Asās al-quz̤āt

Asās al-Quz̤āt (The basis for judges) is a lithographic book on Islamic jurisprudence, published in the late 19th century by the royal publishing house in Kabul. It was intended as a source for judges charged with applying the law on the basis of Islamic jurisprudence. The fine quality of the book and the binding reflect the importance given to law books in Afghanistan and other Islamic countries. Lithographic printing was invented in Europe in the late 18th century and spread widely on the Indian subcontinent from the early 19th century onward, its popularity stemming from the relative ease with which it could be used to reproduce different scripts not based on the Latin alphabet. By the 1860s, lithographic printing had spread to Afghanistan, including Kabul, Kandahar, and Herat. World Digital Library.