Quote:
One of Judaism's most joyous events is the celebration of a marriage. To mark the event, a marriage contract, or ketubah (plural, ketuboth), is drawn up, delineating the obligations of each of the parties to the union. The custom of decorating the ketubah, which flows quite naturally from the concept of hiddur mitzvah, often results in the creation of a legal document that is both a charming work of art and a meaningful keepsake.
Among the ketuboth in the Library's collection is one marking the wedding of Aaron ben Hayim Cesana of Corfu to Sara bat Mordecai d'Ovadia, which took place in the Italian port city of Ancona on 15 Sivan 5565, which corresponds to Wednesday, 12 June 1805 (see cover illustration). http://www.loc.gov/rr/amed/guide/hs-beauty.html
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My brother found this online yesterday. He says it's the contract of my great-great-grandparents from my Dad's side. We currently spell our last name as Cezana but that's because Cesana was written in Arabic when my family was in Alexandria, then hebrew when in Israel, and now to English and became Cezana. Some of my dad's second cousins that never went to Israel but rather France or back to Italy still spell it Cesana.