Bava Batra 11: Dividing Shared Property

Before teaching a new Mishna, we learn about two people who gave generously of their own money to the poor.  Beyamin haTzadik gave to a woman for years to sustain her and her many sons after the charity fund was empty.  King Munbaz gave away the artifacts of his ancestors from his treasury to the poor in his community.  Both are spoken of very positively

A new Mishna teaches about which shared items can be divided and in what ways they can be divided.  The rule is that items or properties must be able to maintain their name and their usefulness if divided.  Sacred items are not divided for that would insult their sanctity.  Courtyards must allow for at least four cubits for each owner; room for growing nine half-kav of seed.  Gardens must leave space either for a half-kav or a quarter-kav of seed.  Also mentioned are drawing rooms, dovecots, cloaks, bathhouses, olive presses, and irrigated fields.

One of the critical concerns discussed in the Mishna is space for animals to feed.  There must be enough place, four cubits around, for animals to approach and feed from pits in courtyards.  The Gemara also considers different structures, like porticos that adjoin homes, gatehouses, and balconies, and the rules that might apply to their divisions.  Again, the rabbis consider how animals like chickens might access these areas with ease.

Properties that open onto alleyways might be more difficult to divide due to the possible objection of more neighbours.  Neighbours can object to one building a structure in the alleyway that might obstruct their use of that alleyway.  The rabbis note that dung in a courtyard is divided according to how many entrances there are in the courtyard.  Government forced billeting of soldiers, however, is decided according to the number of people in each home.  Building within the inner courtyard