In the nineteenth century, Iranian reformers wanted to create an independent, modern state that could stand on its own feet.[read more>>]

Guilds, Merchants and Ulama analyzes the major functions and characteristics of these groups, and discusses how they each coped with the pressures of the world market to which Iran was increasingly exposed and which resulted in the disappearance of jobs reducing Iran’s economic and political independence.[read more>>]

Throughout history, many an ambitious diplomatic initiative has slipped into obscurity, but few have been so thoroughly forgotten as the efforts of a young man named[read more>>]

“This is an important book for those interested in Russian, Central Asian, and Persian studies.” – Choice, January 2008.[read more>>]

Evliya Chelebi’s travelogue is not simply a diplomatic report, but rather a fascinating exploration of the religious, ethnic, artistic, and even culinary peculiarities of the region.[read more>>]

In 1770, Astrakhan, on the left bank of the Volga River close to where it discharges into the Caspian Sea, was Russia’s most important southern port through which all its trade with Iran and the Orient was conducted.[read more>>]

The Heavenly Rose-Garden is a fascinating portrait of the Caucasus at the dawn of the modern era.[read more>>]

Titles and Emoluments in Safavid Iran: A Third Manual of Safavid Administration contains unique and important information on offices, ethnic attitudes and administrative developments in Iran’s Safavid government (1495–1720).[read more>>]