Terms
These terms govern the relationship between the atelier and any patron who commissions, subscribes to, or receives a piece of work or the weekly word from the atelier. They are written in plain prose so that they can be read by a rabbi, a parish priest, a monastery cellarer, or a private patron without further explanation. Where a particular commission requires terms that differ from these (a Sefer-Torah programme, a side-chapel iconostasis, an unusual support, a piece intended for outdoor exposure), those terms are agreed in writing between the atelier and the patron and supersede the general terms below for that commission only.
Commission
A commission begins when the atelier accepts an inquiry in writing and the patron has paid the deposit named in the acceptance letter. The deposit is one third of the agreed price for a single piece and one quarter of the agreed price for a programme of pieces. The deposit is not refundable except in the case of the scribe's or iconographer's death or grave illness, in which case it is returned in full and any work in progress is offered to the patron as it stands.
Time and the order of writing
The atelier writes commissions in the order in which they are accepted, with the exceptions of pieces tied to a stated feast or yahrzeit, which take precedence. The atelier does not undertake to deliver a commission by a fixed date except by separate written agreement and on payment of an additional reservation. A mezuzah is delivered three weeks after the deposit; a small icon panel six to ten weeks; a ketubah, an illuminated calligraphy, or a larger icon panel a season; a Sefer-Torah programme or an iconostasis programme over a year or longer.
Materials and method
Every soferut piece is written on kosher klaf parchment, prepared in the customary manner from calf or deer hide, with a quill cut from a turkey or goose feather, in walnut-gall deyo ink ground in the workshop. Every iconography commission is written on linden or cypress board, prepared by hand with cloth and gesso, in egg tempera and twenty-three carat gold leaf. Each piece is made in the canon of the tradition to which it belongs. The atelier reserves the right to substitute a material of equal quality where the supply of the named one fails, and to make small adjustments to the script or iconography where the canon requires them. The patron is informed before any such substitution is made.
Inscription and signature
Soferut pieces carry no signature; the scribe's hand is recorded only in the workshop ledger, with the patron, the date of writing, and the commission's number in that ledger. Iconography panels are inscribed on the reverse in Greek, with the saint, the patron, the date of writing, and the panel's number in the workshop ledger; the face of the panel carries only the inscriptions proper to the iconography. The atelier does not sign work on the face in either tradition.
Delivery and risk
Commissions are sent by registered post, packed in board and oilcloth, with insurance to the value of the agreed price. Risk passes to the patron on delivery to the patron's address, and the patron is responsible for unpacking the commission within a reasonable time and reporting any damage in writing within fourteen days. The atelier replaces or repairs commissions damaged in transit at no charge to the patron.
Subscriptions
A subscription to a commission cadence begins on the date named in the acceptance letter and continues for the term named there. Subscriptions may be paused by written request for one season without forfeit; longer pauses are agreed in writing. Subscriptions are not transferable except to a household, congregation, parish, or monastery to which the original patron belongs. The weekly word, sent by electronic mail at no charge, may be cancelled at any time by the link at the foot of every message or by writing to the address on the contact page.
Returns
Both a soferut piece and an icon panel are sacred objects and are not returned for reason of taste. The atelier accepts the return of a piece only where the piece does not match the commission letter, and in that case the piece is rewritten or the agreed price is refunded in full at the patron's election.
Governing law
These terms are governed by the law of the country in which the atelier is registered. Any dispute that cannot be settled by correspondence is referred, by the consent of the parties, to a single arbitrator agreed between them or, in default of agreement, appointed by a respected member of the community to which the patron belongs.
Last revised on the Feast of the Annunciation, 2026.