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Copies of laws, codes, regulations and decrees issued by the Government of Persia [Iran]. The materials are either original copies in printed booklet and typewritten form, chiefly in French, or typewritten copies which have been translated into English by British officials. The volume includes:The Persian Government’s civil (ff 489-561), penal (ff 359-420) and commercial codes (one dated 1928 (ff 278-339), a second dated 1934 (ff 142-215)), and subsequent amendments to these codes.Prison regulations (in Persian as well as French, ff 341-355, ff 258-273), and supplementary prison laws (ff 101-134).Laws concerning the punishment of highway robbers (f 256), individuals who foment social unrest (ff 239-240), and judges who show partiality in their judgements (ff 223-224).Laws concerning the administrative organisation of the country (ff 46-55).Also included in the file is an analysis (in French) of Persian legislation ( L’Analyse de la Léglislation Persane), produced in November 1927 by Maitre R Aghababoff [Raphael Aghababian] (ff 562-737).A small amount of British Government correspondence is also included throughout the file, in the form of covering letters which occasionally comment on the contents of the laws and regulations they enclose.

1 volume (741 folios)

The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the rear to the front of the volume.Some of the larger items in the file have their own numbering systems (pagination, numbered articles), with contents and index pages:The analysis of Persian legislation by Raphael Aghababian (ff 562-737) has a pagination system which is referred to in a table of contents at the front of the analysis (ff 572-575).The articles of the Persian Civil Code (ff 489-561) are numbered, and referred to in an index at the rear of the code (ff 558-561)The Penal Code (ff 359-420) has a pagination system which is referred to in a table of contents and alphabetical index at the rear of the code (ff 407-419).The 1928 Commerce Code (ff 278-339) has a pagination system which is referred to in a table of contents and alphabetical index at the rear of the code (ff 328-338).The 1934 Commerce Code (ff 142-215) has a pagination system which is referred to in a table of contents and alphabetical index at the rear of the code (ff 210-214).

Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the first folio with 1 and terminates at the last folio with 737; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located at the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. The foliation sequence does not include the front and back covers; nor does it include the four leading and ending flyleaves.An additonal foliation sequence is present in parallel between ff 224-312; these numbers are also written in pencil and circled, but are crossed through.

The item includes a letter (ff 2-4) referred to as murasaleh(a type of letter), a paper envelope (f 5) and a two piece pouch envelope. These items together are called Kharita. Kharitais an official letter from a paramount power, usually sent in an elaborate silk cover and received with great ceremony.The letter (ff 2-4) is an official one and it is sent by Abdur Rahman Khan, the Amir of Afghanistan (1880-1901) to Lord George Nathaniel Curzon. It is dated Sunday 2 Ramadan 1316 which is given as 15 January 1899. The Amir of Afghanistan is recounting a previous letter that he received from Lord Curzon in which Lord Curzon emphasized the importance of building a strong relationship between the Empire in India and Afghanistan. Lord Curzon also clarified the reasons which caused the late arrival of his letter to the Amir. After recounting the content of Lord Curzon’s letter, the Amir of Afghanistan concludes with his congratulations to Lord Curzon on his new position, and emphasizes on the strong relations and friendship between the two. The letter has a date in English, 23 January 1899, written in red ink at the top of its first folio.The letter is written in Persian on illuminated large white papers. A circular black ink seal holding the name of the Amir of Afghanistan has been provided at the end of it. The letter was originally folded and kept inside a paper envelope (f 5). The paper envelope is open from the right side corner and has the names of the sender and the recipient. Marks of red sealing wax are still visible on the front side of the envelope. The envelope itself is dated Wednesday 28 Sha‘ban 1316 which is given as 11 January 1899, that is four days earlier than the date on the letter.The paper envelope with the letter inside was placed inside a two piece pouch envelope: a silk pouch and a bobbinet cotton pouch. The dimensions of these two pieces indicate that the bobbinet cotton pouch was used as an outer protective cover for the silk one. The date of the pouch envelope is unknown.

Kharita (a ceremonial illuminated letter, a paper envelope, and a two piece pouch envelope)

The memo contains information in Persian, with English translation, regarding the Dashtee [Dashti] tribe and the villages that are subordinate to it.For the town of Dashtee (folio 8) the memo gives details of the tribute paid to the Governor of Bushire; for each subordinate village the following information is given:Under whose authority the village fallsThe amount, in Tomans, paid as tribute to the Dashti tribeThe number of households in the villageThe distance, in Fursacs, from the nearest neighbouring villageOn the rear cover of the memo (folio 1) are instructions from Lewis Pelly dated 21 February 1863 asking him to provide a translation alongside each section of the memo and a note from Joseph Charles Edwards dated 12 May 1863 noting that the translations have been completed.As the memo was written in Persian, with English translation added later it should be read from back to front (folio 8-folio1)The dates provided relate to the request for and completion of the translation into English, the memo itself may be from an earlier date.

1 file (8 folios)

Foliation: This file contains foliation on the top right corner of the recto of each folio, the folio number is given in pencil and is enclosed with a circle.The first folio of the file has been written on upside down.

Treatise on the use of the astrolabe in twenty chapters (بيست باب) by Naṣīr al-Dīn al-Ṭūsī (نصير الدين الطوسي, d. 1274).This copy was completed on 29 Dhū al-Qa‘dah 1057/26 December 1647 (see colophon, f. 103r, lines 9-11, transcribed below).Begins (f. 78v, lines 4-6):اين مختصر يست در معرفت اسطرلاب مشتمل بربيست باب باب اول در القاب آلات وخطوط ودواير اصطرلاب ...Ends (f. 103r, lines 6-8):... بر بيشتر اسطرلابها اين كواكب نقشكنند هر كه اين را بشناسد چنانكه در آن اشتباه نيفتد اورادر اين باب كفايت باشد والله اعلم بحقيقت الاشياءColophon (f. 103r, lines 9-11):تمت الرسالة الشريفه في سلخ شهرذى العقدة الحرام سنة 1057هجري

Ff. 78v-103r

Circular N. 5445 from the Secretary to the Government at Bombay Castle, Henry Lacon Anderson, to the Resident in the Persian Gulf, transmitting the printed copy of a translation to Persian of a general order issued by the Governor General of India in Council announcing the victory gained by the Allied Forces over the Russian troops in the Battle of Alma.

10 folios

This volume contains vocabularies for the following languages: English, Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Armenian, Kurdish, and Syriac. It was published in London and was compiled by the Admiralty War Staff, Intelligence Division, on behalf of the Admiralty and the War Office during the First World War.As well as providing translations of common words from English into the listed languages, the volume also contains a brief note on pronunciation, basic numerals, and commonly used 'questions and answers'.

1 volume (90 folios)

Words are listed in alphabetical order (in English) until f 74 where numerals are listed. From ff 76v-90 'questions and answers' are arranged by theme.

Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 92; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.Pagination: the volume also contains an original pagination sequence.

Correspondence and other papers concerning the drafting of an agreement between the Governments of Britain and Persia [Iran], concerning the withdrawal of the Indo-European Telegraph Department from Persia, and the subsequent taking over of cables and equipment in Persia by the Persian Government. The agreement covers: the costs of daily use of the cables; maintenance of the cable between Henjam [Jazīreh-ye Hengām] and Bandar Abbas [Bandar-e ʻAbbās]; transit dues for communications sent between Iraq and India; access to Gulf ports by cable ships. The papers include:Multiple drafts of the agreement, in French. A printed copy of the final agreement in French and English translation, dated 17 February 1932, is included (ff 141-144).Correspondence concerning difficulties in maintaining an import of supplies to telegraph stations in Persia.Registration of the Imperial and International Communications Company Limited (IICC) in Persia.Discussion amongst British officials over the merits of abandoning cable communication in the Gulf, and closing down the telegraph stations on the Persian coast of the Gulf, in favour of using wireless communications.Correspondence from 1932 concerning the costs of repairs to the Henjam-Bandar Abbas cable, incurred by IICC/Cable & Wireless Limited, and charged against the Persian Government.The volume’s principal correspondents are: the India Office (John Gilbert Laithwaite); the British Legation at Tehran (Robert Henry Clive; Charles Dodd; Reginald Hervey Hoare); the Indo-European Telegraph Department (Maurice George Simpson); the Indo-European Telegraph Company (which became the IICC, and from 1935, Cable & Wireless Limited (J O Stevens Perry; Ralph Lawson)).The volume contains a single item in Persian (f 82), being an order issued by the Shah of Persia, dated 28 Khordad 1311 (equivalent to 18 June 1932), ratifying the Indo-European Telegraph Department agreement.

1 volume (407 folios)

The papers are arranged in approximate chronological order from the rear to the front of the file.

Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the inside front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 409; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.

Inscriptions:Signed by Felix Jones, British Political Resident in the Gulf of Persia, and Political Agent to the Persian Expeditionary Forces.

1 plan sheet

Materials:Pen and ink with wash on paperDimensions:446 x 560 mm, on sheet 466 x 580 mm

Notable contents include:Commentary on Naṣīr al-Dīn Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad al-Ṭūsī's (نصير الدين محمد بن محمد الطوسي; d. 1274) edition of Euclid's (Εὐκλείδης; أقليدس; fl. 300 BC) Elements(الأصول) (ff. 86v-88r);Text by Naṣīr al-Dīn Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad al-Ṭūsī's (نصير الدين محمد بن محمد الطوسي; d. 1274) (ff.88v-89v);Commentary on Ptolemy's (بطلميوس, Claudius Ptolemaeus; c 90-c 168) Almagest(كتاب المجسطي) (f. 90r);A text on determining the qiblah(في معرفة سمت القبلة) by Abū al-Rayḥān Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad al-Bīrūnī (أبو الريحان محمد بن أحمد البيروني, ca 973-1048) (ff. 91v-92r);A text on determining the qiblah(في معرفة سمت القبلة) by Naṣīr al-Dīn Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad al-Ṭūsī's (نصير الدين محمد بن محمد الطوسي; d. 1274) (f. 92v);A text on catoptrics, with elaborate diagrams (ff. 94r-95r);Commentry on Euclid (Εὐκλείδης; أقليدس; fl. 300 BC) (ff. 95v-96r);Figure comprising all the figures in Euclid's (Εὐκλείδης; أقليدس; fl. 300 BC) Elements(الأصول), Book One (ff. 97v-98r);Extract from Qāḍīzāde al-Rūmī's (قاضي زاده الرومي; d. after 1440) commentary on Maḥmūd al-Jaghmīnī's (محمود الجغميني; fl. first half of 13th century) al-Mulakhkhaṣ fī ‘ilm al-hay’ah al-basīṭah(98v-99r);Extract from al-Qūshjī (القوشجي; d. 1474) (1092v-103r);Extract from Kamāl al-Dīn al-Fārisī's (كمال الدين حسن الفارسي; d. 1319) Tanqīḥ manāẓir Ibn al-Haytham(تنقيح مناظر ابن الهيثم; ff114v-115).

Ff. 86v-117r

The majority of correspondence in the file consists of letters and instructions, with enclosures, in Arabic and English, between 26 November 1900 to 1 November 1905, from the Political Residency in the Persian Gulf at Bushire to Khān Bahādur ‘Abd al-Laṭīf bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān, Residency Agent on the Trucial Coast at Sharjah. Enclosures typically include copies and originals of letters to and from various members of Persian Gulf ruling families, Persian officials and notable merchants (for example, ff. 37, 45 and 198), and from British agents and native agents (for example, agent at Bandar ‘Abbās f. 108, and Lingah, f. 188). There is also correspondence to the Residency Agent from Shaikh‘Īsá bin ‘Alī Āl Khalīfah, ruler of Bahrain; Shaikh Maktūm bin Ḥashar Āl Maktūm, ruler of Dubai; and Shaikh Zāyid bin Khalīfah Āl Nahyān, ruler of Abu Dhabi.The Arabic or Persian text of the letters is handwritten and appears on the left hand of the folio, while the English text occasionally appears typed (for example, f. 48). The letters are numbered according to the year, for example, ‘No 287 of 1901’ (f. 34), although some letters appear unnumbered (for example, f. 36). Some letters are written on black-edged paper (for example, f. 21) indicating mourning for Queen Victoria.Folio 205 is an Arabic list of subject headings for the file ['Fihrist fīl numr khāmis'] which consists of 104 entries, some of which appear in pencil on the verso of side of the letters. The correspondence within the file deals generally with commercial and consular matters and the relations of the rulers of the Trucial Coast shaikhdoms with one another and the British. Subjects covered within the file include: relations between Trucial Coast shaikhs and with the Political Residency and Persian government officials; cases related to Jawhar bin Naṣīb; claims by various merchants and British Indian subejcts (banyans); pearling issues, including cases of runaway divers (ff. 93-94); issues concerning the correct flag to be used by the Trucial Coast shaikhs, including a small drawing of the Trucial Coast flag according to the General Maritime Treaty of 1820 (ff. 99-100); requests for intelligence, including Hermann Burchardt's travels in the Persian Gulf (ff. 128-129) and geographical information (f. 157); gathering of trade statistics on the Trucial Coast (ff. 146-147); illness of the Residency Agent (ff. 149, 151); visit by the Resident to the Trucial Coast (f. 150); importation and smuggling of arms and ammunition (f. 153); and various slavery cases, including the abduction of children (f. 159).

1 file (205 folios)

Foliation: There is one foliation sequence which runs from the front to the back cover and appears in pencil, circled and in the top right hand corner of the recto of the page. Foliation anomalies: number 12 is skipped.Physical Condition: Tear damage causing missing text (ff. 3-5, 7-9).

The file concerns complaints made by Hirjimal Dhamanmal, and other Bahrain merchants, about the Food Controller, Bahrain (Captain Arthur Charles Byard; later Claud Cranbrook Lewis deGrenier), who was responsible for implementing food control policies (e.g. rationing and import controls) in Bahrain during the wartime conditions created by the Second World War (1939-45).The principal correspondents are the Food Controller, Bahrain; the Political Agent, Bahrain; Hirjimal Dhamanmal & Company, Bahrain; Goverdhandas Dharamdas & Company, Bahrain; Haridas Janimal & Company, Bahrein [Bahrain]; other Bahrain merchants; the Director of Customs and Port Officer, Bahrain (deGrenier); and the Adviser to the Government of Bahrain (Charles Dalrymple Belgrave).The papers include a complaint over the Food Controller's role in the import, at the Food Controller's own request, by Hirjimal Dhamanmal and seven other Bahrain merchants of 2000 bags of sugar from Karachi, which remained unsold, and which the merchants claimed would cause them a 'ruinous loss' if sold at a reduced rate; and various complaints about the working of the food control system in Bahrain, including the issuing of export permits, corruption amongst officials, and allegations of discrimination in favour of some merchants. The commodities discussed include (Rangooni) rice, Mangalore coffee, fruit and vegetables, and sugar.The Persian language content of the file consists of a petition (with English translation), dated 27 May 1944, on folio 119.The covering dates of the main run of correspondence (folios 2-113) are 3 October 1940 - 26 January 1943. The date range gives the covering dates of all the correspondence, including enclosures dated 1939-40 (folios 79-82) and the petition at the end of the file (folios 119-120).

1 file (119 folios)

The papers are arranged in chronological order from the front to the rear of the file, except where enclosures of an earlier date are filed after their relevant covering letter, and terminate in a set of notes (folios 114-118), and a petition with English translation (folios 119-120).

Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the inside back cover with 121; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.

Contents:(1) al-Lāhūrī (اللاهوري), al-Taṣrīḥ fī sharḥ al-tashrīḥ(التصريح في شرح التشريح; ff. 1r-16r);(2) al-Landanī (اللندني), al-Ijābah ʿalá taʿ līq al-Jawnbūrī(الإجابة على تعليق الجونبوري; ff. 16v-22r);(3) Anonymous, Tarjamah-’i Sab‘ shidād(ترجمه سبع الشداد; ff. 23r-44v);(4) al-Ṭūsī (الطوسي), Risālah fī kayfīyat al-ʿamal bi-al-asṭurlāb(رسالة في كيفية العمل بالأسطرلاب; ff. 47r-60v).

Codex; ff. ii+62+ii

Material: Eastern laid paperDimensions: 295 x 175 mm leaf [200-30 x 110 mm written]Foliation: India Office Library foliation stamped in black inkRuling: Misṭarah; 23-25 lines per page; vertical spacing 12 lines per 10 cmScript: Nasta’līqInk: Black ink, with rubricated headings and overlinings in redDecoration: NoneBinding: Case binding; boards with red leather at edges and spine and marbled paper in centreCondition: Minor insect damage, some holes repaired; extensive pre-digitisation conservation work to spine and bindingMarginalia: Almost noneSeals: 1r, 16r, 22v, 23r, and 60v