Sassanid Rise & Fall

Sassanid Rise & Fall

Many legends surround the origins of the Sassanid dynasty (226-650 AD) and the role of its eponymous founder in ancient Persia. One tradition relates that Sassan was a prince who married the daughter of the king of Persis and whose son, Papak, the father of Ardeshir I, overthrew his grandfather to claim the throne. According to Iranvisitor website, another tradition states that Sassan was a shepherd working for King Papak who was given the king’s daughter’s hand in marriage after the king had a dream that their son would grow up to rule the world. Still, another has Sassan as a high-ranking Zoroastrian priest in the city of Istakhr near Persepolis. It is, therefore, unclear what relation Ardeshir I (226-241 AD), the first Sassanid king, bore to the founder of the dynasty.

Expansion
On claiming the kingship of Fars after the death of his father, Ardeshir I quickly began to expand his territory by taking over the surrounding provinces like Isfahan, Kerman, Susiana and Mesene in quick succession.
This brought him into conflict with the Parthian suzerain king, Artabanus IV, and war began between the fading Parthians and the invigorated Sassanids. In 224, Artabanus was killed in the fighting and it was only left for Ardeshir to begin taking over the territories of the now-defunct Parthian Empire. Ardeshir moved west, intending to reunify the Persian Empire of the Achaemenids from whom he claimed direct descent. He successfully captured Mesopotamia and made Ctesiphon his winter capital, but his progress was eventually halted by the Romans at the Euphrates River. Like Darius before him, the rule of Ardeshir was occupied with protecting his borders from powerful enemies and putting down the internal strife that had resulted from the fall of the previous monarch.
The son of Ardeshir, Shapur I (241-272 AD), continued his father’s work in battling the Romans. In 244, Shapur signed a very advantageous peace treaty with the usurper Emperor Philip of Syria, but war resumed in 251 and Shapur conquered Armenia, invaded Syria and plundered Antioch.

Dynastic Struggles
The period between the death of Shapur I in 272 and the accession of Shapur II in 310, saw a series of dynastic struggles with the Romans, which culminated in the three sons of Hormizd II (302-309 AD) being respectively murdered, blinded and imprisoned.
The throne was reserved for an unborn child being carried by one of his wives. The child king Shapur II (310-379 AD) was therefore crowned in utero and born king.
Once the young Shapur II was old enough to rule, he began wars that both expanded and strengthened the empire. In the west, the Romans were pacified and Armenia was once again under Persian control. In the east, the Kushans had been defeated and Persian rule extended to the borders of China.

New Order
Further centralization occurred under Khosro I (531-579 AD), also known as Anurshirvan, the Just. Khosro was perhaps the greatest of the Sassanid kings, his rule ushering in the second period of Persian greatness under the Sassanids.
Through systematic taxation, town building, and military and bureaucratic reform, Khosro brought new order to the empire. With the Roman Emperor Justinian, Khosro struck a very profitable deal by which he received a large quantity of gold in return for peace, though he was, it would appear, genuinely in favor of ending the war which he considered to be senseless in any case.
Peace enabled the intellectual life of the empire to flourish and many learned men of different nationalities enjoyed the patronage of the king, who himself had a keen interest in history and philosophy.
By the time Khosro II (591-628 AD), grandson of Khosro I, had ascended the throne, war with the Romans (now Byzantium) had restarted. His army captured Syria and Beit-ul-Moqaddas.
Khosro also went on to campaign successfully in Egypt and these initial successes won him the title of Khosro Parviz (Khosro, the Victorious). It was during this period that the monumental reliefs at Taq-e Bostan were carved on such a confident scale.
However, Khosro II lacked the wisdom of his grandfather and his court was characterized by wastefulness and pomp. Though it is true that Firouzabad and Ctesiphon were magnificent cities and the arts were flourishing as never before, his despotism and indolence had aroused much opposition.
Toward the end of his reign, Byzantium retaliated under the emperor Heraclius and made deep inroads into Persian territory. Khosro II fled from the advancing armies without offering resistance and a subsequent palace revolt led to his imprisonment and murder at the hands of his son and heir Kavadh II.
Kavadh II died within months of ascending the throne after having put his father and 18 brothers to death. The fratricide in the royal family had by then reached such proportions that there were no men left to succeed the throne. This paved the way for two Sassanid princesses, Pouran-Dokht and Azarmi-Dokht, to rule the declining empire.
The last Sassanid king, Yazdegerd III (632-652 AD), was no more than a boy when he came to power and was dominated by his powerful advisers. It was now no longer the Romans who threatened his tightly organized armies. The Arab army pressed Yazdegerd III to flee northeast to what is now Turkmenistan. He was murdered in 652 while on the run.
The victories of Arabs at the decisive battles of Qadisiya and Nahavand in 642 signaled the end of the Sassanid dynasty and the beginning of Islam’s inroad into Persia.

Qajar Dynasty

Qajar Dynasty

Agha Mohammad Khan

The Qajars belonged to a Turkman tribe that held ancestral lands in present-day Azerbaijan, which was formerly part of Iran. In 1779, following the death of Karim Khan Zand, the Zand dynasty ruler of southern Iran, Agha Mohammad Khan, a Qajar leader, set out to reunify Iran.
According to Perspolis website, Agha Mohammad Khan established the Qajar dynasty by defeating numerous rivals and controlling all of Iran.
By 1794, he had eliminated all his rivals, including Lotf ’Ali Khan, the last of the Zand dynasty, and had reasserted Iranian sovereignty over the former Iranian territories in Georgia and the Caucasus. In 1796 he was formally crowned as shah and established his capital at Tehran, a village near the ancient city of Rey (now Shahr-e Rey).
Agha Mohammad was assassinated in 1797 and succeeded by his nephew, Fath Ali Shah.

Fath Ali Shah (1797 to 1834)

Fath Ali Shah (1797 to 1834)
Fath Ali Shah ruled from 1797 to 1834. Under Fath Ali Shah, Iran went to war against Russia, which was expanding from the north into the Caucasian mountains, an area of historical Iranian interest and influence.
Under the terms of the Treaty of Gulistan in 1813, Iran recognized Russia ’s annexation of Georgia and ceded to Russia most of the north Caucasian region. A second war with Russia in the 1820s ended even more disastrously for Iran, which in 1828 was forced to sign the Treaty of Turkmanchai acknowledging Russian sovereignty over the entire area north of the Aras River (territory comprising present-day Armenia and Azerbaijan ).
Fath Ali was succeeded in 1834 by his grandson Mohammad Shah, who fell under the influence of Russia and made two unsuccessful attempts to capture Herat. When Mohammad Shah died in 1848, the succession passed to his son Nassereddin.

Nassereddin Shah (1848-1896)

Nassereddin Shah (1848-1896)
During Nassereddin Shah’s reign, western science, technology, and educational methods were introduced into Iran at the behest of his advisor Mirza Taqi Khan Amir Kabir.
Nassereddin Shah tried to exploit the mutual distrust between Great Britain and Russia to preserve Iran ’s independence, but foreign interference and territorial encroachment increased under his rule. He was not able to prevent Britain and Russia from encroaching into regions of traditional Iranian influence. He took huge foreign loans to finance expensive personal trips to Europe.
In 1856, Britain prevented Iran from reasserting control over Herat, which had been part of Iran in Safavid times but had been under non-Iranian rule since the mid-18th century. Britain supported the city’s incorporation into Afghanistan, a country Britain helped create in order to extend eastward the buffer between its Indian territories and Russia ’s expanding empire. Britain also extended its control to other areas of the Persian Gulf during the 19th century.

Constitutional Revolution
When Nassereddin Shah was assassinated in 1896, the crown passed to his son Mozaffareddin Shah who was a weak and ineffectual ruler.
Royal extravagance and the absence of revenues exacerbated financial problems. The shah spent two large loans from Russia, partly on trips to Europe. Public anger fed on the shah’s propensity for granting concessions to Europeans in return for generous payments to him and his officials. People began to demand curbs on royal authority and the establishment of the rule of law, as their concern over foreign, and especially Russian, influence grew.
The shah’s failure to respond to protests by the religious establishment, the merchants, and other classes led the merchants and clerical leaders in January 1906 to take refuge in mosques in Tehran and outside the capital to avoid any arrest. When the shah reneged on a promise to permit the establishment of a “house of justice“ or consultative assembly, 10,000 people, led by the merchants, took sanctuary in June in the compound of the British legation in Tehran.
In August, the shah was forced to issue a decree for establishing a constitution. In October, an elected assembly convened and drew up a constitution that provided for strict limitations on royal power, an elected parliament or Majlis with wide powers to represent the people, and a government with a Cabinet subject to confirmation by the Majlis.
The shah signed the constitution on December 30, 1906. He died five days later. The Supplementary Fundamental Laws approved in 1907 provided, within limits, for freedom of press, speech, and association, and for security of life and property. The Constitutional Revolution marked the end of the medieval period in Iran.
Mozaffareddin’s son Mohammad Ali Shah (1907-09), with the aid of Russia, attempted to rescind the constitution and abolish the parliamentary government. After several disputes with members of the Majlis, in June 1908 he used his Russian-officered Persian Cossacks Brigade to bomb the Majlis building, arrest many of the deputies, and close down the assembly. Resistance to the shah, however, coalesced in Tabriz, Isfahan, Rasht, and elsewhere. In July 1909, constitutional forces marched from Rasht and Isfahan to Tehran, deposed the shah, and reestablished the constitution. The ex-shah went into exile in Russia.
Ahmad Shah, who succeeded to the throne at age 11, proved to be incompetent and was unable to preserve the integrity of Iran or the fate of his dynasty. The occupation of Iran during World War I (1914-18) by Russian, British, and Ottoman troops was a blow from which Ahmad Shah never effectively recovered.
With a coup d’Žtat in February 1921, Reza Khan (ruled as Reza Shah Pahlavi, 1925-41) grabbed political power. Ahmad Shah was formally deposed by the Majlis (national consultative assembly) in October 1925 while he was in Europe, and that assembly declared the termination of the Qajar rule.

Iranian Head Coverings for All Seasons

Head Coverings for All Seasons

In ancient Iran , a head covering represented the profession, race and social rank of the person. Used for ornamentation or one’s comfort, head coverings or hats include the crown, including closed, open or integrated crowns, which were worn by kings, diadem or Deihim, Basak (the straight cap), Dastar (turban-like cap), Bashlogh (hood), and egg-like felt caps.
Hats also distinguish a social class, tribe or nationality, Cais-soas.com reported.
Early Uses
A head covering had special significance for Iranians in ancient times. Its use dates back to cavemen who used it to protect themselves from the vagaries of weather.
Different types of hat and cap were developed, modified and perfected with the growth of human civilizations to suit geographical and social conditions.
Hat was used as an ornamentation device to beautify the body and satisfy one’s aesthetic cravings and religious beliefs.
The hat was used in special religious rites and ceremonies as a sign of devotion and humility.
The head cover used by the bride is a striking example. Symbolizing modesty and chastity, it is currently used mainly for decorative purposes.
Certain professions also call for a special type of cap, dress or uniform to provide for the worker’s safety and meet the specific needs of a profession.
Ancient Times
The ancient Medians or Persians resorted to simple decorations as symbolic images. A careful examination of such images leads us to divide them into human, plant, animal, abstract images or a mixture of such elements.
The ancient world was a mysterious world of celestial and terrestrial wonders mixed with human fear, hopes and myths.
Ancient images were symbolic in nature and represented authority, rank, religion, ritual, gild, or features such as bravery.

Designs
Hats in ancient times incorporated images and designs that signified specific meanings.
Water Lily (Niloufar): Water lily is considered an eternal and sacred flower, and represents Mehr (the sun) and Mithra (worship). As a result, the flower and the stalk or the simple lily with its petals in a circle or hoop has been used in Iranian fabrics during the Parthian, Sasanid and even Islamic periods.
Image of Sun: The sun (Mehr) enjoyed a special symbolic significance in ancient Iranian religious rites. An example of use of sun is its round disk with rays divided into three directions all of which were placed in a hoop. One most famous symbol was the sun chariot.
The importance of the sun (Mehr) in religious rites was such that many experts consider the crown (and even the wedding ring) as its manifestation.
Serrated (toothed) Towers: Serrated towers were other symbols used in ancient times, and such designs represented ancient temples. An example of serrated tower is shown in the mosaic bas-relief Khozi soldiers’ dress in the Louvre Museum . In these images, one can see quadrangular images. Inside the quadrangle, one can see three serrated towers rising from a mound. These three towers represent Varjavand or a combination of Ahura Mazda (Zoroastrian), Mithra and Anahitian religions.
Geometric shapes included a pyramid or round checkered additions which were either used in the margin or as the background, and also used to adorn ritual hats.
In the decoration of hats in ancient Iran , one does not see human or animal images.

Types of Hats
An examination of images of bas-reliefs in ancient buildings and objects leads us to divide Persian hats into crowns, diadems (Deihims), Basaks, straight caps, Dastars, Bashloghs and egg-like felt caps.


Crown
Crown was a special head cover used by governors. The crown represented special power bestowed to the king from heaven and each part of its ornaments symbolized the beliefs and religions of the time.
A majority of crowns were serrated and the serrations were in the curves and symbolized towers, battlements or perhaps Mehr (the sun). The crown was so respectable that the court would hardly thrust its upkeep to everyone.
The crown was divided into three groups: closed, open and integrated crowns. The closed crown (a crown covered at the top) was composed of a headstall and an arch and its edges and sides were decorated by gold. The closed crowns were either wholly made of metal or non-metal material.
In non-metal crowns, the frame was made of non-metal matter and a metal part was mounted on it. The metal crown was either fabricated by casting or by engraving the metal.
Sivaris was a type of crown used during the Achaemenid period. This was a tall and serrated golden crown decorated by gold leaves and colorful jewels. The Achaemenid crowns were either closed or open crowns and were excessively worn by kings. The king’s crown was taller than other crowns and its walls had symbols of the temples of the time.

Basak
Basak is a circular ring made of flowers and branches or metal ring made of flowers. It might be considered as a special sort of diadem. So far, the real application of Basak has not been discovered, but in the past there was a sort of Basak that looked like a rope from distance. Such Basaks were mostly used by military officers. Many bas-reliefs of soldiers in Persepolis adorn the Basak.
Basak was either made of metal or felt. The non-metal felt Basak was worn during hunting and war to prevent the hair from being disturbed. The Basak was worn by the king, his courtiers, military officers and even ordinary people.

Straight Cap
This was an inverted cone cut at the base and made of felt and scented by gums and other fragrant material. These were either split or simple caps. The simple straight cap was used as replacement for the crown for daily affairs of kings.
The difference between split and simple straight cap was in the shears on the body of the cap. Apparently, the split sheared caps were worn by soldiers. What is particular about this cap is the image of Ahura imprinted on it.
A comparison of the straight caps known as Parsi caps with those worn by the Assyrians shows that the Achaemenid straight cap was a modified version of the Assyrian one.

Dastar (Turban-like cap)
The real purpose of Dastar is not known. This was a pointed felt cap or hood or shawl which was wrapped over the head and neck or a sort of felt cap. Its true rank is not known because the Dastar was worn by servants and maids. Right now in many places, including Kurdestan, the natives wear a sort of cap on which the Dastar is wrapped.

Bashlogh Hood
This is a felt cap which has special strings hanging behind the ear and back, which narrows as it descends lower. Behind the arch of the Bashlogh, there was an additional piece which was folded in the front. It was worn by Median armor wearing officers. The Bashlogh with slight modifications is still woven in Kurdestan.

Egg-Like Felt Cap
This cap was known as Median cap. The only ornament on the egg-like felt cap is a lace at the edge of the cap. The images surviving in Ghalayechi Hill in Bukan from Manayian period as well as crowns from the Sassanid period has revealed that a diadem was worn on the felt cap. The felt cap was worn by Achaemenid warriors and Median officers. A similar cap is still being worn by Iranian nomadic tribesmen.

Head-Scarf
This headscarf worn by women in ancient times reaches as far as the ankles. The Dastar was worn by Achaemenian women and is still used by Zoroastrian women.
The corners of this shawl-like Dastar were not wrapped under the neck. It was placed on the lady’s head in a manner that covered all her hair or it was hung like a tail at the back. The Dastar was generally worn with a diadem or Basak, and was the scarf popularly used by the Iranian women in the past.

A Village of Wonders Masouleh

A Village of Wonders

Masouleh

Masouleh is a village in Iran’s Gilan Province. Historical names for the village include Masalar and Khortab. It was founded in the 10th century AD. Masouleh is approximately 60 km southwest of Rasht and 32 km west of Fouman. It is 1,050 meters above sea level in the Alborz mountain range, near the southern coast of the Caspian Sea.
The village has a difference in elevation of 100 meters. The first village of Masouleh was approximately established around 1006 AD, 6 km northwest of the current village, called Old-Masouleh (Kohneh Masouleh in Persian). People moved from Old-Masouleh to the present site because of Pestilence and attacks by neighbors, CHN reported.
Masouleh-Rood-Khan is the river passing through the village with a waterfall 200m away from the village. Many other springs are found around Masouleh that is also surrounded by forests from valley to mount. Fog is a key feature of this area.
Unique Architecture
Masouleh architecture is unique. The buildings have been built into the mountain and are interconnected.
Courtyards and roofs both serve as pedestrian areas similar to streets. Masouleh does not allow any motor vehicles due to its unique layout. It is the only village in Iran with such a prohibition.
Moreover, the small streets and many stairs simply wouldn’t make it possible for vehicles to enter.
The spectacular architecture of Masouleh is well-known as “The yard of the above building is the roof of the below building“.
Yellow clay coats the exterior of most buildings. This allows for better visibility in fog. Buildings are mostly 2 stories (1st and ground floor) made of adobe, rods and bole. Small living room, big guest room, winter room, hall, WC and balcony are usually on the 1st floor. Cold closet, barn and stable are located below attached to the upper floor by several narrow steps inside the building.
There are four main local communities namely: “Maza-var“ (meaning: beside the Mosque) at the south, “Khana-var“ (meaning: beside homes) at the East, “Kasha-sar“ (meaning: stretched on top) at the North, and, “Assa-mahala“ (meaning: Assad community) at the West. Apparently down-town is the market (bazaar) area and also the main mosque of the village, named: “O-ne-ben-ne Ali“. This village is almost eight hundred to a thousand years old. The existence of numerous graveyards in and outside of the village shows its old texture. The storied and terracing plan is in parallel to the mountain slope. Combination of such architecture with natural landscape has rendered it a national and international tourist center.

Kurdestan is located in western Iran and bordering Iraq

Kurdestan Attractions Galore

By Sadeq Dehqan

Located in western Iran and bordering Iraq, Kurdestan is a green province spread over 28,203 square kilometers.

Natural Features
The province’s mountainous areas extend from Qezelozan Valley to mountains of southern Zanjan. It has large plains, with the highest called Obatu situated at an altitude of 2,200 meters to the north of the provincial capital, Sanandaj. The highest mountains of the region are Shahneshin in northern Bijar, Sheida in the central part of the province and Panjeh Ali, which is located between Qorveh and Saqqez.
Baneh and Marivan experience the highest annual precipitation in the province with about 800 millimeters while Sanandaj registers the lowest at 400 millimeters. The province boasts of oak forests and different types of trees due to its suitable humidity level.
The province has suitable habitats for mammals and different species of birds as well as marine species because of its diverse climatic conditions, special topography, abundance of water resources and suitable flora.
Kurdestan has 5 first grade, 10 second grade, 16 third grade and three fourth grade hunting zones, in addition to Bijar Protected Zone’s hunting zone. The zone is the only natural reserve located in the northeast of the province and covers an area of 23,000 hectares.
The zone is host to many permanent and seasonal spas. It is also rich in terms of wildlife, with a diverse species of mammals, birds and reptiles.
Gazelle, brown bear, boar, wolf and rabbit are also found in the zone. Among the birds of the region one could refer to partridges and gray herons.
Marivan Lake, which is located in the area, is the main habitat of otter in Iran.
Culture and Traditions
Kurdestan has a rich culture and civilization.
Different variations of the Kurdish dialect are spoken in the province. The Urami variation was the language of the province until a few decades ago.
Before the advent of Islam, the residents of the region practiced Zoroastrian rituals. Traces of this culture are detectable in their rituals and music. However, at present, most inhabitants of Kurdestan are Sunni, belonging particularly to the Shafei sect.
Kurds traditionally prefer to wear their local costumes to maintain their cultural identity. Even during the early days of the former Pahlavi regime when Reza Shah ordered all people of the country to wear modern clothes, Kurds resisted this order and did not change their attire.
The Kurdish dress of women is colorful and derives inspiration from the natural surroundings. While Kurdish women wear long dresses decorated with needlework, Kurdish men wear loose pants, boots and a head covering. They also use belts made of colorful cloth.
The cultural attractions of Kurdestan include songs and dance, which have been preserved since ancient times. Kurdish music pertains to different moods, but it is mostly known for its fast and lively rhythm.
Kurdish music is played during funerals, wedding processions and even sickness. It can easily make a listener sad or jubilant.
A visit to any of its cities is worth a trip.