Ottoman scribal manual with chancery and legal formularies

[Ottoman chancery manual]. Tahrirat (scribal manual with model documents and legal deeds).

€ 3.500,00

A rare Ottoman chancery manual (tahrirat), exemplifying the education of scribes in the mid-19th century. Among the model documents contained are contracts, poems, deeds of sale, manumission records (notably for a slave of African origin), petitions, confrontation deeds, horoscopic notes, and sample decrees.

The manuscript combines Arabic legal terminology with Ottoman Turkish syntax and Persian calendrical expressions, reflecting the multilingual chancery culture of the Ottoman Empire. The inclusion of manumission forms sheds light on the persistence of slavery and its regulation within Ottoman legal practice. Numerous leaves were left blank for practice and copying exercises by students.

The manuscript preserves evidence of ownership and a dedication: an note by Sheikh Mustafa Efendi Khudayri inscribes it to the soul of Baba Ja far Efendi in 1272 AH (1855/56 CE).