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Provenance: Ex Adolph Koeppel Collection, guaranteeing elite specialized pedigree for Middle Eastern fiscal history.
Document: A manuscript legal document executed in a Mandate-era Sharia Court in 1936. The Arabic text specifically addresses the administration and legal boundaries of an Islamic charitable endowment (Waqf).
Signatures: The document features multiple striking red fingerprint seals serving as official signatories/witness marks, alongside manuscript signatures and official Sharia Court administrative handstamps.
Stamps (The Philatelic Highlight): The document bears four "Palestine Courts Fees" revenue stamps paying the judicial tariff. Crucially, these are not standard issues; they feature the scarce 40 Mils provisional surcharge struck in red ink. This local surcharge was applied directly over higher base denominations—most visibly on the green 100 Mils and red 50 Mils Court Fees stamps—to meet a specific revised legal tariff.
Historical Significance The year 1936 was a highly volatile period in the British Mandate, marking the outbreak of the Arab Revolt. During this time, the mandatory administration frequently struggled with localized logistical shortages of specific administrative materials. Sharia courts—which retained full jurisdiction over Islamic personal status, inheritance, and Waqf endowments—were occasionally forced to provisionally surcharge existing stocks of high-value Court Fees stamps downward to meet exact, everyday tariff requirements. This document captures that specific administrative friction, preserving these localized provisional surcharges intact on a complete, legally executed Waqf instrument.