Parthian

Silver coins of Alexander of Macedonia, until the arrival of Parthians in the 1st century BC, have been put in WDXRF in order to determin Ag, Cu, Pb and Au as major and trace elements for fineness, debasement and refinement of silver in ancient Persia. Seleucid kingdom from 4th to 1st century BC was succeeded by several dynasties and kings. But the chemical composition of their silver coins and their fineness shows there was no changes in technology and economic policy.

Hundreds of stray coins are being donated every year to different Iranian museums but it is difficult to establish their authenticities due to lack of knowledge about places of their findings. Part of these stray metallic pieces is related to Parthians. Due to their lengthy rule, of about five centuries, Parthian coins form important part of numismatic collection at the museums. Authors have taken Reza Abbasi Museum at Tehran as case study to review the authenticity of those coins. A comparison between statistical data and available historical records give a vivid idea about the genuineness and forgery of these metallic pieces. As such, this article attempts to show the genuineness of some of the coins by taking into account statistical data from early Parthian kings and their comparison with the available historical documents.

The first season of survey at Qeshm, carried out during the winter of 2006, resulted in the identification of nine sites from the Parthian and Sasanian periods. The surface pottery from these sites suggests their trade and cultural relations with contemporary sites in the southern Persian Gulf and other areas. For instance, the Parthian and Sasanian glazed types in Qeshm Island are closely related materials found from Khuzestan as well as northern and southern coasts of the Persian Gulf, including ed-Dur, Suhar, Kush, Failaka and Qalat Bahrain. Parthian painted ware reveals close similarities to monochrome and bichrome painted pottery of southeastern Iran, Oman coasts and the southern Persian Gulf, specifically ed-Dur, Suhar, Kush and Tel-i-Abrak. The so-called Indian Red Polished Ware is the other diagnostic type widespread in the northern and southern coasts of the Persian Gulf from the middle Parthian up to the early Islamic period. The material was being widely produced in the Indian region (Gujarat) and Indus, and exported to different places around the Persian Gulf. The Coarse Black Ware (ceramic noir epaise) with decorative raised bands recorded in Qeshm compares with coarse-black material from the southern Persian Gulf, also occurring at sites such as ed-Dur and Abu Dhabi Islands. Plain, common Parthian and Sasanian pottery from Qeshm shows parallels with known materials of this period in the northern and southern Persian Gulf.

From the middle of the first millennium BC, there witnessed a gradual bilateral relation between Iranians and Greeks. These people to people attachments also resulted in interactive influences between these two cultures and arts. Qualitative and quantitative investigation on these interactions is a basic issue in identifying both cultures. The current paper, among all miscellaneous influences of Hellenism on the culture and the art of the Parthian realm, attempts to analyze only the influences of basics and rules of the Greek aestheticism on the Parthian sculpture and come to a historical conclusion based on an inductive method.

From the middle of the first millennium BC, there witnessed a gradual bilateral relation between Iranians and Greeks. These people to people attachments also resulted in interactive influences between these two cultures and arts. Qualitative and quantitative investigation on these interactions is a basic issue in identifying both cultures. The current paper, among all miscellaneous influences of Hellenism on the culture and the art of the Parthian realm, attempts to analyze only the influences of basics and rules of the Greek aestheticism on the Parthian sculpture and come to a historical conclusion based on an inductive method. .

Rudbar, located in the south of Gilan, on both sides of the Sefid-rud River, is a mountainous and one of the ancient regions dating back to at least 200,000 years ago. The artifacts obtained from Darband- Rashi Cave, Marlik Hill, Caluraz, Halimehjan, etc. indicate the existence of ancient civilizations in this region, each of which has its own cultural characteristics. Shemam is one of the old villages with a rich cultural history in the highlands of South Rostamabad. The first archeological excavations in this village were carried out under the supervision of Shahidzadeh in 1970 and a big cemetery belonging to the Parthian period was discovered with slum graves. During the earthquake of 1989, this village was severely damaged and the people living there moved to the lower part and Rostamabad. In recent years, people have resumed building houses on their ancestral estates. During these constructions and the statue, which is accompanied by the supervision of cultural heritage experts of Gilan province, traces of a hand-made structure appeared. Therefore, the construction work was stopped and after issuing a permit from the Cultural Heritage Research Institute of the country, number 4002867, in summer 2021, speculation was made in this area under the supervision of Solmaz Raof. This structure is most likely a grain storage pit dug in the heart of the limestone bed. The wall inside the structure is covered with mud and the floor is covered with beaten mud. Other cultural data obtained from this excavation include pottery pieces. According to comparative study and comparison, most of these pieces are related to the Parthian period.

The Liār-Sang-Bon cemetery is located in Amlash City in Gilan province. During the field research, more than 100  pit graves, catacombs, and jar burials were identified at the cemetery. Some of these graves contained various types of ornaments. The questions which are raised in the current research are as follows: Considering the comparison of the ornaments of the Liār-Sang-Bon cemetery with similar sites, what time frame can be suggested for these data? Based on the discovered decorations, what exchanges did this area have with the surrounding areas? What is the relationship between the use of jewellery and the gender of the deceased in the tombs of Liār-Sang-Bon? It is suggested that the typology and classification of cultural finds obtained from this site and their comparison with other Iranian cultural sites, especially from the first century BC to the fourth century AD, can help us in dating the graves. 

Coins are engraved metals like books full of historical, cultural, religious, and mythological information. They are also like written documents that can be analyzed through their motifs through symbolism, and they are the most important guide for researchers in recognizing and familiarizing themselves with religious beliefs in different historical periods. Therefore, studying the images and symbols on them opens a window to ancient periods for researchers. Due to its long reign, the Parthian is one of ancient Iran's most important critical periods. They minted many coins with various motifs. One of the symbols used is the pattern of a palm branch, which from the time of Phraates II can be seen as the reverse of the drama and tetradrachm coins of the Seleucid Mint. This study has investigated the symbol of palm branch in coins of Phraates II in the Seleucid Mint to realize political goals. These coins are kept in Reza Abbasi Museum in Tehran (Iran) and were purchased through private collectors. In this study, 250 Parthian coins were examined, among which 60 coins had palm motifs. The palm branch is considered a mythological plant common between Mesopotamia, and Greek. Parthian king, the branch palms were used as symbols for victory, under the cultural influence of the Seleucid and Mesopotamia.

An archaeological survey was conducted in 2004-2005 in the middle of Mianab Shushtar in Khuzestan, followed by an excavation there in 2005-2006, which led to the discovery of a Sasanian palace as well as valuable stuccoes at two other locations, namely the JilJilak Tepe and behind a Gas Station on the Shushtar-Ahwaz Road. In this article, the discovered stuccoes have been examined, which indicates that the Jiljilak stuccoes can be divided into three categories based on their features and application: a) geometric patterns, b) plant patterns, and c) animal patterns. Comparing these stuccoes with those found elsewhere such as Kuh-e Khwaja, Bīshāpūr, and Bandian in Dargaz shows that they can be attributed to the Parthian-Sasanian period.