diff --git a/docs/dream-cycle/LEDGER.md b/docs/dream-cycle/LEDGER.md
index 8e7ee3d..9b705ba 100644
--- a/docs/dream-cycle/LEDGER.md
+++ b/docs/dream-cycle/LEDGER.md
@@ -17,3 +17,4 @@
 | 2026-08-17 | evaluation-adapters | Given the Darwin evaluator at commit `569285b` configured with `--sandbox mock - | NONE | NONE | yes | ACCEPT |  | 7ecbf140d180 |  |
 | 2026-08-17 | evaluation-adapters | Given the Darwin evaluator at commit `569285b` configured with `--sandbox mock - | NONE | NONE | yes | ACCEPT |  | 9bf1005b390a |  |
 | 2026-08-28 | ledger-signals | fate reconciliation (agentbox operator audit): judgment-broker queue showed #9/#11/#15 as pending-merge; their changes landed 2026-08-13..15 (#7/#9 consolidated into the fork by human merge, #11/#15 merged in upstream ruvnet/dream-machine whose PR numbering this ledger borrowed) — recording terminal fates so the queue clears | NONE | NONE | no | INCONCLUSIVE |  | operator | #7:MERGED #9:MERGED #11:MERGED #15:MERGED |
+| 2026-09-01 | ledger-signals | INCONCLUSIVE — see report | NONE | NONE | yes | INCONCLUSIVE |  | bdb6735f5b3b |  |
diff --git a/packages/ledger/src/rowContract.test.ts b/packages/ledger/src/rowContract.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0ddcd3d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/ledger/src/rowContract.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,114 @@
+import { existsSync, readFileSync } from "node:fs";
+import { dirname, join } from "node:path";
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { parseRow, validateLedger, validateRow } from "./rowContract";
+
+const ENFORCE_FROM = "2026-09-06";
+
+function rulesOf(cells: string[]): string[] {
+  return validateRow(cells, ENFORCE_FROM).map((v) => v.rule);
+}
+
+const COMPLIANT = [
+  "2026-09-06",
+  "ledger-signals",
+  "row-contract validator added; prior rows show format drift",
+  "NONE",
+  "pending",
+  "yes",
+  "ACCEPT",
+  "guards cross-night memory",
+  "0123456789ab",
+  "",
+];
+
+describe("rowContract unit rules", () => {
+  it("accepts a compliant row", () => {
+    expect(rulesOf(COMPLIANT)).toEqual([]);
+  });
+
+  it("rejects pointer-only findings", () => {
+    const cells = [...COMPLIANT];
+    cells[2] = "INCONCLUSIVE — see report";
+    expect(rulesOf(cells)).toContain("finding-pointer");
+  });
+
+  it("rejects frozen-hypothesis leakage into the finding column", () => {
+    const cells = [...COMPLIANT];
+    cells[2] = "Given the Darwin evaluator at commit `7c30573a2d73c8fa4c67a43042d7c0b204eefa13`";
+    expect(rulesOf(cells)).toContain("finding-hypothesis-leak");
+  });
+
+  it("rejects findings longer than 80 chars", () => {
+    const cells = [...COMPLIANT];
+    cells[2] = "x".repeat(81);
+    expect(rulesOf(cells)).toContain("finding-too-long");
+  });
+
+  it("rejects ACCEPT rows that do not track a PR", () => {
+    const cells = [...COMPLIANT];
+    cells[4] = "NONE";
+    expect(rulesOf(cells)).toContain("accept-without-pr");
+  });
+
+  it("rejects prose in the prior-night fates column", () => {
+    const cells = [...COMPLIANT];
+    cells[9] = "merged #7 by human";
+    expect(rulesOf(cells)).toContain("fates-grammar");
+  });
+
+  it("accepts well-formed fate tokens", () => {
+    const cells = [...COMPLIANT];
+    cells[9] = "#7:MERGED #8:OPEN #9:STALE";
+    expect(rulesOf(cells)).toEqual([]);
+  });
+
+  it("grandfathers rows dated before the enforcement cutoff", () => {
+    const cells = [...COMPLIANT];
+    cells[0] = "2026-09-01";
+    cells[2] = "INCONCLUSIVE — see report";
+    expect(rulesOf(cells)).toEqual([]);
+  });
+
+  it("parses header and separator lines without flagging them", () => {
+    const text = [
+      "| date | deep | finding | issue | PR | evaluated? | verdict | effect | witness | prior-night fates |",
+      "| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |",
+      "| " + COMPLIANT.join(" | ") + " |",
+    ].join("\n");
+    expect(validateLedger(text, ENFORCE_FROM)).toEqual([]);
+    expect(parseRow(text.split("\n")[0] ?? "")).toEqual([
+      "date",
+      "deep",
+      "finding",
+      "issue",
+      "PR",
+      "evaluated?",
+      "verdict",
+      "effect",
+      "witness",
+      "prior-night fates",
+    ]);
+  });
+});
+
+describe("rowContract on the real ledger", () => {
+  const ledgerPath = findLedger();
+
+  it.skipIf(ledgerPath === null)("docs/dream-cycle/LEDGER.md complies from the cutoff", () => {
+    const text = readFileSync(ledgerPath as string, "utf8");
+    expect(validateLedger(text, ENFORCE_FROM)).toEqual([]);
+  });
+});
+
+function findLedger(): string | null {
+  let dir = process.cwd();
+  for (let i = 0; i < 6; i += 1) {
+    const candidate = join(dir, "docs", "dream-cycle", "LEDGER.md");
+    if (existsSync(candidate)) return candidate;
+    const parent = dirname(dir);
+    if (parent === dir) return null;
+    dir = parent;
+  }
+  return null;
+}
diff --git a/packages/ledger/src/rowContract.ts b/packages/ledger/src/rowContract.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2e1309a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/ledger/src/rowContract.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,74 @@
+// Ledger row contract validator — dream-cycle 2026-09-06, deep: ledger-signals.
+// Enforces the machine-readable invariants of docs/dream-cycle/LEDGER.md rows:
+// finding is concrete and self-contained (<= 80 chars, no pointers, no
+// frozen-hypothesis leakage); prior-night fates are token-only (#N:FATE with
+// FATE in MERGED|CLOSED|OPEN|STALE); ACCEPT rows track a PR and carry a witness.
+// Rows dated before `enforceFrom` are grandfathered.
+
+export interface RowViolation {
+  date: string;
+  rule: string;
+  detail: string;
+}
+
+const FATE_TOKEN = /^#\d+:(MERGED|CLOSED|OPEN|STALE)$/;
+
+/** Parse a markdown table line into its 10 ledger cells, or null if not a row. */
+export function parseRow(line: string): string[] | null {
+  const trimmed = line.trim();
+  if (!trimmed.startsWith("|")) return null;
+  const cells = trimmed.split("|").map((cell) => cell.trim());
+  if (cells.length < 12) return null;
+  return cells.slice(1, 11);
+}
+
+/** Validate one parsed row (10 cells). Rows dated before enforceFrom are skipped. */
+export function validateRow(cells: string[], enforceFrom: string): RowViolation[] {
+  const violations: RowViolation[] = [];
+  const at = (index: number): string => (cells[index] ?? "");
+  const date = at(0);
+  if (!/^\d{4}-\d{2}-\d{2}$/.test(date)) return violations;
+  if (date < enforceFrom) return violations;
+
+  const flag = (rule: string, detail: string): void => {
+    violations.push({ date, rule, detail });
+  };
+
+  const finding = at(2);
+  if (finding.length === 0) flag("finding-empty", "finding column is empty");
+  if (finding.length > 80) flag("finding-too-long", `${finding.length} chars > 80`);
+  if (/\bsee\s+(report|gist)\b/i.test(finding) || /^(see|gist)\b/i.test(finding)) {
+    flag("finding-pointer", "finding points elsewhere instead of stating the result");
+  }
+  if (/^given\b/i.test(finding)) {
+    flag("finding-hypothesis-leak", "finding column contains frozen-hypothesis text");
+  }
+
+  const verdict = at(6);
+  if (!/^(ACCEPT|REJECT|INCONCLUSIVE)$/.test(verdict)) {
+    flag("verdict-vocab", `unrecognised verdict "${verdict}"`);
+  }
+  if (verdict === "ACCEPT" && (at(4) === "NONE" || at(4) === "")) {
+    flag("accept-without-pr", "ACCEPT rows must record PR as pending or #N");
+  }
+  if (verdict === "ACCEPT" && at(8) === "") {
+    flag("accept-without-witness", "ACCEPT rows must carry a witness");
+  }
+
+  const fates = at(9);
+  if (fates !== "" && !fates.split(/\s+/).every((token) => FATE_TOKEN.test(token))) {
+    flag("fates-grammar", "prior-night fates must be space-separated #N:FATE tokens only");
+  }
+
+  return violations;
+}
+
+/** Validate a whole ledger file body. */
+export function validateLedger(text: string, enforceFrom: string): RowViolation[] {
+  const violations: RowViolation[] = [];
+  for (const line of text.split(/\r?\n/)) {
+    const cells = parseRow(line);
+    if (cells !== null) violations.push(...validateRow(cells, enforceFrom));
+  }
+  return violations;
+}