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ILCAA Joint Research Project

Archival Study on Fiscal administration of Holy Shrines in Muslim Societies: The Case of the Safavid Shrine in Iran (jrp000244)

Archival study on fiscal administration of holy shrines in muslim societies: The case of the Safavid shrine in Iran

Keywords

  • Safavids
  • Shi‘a
  • saint mausoleum
  • sufism
  • tariqa
  • documents diplomatics
  • palaeography accountancy
  • Islamic law
  • shurut

Areas

  • West Asia
  • Central Asia
  • Iran

Website

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About the Project

Project term: April, 2018–March, 2021

In Muslim societies of West and Central Asia, mausoleums of Islamic saints exercised religious and sometimes political power, accumulated great wealth, and played an important role as social, cultural, and economic centers. How did they establish and manage their financial foundations to maintain their social and cultural activities? This research project aims to clarify the method of property management of the mausoleum of Shaykh Safi al-Din (the founder of the Safavid Sufi order), which developed as the state shrine of the Safavid dynasty (1501-1736) in early modern Iran, through a comprehensive analysis of Sarih al-Milk (the mausoleum’s records of donated lands and property). Focusing on the types, functions, and styles of legal and financial documents and books recorded in Sarih al-Milk, tracing their changes through time, and comparing them with historical materials of other regions and periods, this project examines the development and change of political, legal, and economic systems that supported the property management of saint mausoleums in medieval and early modern Muslim societies.

Ryoko WATABE, Project Coordinator (Part-time Lecturer, The University of Tokyo)

Members

Coordinator

  • Ryoko WATABE (The University of Tokyo)

ILCAA Staff

  • Nobuaki KONDO
  • Yoichi TAKAMATSU

Joint Researchers

  • Naofumi ABE
  • Yukako GOTO
  • Tomoko MORIKAWA
  • Hiroshi ONO
  • Masaki SUGIYAMA
  • Ryuichi SUGIYAMA
  • Sanae TAKAGI
  • Yoichi YAJIMA

Outputs

Meetings

The 9th meeting ：Report (Japanese)(218KB)

  • Date/Time: Sat 20 Mar 2021 13:00–16:00
  • Venue: Online meeting
  • Language: Japanese
  • 13:00–13:30 Ryoko WATABE (ILCAA Joint Researcher, the University of Tokyo)
    “Report on the publication of a collection of papers on this joint research”
    13:30–14:30 Sanae TAKAGI (ILCAA Joint Researcher, Waseda University)
    “Reconsideration of Barur village in the fourteenth century”
    14:30–15:30 Yoichi YAJIMA (ILCAA Joint Researcher, Nara Women's University)
    “Junayd’s Invasion of Trabzon and Gurjistan”
    15:30–16:00 All members
    General discussion

The 8th meeting

  • Date/Time: Sun 4 Oct 2020 13:00–16:00
  • Venue: Online meeting
  • Language: Japanese
  • 13:00–14:00 Nobuaki KONDO (ILCAA)
    “Vaqf-administrators and Endowed Properties of the Ardabil Shrine under the Safavids”
    14:00–15:00 All Participants
    Discussion on Publication of a Collection of Papers on this Joint Research
    15:00–16:00 Ryoko WATABE (ILCAA Joint Researcher, the University of Tokyo)
    “Report on the Plan to Create a Database of Properties of Ardabil Shrine Based on the Land Inventory (Salih al-milk) Compiled by ‘Abdi Beg (the 16th Century)”

The 7th meeting ：Report (Japanese)(131KB)

  • Date/Time: Sun 31 May 2020 14:00–16:00
  • Venue: Online meeting
  • Language: Japanese
  • 14:00–15:00 All members
    “Discussion on the plan to publish the collection of papers”
    15:00–15:30 Ryoko WATABE (ILCAA Joint Researcher, the University of Tokyo)
    “Report on the plan to create a database of ‘Abdi Beg’s Sarih al-Milk”
    15:30–16:00 All members
    “General discussion on the joint research program of the final year”

Workshop “Revisiting Ardabīl: Ṭarīqa, saint’s mausoleum and city in pre-modern Iran”/The 6th meeting ：Report 1(Japanese)(252KB)，Report 2(Japanese)(167KB)

  • Date/Time: Sat 15 Feb 2020 13:00–18:00, Sun 16 Feb 2020 11:00–16:30
  • Venue: Room 303, ILCAA (15 Feb), Room 301, ILCAA (16 Feb)
  • Language: Japanese
  • 15 Feb [open]
    Workshop “Revisiting Ardabīl: Ṭarīqa, saint’s mausoleum and city in pre-modern Iran”
  • 13:30–13:10 Ryoko WATABE (ILCAA Joint Researcher, the University of Tokyo)
    “Opening remarks”
    13:10–13:50 Yoichi YAJIMA (ILCAA Joint Researcher, Nara Women’s University)
    “The Safavid order as seen in the newly discovered Tārīkh-i Ḥayātī”
    13:50–14:30 Masaki SUGIYAMA (ILCAA Joint Researcher, Kyoto University of Foreign Studies)
    “Reconsideration of “Timūr’s waqf document”
    14:50–15:30 Tomoko MORIKAWA (ILCAA Joint Researcher, the University of Tokyo)
    “The holy city of Ardabīl and the Safavids”
    15:30–16:10 Ryuichi SUGIYAMA (ILCAA Joint Researcher, Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia, the University of Tokyo)
    “The mausoleum of Emām Reżā during the Qajar period”
    16:30–16:45 Ayako NINOMIYA (ILCAA Joint Researcher, Aoyama Gakuin University)
    Comment
    16:45–18:00 All members
    General discussion
  • 16 Feb [not open to the public]
    The 6th meeting
  • 11:00–12:00 All members
    “Planning for the final year of the project”
    13:00–15:30 Akihiko YAMAGUCHI (University of the Sacred Heart)
    “Geographical distribution of the waqf properties belonging to the Ardabil shrine: An analysis of an Ottoman waqf register (TT896)”
    Comment: Kumiko SAITO (ILCAA Joint Researcher, Kyushu University)
    15:30–16:30 All members
    General discussion

The 5th meeting ：Report (Japanese)(1MB)

  • Date/Time: Sat 5 Oct 2019 13:30–18:00, Sun 6 Oct 2019 11:00–16:00
  • Venue: Room 301, ILCAA
  • Language: Japanese,
  • 5 Oct
  • 13:30–13:45 Ryoko WATABE (ILCAA Joint Researcher, the University of Tokyo)
    “Opening remarks”
    13:45–15:45 Naofumi ABE (ILCAA Joint Researcher, Ochanomizu University)
    “From documentary evidence to administrative use: Transmutation of the Sarih al-melk in the 19th century”
    16:00–18:00 Ryoko WATABE (ILCAA Joint Researcher, the University of Tokyo)
    “A Preliminary study on marginal notes in two manuscripts of Abdi Beg's Sarih al-Milk from the 17th century and the early 18th century”
  • 6 Oct
  • 11:00–13:00 Sanae TAKAGI (ILCAA Joint Researcher, Waseda University)
    “Reconsideration of the History of Barur Village in Ardabil”
    14:00–15:00 All members
    “Report on the Ongoing progress of Digitization of ‘Abdi Beg’s Sarih al-Milk”
    14:00–15:00 All members
    “General discussion” (Commentator: Ayako NINOMIYA (Aoyama Gakuin University))
    15:00–16:00 All members
    “Progress report on digitization of ‘Abdi Beg’s Sarih al-Milk and the planning meeting of the sixth meeting”

The 4th meeting ：Report (Japanese)(964KB)

  • Date/Time: Sat 29 Jun 2019 13:30–18:00, Sun 30 Jun 2019 11:00–16:00
  • Venue: Room 301, ILCAA
  • 29 Jun
  • Ryoko WATABE (ILCAA Joint Researcher, The University of Tokyo)
    “Introduction of the Second Year of the Research Project”
    Masaki SUGIYAMA (ILCAA Joint Researcher, Kyoto University of Foreign Studies)
    “Preliminary Considerations of Waqfnama-yi Timuri”
    All members
    Discussion
  • 30 Jun
  • Ryoko WATABE (ILCAA Joint Researcher, The University of Tokyo)
    “Shaykh Safi’s “Waqfiya” in the Section of Alghir Village (Ardabil) in 'Abdi Beg’s Sarih al-Milk: Revisiting Historical Sources on Formation of Financial Foundation of the Early Safavid Order”
    Ryoko WATABE (ILCAA Joint Researcher, The University of Tokyo)
    “Report on the Ongoing progress of Digitization of ‘Abdi Beg’s Sarih al-Milk”
    All members
    “Planning for the Second Year of the Project”

The 3rd meeting ：Report_9Feb (Japanese)(1191KB) ：Report_10Feb (Japanese)(932KB)

  • Date/Time: Sat 9 Feb 2019 13:30–18:00, Sun 10 Feb 2019 11:00–16:30
  • Venue: Multimedia conference room 304 (9 Feb), Seminar room 301 (10 Feb)
  • 9 Feb
    “The fiscal administration of holy shrines in Islamic societies and its historical sources: Sarih al-Milks, the collections of estate records from the Shrine of Shaykh Safi, the Safavid dynastic shrine in Iran” [open]
  • Ryoko WATABE (ILCAA Joint Researcher, the University of Tokyo)
    “Re-thinking the Importance of Sarih al-Milks from the Shrine of Shaykh Safi, the Safavid ancestor, for historical studies of Islamic societies: Focusing on two manuscripts of ‘Abdi Beg’s Sarih al-Milk copied in the 17th century and the early 18th century”
    Yukako GOTO (ILCAA Joint Researcher, Kwansei Gakuin University)
    “A poet bureaucrat of the early Safavid period, ‘Abdi Beg and his works”
    Hiroshi ONO (ILCAA Joint Researcher, Kyoto Tachibana University)
    “On some edicts concerning the Safavid family”
    Sanae TAKAGI (ILCAA Joint Researcher, Waseda University)
    “History of a village in Ardabil in the 14th century: Comparison of Sarih al-Milk and the relevant documents”
    Naofumi ABE (ILCAA Joint Researcher, Ochanomizu University)
    “The 19th century version of the Sarih al-Milk”
    Yoichi Takamatsu (ILCAA)
    Comments
    All memebers
    General Discussion
  • 10 Feb
    “Digitization project of ‘Abdi Beg’s Sarih al-Milk” [Not open to the public]
  • Ryoko WATABE (ILCAA Joint Researcher, the University of Tokyo)
    “Report on some problems of digitization project of ‘Abdi Beg’s Sarih al-Milk”
    All memebers
    Comments by research members & discussion
    “Study and methodological discussion on two Safavid Sarih al-Milks by ‘Abdi Beg and Sipahani”
    Meeting: Planning for the second year of the project

The 2nd meeting ：Report (Japanese)(1.0MB)

  • Date/Time: 2018/11/10 (Sat) 13:30–18:00，2018/11/11(Sun) 11:00–16:30
  • Venue: Small Conference Room 302
  • 10 Nov
    “Digitization and research of ‘Abdi Beg’s Sarih al-Milk, the record of Safavid shrine’s endowments from the 16th century”
  • Ryoko WATABE (ILCAA Joint Researcher, The University of Tokyo)
    “Codicological research on three copies of 'Abdi Beg’s Sarih al-Milk: Copying and management of the record of Safavid shrine’s endowments in the 16th and 17th centuries”
    Report from research members
    “Digitization of 'Abdi Beg’s Sarih al-Milk”
    All members
    Discussion “Research method of the data of 'Abdi Beg’s Sarih al-Milk”
  • 11 Nov
    “The record of endowments and Islamic legal documents”
  • Yoichi YAJIMA (ILCAA Joint Researcher, Nara Women’s University)
    “Formats of Islamic legal documents copied in Sarih al-Milk”
    Comments by research members & discussion
    All members
    Discussion: “Research on Sarih al-Milk as a collection of Islamic legal documents”
    All members
    Planning for the 3rd meeting

The 1st meeting ：Report (Japanese)(261KB)

  • Date/Time: Sat 2 Jun 2018 13:30–18:00, Sun 3 Jun 2018 11:00–16:30
  • Venue: Room 304, ILCAA
  • 2 Jun
  • Ryoko WATABE (ILCAA Joint Researcher, The University of Tokyo)
    “Two Sarih al-Milks, the collections of estate records of the Safavid shrine: Their history, archival functions and previous studies” “Research plan of this joint research project”
    Naofumi ABE (ILCAA Joint Researcher, Ochanomizu University), Nobuaki KONDO (ILCAA)
    “Comments: Possibilites of Sarih al-Milks as sources for historial and archival studies”
    All members
    General discussion
  • 3 Jun, Workshop on manuscript studies of Sarih al-Milks
  • All members
    General analysis of manuscripts of Sarih al-Milks
    All members
    Analysis and methodological discussion of manuscripts of‘Abdi Beg’s Sarih al-Milk

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