Creativity or Adaptation in Qajar-Era Legal Documents: An Analysis of the 1298 AH Waqfnāma of Ḥājj Ṣadr al-Dīn, the Merchant

The place of composition and the place of certification of a legal document are two closely interwoven and significant topics in historical-documentary studies. This paper examines a single-folio qabāla (legal deed) from the late 13th century AH (19th century CE) from this perspective. The document in question is a waqfnāma dated 1298 AH (1881 CE) belonging to a merchant from Shiraz. It was certified by the renowned Shīʿī jurist Ḥājj Shaykh Zayn al-‛Ābidīn Māzandarānī (1227–1309 AH / 1812–1892 CE), who resided in Karbala. This finely penned waqfnāma features a relatively elaborate and literary preamble. The central question of this study is whether such a busy jurist—with responsibilities that included teaching, leading prayers, and attending to numerous followers from Iran, Iraq, India, and beyond—could have found the time to compose such an ornate text. The analysis—based on archival and library sources—indicates that this waqfnāma was most likely copied from an earlier one drafted and certified fifty-five years prior by the Shaykh al-Islām of Shiraz, with only selected legal clauses updated or revised as needed. Thus, the document is not merely derivative—it may represent a form of textual replication. It is likely that similar adapted documents exist.