Cave of Letters - The Babata Cache

The Babata Cache

The Babata cache contains many documents cover a wide range of legal issues, one was the deed of a palm grove which contained details of the water rights in it, ‘one every Sunday, every year, for ever’. This particular document goes on to reassure the buyer of his rights and that of his heirs and contains many legal terms of the time. The cache also contained Babata’s marriage contract to her second husband Yehudah, and as well as a document describing the conditions of a loan of 300 silver denari to him by her. This document stated that if he refuses payment, that he would be liable under the law to pay her double the amount and damages. There is also a document concerning the guardianship over Babata’s orphaned son Yeshua by her deceased first husband where she petitions to become sole ward over her son. Other documents where found that concerned the splitting of, Babata’s husband, Yehudah’s, property between various family members, including his daughter from his other marriage. Other documents were found concerning her second husband's property, the most interesting one is a summons by her, to her husband’s other wife. This document is dated 7 July 131, “In the presence of the witness … Babata Shimeon of Maoza summoned Miriam daughter of Be`ayan of En-gedi to come forth together with her and Haterius Nepos the governor wherever he may be present; since you plundered everything in the house of Yehudah son of Eleazar Khthusion my and your husband…” The last document is dated August 19, AD 132, the year of the Bar-Kohkba Revolt. In this document she uses a form of address, ‘Yeshua son of Yeshua my orphan son’, that suggests that her previous petition for guardianship of her son might have failed. The document is a receipt, ‘from you on account of aliments and clothing of the said Yeshua my son, six denarii of silver from the first of the month of Panemos of the said 27th year until the thirtieth of Gorpiaios three full months’.