art of sasanian empire
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Art of the Sasanian EmpireAuthor(s): Prudence Oliver HarperSource: Archaeology, Vol. 31, No. 1 (January/February 1978), pp. 48-52Published by: Archaeological Institute of AmericaStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/41726857Accessed: 01-05-2015 18:02 UTC
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7/23/2019 Art of Sasanian Empire
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ARCHAEOLOGY
NEWS
Art
of the
Sasanian
Empire
Stucco
laque
ith
ram romish
n
outhern
ran,
ating
o he ifth
entury
after
hrist.
eight,
3 entimeters.ield
useumf
Natural
istory,
hicago.
All
hotographs,
ourtesy
f
Asia
ouse
allery.
The
election
f
asanian
works
f
art
tAsiaHouse
Gallery,
ew ork
(January
2-March
2,
1978)
rovides
comprehensive
iew f n
mportant
period
n
he
history
f
Near astern
culturend
ociety.
he
kings
f
he
Sasanian
ynasty
a.D.
226-651)
maintained
powerful
entralontrol
n
the
Near
ast
during
he
inal
enturies
f
Imperial
oman
ule
n
heWest nd t
the ime f he stablishmentf he
Byzantine
mpire.
n
he
ast,
he
Sasanians
onquered
heKushan
kingdom
n
ncient
actria
present-day
Afghanistan)
nd,
t various
eriods,
defendedheirorders
gainst
he
invasionsf heHuns nd
Turks ho ad
moved
estwardnto he entral
sian
steppes.
nterconnections
etweenhese
different
reas nd he
heartlandf
the
asanian
ingdom
Iran
nd
Mesopotamia
existed
t
many
ifferent
levels.
n
imes f
peace,
ctiverade
and
diplomatic
ommunications
ere
frequent.
uring
he
requent
ostilities,
contact as maintainedhroughhe
collectionf
ribute
nd
booty
nd he
transfer
f
arge
arts
f he
opulation
from
ne
region
o nother.
The
xhibition,
rganizedy
Asia
House
Gallery
ith
he ssistancef
Prudenceliver
arper,
ncludes
Sasanian
orksf rt n
oan rom
ajor
museums
nd
private
ollections
n
he
United
tates,
urope
nd ran. he
show
will
ravel
o he
DallasMuseumf
FineArts
April
0-May
1,
1978)
nd he
Cleveland
useum
f
Art
July-August
13,
1978).
ome
f
he
ieces
refrom
archaeological
xcavationsonducted
earlier
n
his
entury
t
he ites
f
Kish
in raq,ndBishapur,usaandChai
Tarkhan-Eshqabad
n
ran.
he
material
remainsf
he asanian
ra,
however,
are
till
elatively
ew n
number,
scattered
n
provenience
nduncertainn
chronology.
uturexcavations
ombined
with
he
nalysis
nd
documentationf
the
xisting
onuments
re
necessary
before
comprehensive
istory
f
Sasanian rt anbe reconstructed.
n
he
catalogue
or
heAsiaHouse
xhibition,
written
y
rudence
liver
arper,
ith
contributions
y
CarolManson
ier,
ens
Kröger
ndMartha.
Carter,
he
bjects
aredividednto
roups
ccording
o
material. orks
n
differentedia
illustratearious
spects
f
asanian
culturend ife. he
ilver-gilt
essels,
oftenf
high
rtistic
uality
nd
echnical
excellence,
re
ustifiably
amous.
arge
numberrepreservednd he esigns
are
ufficiently
ariedo
provide
fascinating
nsight
nto
asanian ife nd
society.
nother
ategory,
eals and
gems,
s an
nvaluableource or he
iconography,
ocial tructurend
religiousractices
f
he asanian
period.
extilesremore
roblematical
and,
n
most
nstances,
ack
eliable
documentationo
upport
heirttribution
to
Sasanian
workshops.
essels
made f
glass
reflecthe
tyles
urrent
n
he
eastern
editerraneannd
underscore
the xistencef
ontinuous
ontacts
betweenhat
rea nd
he
asanian
kingdom.
ith
he
xception
f
mosaics,
Sasanian
rchitecturalecoration
consists
argely
f
tucco
gypsum
plaster)
olded
nto
igurai
nd
bstract
designs.
his
material
isintegratesasilyin heNear asternlimatend nly
fragmentary
emains
xist,
ut t s
probable
hat
he
ange
f
motifs
observablen
mall
eal stones as
probably
lso
represented
n
he
olorful
and
laborate
tucco
laques.
In
he
eginning
f
he asanian
period,
uring
he
hirdnd
arly
ourth
centuries,
rtists
xperimented
ith
different
ormsf
magery
erivedrom
foreign
s
well s
ancient ear
astern
sources.
atterns
epresented
n
he
48
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Textile
ragment
howing
ountain
oat
romranr
raq, ating
rom
ixth-eighthentury
fterhrist.
arp,
7.5 entimeters.
Yale
niversity
rt
allery,ift
fMrs.
William
.
Mooreor
he obartnd
dwardmall oore
emorial
ollection.
49
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Panel fmosaic
avement
rom
ishapur,
ran
ating
o he hird
entury
fterhrist
Height,
5 entimeters.
ouvre
useum,
aris
Silver-gilthyton
ating
o he ourth
entury
fterhrist.
eight,
2.7
centimeters.he rthur
.
ackler
ollections.
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Helmet
ecoratedith
ilver,
ating
o
approximately
ifth
entury
fter
hrist.
Height,
4
entimeters.
etropolitan
Museumf
Art,
ogers
und.
Bronze
hrone
leg
f
griffin
dating
o he
seventh-eighth
century
afterhrist.
Height,
57
entimeters.
Metropolitan
Museumf
Art,
Josephulitzer
Bequest.
floor
osaics
xcavated
t
Bishapur,
city
ounded
y
hapur
a.D.
41-272)
in
outhern
ran,
re
learly
elated
o
those
nearthedt
heRoman
ity
f
Antioch-on-the-Orontes
n
yria. hapur
destroyed
his
military
nd dministrative
center
n
he
mid-third
entury
nd
returnedohishomelandithrisoners
whowere
mployed
n
he ecorationf
his
alace
s
well s on
other
rojects.
The
ranian osaicsre
not
recise
copies
f
western
odelsut ather
adaptations
nd
he
mprint
f asanian
workmanship
s
evidentn
heir
orm
nd
style.
Some
arly
asanian
ilveressels n
the xhibition
evealhe nfluencef
ate
Romanrt
while
thersollowocal
traditions.
Sasanian
ilver-gilthyton
ending
n
n animal
ead s
an
ancient
Near astern
ormhat
ad
become,
y
the
eginning
f he
hristian
ra,
well
knownypehroughoutuch f he
ancient
orld.t s
probably
n
accident
of
imehato few
asanian
xamples
have
urvived.t
he nd f
he
ourth
century,
system
f ontrols
overning
the
roduction
f
worksf rt
was
instituted
s
the ulersf
he
new
ynasty
consolidatedheir
ower.
his s
particularly
vident
n
he
oyal
ilver
piate.
he
hunter-king
ecomes
he
standard
otif,
ymbolizing
he
rowess
and
nvincibility
f
he
monarch.
ersons
otherhan
he
king
f
kings
o
onger
appear
n
vessels
made f
precious
metals.
n
therrtistic
edia-
extiles,
bronzes,
lass,
tucco
nd
eals-
there
is an ncreasingepetitionn he se of
certain
otifsnd
pecific
ormulasre
adopted
or
heir
ortrayal.
By
he ifth
nd ixth
enturies,
he
creations
f
asanian
rtisans
ere
familiar
n
he
ands
ordering
n
he
empire,
rom
he
Mediterraneaneacoast
to
Centralsia.
he
mpact
f
his
precise
nd
well-defined
anguage
f
imagery
ecomes
ncreasinglypparent
in
he rt f
he
eighboring
reas.
Patterns
nclosed ithin
rames
decorated
ith
ircularr
pearl-shaped
designs,
antastic
reatures
notably
he
senmurv
composite
eing, art
nimal,
part ird),nimalsndbirdsdorned ith
ribbonsr
eweled
ecklets,
nd
he
oyal
hunter
re
hemeshat
eremitatedn
the
ubsequent
rt f
Byzantium
nd
Central
sia
uring
he
asanian
eriod
as
well s
the
enturies
ollowing
he
collapse
f he
ynasty.
ecause f he
widespread
nfluencef
asanian
rt,
original
orks
re ften
onfused ith
those
modeledn
Sasanian
rototypes.
The dentificationf
Sasanian
bject
and
he
eterminationf
ts
pproximate
date re
dependentpon
careful
consideration
f he ontextn
which
he
subject
ppears,
hemethodf
depicting
detailsnd
he
se of ertain
echniques
of
manufacture.
mitationsf
asanian
works
re
ncluded
n
he
Asia
House
exhibitiono
llustrate
his
oint
nd
o
enable
he
iewer
oobtain
full
icture
of
he
widespread
aturef
asanian rt
and
ulture.
Themost
pectacular
orks
f rt n
the how re uxurytems hich ere
exported
n
ntiquity
o he ast nd
he
West.
hese nclude
ilver-gilt
essels,
gold
nd
ilver
eapons
nd
rmor,
ock
crystal
nd
glass
nd
he
emi-precious
gems
arved
ithhe
mages
f
Sasanian
rinces
nd
kings.
uch
arer
than
he
ynastic
mages
ppearing
n
the
ems
re
depictions
onnected
ith
Zoroastrianism,
he tate
eligion.
ith
the
xception
f
hemonumental
rock-carved
eliefs
n
outhernnd
western
ran,
nlargedhotographs
f
which
re
ncluded
n
he
xhibition,
here
arefew
epresentations
f
oroastrian
divinitieshat anbe dentifiedithny
certainty.
t
s
probable,
owever,
hathe
subjects
hosen or
ortrayal
ad
symbolic
nd,
t
imes,
specific
religiouseaning.
he
eligious
exts
imply
hat
ertain
nimals
nd reatures
were
manifestationsf
oroastrian
divinities,
nd
hat
thers ere
enerally
beneficial.ess
clear s the
ignificance
of
cenes
nwhich
he
mages
re
losely
relatedo hose
epicted
n
Western
rt,
such s
the
Dioscuroi,eracles,
nd he
maenads f
Dionysos.
bviously
hese
representations
ere
meaningful
o
he
Near
asterner,
ut
heir
nterpretation
remains
ypothetical
ince o
contemporary
rittenecords
urviveo
clarify
heir
ignificance.
ome
hemes
probably
eflect
mportant
easonal
festivalsnd
particular
eremonial
occasions.
horse-shaped
essel rom
the
leveland useum
f
Art,
or
example,ppearso elebrateheattainmentf
high
ffice
y
figure
graspingjeweled
ing
ho s
represented
ithin
medallion
nthe
horse's hest.
Towardhe nd
f he
asanian
period,
rtists
evised
ew hemes
such s
events
aken rom
aily
ife.
narrative
lement,
ore
haracteristicf
the rt
f
ndia ndCentral
sia han f
Iran,
as
also ntroducednto
ome
compositions.
n
ilver
essels,
or
example,
here
re
wine-making
cenes
and
laborateuntsn
game arks.
ince
theres no
referenceo
royalty
n
he
representations,
t
s
probable
hat his
classof bject as not ommissionedy
the
king
or
ynastic
urposes,
ut
ather
by
henew
eudal
obility,
hich
as
establishednder
husrau
a.D.
531-579).
nother
rend
n
he atter
art
of
his
eriod
s the
epresentation
f
tales
aken
rom
pic
iterature.
t
s
possible
hat n
nterest
n
his
ype
f
subject
as timulated
y
ncreasing
contacts ith
entral
sia.
Wall
aintings
uncoveredn
he oviet
epublics
f
Uzbekistan
nd
Tadzhikistan
uring
51
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Silver-giltlate
ith
amel-riding
unter
ating
o
he ifthr ixth
entury
afterhrist
iameter,
0.
centimeters.he
uennolollection.
recentxcavationsevealhat he
ulers
andmembers
f
he
wealthy
lasses
n
this egionecoratedheiruildingsith
scenes f vents
romhe
egendary
past.
A
rare asanian
xample
f n
epic
theme
ppears
n
silver-gilt
late
n he
Guennol
ollectionnwhichheres a
representation
f
camel-riding
unter
accompanied
y
female
usician.
n
he
version
f he ersian
ational
pic,
he
Shahnameh
rBook f
Kings,
hich
waswritten
n
he ate enth
nd
arly
eleventh
enturies
y
Ferdowsi,
here
s a
description
f he cene
ppearing
nthe
silver
late.
hehunter
n
he exts said
tobe the asanian
ing
ahram Gur
(a.D.420-438),ndhis emale
companion
s dentifieds Azadeh. n
the
late,
owever,
he rown
orn
y
the
hunteroesnot
esemblehose f
Sasanian
oyalty.
t
s more
ikely
hat his
particular
cene hould e
associated
withn
event
n
he ife f omeheroic
figure
ho xisted
n
he istant
ast
ratherhan
specific
asanian
ing.
The
Asia
House
Gallery
xhibition
represents
he irst
omprehensive
iew
of he rt f he asanian
ynasty
n
recent
ears.
ormsnd
designs
hat
developed
n
he asanian
eriod
eventuallypread eyondhe oundaries
of
he
mpire
o he ar
East nd
Mediaeval
urope.
Within
heNear
East
tself,
he asanian
rawas
ong
rememberedndmotifs
ere
reserved
and ransmittedo
uccessive
generations
n
he rt nd
iterature
of he slamic orld.
Prudence
liver
Harper
Metropolitan
useumf
Art
52
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