1 2 3 4 10 This is the 'Song of Songs' book, translated into Arabic and re-copied, which I had wri�en here in Gaza; May it be built and established soon in our �me. In the year 5475 to the crea�on, in the month of Shevat, I, the young Shmuel, son to my Lord, my father, the old, the wise, and the pleasant singer (Naim Zmirot), respect for his teachings, Moshe Kastel, May the Lord safeguard him, may the Lord grant me the wri�ng of books for which there is no research, so be it.24 Other tes�monies from that period teach us about a large Jewish community in Gaza.25 One of them can be found in the book of the travels of the Hida, Chaim Yosef David Azulai, who arrived in Gaza in the month of Shevat 5513 (1753) on his way from Hebron to Egypt. From his words, we learn that there was a Jewish minyan in the place and probably also a synagogue at that �me.26 But even this good juncture in the history of Gaza Jews did not last, and this �me, because of an external factor - Napoleon. Napoleon's conquest campaign in the Land of Israel hit Gaza hard and resulted in the departure of Jews shortly a�er. No Jews remained in Gaza.27 In 5595 (1835), the Egyp�an ruler over the Land of Israel, Ibrahim Pasha, ordered the synagogue at the top of the hill dismantled and a citadel from its stones built in the city of Majdal, today's Ashkelon. Members of the former Jewish community of Gaza, who resided in Hebron - headed by the Kastel family - rushed to Gaza to take the decorated doors of the synagogue from there and bring them to Hebron. The doors were then placed in the 'Abraham Avinu' synagogue.28 Photos of that synagogue from before the 5689 riots show the doors standing upright at the entrance to the synagogue. Less than a hundred years later, in the 5689 riots [1929], the synagogue was completely destroyed by the Arabs. The beau�ful wooden doors are gone, and it is unclear whether they were burned or looted. In any case, no trace remained of them.29 1 Sabbatai Zevi 2 Nathan of Gaza 3 The cover page of the 'Song of Songs' book, transcribed by Shmuel Kastel in Gaza 4 Doors of the 'Avraham Avinu' synagogue in Hebron, brought from the synagogue in Gaza
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