The Princeton manuscript, no. 1418 (fāʾ)—which we examined only recently, after the book had been printed—comprises 100 folios, with approximately 17 lines per page. It is the oldest copy we have examined. It was copied during the first ten days of Muharram, 705 AH, in the hand of Yūsuf ibn Rasūl ibn Amīr Alī al-Turkumānī, as stated at its end. The title was written on the verso: “Governance according to the Sharia for the Welfare of the Ruler and His Subjects,” followed by the author’s name; however, the cataloguing stamp obscures part of both the title and the author’s name. At its end, on the left-hand side, is the following collation statement referring to the exemplar: “It was collated against its exemplar from beginning to end and proved sound, though the exemplar has ... Written by Abū Bakr ibn Qāsim.” On the right-hand side is a reading certificate dated 811 AH. The cover and the end of the manuscript also bear several ownership inscriptions, some of which have been struck through.

The Azhar manuscript (zāy) is a deluxe royal-library copy comprising (89 folios), with (17) lines per page and approximately ten words per line. The following was written within a rectangular frame on its gilded, ornamented cover: “Governance according to the Sharia for the Welfare of the Ruler and His Subjects.” Beneath it, within a circular frame, is written: “For the august court of our master, the Khan, al-Malik al-Tāhir Muhammad Abū Saīd—may Allah strengthen his supporters.” Beneath that, within a rectangular frame, is written: “Authored by the Shaykh and Imam Taqī al-Dīn ibn Abd al-Salām ibn Taymiyya—may Allah have mercy on him.” On the left-hand side of the title page is a lengthy endowment deed whose beginning is illegible, though it is dated the fifth of the blessed month of Shawwāl, 892 AH. At the top of the following folio, another endowment deed was written, stating: “The honored lord and exalted refuge, commander of the banner Hasan Beg Qardaghlī, endowed it, dedicated it in perpetuity, and gave it in charity for the sake of Allah Almighty, as a valid endowment that shall neither be sold, given away, nor withheld. Whoever alters it after having heard it