Impressive, illustrated Ketubah on parchment - Gibraltar, 1898 - signed by the Gaon Rabbi Raphael Chaim Moshe ...

Impressive, illustrated Ketubah on parchment - Gibraltar, 1898 - signed by the Gaon Rabbi Raphael Chaim Moshe ben Naim - the Rachman - the Rav of Gibraltar. 

Very large Ketubah, approx. 60C60 cm. handwritten and illustrated on parchment. Gibraltar, 1898, signed by the Chief Rabbi, Rabbi Raphael Chaim Moshe ben Naim - the Rachman, for the wedding of Reb David Dana and the bride Reina of the Ben Zaken family. 

The text was written by a scribe with some larger words. The word "חי" is emphasized in the middle of the Ketubah. At the top of the Ketubah, a beautiful illustration of a Keter Torah. Circling the text, color illustrations of flora and flowers. At the beginning: "בסימנא טבא ובמזלא יאייא ובשעת רצון והצלחה" [gilt with a blue border of the letters] ברביעי בשבת אחד עשר יום לח' סיון המוכתר בכתר תורה שנת חמשת אלפים ושש מאות וחמישים ושמונה לבריאת עולם למנין שאנחנו מונן בו פה מתא ג'יבאלטאר יע"א."

At the end of the Ketubah, the curly signature of the Chief Rabbi, Rabbi Raphael Chaim Moshe ben Naim - known as the Rachman as well as the groom's signature and an additional signature of Yitzchak Sil[va] (this last signature is partly blurred). 

Rabbi Raphael Chaim Moshe ben Naim was born in 1845 in Tetuan, Morocco. When he was six months old, his parents immigrated to Eretz Yisrael and settled in Haifa. As a child, he studied Torah in Tiberius, encouraged by Rabbi David ben Shimon, who recognized his wisdom and talent. He later became Dayan of Tiberius and was sent as a Shadar to North Africa. In 1887, he became the Rav of Gibraltar, a position he held for approx. thirty years until his passing in 1920. Authored many books, some of which were published: Peter Reche Sermons, Rachamim Pshutim Shut, and Kol Techina against using machines to bake Matzah.  

The color is blurred in several places. 

Many creases to the parchment. 

Good-fair condition.