I’ve been spending quite a bit of time looking through the Dotar records for the Portuguese Jewish Community of Amsterdam. I thought I would share some sample documents that will hopefully be helpful or interesting to some of you here. Although lard on the eyes, taking a look at the records is worthwhile. Sorry for the lengthy post!You can find the records on the Amsterdam Municipal Archives website, Inventory nr. 334, Archives of the Portuguese Israelite Community. Look for 7.1.2 on the dropdown list.From Termos “A,” nr. 1141:This is a page of signatures of early members from 1616. The link is https://archief.amsterdam/api/file/A/yB253jd3y0xTKFoPUThSRTtMxMME6naDFN5ypSkaSzx4sSpx7GiRbUbUct-Kuk9y*lqHzIAyPVtTlL9oViNkOw/f/A01946000025-highres.pdfFrom the same year, a list of the members, together with their aliases. https://archief.amsterdam/api/file/A/yB253jd3y0xTKFoPUThSRTtMxMME6nRYRbh36F-gCkZu4XRC52gOlB8RXffUK7Wre7WEKJN2w8gaTeOHeuE5dA/f/A01946000028-highres.pdfFrom “Ingekomen stukken” or “Received documents”,” nr. 1151A:This appears to be petition to enter the lottery for Estrella Zacutto, together with family information. https://archief.amsterdam/api/file/A/yB253jd3y0xTKFoPUThSRTtMxMME6nJi*Y32djigxp8trzFN-Mxcm7m4pXuRF9lbZ*7bkp-5xuBb2oML6miBMw/f/KLAE00743000096-highres.pdfSame for Rachel Jesurun Furtado. https://archief.amsterdam/api/file/A/yB253jd3y0xTKFoPUThSRTtMxMME6nOktEEuRsWrrUooKSvZXRYTj8kJ9Rx37X80WLBzgUqod1yk-FfA1OkL0Q/f/KLAE00743000054-highres.pdfI have no idea what this correspondence from 1652 is about, other than it appears to reference Belgrade, Venice and Hamburg. I included it because one of the names listed as- I think- a dayyan is a Moses ben Mordecai Zacuto. Not sure if it is the Kabbalist. https://archief.amsterdam/api/file/A/yB253jd3y0xTKFoPUThSRTtMxMME5Wd21XwKBiCaQLECHPaEqd50-pV7scOMXjCCMFZ4THGimCQBJD5ugvoMWw/f/KLAE00743000357-highres.pdfhttps://archief.amsterdam/api/file/A/yB253jd3y0xTKFoPUThSRTtMxMME5WdwxH8vPTuaAMoLV8uQdiXPxxXBD3EbTy5HiBu1Ub0ONQMHzJaztOcQPw/f/KLAE00743000358-highres.pdfThere are a lot of items like these in the Dotar records that may shed some light on family relationships that may not be otherwise clear or known. Shortly I would like to post a sample “life cycle” for a Dotar entrant, Gracia Zacutto, in 1711. Her father Issac was a Dotar member. I will post Isaac’s petition entering his daughter into the lottery, her appearance on the lottery list, her winning the lottery, the certification of her marriage in Hamburg 6 years later and the delivery of the dowry.