Persica Antiqua

Guitty Azarpay was born in Tehran, Iran in 1934. She graduated with a PhD in Art History in 1964 from UC Berkeley.She taught at UC Berkeley until her retirement in the early 2000s. Her research on the ancient Iranian and Transoxiana (Central Asia) art, especially about Urartian Art and Sogdian Painting, is highly commendable, as she wrote two valuable books such as Urartian Art & Artifacts (1968) and Sogdian Painting: The Pictorial Epic in Oriental Art (1981). The publication of the book of Sogdian Painting introduced many art scholars to Sogdian art. Azarpay played a valuable role in introducing Sogdian paintings and Sogdian art. She was the recipient of the Book of the Year Award from the University of California Press for Sogdian Painting, and received the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement award.About 20 years ago, Azarpi donated her personal library to Golestan Palace in Tehran.Guitty Azarpay passed away in early April 2024.

Hezar Masjed and Shahneshin mountain ranges can be considered amongst the easternmost heights of Iran in Khorasan Razavi Province, which stretch in the northwest-southeast direction and have created a natural corridor leading to the Harirud River banks. This feature, along with favorable living conditions, has attracted human communities and habitats for a long time. The historical site of -Sarab Tepe- is one of these settlements, which is located 30km west of Saleh Abad County and at the northeast of a village of the same name. Abundant and diverse cultural materials on the surface of the site and archaeological reports show the importance of this site in terms of archaeological studies. Therefore, this research is carried out to understand the eras of settlement and its cultural interactions. The results show that this site was home to settlements in the prehistoric era (Early Bronze Age) and the Islamic era (9th to 11th century AD). Sarab Tepe’s findings from the prehistoric era indicate its cultural interactions and connections with other sites of the Early Bronze Age in northeastern Iran. The findings belonging to the Islamic era are also similar to the findings of Neyshabur. The results show the extensive connections of this site with the most important cultural centers of its time.

The ancient site of Chiasi, located in Kuhdasht, Lorestan province, boasts a diverse cultural sequence spanning from prehistoric times to the Islamic era. Initial information about this site was first published in Goff’s archaeological reports in 1971, which highlighted the presence of surface materials belonging to the Chalcolithic Age and the Uruk period. Unfortunately, Tepe Chiasi has suffered significant damage over time, primarily due to natural erosion and, more recently, human activities. As a result, many of its cultural contexts have been lost irretrievably. To prevent further destruction caused by urban development in Kuhdasht, extensive archaeological studies were conducted at the Chiasi site. The research project began with a systematic survey of the site, followed by the excavation with 18 trenches measuring 1.5 × 1.5m to delimit the core zone and suggest the protective buffer zone. The analysis of the collected data revealed a lengthy cultural sequence at the site, ranging from the Neolithic Age to the fourth and fifth centuries AH.

In archaeological finds, seals are generally considered as one of the most important data bearing important economic, political and even artistic information of relevant time periods. Moreover, the iconography of seals plays an informative role to explore the main characteristics of seals or sealing in order to better understand the social, economic or even the administrative contexts of the societies to which they belonged to. Different styles in the different space and times are known in terms of pictography that can help researchers understand the characteristics of a time period better in the absence of sufficient information. The ancient city of Susa with a rich collection of seals related to different historical-cultural periods is one of the most important ancient sites in Iran which have been used as clues to decipher or interpret that can guide researchers in the stylistics and iconology of seals from its neighboring areas. The cylindrical seal No. 1841 has been registered in the catalogue of the National Museum of Iran with an “unknown” location. The similarity of the image engraved on this seal to those found on seals obtained from Susa was the reason the author came up with this article in order to introducethe seal and specify iconography and stylistics and finally its date and origin with a comparative study. The present study tries to answer the research questions: “What style and time period can be considered for the iconography of the cylindrical seal in the National Museum?” and “Is it possible to prove that it belongs to the city of Susa according to the iconography of the image of the relevant seal?” Studies that have been conducted with the comparative method and with the approach of the image analysis, the IVA style of Susa is considered for it leading to the conclusion that this seal probably belonged to Susa itself.

Considering special geographical location of Dargaz Plain in Razavi Khorasan province, identifying the cultural evolution there during the Parthian period can answer many questions about this relatively unknown historical era of Iran. Besides, it can help us better understand the origin of the Parthian culture in Northeast Iran. This research was carried out in the form of a reconsideration project during the field studies of Dargaz Plain. In this regard, Dargaz Plain was surveyed during one season, and as a result, 84 sites belonging to the Parthian period were identified. The main purpose of the research was to study the distribution patterns of Parthian settlements and their spatial relations with each other based on environmental variables. The most important environmental indicators in explaining the settlement patterns were analyzed via attributes such as altitude, water resources, slope, communication routes, vegetation, and land use, as well as the characteristics of the sites, including size and chronology using the geographic information system (GIS) and the cluster analysis method. The results indicate that during the Parthian period, the area witnessed an increasing growth in the nomadic population compared to permanent settlements, and in general three settlement patterns were identified: small and large villages, an urban center, and nomadic and seasonal settlements.

Rome and Persia in Late Antiquity: Neighbors and Rivals is more than just a history of wars; it opens new windows and challenges some of the most common views regarding Roman-Persian relations. By emphasizing Iranian sources, Beate Dignas and Engelbert Winter avoid reconstructing historical events from a Roman point of view and instead present a balanced outlook free of common anti-oriental prejudices. Their work covers a wide range of topics and explains how the Romans and Persians despite many wars attempted to secure their national interests via channels of negotiations and complex diplomacy. The Roman-Persian rivalry seems “modern” in many respects and this character of their relation is nicely demonstrated in this book.