Obj. ID: 55062
  Sacred and Ritual  Ketubbah, Amsterdam (?), 1864

The following description was prepared by William Gross:

A Ketubah (Hebrew: כְּתוּבָּה ; "written thing"; pl. Ketubot) is a special type of Jewish prenuptial agreement. It is considered an integral part of a traditional Jewish marriage, and outlines the rights and responsibilities of the groom, in relation to the bride. The content of the Ketubah is in essence a one-way contract that formalizes the various requirements by Halacha (Jewish law) of a Jewish husband vis à vis his wife. The Jewish husband takes upon himself in the Ketubah the obligation that he will provide to his wife three major things: clothing, food and conjugal relations, and also that he will pay her a pre-specified amount of cash in the case of a divorce. Thus the content of the Ketubah essentially dictates security and protection for the woman, and her rights in the marriage.

This document is signed and then given to the bride as her property. In Italy and most of the Islamic countries in which Jews resided, such a Ketubah was often decorated, a tradition originating with the Jews in Spain. Today, generally, printed Ketubot are used.

While the Ketubah form is a regular type produced in Amsterdam, the place of use is most unusual: Melbourne, Australia.  The date, 1864, is a relatively early one for the Jewry of Australia. The normal Amsterdam model of this sort had a "Kuf Aleph Aleph" (Kehilat Ashkenazim Amsterdam" with the symbol at the top.  This one does not and maybe a copy engraved in Australia.

Groom:                             Shmuel ben Ya'akov Shlomo

Bride:                                Rachel bat Chaim

Printer:                         Joachimstahl, Mesquita

Place used:                  Melbourne, Australia