Auction #49

ROSH PINNA- 1882 (17 October) letter sheet (23x38cm) written in Hebrew (Rashi script) sent from the newly established Jewish Settlement of Rosh Pinna (the first colony in the Galilee)  to Sir MOSES MONTEFIORE, the letter is a "request for donation & support" and is full of compliments to Moses Montefiore's generosity, depicting the difficulties and housing shortage in the new Colony of  Gei Oni - Rosh Pinna, the letter ends w/the sentence "those are the words of the secretaries of the Colony Rosh Pinna called Gei Oni near the Holy City Safed - Mordehai Katz 'head of the group' & David Shuv" and signed by few others, at the bottom is a large circular cachet of the colony ".. COLONIA 'ROSCH  PINA' BEI SAFFED  PALESTINA". At the top is an address notation in Hebrew & German "Our Address - Moses Jadid Levi in Beyroth Syria fur Matel Katz in Safat". The Turkish Post in Safad was opened in 1874, and the settlers of Rosh Pinna preferred the services of the forwarding agent Jadid Levi from Beirut to receive mail from Sir Moses Montefiore.  Around 1878, the Arab village of al-Ja'una sold half of its lands to Jews from Safed. They called their settlement Gei Oni ("Valley of my Strength"). After one year of good harvests, a year of drought came and they returned to Safed. In 1882, the settlement was renewed as a Moshavah by immigrants from Romania who named it Rosh Pinna; folded & few peripheral creases o/w vf & Very Rare historic document