather Geon Yaakov" (presumably his ancestor R. Yaakov ibn Tzur, the Yaavetz, who served as rabbi of Fez several generations before him).
For instance, in Cheshvan 1860, there is a record of the marriage of the dayan R. Yedidia Monsonego (presumably his second marriage, in his old age). In the Yachas of the groom's family, he writes briefly and refers to the Sefer Yuchasin of his grandfather Geon Yaakov, whilst in the Yachas of the bride, he lists five generations of rabbis from the Ben Simchon family, including all the original titles of honor and praises.
The present manuscript is quoted in Malchei Rabbanan (Jerusalem, 1931, p. 30a, entry on R. Chaim Yamin HaKohen). The quoted passage is found on the final page of the present manuscript, in the middle of an entry recording a levirate marriage, listing 8 generations of the ancestors of the groom, and 6 generations of the ancestors of the bride.
See Hebrew for examples from the present manuscript.