فصلنامه گنجینه اسناد
پیاپی 88 (زمستان 1391)

The purpose of this research is to study one of the financial terms used in the Safavid Era based on the content of records kept in the Documents Center of Astan Quds Razavi and to assess the information value of these records. So far، there has not been any independent research on allowance (Vazifeh) in the Safavid Era. This research aims to particularly study the paying of allowance to children and the elderly using the information of records in Astan Quds which are about financial payments to different people. Methodology/Approach: This research is based on information in records. Various aspects of the importance of records are shown by explaining their features. Library resources are also used to confirm or reject the information in records. Findings/ The findings of this research show that previously only the general aspects of allowances were discussed and details such as the reasons for paying allowances، how they were paid and their amount was not studied. This study makes us familiar with records about a specific type of allowance and new viewpoints about financial terms of the Safavid Era. It also paves the way for further research in this field.

The aim of this research is to introduce an official decree issued in the era of the ruling of Shah Safi and to study its content and historical background. Methodology/Approach: This research has a historical approach and uses descriptive-analytic method. An effort has been made to answer the main question of the research based on official writings and historical research. Findings/ Findings show that after the death of Shah Abbas I، the policy of supporting Georgian slaves against Qezelbash Turks was repudiated and the Safavid society faced new challenges considering the disputes between the Turk rulers and Georgian slaves. Therefore Shah Safi، as the new King، took a symbolic action in order to prevent the escalation of such disputes. In a peaceful manner and in the form of a governmental decree، Shah Safi tried to put an end to the enmities by creating family ties between two powerful political and military individuals، Zeinal Khan Shamlu as the Safavid regent and generalissimo، and Safi Gholi Khan Gorji as the Beylerbey of Baghdad and Iraq. However، Shah Safi’s decree for killing Zeinal Khan، which was issued a short time later due to the negligence of Zeinal Khan in sending Qizilbash forces to the west of Iran in order to support Safi Gholi Khan against the siege of Baghdad by the Ottoman Turks، shows that the earlier decree of the Shah for resolving the disputes was not effective. Perhaps this incident led Shah Safi to turn to violence and brutality as his ruling method.

The aim of conducting this research is to find out why and how the names of cities in Iran were changed as a “governmental planning” in the era of the first Pahlavi (Reza Shah). Methodology/Approach: This study has been compiled based on descriptive–scientific method and on the basis of governmental records، memories of politicians، journals and newspapers، and library resources. Findings/ Following the establishment of security in Iran، the government was responsible for modernization and reform in the country. Cities، as the focus point of modernism and a unified language، were seen as the most important key to unifying the nation. Aiming to confront anything that was non-Iranian، the names of streets، stores، the last name of individuals، names of tribes and even the name of the country were changed in order to bring about a change for the nation. Eradicating the bad memories of Iranian defeats - which had resulted in the imposition of the language and names of Turks، Mongols، and Arabs - topped the list of the government’s plans and the Geography Commission in the Language Academy became responsible for this task. More than 107 geographic names were coined and most of the changes happened in the Turk and Kurd regions. After Reza Shah the names changed back to their original form.

The main thesis of this study is that records cannot be always considered as the exclusive source for understanding historical facts. As for the causes of conflict between Sultan Ya’qub Aq-Quyunlu and Heydar Safavi، historical records do not clarify the exact cause of this tension even after years of peace and friendship between the Aq-Quyunlus and the Safavids. Methodology/Approach: In this study a historical analytical method based on records and library resources was used to make this determination. Findings/ According to our comprehensive evaluation، in his letter to Sultan Bayezid Osmani، Sultan Ya’qub Aq-Quyunlu declared religious heresy as the source of dispute between Aq-Quyunlus and Safavids. However، evaluating and summarizing historical literature indicates that the dissensions may have been caused by considerations other than religious conflicts، including economic and security-military issues.

Aiming to investigate how the figures on seals from the Qajar Era were influenced by coins and medallions، this research analyzes and compares such figures. In the seals under investigation، the head covers are the caps and crowns of Qajar Kings which can also be observed in coins of that era. A second issue studied in this research is whether there is a relationship between the animal figures on the seals and the profession of the seal owner. Methodology/Approach: This research uses a historical، descriptive and comparative approach، and is based on library and field resources. Findings/ During the Islamic era، human figures - which were previously quite common - were removed from seals and coins. The minting of coins with the figure of Fath Ali Shah and the prevalence of pictorial coins led to the emergence of seals with human profiles. Comparing the figures on seals with those of coins and considering the collection of seals with human figures from records of Qajar army officers – being aware of their position and also having information about the caps and clothes of soldiers in the Qajar Era – the design of the soldiers’ caps that resemble the crowns of the kings cannot be attributed to the professions of the owners of the seals. In conclusion، while the secondary hypothesis regarding the relation between animal figures on the seals and the owner’s profession cannot be endorsed، the main hypothesis signifying that the figures of seals were influenced by coins and medallions of the Qajar Era is confirmed. The comparative study of the figures indicated that while some of the seals were directly influenced by one coin or medallion، others were affected by several coins. The prevalence of coins with king’s profiles was an incentive for people to engrave figures similar to those of kings on their own seals.

The aim of this research is to study the formation of Iran’s National Records Council and its performance during the years 1970-2002. Methodology/Approach: This research is based on the information and statistics found in records and the events of Iran and the National Archives Organization. Findings/ Findings of this research show that، taking into consideration the existing problems and obstacles; the National Records Council has had a successful performance with regard to its legal status.

The aim of this paper is to explain the application metadata in the archival context، the various types of archival metadata standards based on their functionality، and the approaches for using metadata in this context. Methodology/Approach: The research is a conceptual study and uses an analytical approach to pursue its aim. In this regard، the inherent features of the archival content objects، the necessity of using metadata for organizing and describing archival content objects، and modern and previous approaches are analyzed. Findings/ The archival context، like other information contexts، has some special inherent features such as the lack of a primary source of information، and the intra-context and extra-context relationships between archive content objects and objects from other contexts which affect their description and organization. Hereupon، it is vital to describe and organize archival content objects and to establish intra-context and extra-context relationships (with other cultural-context objects) adapting their inherent features. In the archival context، descriptive، administrative، structural، technical، conservational and legal factors in creating metadata are considered. Finally، the paper deals with new approaches for using metadata in the archival context، and the convergence of the archival metadata standards with other cultural contexts such as the library context.