جستجوی مقالات مرتبط با کلیدواژه « هنر ساسانی » در نشریات گروه « هنر و معماری »

Statement of the Problem:

The tradition of depicting natural, strange and mixed creatures is rooted in archetypes. On the one hand, it manifests man's approach to the unconscious, dreams and imagination, and on the other hand, it guides the mind to think about other elements of the transcendental and unknown worlds; We come across these imaginary creatures in almost every corner of the world. Throughout the history of Iran, the art and culture of this land have witnessed various transformations. Political, economic, and cultural interactions, and in many cases, the invasions of foreign peoples, have brought about significant changes to the customary traditions and practices of Iranians in every era. Since the arrival of the Aryans in ancient Iran and the establishment of the three major ethnic groups, the Medes, Persians, and Parthians, in various regions of this land, due to the diversity of their ethnic and cultural backgrounds, which extended from Europe to Siberia, the Middle East, and India, the maturation, formation, and spread of beliefs, cultural traditions, and myths began to increase. These modern transformations, in combination and amalgamation with what the early inhabitants of Iran possessed, led to the creation of a set of cultural, artistic, legal, ritual, and literary elements that, despite these changes, produced a rich and solid chain that continued throughout the millennia that followed. Through this process, the creations in the field of visual arts, such as sculptures, stone carvings, buildings, reliefs, murals, illuminated manuscripts, textiles, and the like, are observable and readable as crystallization and embodiment of this cultural institution. One of the prominent features of Iranian visual arts is the reliance on myths and religious and ritual foundations. Therefore, the topics addressed in religions and religious rituals have been widely illustrated for the sake of clarification for the followers and as commemorative aspects.The approach of rulers and the prevailing tastes in shaping the artistic contexts of each era have had a significant impact; however, the spirit governing the artistic works based on intellectual and belief contents has always endured. This trend has also manifested itself in the post-Islamic eras in the form of illustrations in manuscript and industrial arts. One common characteristic between Iranian texts and artworks is the attention to the depiction of supernatural beings and wonders. The creation and representation of imaginary and strange creatures in Iranian visual arts take on various forms. The ways in which visual elements are used in the structure of these creatures, apart from the artistic traditions of each era, are influenced by specific content sources that each artist, in turn, inspired his perspective and imaginative mind. The continuation of this historical tradition is known today as "wonderology" in the term and is depicted in various forms in Iranian art, such as embossed patterns, voluminous works, fabric patterns, images, and illustrated manuscripts.

Purpose of research:

Explore the imaginative and wonderology approaches in the art and literature of Sasanian Iran, based on pre-Islamic intellectual, religious, and mythological traditions.Research question "What are the influential factors on the representation of wonders in the literature and art of the Pahlavi and Manichaean eras in the Sasanian period and the early Islamic centuries?" Necessity and Significance of research It includes aspects such as understanding the tradition of representing and illustrating wonders during an important period before and after the arrival of Islam in Iran and a better comprehension of the interrelationship of form and content in the studied texts in this research.

This research is of a fundamental nature and employs a descriptive-analytical method, gathering information from library sources, electronic documents, and utilizing the holdings of museums, to analyze the interpretive data extracted from textual samples and artworks of the mentioned eras. Data analysis is conducted qualitatively through the extraction of concrete samples and their classification into various categories and classes of texts and artworks, such as historical periods, artistic methodology, visual aesthetics, textual criticism, and related theoretical discussions. The theoretical foundations of this research subject, with a case study of the texts and art of the Sasanian era and the early Islamic centuries in Iran, encompass topics related to the iconography of the research's discussed images, the hermeneutics of literary and historical texts and their translation into images, the typology of mythical creatures and figures, and textual studies of Iranian myths in the pre- and post-Islamic eras, to reach a synthesis between ancient Iranian art and Islamic Iranian illustrative tradition.

This research asserts that the tradition of wonderology in the art and literature of Iran, due to its reliance on cohesive foundations such as the power of mythology, symbolism and cryptic symbolism, anthropomorphism, and religion, as well as the various intertextual contents and stylistic influences, has a continuous and patterned chain from the pre-Islamic era to the early centuries following the introduction of this faith in Iran.

Decorations are an integral part of Islamic art. Islamic art is formed based on decorations to accurately represent nature. Decorations in Islamic art have emerged as three main elements including: Islamic pattern, geometric pattern and calligraphy (inscription) and two secondary elements: animal motifs and human motifs. These motifs may be engraved separately or in combination with each other. Among these decorative elements, the role of Slimi has a special place. In fact, this role is considered one of the noblest and most original creative elements of Islamic art in Iran and the Islamic world. This role is used not only to decorate religious places and objects, but also to decorate everyday items. The role of Islimi as a fundamental role has a special place in the history of decorative arts of the world.Due to the fact that the Islamic pattern is the most important pattern used for decorations by artists, but compared to other decorative elements such as khatnagareh (inscription) and garh (geometric patterns), it has been less researched and analyzed. The oldest document that is currently available that uses the word 'Islimi' belongs to "Zaradeh" which was prepared by the librarian of Sultan Baysanghar Mirza (802-837 AH) during the Timurid period. This "offered" is actually a working report on the state of the royal library, it is currently kept in the library of Topkapi Museum in Istanbul (Khazaei, 1398, 125). Sadeghi Beyk Afshar, an artist and writer of the Safavid era, who was once the librarian of Shah Abbas, in his book "Qanun al-Sour" which he wrote around the end of the 10th century of Hijri, considers Islimi as one of the seven main painting. Qazi Mir Syed Ahmad Manshi Qomi in his book Golestan Art describes the decorative elements of painting and gilding as seven principles, the first of which is "Islamic" (Manshi Qomi, 132, 1366). In the preface of Dost Muhammad, Bahram Mirza considers Motif As-Islimi to be the invention of Imam Ali (A.S.) (Khazaei, 1398, 119).Although Europe's attention to Islamic art has its roots in the Renaissance and the Middle Ages, in the 19th and 20th centuries, this category received more attention and many articles were written about geometric decoration in Islamic architecture. In these studies, the term "Arabesque" is used to express Muslim decorations and they consider it the gem of the unity of Islamic visual culture (Necipoglu, 1995, 87). Several different definitions for arabesque have been expressed in such a way that most consider it equivalent to all decorative elements such as calligraphy, plant motifs, geometric motifs and even iconography. Some people have mentioned it only for plant motifs. In Islamic art, the Islamic motif is a single form of a plant ornament, in which the rhythmic leaves are attached to wavy or spiral stems and along each other, they induce repetition and the desire to move.It seems that the special place of Iranian art in the origin and evolution of motifs has not been evaluated in choosing the word Arabesque. This issue could be due to the fact that this term was chosen by orientalists, who focused more on the cultural elements of the western Islamic world, including Morocco, Egypt, North Africa, and Spain, than on Iran and the eastern lands.Although many studies have been conducted by orientalists in the field of Islamic decorative arts, the first person to seriously investigate the Islamic pattern under the title "Arabesque" was Alois Riegel (1858-1905), an Austrian art scholar in the book The quality of style was published in Berlin in 1893 (Riegl, 1992). The subject of arabesque was followed later by the articles of researcher Dimand (Dimand, 1937 & 1952). Studies about Islimi in the entries of the two editions of the Encyclopedia of Islam by Ernst Herzfeld (1938) and Ernst Kühnel (1960) and some recent publications such as Necipoglu (Necipoglu, 1995) and Khazaie (1999) continued. has been found.It should be noted that the role of Islam did not suddenly appear at the time of the emergence of Islam, but the origin of this role was rooted in pre-Islamic art. In the same way that the artists of the first centuries of Islam based their innovations on the foundation of pre-Islamic art. The origin and continuation of the artistic development of this role before Islam has been widely described and expressed by Orientalists, and most of them refer its origin to Greco-Roman (ancient classical) art. Alois Riegl refers the origin of the salami motif to a plant that has its roots in ancient (Greece) palm and ivy decorations (Riegl, 267, 1992). Ernst Herzfeld claims that its origin is certainly derived from classical foliage decorations (Herzfeld, 363, 1938). Ernst Kühnel traces the origins of the Islimi motif to the Late Classical period, noting that it acquired its typical form in the 3rd century AH under Abbasid rule (749-1258 AD) and was fully developed in the 5th century (Kühnel , 561, 1960). Arthur Pope suggests that the Iranian Slimi pattern does not represent any real object in nature at all, but is taken from the beautiful Greek architectural ornament, Anthemion (Palmetto) (Pope, 39, 1356).Islimi Motif was born from the idea of Bali-shaped motifs before Islam - Sassanid. In the Islamic era, the role of the wing is simplified to such an extent that it often lost its identity and became an abstract form that we know today as Islami. In the following, he describes and explains the different stages of the role of Balishaq until reaching the role of Slimi.It seems that the use of these Bali-shaped motifs was not only decorative, but had religious significance. It was said that this spiritual connection with the "divine wisdom of ancient Iran" is fully evident in Iranian art before Islam (Sehrvardi, 2018, 1377). This connection caused the Sasanian wing pattern to be present among the decorations of the Islamic forehead long after the fall of the empire. Patterns with two symmetrical wings or palm wings are one of the most original and honorable forms among pre-Islamic patterns. The most obvious one is the role of an angel, which is achieved by adding two wings to the body of an earthly human. This angel has holiness and is considered a symbol of the extraterrestrial world. The role of Fereshte is one of the services of Iranian artists in the history of ancient art, which was given to the world of art. The role of the angel without changing its form and even its meaning continues to make its way from ancient art to Islamic art.

Sasanian art is an original and progressive art that includes a coherent set of images in different scales, from depictions on stone reliefs to depictions of small and large metal vessels in various forms. In the metal containers of this period, various depictions including different themes and traditions are manifested. Many studies have been done on these dishes, but the narrative field of depiction in them has not been studied so far. However, the narratives depicted on the metal vessels of this period are very important from the literary, historical and religious point of view and provide important and practical documents in describing the cultural, religious and historical conditions of that period. Therefore, with a new look, these questions are raised that what narratives and themes do the depictions in Sassanian metal containers contain? And what is the relationship between these traditions and the literary, historical and religious texts of the Sassanian period? Also, investigating the traditions and themes engraved on Sassanian metal vessels and discovering the traditions hidden in them is the aim of this research. The research method is descriptive-analytical and the method of collecting library information. By placing the illustrations on the metal vessels of this period in three categories of literary narratives and themes, historical narratives and themes, and religious narratives and themes and analyzing the findings from it, it can be said that the literary narratives and themes in works such as the story of Bahram and Azadeh, Tree Asurig, Yadgar Zariran and Panche Tantre have been considered in depicting literary themes on Sassanid metal vessels Also, the narratives of bravery and warfare of the Sassanid kings can be seen both in books such as Ardeshir Babakan's workbook and in the metal vessels of this period in the form of illustrations of the hunting and bravery narratives of the Sassanian kings. Finally, the narratives and religious themes in the book of Avesta and Bandheshen have been taken into consideration in the illustration of Sassanian metal vessels, including the illustration of the narratives related to the goddesses and their supernatural powers, the story of creation and other religious topics.

Arabic poets in the early centuries, especially those who described wine, in addition to talk about wine, its pleasures and drunkenness, also described the bar, cupbearer and even the cups of wine. In describing the cups, they have not neglected to describe the images or drawings on them. These paintings, which, like the customs and traditions of drinking wine and different types of wine, are associated with pre-Islamic Iran, usually reflect images inherited from the traditions of the Sassanid period. Although the surviving cups from the Sassanid period are very few and it is not possible for us to see these paintings, but the poems of Arabic poets, especially in the Abbasid period, depict some of these paintings for us in the form of words. Representation of these types of paintings may make us more familiar with the art of painting in Iran and Iraq at the beginning of the Islamic period, which undoubtedly follows the tradition of Sassanid painting. In the following article, after a brief introduction about the paintings on buildings and other tools, which are mentioned in Arabic poetry, the most important themes of the paintings on wine glasses (cups) in the poems of the Abbasid era are discussed and these paintings are compared with the paintings of existing antiquities. This article is an attempt to show a part of Sassanid painting on wine cups that has been displayed in the poems of Abbasid poets with an interval of two to three centuries. These Images usually express the situation of the Sassanid court in joy and war.In their research on the characteristics of Iranian art, Iranian and Orientalist scholars have not paid much attention to Persian and Arabic literary texts and poems. Arabic literature in Abbasid times clearly shows the life, society, thought and art of pre-Islamic Iran. Although the reports of the Arabic poets of this period from the drawings on the cups may not be completely true, but because we have received few cups from that time, these reports can also be trusted.The research that Iranian and orientalist artists have done on patterns on clothes and dishes is based more on surviving concrete examples from the past and less on texts, especially Arabic texts. Therefore, we suspect that the issue raised in this article has not been comprehensively addressed so far. The value of this article goes back to the fact that Arabic-speaking poets may have spoken of images that are not concrete examples in museums or elsewhere and are new to researchers of Sassanid art. This research answers the following questions: How did Arabic poets in the Abbasid period and the Middle Ages AH describe wine glasses? What were the most important themes or motifs of the images on the wine cups in these periods?This research shows that, paintings on the wine cups of the Abbasid period And the Middle centuries, the ones in the hands or in front of the poets, were very much influenced by Sassanid art and reflected the favorite images of Iranians, which has become an important subject for poetic illustrations in Arabic poetry.The method of this research is descriptive-analytical and based on reading the remaining poetic texts from the first and middle centuries AH; where the poets also spoke of images on wine cups. After a brief reference to the history of describing the images of objects in Arabic poetry from the pre-Islamic period to the Abbasid period, the author deals with the general characteristics of the images on the vessels left from the Sassanid era, then extracts the images of wine cups from ancient Arabic poetry Has categorized and tried to compare them with existing objective and ancient examples.The main subject of the pictures on wine cups in the Abbasid period, the Sassanid kings, their courtiers and their political connections with Roman kings, are scenes of hunting, drinking, feasting, horseback riding and warfare, and there is almost no religious scene, family scene of the Sassanid court and herbal design.These images include the following images: Sassanid king, wine drinking, throne sitting, obeying people, the scene of the Sassanid army fighting, horsemen archery, Kasra and Caesar sitting together, Roman emperors surrendering in Kasra's palace, Kasra's captivity with the Roman emperor, predatory lions and dancing women, etc. Looking at the examples of cups inscribed with Sassanid images that we brought in this research, it can be said that most of these cups were depicted by poets living in Iraq and Iran in the second to fourth centuries AH. After this, the most abundance is related to the poets of the sixth to eighth centuries in the Levant and Egypt, and we see only one or two examples in the poems of the poets of the region of Andalusia (Islamic Spain) in the sixth and seventh centuries.Arabic literature in the Abbasid era and the Middle Centuries AH clearly reflects the life, society, thought and art of pre-Islamic Iran. Although the reports of Arabic poets about the designs on the cups may not be completely true, but because we have received only a few cups from that time, these reports can also be useful and reliable. Considering the abundance of these images in the poems of Iraqi poets in the second to fourth century, it can be said that from this time, the subject of cups painted with the image of Kasra and his Army in war and celebration, has become a famous poetic motif. Egypt in the sixth to eighth century, using imitations of Iraqi poets in previous centuries, used this issue; In other words, it is possible that they did not see these painted cups, but used this theme, imitating previous poets. As for Andalusia, it can be said with more certainty that the Andalusian poet spoke only on imitation of the poets of the East (Iraq) on many subjects, including the same cup with Sassanid motifs. The titles of the images that have been on the wine cups and the poets of the Abbasid period and the Middle Centuries have spoken about it are as follows: Kasra and Caesar together, Archery horsemen on horseback, the scene of the Sassanid army battle, the ceremony of visiting Kasra, the hunting of Kasra and his cavalry, the drinking of Kasra, the obedience of the people to Kasra, the surrender of the Roman emperor to Kasra, the captivity of Kasra to the Roman emperor, the welcome of the Roman emperor, the Christian religious leaders, the predatory lions and the singing women.

This article studies the icon of women on the seals of the Sassanid period. In various parts of Iran, seals with various human (mostly male), plant, animal, and mixed motifs have long been used. Female icons were not common on seals, and a limited number of different examples of seals decorated with female motifs have been found from ancient Iran, especially the Sassanid era. This article studies the cause of the use of the role of women seen on some seals and examines the position of women in the society and government of the Sassanid era and its relationship with Anahita (goddess of water). Therefore, this study uses a descriptive-analytical method, and the data was collected through library research and articles on websites. Findings show that the presence of women on the seals of the Sassanid era shows the high and worthwhile position of women in this era. The woman is depicted not only in the form of queens and court women and beside main male characters, but also in some cases is alone and represents Anahita (symbol of love and fertility). In other cases, women are depicted with the child or in the role of wife or bride. The elegance of the depiction and the accuracy in representing the face, gender, and feminine ornaments, as well as writing the name of the queen on some seals, are the prominent features of these designs.Findings show that the presence of women on the seals of the Sassanid era, shows the high and worthy position of women in this era. The role of the woman appears not only in the form of a queen and a central figure alongside the man and the king, but in some cases as a lone and symbol of Anahita. In other cases, it is seen with the child, or in the role of spouse and in marriage ceremonies. In all cases, the elegance of the design and the accuracy in representing the features of the face, gender and the use of ornaments and the writing of the name of the woman-queen on some seals, are the prominent features of these designs.

In the pre-Islamic era, stucco was used to cover the walls of palaces and temples, because the building materials such as stone, sandstone or crude clay were not very interesting, and the richness of decorated walls was more effective than bare walls. This type of architectural-related decorations in the history of Iran was technically and artistically developed and became one of the archetypes of the Sassanid era. Stucco patterns of this era include plant, geometric, animal and human designs. The use of these patterns in this period, with a few differences in quantity, was accompanied with some mythical concepts. The transfer of these designs from the Sassanid era to the cultural and artistic realms of Islam was in companionship with some changes such as selection of motifs based on their usage in religious or non-religious places and being measured according to the basic Islamic principles. This has made plant and geometric designs luckier than other designs. Under the influence of the Islamic view, these motifs tended to be abstract and the artists avoided direct imitation of nature. Fast curability, fast progression and the whiteness of stucco that were important in the decoration of Islamic buildings were among other factors involved in the re-use of stucco decorations in Islamic monuments. For these reasons, this art, along with its plant and geometric motifs, grew and developed. One of the important findings during the archeological activities in Seymareh, was the discovery of its mosque and its stucco decorations. According to the dates given, the mosque belongs to the late Umayyad and early Abbasid era. Considering the importance of stucco decorations in Iran, the main objectives of this study were, firstly, to identify types of decorative motifs influenced by Sassanid stucco, and then, to study the similarities and differences between the Sassanid stucco designs and the decorative designs of the Seymareh Mosque. Accordingly, the main questions of research are: what are the decorative motifs influenced by the stucco art of the Sassanid period in the stucco adornment of the Seymareh Mosque? What are the similarities between the Sassanid stucco designs and the decorative designs of the Seymareh Mosque? The results of the study show that the decorative motifs found in the mosque of Seymareh could be divided into two main types of plant and geometric designs. Meanwhile, in addition to design and implementation, the plant motif of the Datura flower, and trapezoidal, elliptical geometric patterns, as well as decorative margins used in circular, square and rectangular frameworks, differ from the decorative designs of the Sassanid era. In addition to the formal effect, the application of the principle of symmetry and repetition and the method of making stucco decorations by molding, casting and prefabricated methods, we can see other evidences of the continuation of the Sassanid period stucco art in the stucco decorations of the Seymareh Mosque. Such volume of similarity and influence should be considered as a result of the location of the city of Seymareh in the Sassanid period, which has been evidenced by many architectures decorated with its stucco decorations in areas such as Barzqavaleh, Qaleh Gori and Goriyeh. In most of the stucco specimens of Qaleh Gori and Barzqavaleh, which are from the archeological sites of the Sassanid period and close to the city of Seymareh, and in the present study, the specimens with decorations of the Seymareh Mosque were compared in terms of marginalization and framing according to geometric and plant elements. The use of flowers and leaves such as palm, artichoke, rosette and lotus in the corners of the decorative frames of the design is one of the elements that exists in the stucco of both areas of Bozorgvaleh and Qaleh Gori. Based on archaeological findings, stucco decorations have been one of the most important methods of arranging Sassanid architectural spaces in the city of Seymareh, which can be used to justify the textual connection between the stucco decorations of the Seymareh Mosque and the stucco decorations of the Sassanid period. However, in the study of the decorative patterns of stucco of the Seymareh Mosque, there is evidence of the creation of new arrays such as the tendency towards different designs of plant motifs such as pomegranate fruit, pine fruit, tulip buds or the design of the decorative borders of the frame. Circular or square and rectangular geometric shapes are observed along with the creation of new geometric arrays such as trapezoidal and oval geometric patterns. Therefore, it can be said that the artists who designed the stucco decorations of the Seymareh Mosque, by using these innovations and the complexity of geometric and plant decorative motifs in addition to imitation, sought to provide new decorative surfaces appropriate to the cultural and artistic atmosphere of the first Islamic centuries and created new texts.

The Sasanian art is the reflection of mythological concepts in connection with the Zorastrian beliefs. The mythological concepts of this period are conveyed by various representations of natural motifs such as plants, animals, the birds and mythical creatures. So the motifs may show a profound symbolic concept. Although camel is a rare motif in Sasanian art but it is related to obscure mythical concepts. The camel motif was used in Iran from the prehistoric times. The first two examples are  the camel motif painted on the potteries found in Teppe Sialk, which is related to the third millennium B.C., and a bronze ax-head discovered in a grave at Korab in Sistan which had a sitting camel on it.  During the Sasanian period, this motif is found on the seals (Qasr-i AbuNasr, Tacht e Suleiman), metal vessels, stone reliefs (Hatra and Palmyra), wall-paintings in castles (Panjikent, Afrasyab). The importance of these specimens on which the camel motif is used, shows the credibility of the motif. The study aims to study the mythological backgrounds of the motif and its relations to Zorastrian concepts. Understanding the symbolic ideas of the camel motif is the main aim in this study. The present study uses descriptive-analytical method and data collecting method is Purposive sampling.  The name of the prophet Zoroaster in Avestan language is “Zaraẟuštra”. The second part of his name is the Avestan word for camel, “Uštra “. Although different interpretations have been suggested for the meaning of the name but it is more accepted that the name of the prophet means “who is fostering/cherishing camels” or “he who can manage the camels”. other the meanings like “longing for camels" and “he who is with angry/furious camels” are also proposed. Therefore, the camel may symbolize the concept of bearing knowledge and spreading the light of faith in the dark of infidelity. It clarifies the reasons of using the camel symbol on the Sasanian seals belonging to the priests. Besides that, the motif of camel is used in the reliefs of the warriors in Hatra and Palmyra. The research results show that the camel motif was the absolute depiction for war gods in Near Eastern cultures. The gods named Arsu, Ruda, Reshef, Bahram and Vahagen are all related to the camel. Arsu, Reshef and Ruda always ride the camel in complete armor. Although Bahram and its Soghdian identification “Vahagen” were never showed riding the camel, but in Avesta camel is described as one of the incarnations of Verethraghna(Bahram/Vahagan).In Yasht 14, lines 10-13 are dedicated to camel, as the persistence and determined symbol of Bahram and is described as a long haired beast of burden, with sharp teeth, quick eyed and bright strong sight. The camel has ventured far sight and is capable to see in the deep dark of the night which symbolizes the vision inside Bahram. The bravery, uncontrollable victory, the furious, inevitable fighting powers of Bahram are all symbolized with the natural powers of the camel like his uncontrollable temperament and greatest strengths.

The Sassanid dynasty was one of the important historical periods in Iran and one of the powerful governments in the ancient civilized world. Despite the many ups and downs, Sasanids ruled for over four centuries, and in addition to maintaining the heritage and the achievements of previous governments, provided an opportunity for developing the science, literature, and art of Iran. Laying the groundwork for a socio-cultural platform, music played an essential role as a modern language and a social link. The main question of this research is to investigate the importance of music in the social structure of ancient Iran, especially the Sassanid era, and its functional similarities with contemporary societies. This means that the social functions of music of that period have been investigated by studying ancient evidence and sociological analysis of them. The data were collected by reviewing the literature on this matter. The current study tried to examine the importance of music during the Sassanid era, especially at different social levels. The importance of music in the social structure of ancient Iran, especially during the Sassanid era, and its functional similarities with contemporary societies, have further increased the necessity of an interdisciplinary view of this issue. This historical and social view of the artistic subjects will redefine the existing values of the philosophy of art and its theoretical basis towards the socialization of art in present cultural planning. Especially now that the position of music is in its most stable social state, it is time to study how to create qualitive techniques based on human value applications using the historical experience of this land.

The Sogadian civilization was on the Silk Road route and was one of the most significant areas of the Silk Road. This geographical location resulted in significant cultural intertwining in the art and culture of the area. The influence of Indian, East Asian and Iranian culture on art are visible. But in the meantime, the influence of Sassanian from Iran may be stronger as the Sogadians received the most influence from the Sassanian in their art. But in this impression, they merely confined themselves to the representation of the Visual Elements of Sasanian art and did not reflect the spirit of royal art in their works. This is especially evident in the Sogadian murals.Research question: What are the reasons for the unique representation of the Visual Elements of Sasanian art and not to reflect the spirit of royal in Sogadian art murals?

Identifying the reasonsfor Sogdian selective influence on some specific aspects of Sassanid art, is the main objective of the present study.

This research is a qualitative one and it is conducted in historical methods as well as the descriptive-analytical study and the required data was collected through a library method.

Sogadian society provided the opportunity for growth for all individuals within the context of the social and political structure of developed urbanization. Due to having such a structure, the money made by being located on the Silk Road route provided considerable prosperity to the people of the area and besides the king, other rich people were formed in the hearts of the population. The same story flourished with epic, mythical, everyday themes, and in Sogadian murals depicting stories that all Sogadian people could be heroes, rather than the central persona and the king’s display of absolute power.

According to human history, it is obvious that age of hunting is as long as life of human. The existence of human until today depends on hunting. Hunting was not only an act for human first acquires but also it made human to grow his abilities. Subject of hunting, in different ways, with all the handmade object of human since the most developed of them, is shown in whole history. And just the meaning of it changes during passes of time. The concept of hunting in Sassanid era, as last period glories of culture of Iran before Islam remained lots of noticeable Golden and Jasmine monuments. Which these monument could be account as the most meaningful of Iran’s culture. Because, generally, Sassanid art is symbol of glories of Iran’s kings so the Golden and Jasmine monuments which remained from this period contain subjects and concepts that related to the king, especially king’s hunting. The concept of hunting in all of the art’s monuments from this period is clear. One of them is inscription, Taq-e Bostan inscription is one of the most important ones. This inscription declares the importance of this matter. The subject of hunting has manifested in various ways in the most human constructs, even the most evolved of them, in all historical periods, and the only meaning is that it has changed over time. In the Sassanid period, this concept takes on a concept beyond hunting. Since the Sassanid era, a significant part of the golden and silver works has been remembered. Since Sassanid art is mainly courtly and represents the divine glory of the Sassanid kings, most of the gold and silver artifacts left over from this period covering the themes related to the king, including royal hunting. So the theme of hunting is reflected in all the artworks of this period, including the high-reliefs. One of the most important high –reliefs is the hunting ground scene of Taq-e Bostan. The purpose of this article is to compare the hunting elements between Sassanid artworks, especially Sassanid silverware, and the scene of the hunting grounds of Taq-e Bostan, in a descriptive-comparative manner and by examining seven cases of silverware with the theme of hunting. There is no difference of opinion between the motifs of Sassanid silverware and the decorations created on the hunting scenes in Taq-e Bostan. It seems these elements to be common almost in all artworks. In the Taq-e Bostan, the hunting scene is derived from similar combinations, with this difference that the elements of the scene are more and simultaneous. The examples of these common features and elements are, as the case may be: the king, the characteristics of the riders' figures, the royal horse, the characteristics of combination of the riders, and the general composition of figures, realism in iconography, weapons, drawing common hunting animals, special perspective, symbolic concepts, precise description of scenes and characters, narration, emphasis on the power and invincibility of kings, attention to detail and the existence of dynamism in the scenes.

The conquest of Iran by the new being Arab muslims prepared the primary context of muslims impressionability from Sassanid art. In result islamic art had been influenced deeply by Sassanid art during centuries. However this impressionability was not equal in all over the islamic territories and current art in Samani and Al-bouye territories is one of its anti types. Samani and Al-bouye which respectively governed eastern and western parts of Iran, were neighbors and contemporary. They were alike somehow because of their governmental construction. Both were affected by Sassanid art but in different ways. The aim of this paper is to study of similarities and differences in impressionability of Samani and Al-Bouye pottery and textiles patterns from Sassanid art. Since the art of Samani and Al-Bouye have major impress on development of the next periods, recognizing artistic qualities of these periods is necessary in studying history of Iranian art. Due to the research objectives we examined the fundamental question that what is the main reason of different impressibility of Samani and Al-Bouye art from Sassanid art? In this regard, the most prominent art of any period, the Samani pottery and Al-Bouye textiles were studied together and with Sassanid art samples by combination method of historical and descriptive method with a comparative approach. Its data is gathered via library source and by referring to books and articles and The observation method has also been used. During the research process, geographical, historical, social, political and cultural characteristics Samani and Al-Bouye governing territory compared with each other and then the artistic aspects of two governments in impressionability of Sassanid art was studied. The results of this paper indicates that one reason of different impressibility of Samani and Al-Bouye art from Sassanid art is intermediaries such as Sogdians and the Abbasids who Sassanid influences were transferred by them. In other words Samani art and especially pottery patterns impressionability from Sogdians- Sassanid art and Al-Bouye art and especially textiles patterns from Arab-Sassanid art is one of the reasons that cause different impressibility of these two era from Sassani art. At the same time, Samanids and Al-Bouye in various fields were trying to gain national legitimacy; thus as Samanids were ruled in areas that Persian language was the original language, supported Persian language to gain national legitimacy. Examples of these efforts is using mythical and epic elements in field of art. So it distanced from imperial dimensions while was satisfied by being influenced by Sassanid seeming elements. Al-bouye ruled over the area that had not been native and the central of government is Baghdad that most of them were Arabs. However Al-bouye started to make lineage in order to gain national legitimacy to introduce themselves as Sassanid's throne inheritable so they started being to influence by imperial elements of Sassanid art in their art works. To say more accurately, Samani's and Al-bouye's efforts in gaining national legitimacy to the masses are the main reason of having differences in their impressionability from Sassanid art.

Iran is a manifestation of deep thoughts which sometimes appears in visual form. Farrah, as one of these thoughts, has been a superhuman force with religious concept which is visually represented in Sassanid artwork. This study with the aim of analyzing the origins and visual characteristics of Farrah’s beast motifs, has answered to the research questions: what place Farrah has in the Sassanid art? What kinds of beasts are manifested in this thought? What is the particular tradition in depicting the symbols for visual link? The research method is descriptive- analytical and data were collected from library sources and field studies. The results of this study are as follows: Farrah, as a factor in the consolidation of royal power, is represented in three beast symbols of the Simurgh, the eagle and the ram. According to visual studies, these symbols follow a common drawing pattern which can be considered as certain features of Farrah. According to this description, wings as essential elements on the body of those beasts, ornate decorative motifs of these factors, and also their royal dignity, represent their semantic link with the concept of power.

Noticing the pictorial background, culture and the past artistic conventions along innovation are the most important factors to attain grandeur and identity of contemporary art in each land. Exploring the impact of symbolic concepts in Iranian emblem design constitutes the main purpose of this study. Thus, the goal and the basic matter of this research is based on investigating the graphic design roots in Iran and the way of applying them regarding the symbolic meanings, especially in Tehran university logo. This survey has focused on analyzing symbolic meanings in the relevant logo beside its pictorial background in Sassanid period through a plaster plaque. While a passage between pictorial past and design renewal in an expertly process can bring into life a new chapter of motif in every culture, it can develop a new graphic visual identity. On this basis it appears predominant to use semiotic knowledge with ancient asset in designing contemporary emblems; the characteristics of this Sassanid plaster plaque in brief are: 1.Wing and feather in Sassanid art are symbols of the Bahram god (Mars), which Sassanid kings due to their need for expanding the power of their divine splendor needed the patronage of this god. Wing motif besides being a symbol of the Bahram god can be a symbol of mythical Simurgh (phoenix) and its significant role in Sassanid art. Moreover it is a symbol of bird and ascending to heaven. 2. Circle is a symbol of sun and its surrounding pearls being a symbol of harvest, are two of Mithra symbols frequently seen in Sassanid art. In addition it is supposed to have a relation with Anahita- the water goddess; Motifs being placed inside this circle can be a symbol of divine splendor which help the designer to gain the organizational points of the university. 3. The short Pahlavi inscription placed above this Sassanid seal which means excessive glory is similar to the way the word "Iran" is written. There is also an apparent resemblance between the word of Tehran University writing in the present logo and the plaster plaque. This study besides observing ancient Sassanid legacy in designing Tehran University logo can be also outstanding for studying the main stream of Iran contemporary graphic design. Since visual value and conventional and national motifs are considered as the continuity of cultural stability of every country, rupture of this historical artistic process, which in recent years in the world due to communication expansion has entered into a new era, eradicates small non original identities and spreads dominant cultures. Therefore, it is advisable to use the conventional and national pictorial elements to develop a graphic visual identity and to actualize the potential capacities in creating logos. Recognition of Iran’s artistic identity and constitutive elements of Persian art in authoring artistic books on logo design, also presenting Iranian culture to the art students and graphic designers altogether with directed training can be effective for this goal. The Style of data collection is compound and the method of writing is descriptive- analytic.

Hunting scenes are some of the most ancient archetypes which were depicted in artistic works, especially golden and silver containers in the Sassanid era. Iconography is description and interpretation of symbolic and cryptic hunting scenes which contains messages and information that their decoding can clarify different political, social and religious aspects of life in this era. The purpose of this research is studying and analyzing symbolic concepts of hunting scenes based on iconography of the elements applied in these scenes. For this purpose, 27 Sassanid artistic works, painted with hunting scenes were identified and all their information were studied using statistical method and by registering all their information in charts. the results of the research indicate that in contrary to the previous era that gods and affluent classes were present in hunting scenes; in this era only the Sassanid king was depicted at the center of the scene, mounted and larger than other elements, which is in accordance with the Sassanid era ideology of king as god’s representative on earth. The hunted animals are also of a great significance in Zoroastrian religion. In this era, evil creatures are not to be hunted and eliminated by the king, but there are sacred creatures whose hunting will bring welfare and prosperity to the king, and in fact the concept of hunting in this era was more than just an entertainment and gained a religious-political value.

According to the forms of Sassanian medallions designed on the textures Sassanid، it’s very impressive in the distinctive features، the variety of design and style of drawing. Sassanid era peak of excellence in the art of silk fabrics and textiles، especially the development of their industry. But it should also be stated، that one of the important reasons for the existence of exquisite designs and creativity was in creating the designs and motifs on the textile factories in other countries affected. Many examples of this medallion be existed in Post-Sassanid Art in Central Asia، the Islamic era، China، Syria، Copts (Egypt) and Christian art of Europe (Spain، France)، it shows their popularity in these countries. Thus the questions are: How medallion Sassanid has found their way to neighboring territories and elsewhere? How is the development of the form of these medallions? The Sassanid textile was one of the products that are discussed very valuable addition to the business، as well as royal gifts and great political value. This way was one of the migration patterns of the exchanges and projects around the world Sassanid. The motifs of animal، plant and geometric royal hunting scenes were surrounded generally by a circular medallion motif. This constituted one of the main economic that the simultaneous production and commercialization brought under self-control and commercial exchanges between East and West، the Silk Road was at their disposal and caused the weaving workshops and centers have impact on the East (China) and West، Byzantine and medieval (to Spain and England). The specific study with this view has been done on the Medallion and practices relating to the change. Since this project is one of the most important and influential art designs Sassanid، the research on it to find other ways of function and the way it seems to be necessary. The research is theoretical and descriptive research methods and tools for collecting information are library. In this paper، Sassanid textiles as one of the most artistic and cultural exchange instruments are paid during that period، the ways and means of transport and migration patterns from different cultures and countries is examined، and the manner in which the decorative motifs can be classified according to motifs of medallion presented. Given the variety of forms depending on the fabric and textures decorated with the medallion، it can be a lot of medallion with the features and characteristics observed. Due to the large number of medallions، in this article، it was provided the opportunity to address many models; nevertheless، we tried to select models. Given the above، we can simplify the way as the original pattern of the medallion during the Sassanid art، Islamic، Christian and common usage، and we can specify the pieces were painted: The simple circular medallion decorated with small circular design; Simple and circular medallion composed of flattened band without decoration. And explore ways of grouping medallion on both sides of the simple forms to complex shapes that can also be useful for other medallion.

The book of “Qabus Nameh” is one of the most momentous manuscripts related to Persian-Islamic art which beholds illustrations created using the simplest background arrangements; however, due to the use of novel and exquisite patterns applied on the clothing and other applied elements of the manuscript, the artwork is filled with attractive and decorative features. Although, the motifs of this manuscript are limited in terms of variety and type, ample compositions and the presence of all visual elements have created a unique variation that has the closest resemblance to ancient Persian art predominantly Sassanid art. Furthermore, in regard to its creation in the eleventh century AD/fifth century Hegira, the unrivaled art of Islamic artists in creating remarkable pieces of artwork cannot be disregarded. A research paper focusing exclusively on the ornamentations of the “Qabus Nameh” has never been prepared before; hence, in this paper, by applying a descriptive and analytic approach seeks to classify, understand and analyze the application of the mentioned motifs in the “Qabus Nameh” book in terms of visual art illustration. According to the results of this research, although, the illustrations of the book are very similar to the previous versions of ancient Persian art, they have successfully adapted themselves within Islamic principles and have gained a unique place as a creative element in the technique of abstractedness.

Personification of the “planet moon” is one of the most popular astrological themes in Islamic metalwork of 12th and 13th centuries, which has been used frequently on a group of inlaid brasses and bronzes, most notably, of the so-called Jaziran School of metalwork. This is a cross legged seated figure, whether male or female, holding a large symbolic crescent before his/her head, which is sometimes depicted in isolation and sometimes in combination with the other six planets, namely the Sun, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. Sudden appearance of this theme and its vast prevalence on the large body of metalware of this period has partly raised questions regarding its iconographical origin. It was German learned scholar, Fritz Saxl, who, for the first time in the beginning of 20th century, had tried to connect the iconography of Islamic astrological themes toHarranians of north Mesopotamia and through them to ancient Babylonians. To date this connection has been taken for granted by other scholars of the field, who seem to be unaware of the fact that Saxl himself assumes no certainty on the Babylonian origin of the iconography of Islamic astrological themes, especially when it comes to the planet moon’s personification. Therefore, this paper, in order to give a plausible explanation with regard to the origin of the planet moon’s theme, aims to reinvestigate and reexamine its iconography. To achieve this goal, we have used descriptive-analytical research method and having gathered and analyzed adequate evidences, come to conclude that the iconography of planet moon, as is seen in the Islamic metalwork of this period, is more likely derived from pictorial tradition of pre-Islamic Iran, in particular Parthian and Sassanid artistic repertoire. The importance of planet moon in itself in ancient Iran needs not to be overstated. Its signs and symbols have decorated, for example, the surface of pre-historic potteries for thousands of years. However, it is in Parthian period that one can, for the first time, find the exact parallel of Islamic model for personification of planet moon. From this period, among reliefs of Hatra palace, there have been survived depictions of moon goddesses, one of them representing the upper body of a female figure carried by a crescent. Later on in Sassanid period, a more explicit expression of this theme has been developed, especially on the silver plates and seals of the period. This depicts an unusually large crescent within which a god or goddess stands or seats. These pre-Islamic prototypes altogether have provided Muslim artists of later centuries with a strong pictorial model of the planet moon, whether within or without other six planets’ representations. In this transmission process, in addition to visual elements, some nonvisual characteristics also found their ways into Islamic iconography. Therefore, it seems that the simultaneous employment of feminine and masculine figures in the representation of planet moon in

Sasanian art works، due to important political، religious and economic events of this period، have a considerable significance and their interpretation help us to know this era much better. These can be considered as the pinnacle of the pre-Islamic art in Iran and one of the most improved branches of them is metalwork with hunting scenes. The article tries to interpret these art works using iconographic approach and for this purpose first the meaning of symbols should be defined. Following، and to achieve the iconographic interpretation of them some of these metalwork with hunting scenes are surveyed and the symbols which are represented are interpreted.

The Sassanid ribbons, as one of the most important features for the recognition of art in that era, are seen abundantly on bas-reliefs, clothes and silver bowls. We can see some samples of these ribbons in the early Islamic period. The purpose of this research is to identify such ribbons and their influence on Islamic art. According to this purpose, the following questions are raised: What are the main features of the Sassanid ribbons? Have the Islamic ribbons used on the paintings, textiles and silver vessels been taken from Sassanid samples? In which Islamic periods have these ribbons been more prominent? This research tries to prove the influences of Sassanid ribbons on Islamic art by collecting information from libraries and documents and using the analytical-comparative method which compares the application, function and features of Sassanid ribbons with Islamic ones. To achieve this goal, some mentioned ribbons were presented and a comparative analysis was done between the patterns with ribbons related to Sassanid period and the ones related to the early centuries of Islam and the impact of Sassanid ribbons on Islamic art with nearly equal characteristics was investigated. Thus, features such as “raging and spread from beginning to the end” are used exactly in the Islamic period, and in the feature “royal peculiar being” only the concept of king has changed to the caliph or emir. Any way, sanctity and special position of these ribbons have been preserved. By showing the reasons of these influences, the condition of entrance of Sassanid ribbons into Islamic world is explained. Such adoption can be observed in different artistic fields from the beginning of Islamic period up to the late Seljuk period. However, the role of Umayyads, Abbasids, Samanids and Al-e Buyeis is more significant in these influences.