A letter, probably from Khadijah Sultan Khanum, to her child, telling her/him that she misses her/him and passes her days thinking about her/him and her/his letters, informs her/him that everybody is well, and conveys Mirza Mahmud Khan's greetings. At the end, she complains that her husband does not write to her.
The writer shares some news about the purchase of a slave (Khvajah) for the crown prince from Somalia for two thousand tumans and mentions that Aqa brought four Kaniz (female slaves) for Khalah Jan, Mahmud Khan, Mademoiselle, and the writer. Three of them are Baluchis and one is Bambasi. Aqa also brought a male slave as a souvenir for the writer; his name is Qanbar. S/he then describes three things that s/he wanted during the three years that Aqa was governing the ports and has them all now: a good gun, a mare called ‘Abid, and now Qanbar. S/he then describes the mares and the horses that...
The author sends her/his greetings and news of the household.
Riza Quli Khan Nizam al-Saltanah writes to his son, Mahmud Khan Nizam Mafi and discusses sending him his allowance and the rumor that Farmanfarma wants Zahra Sultan for his son, ‘Abbas Mirza.
Muhammad Taqi Nizam Mafi writes to his sister, Zahra Sultan ‘Izzat al-Saltanah, mentioning how happy he is that she has been inoculated against small pox. He discusses the cold weather and asks ‘Izzat al-Saltanah to tell him about Mahmud Khan and Ma‘sumah Khanum's education.
Pictured, from the left, are: Huma Farmanfarma’iyan, Mahmud Khan Nizam Mafi, and Taj al-Muluk Farmanfarma’iyan. Huma and Taj al-Muluk were the daughters of Zahra Sultan ‘Izzat al-Saltanah and ‘Abbas Mirza Salar Lashkar. Mahmud Khan was Zahra Sultan's brother.
Muhammad ‘Ali Nizam Mafi (Salar Mu‘azzam) writes to his sister, Zahra Sultan ‘Izzat al-Saltanah, mentioning his travel to Finland and moving as the reasons for his delayed letters. He discusses Muhammad Taqi Khan's expected arrival, getting a yogurt culture from the Iranian Embassy to make yogurt at home during the summer, and says he has received the cookbook. He then gives some advice regarding his sister's study of French and playing the piano, telling her that she needs to practice piano every day and read more books to improve her French.
The writer addresses Nizam al-Saltanah's concern about the illness of Mirza Mahmud Khan and his conviction that the writer had not asked for a doctor and not written to him. S/he explains the steps taken for Mahmud Khan's treatment, the people who have seen him, and that s/he has followed the andaruni's advice in detail; the reason for not writing all the details was to avoid causing Nizam al-Saltanah to worry. The author also talks about the education of the children, noting that Mirza Taqi Khan has stopped taking French lessons for now, but that the andarun has emphasized that Khanum...
‘Izzat al-Saltanah gives a report of their travel: first, on the way from Tehran to Qum, Mahmud Khan was thrown from the carriage, but only sustained minor injuries on his hands, for which Khanum [their mother, Khadijah Sultan] sacrificed a few sheep. They stayed for one night and made pilgrimages to the shrine. The road from Qum to Burujird was bumpy. Near ʻIraq-i ʻAjam (Arak), the servants' carriage was overturned but nobody was injured. She then describes who accompanied them, how they were welcomed in ʻIraq-i ʻAjam (Arak), the places they visited, and that they stayed in houses provided...
‘Izzat al-Saltanah writes about her travel: first on the way from Tehran to Qum, Mahmud Khan was thrown out of the carriage, but only had minor injuries on his hands, thus Khanum [their mother, Khadijah Sultan] sacrificed a few sheep. They stayed for one night and made pilgrimages to the shrine. The road from Qum to Burujird was bumpy. Near ʻIraq-i ʻAjam (Arak), the carriage of the servants was overturned, but nobody was injured. She then describes who accompanied them, how they were welcomed in ʻIraq-i ʻAjam (Arak), the places they visited, and notes that they stayed in houses provided by...
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