A rare 19th-century Esther scroll, once belonging to the Jewish community of Gaza, is set to be auctioned by the Jerusalem-based Winner's Auction House, with an estimated value of $15,000.
The scroll bears three ink stamps at its conclusion, including the inscription "K.K. Gaza ... Bena Amon." The abbreviation "K.K. Gaza" stands for Kehilat Kodesh Gaza (Holy Community of Gaza), a unique Jewish community of former Gaza residents who settled in Alexandria, Egypt, during the 19th century.
The Jewish community of Gaza, which had endured upheavals, expulsions and departures over the years, found refuge in Egypt while preserving their traditions and identity. At the time, Alexandria was a flourishing Jewish center, home to various congregations, including the exiles from Gaza, who maintained their customs in synagogues and communal institutions.
Historical significance and origins
The scroll is meticulously handwritten on thick, high-quality parchment, making it a rare historical artifact. Its uniqueness lies in the ink stamps at its end, clearly identifying it as having belonged to the Kehilat Kodesh Gaza community in Alexandria.
While the scroll was likely written in Iraq, as suggested by its script style, it was later acquired in Egypt. The current owner's grandfather, who immigrated from Yemen to the Land of Israel in the early 20th century, purchased it from a local Arab antiquities dealer in Egypt.
The circumstances of how the scroll left the Gaza community in Alexandria remain unclear. Religious Jews typically do not sell sacred texts, particularly handwritten Esther scrolls, to non-Jews, leading to speculation that it was either stolen or looted.
In addition to the Hebrew stamps, the scroll features Latin-letter inscriptions reading "TEMPLE AZOUZ," alongside a Star of David. This suggests a possible connection to a synagogue named after a family called "Azouz" or "Aziz," though no further records have been found. It may be the only surviving remnant of this synagogue.
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Despite its age, the scroll has been well preserved, with only minor textual corrections, slight water stains, and damage to the first column of parchment, which was repaired long ago. It remains suitable for ritual reading.
The Gaza community in Alexandria
The name Kehilat Kodesh Gaza reflects the direct connection between the community and its origins in Gaza. During the Ottoman and British Mandate periods, Jewish immigrants from different cities often formed their own congregations in the diaspora, maintaining their ancestral prayer customs. In Alexandria, synagogues were established for Jews from Italy, Morocco, Libya, Aleppo and other regions.
The K.K. Gaza community was part of this pattern — an organized group of Jews from Gaza and its surroundings who named their community after their hometown to preserve its memory and their distinct identity within Alexandria’s Jewish mosaic.
Historical evidence suggests that, after the Jewish exodus from Gaza in the early 19th century, many resettled in Hebron, Jerusalem and elsewhere, with some migrating to Egypt. Alexandria, a key port city, attracted Jewish merchants and craftsmen from the Land of Israel. Wealthy families such as the Castel (Kaštiel) family, originally from Gaza, relocated to Hebron, and some branches may have later moved to Cairo and Alexandria. Oral traditions among Egyptian Jews also reference families known as "Azati" or "El-Azati," indicating Gaza origins.
Additionally, the existence of a synagogue named after Gaza in Alexandria supports the notion that former Gaza residents established a formal community rather than merely adopting a symbolic name.
The scroll will be auctioned at Winner's Auction House in Jerusalem on March 30, with a starting bid of $1,500. The final price is expected to range between $10,000 and $15,000.