Iran. Journal of the British Institute of Persian Studies

IRAN Journal of the British Institute of Persian Studies 2000 XXXVIII VOLUME CONTENTS Page ........ Governing Council ...

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IRAN Journal of the British Institute of Persian Studies 2000

XXXVIII VOLUME

CONTENTS Page ........ Governing Council .............. Council the of Report ........................... .................... ...... Obituary ... .....

.....

11

iii v

The International Merv Project. Preliminary Report on the Eighth Season (1999), by Georgina Herrmann, K. Kurbansakhatov, . .... StJohn Simpson et al. ................... Kirman, terre de turbulence, par Malek Iradj Mochiri ...........

1 33

The Persepolis Sculptures in the British Museum, by Terence Mitchell . The Khazineh Painted Styles of Western Iran, by Yosef Garfinkel . . . . The Khwarazmshahs of the Banmi cIraq (Fourth/Tenth Century), ...... . ........ by MichaelFedorov ........... Decoding the Two-Dimensional Pattern found at Takht-i Sulaiman into Three-Dimensional Muqarnas Forms, by Muhammad Ali Yaghan . Scholarship and a Controversial Group of Safavid Carpets, by Murray L. Eiland III................................ Prince cAbd ul-Husayn Mirza Farman-Farma. Notes from British Sources, by Denis Wright ................ ...... .. The Survival of Zoroastrianism in Yazd, by Nile Green ........... Islamic Modernity and the Desiring Self: Muhammad Iqbal and the Poetics of Narcissism, by Yaseen Noorani ............... New Perspectives on the Chronological and Functional Horizons of Kuh-e Khwaja in Sistan, by Soroor Ghanimati ...........137 Archaeological Reports

THE BRITISH

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............................

INSTITUTE

OF PERSIAN

49 57 71 77 97 107 115 123

151

STUDIES

A Registered Charity

c/o The British Academy, 10 Carlton House Terrace, London SW1Y 5AH ISSN 0578-6967

STATEMENTOF AIMS AND ACTIVITIES 1. The Institute has an establishment in Tehran at which British scholars, men and women of learning versed in the arts, friends of Iran, may reside and meet their Iranian colleagues in order to discuss with them subjects of common interest: the arts, archaeology, history, literature, linguistics, religion, philosophy and cognate subjects. 2. The Institute provides accommodation for senior scholars and for teachers from British Universities in order that they may refresh themselves at the source of knowledge from which their teaching derives. The same service is being rendered to younger students who show promise of developing interests in Persian studies. 3. The Institute, whilst concerned with Persian culture in the widest sense, is particularly concerned with the development of archaeological techniques, and seeks the co-operation of Iranian scholars and students in applying current methods to the resolution of archaeological and historical problems. 4. Archaeological excavation using modern scientific techniques as ancillary aids is one of the Institute's primary tasks. These activities, which entail a fresh appraisal of previous discoveries, have already yielded new historical, architectural, and archaeological evidence which is adding to our knowledge of the past and of its bearing on the modern world. 5. In pursuit of all the activities mentioned in the preceding paragraphs the Institute is gradually adding to its library, is collecting learned periodicals, and is publishing ajournal, Iran, which appears annually. 6. The Institute arranges occasional seminars, lectures and conferences and enlists the help of distinguished scholars for this purpose. It will also aim at arranging small exhibitions with the object of demonstrating the importance of Persian culture and its attraction for the world of scholarship. 7. The Institute endeavours to collaborate with universities and educational institutions in Iran by all the means at its disposal and, when consulted, assists Iranian scholars with technical advice for directing them towards the appropriate channels in British universities.

MEMBERSHIP OF THE INSTITUTE Anyone wishing to join the Institute should write to the Membership Secretary, c/o The British Academy, 10 Carlton House Terrace, London SW1Y 5AH. The annual subscription rates (1stJanuary-31st December) are as follows: Full membership (U.K. only) ?25 ?8.00 Member not receiving journal Full membership (Overseas) ?30 or $60 ?7.50 Student membership COPIES OF IRAN Full members of the Institute receive a post free copy of the current issue of the journal Iran each year. Copies of Iran may be obtained from the Publications Secretary (address as above) at the following prices: ?30 or US$60 each plus ?3/US$6 Current issue-single copies purchased by non-members per copy for postage and packing (surface mail outside Europe) see publications list inside back cover Back numbers-please Those ordering from overseas may pay in US dollars or by sterling draft drawn in London, by international money order or by Eurocheque.

IRAN Volume XXXVIII2000

CONTENTS Page Governing Council Report of the Council Obituary

ii

.....................................

iii

.....................................

..............................

v

......

The International Merv Project. Preliminary Report on the Eighth Season (1999), by Georgina Herrmann, K. Kurbansakhatov, StJohn Simpson et al ............ . . . . . .

Kirman, terre de turbulence, par Malek Iradj Mochiri ....

. . . . .

1 .

33 49

The Persepolis Sculptures in the British Museum, by Terence Mitchell ........... . . . . . . . . . . . . .

57

.

71

Decoding the Two-Dimensional Pattern found at Takht-i Sulaiman into ThreeDimensional Muqarnas Forms, by Muhammad Ali Yaghan ..............

77

Scholarship and a Controversial Group of Safavid Carpets, by MurrayL. Eiland III ......

97

The Khazineh Painted Styles of Western Iran, by Yosef Garfinkel

The Khwarazmshahs of the Banti CIraq(Fourth/Tenth Century), by Michael Fedorov

Prince CAbdul-Husayn MirzaFarman-Farma.Notes from British Sources, by Denis Wright ..

107

The Survival of Zoroastrianism in Yazd, by Nile Green

115

....................

Islamic Modernity and the Desiring Self: Muhammad Iqbal and the Poetics of . Narcissism, by Yaseen Noorani .................. ......... New Perspectives on the Chronological and Functional Horizons of Kuh-e Khwaja in . Sistan, by Soroor Ghanimati . ............................ Archaeological Reports

THE BRITISH

...................

....

INSTITUTE

.............

OF PERSIAN

123 137 151

STUDIES

A Registered Charity

c/o The British Academy, 10 Carlton House Terrace, London SW1Y 5AH ISSN 0578-6967

BRITISH INSTITUTE OF PERSIANSTUDIES (A Registered Charity) GOVERNING COUNCIL President DESMOND HARNEY,O.B.E., B.Sc. Vice-President Professor ROBERT HILLENBRAND, M.A., D.Phil., F.R.S.E. HonoraryVice-Presidents Professor A. K. S. LAMBTON, O.B.E., D.Lit., F.B.A. Professor D. B. STRONACH, O.B.E., M.A., F.S.A. Sir DENIS WRIGHT, G.C.M.G., M.A. Members W. ALLAN, M.A., D.Phil. *ProfessorJ. Professor C. E. BOSWORTH, M.A., Ph.D., F.B.A. Sir NICHOLAS BARRINGTON, K.C.M.G., C.V.O. SHEILA R. CANBY,M.A., Ph.D. J. E. CURTIS, B.A., Ph.D., F.S.A. J. P. LUFT, M.A., Ph.D. VANESSAMARTIN, M.A., Ph.D. CHARLESMELVILLE,M.A., Ph.D. CHRIS RUNDLE, O.B.E., M.A. HonoraryTreasurer PETER KNAPTON, B.Phil., M.A., M.B.A., F.C.C.A. and HonoraryLibrarian HonorarySecretary ROBERT GLEAVE,B.A., M.A., Ph.D. Joint Editors Professor C. E. BOSWORTH, M.A., Ph.D., F.B.A. VESTA SARKHOSH CURTIS, M.A., Ph.D. Secretary VESTA SARKHOSH CURTIS, M.A., Ph.D. HonoraryCovenantSecretary PETER DAVIES,M.A. Auditors PRIDIE BREWSTER,29-39 London Road, Twickenham, Middlesex TW1 3SZ.

c/o The British Academy, 10 Carlton House Terrace LONDON SW1Y5AH

*Member of Research Committee

P.O. Box 11365-844 Tehran IRAN

REPORT OF THE COUNCIL to 31st March 1999 Another year, and the Institute's work continues to progress. The research sponsored by the Institute has thrived, resulting in books and conferences and the continued success of the journal IRAN. We held two well-attended public lectures and a number of students and researchers have been sponsored for research trips to Iran. First, the lectures: Henry McKenzie Johnston gave the AGM lecture on 17 November 1998 in which he retraced the steps of James Morier through nineteenth-century Persia. It was a fascinating account and much enjoyed by all. June saw the Summer lecture with a visitor from Tehran: Professor Esmail Kahrom gave an interesting talk on the Persians and their attitude to animals through the ages. He later received a BIPS grant to study the tdzi (Saluki) dog. Second, the conferences: the Institute has sponsored or co-sponsored conferences on Iranian cinema, on Iran during the Reza Shah Period, and on Art and Architecture in Qajar Iran. These conferences were a great success, being well attended and with interesting contributions from an international range of scholars. Third, the grants: from the Undergraduate Bursary Fund, we were able to contribute towards the costs of six undergraduates to study Persian in Iran. Research grants included an exciting project between Bradford University and the Archaeological Department of Tehran University analysing the material from the excavations at Cheshmeh Ali, Rayy; Dr. Lloyd Ridgeon's study of javanmardf (chivalry); Dr. John Bailey's research on the dow-tar,and Dr. Richard Schofield's research on Iran's Northern Borderlands. In addition, we continued to support the publication of the monuments and excavations at Merv, a major project under the directorship of Dr. Georgina Herrmann. As many of you will know, we also sponsor a number of long-term projects. These are based on joint research between Iranian and British academics. Current subjects include a History of Iranian Steel (under the directorship of Professor James Allan; a Catalogue of Sasanian Coins in the Muzeh Melli, Tehran (Dr Vesta Sarkhosh Curtis); Religion and Society in Qajar Iran (Dr Robert Gleave); PreMongol Architecture (Professor Robert Hillenbrand); Qajar Rock Reliefs (Dr Paul Luft); and Iran during the Reza Shah Period (Dr Stephanie Cronin). BIPS continues to support these projects, with ongoing grants for research in Iran and visits by Iranian academics to the UK One area where there has been particularly strong progress is the work of the Institute in Tehran. Dr Robert Gleave, BIPS' Honorary Secretary, was Acting Director in Qolhak between January and July 1999. During this period, the Library was reopened, the building refurbished and all the study rooms made available for use. A computer was purchased and we now have on line e-mail access in Tehran. Mrs. Mahbanou Adle, our newly-appointed librarian, and Mr. Houman Kordmahini, our resident caretaker, have worked hard to make the building a pleasant and comfortable place in which to work and do research. They now form our Tehran staff, and we strongly recommend BIPS members to visit the Institute - or even better, to stay there. The Institute's work has been greatly enhanced by the improvement in British-Iranian relations, and the British ambassador (the former Charge d'Affaires) and his wife paid an official visit to the Institute in June. The Embassy continued to provide much needed support for our Tehran operations. In London, we moved with the times by establishing our own pages on the British Academy website, and we began to prepare a handy brochure about the Institute and its work. Finally, it is left for us to thank Mr. Peter Knapton, our Honorary Treasurer, Dr. Vesta Sarkhosh Curtis (in her capacity as Secretary in the London Office), Mr. Peter Davies for his selfless voluntary work in the office on our behalf, members of the Advisory Council for their advice and support, our Tehran staff (as mentioned above), the staff of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Iran Desk, the

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British Embassy in Tehran and the Iranian Embassy in London. In this respect, we congratulate Their Excellencies Mr Gholamreza Ansari and Mr Nick Browne on their respective elevation to the post of Ambassador. Last but not least, we thank our hosts the British Academy, who have provided office space and technical support facilities which have transformed our life in London and our ability to serve our members. We look forward to a promising and productive year of activities ahead. ROBERT GLEAVE

DESMOND HARNEY President

Honorary Secretary

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OBITUARY HELEEN SANCISI-WEERDENBURG (23 May 1944 - 28 May 2000) Heleen Sancisi-Weerdenburg died on 28 May 2000 in Utrecht,just five days after her fifty-sixthbirthday. She had been suffering from cancer for the last four years. With her passing, the study of ancient Iran has lost an exceptional scholar. Heleen began her studies in classical languages and history in Leiden, and moved on to research under the supervision of Professor W. den Boer, a specialist in Greek history. Her interest in early Iran arose from an engagement with the classical Greek period, which has provided such potent, but problematical, images of Achaemenid history. For her PhD thesis, she set herself the task (and it became a perennial theme) of trying to disentangle the complex realities of the Achaemenid empire from the distorting web created by Greek literary conventions. To do this, she studied Old Persian, mainly on her own, and Iranian archaeology with Louis Vanden Berghe in Ghent. The fruits of her work appeared in her doctoral dissertation, Yaunaen Persai in een anderperspectief (Leiden 1980). The first, and perhaps most important, chapter was a detailed analysis of Xerxes' well-known daiva inscription, in which she argued forcefully against attempts to connect its statements with historical events, setting it instead into the context of the formal rhetoric of Old Persian kingship, which began with Darius I's Behistun inscription. This, in effect, detached the text from Xerxes as an individual, and was a crucial first step in reassessing the significance notjust of Xerxes' reign, but, the entire history of the Achaemenid empire in the later fifth and fourth centuries.1 The problems raised in interpreting the diversity of sources available for Achaemenid history, the temptation to fit them into a picture congruent with the image derived from Greek narratives, and the inevitable resulting sterility in terms of historical understanding, inspired Heleen to set up the Achaemenid History Workshops. Begun in 1980 in Groningen,2 with a small group of Dutch scholars, they became from 1983 on an annual event drawing together a group of scholars from across the world.3 The organisation was important: each Workshop focused on a specified theme, on which contributions were solicited; all papers were circulated in advance; the one and a half day Workshop sessions were devoted solely to discussions and the number of participants limited to c. 30. The results were electrifying as the debates gathered momentum. One left at the end of these intense days exhausted but exhilarated, full of new ideas, information and approaches. Apart from the first two, all the Workshops were published, with contributors asked to modify their papers in the light of issues raised in the course of the Workshop sessions;4 they form the first eight volumes of the continuing AchaemenidHistoryseries.5 The impact of the Workshops has been, and continues to be, immense in setting a new agenda for studying the Achaemenid empire, which in turn has had important repercussions on assessments of Alexander the Great and the hellenistic phase of Middle Eastern history.6 Although the Achaemenid History Workshops are, and will remain, Heleen's most lasting memorial,7 her other work and interests should not be forgotten. In addition to a mass of stimulating articles on Persian topics,8 she was closely involved in, and an active contributor to, the growing fields of study on women in antiquity,9 history of food and eating,10 early travellers' descriptions of Achaemenid sites,11early Greek history and the history of classical scholarship.12 In all these diverse areas she was immensely active: writing, lecturing, fostering public interest, teaching, opening up new perspectives. She was a stimulating speaker and thus in constant demand: in The Netherlands she gave unstintingly of her time, addressing a variety of nonspecialist audiences; she lectured extensively in the United States, Canada and England; she was invited to speak in France, Italy, Germany, Poland, Greece, Turkey and South Africa. In what has turned out to be a tragically brief life, she has been, with her acute intellect and personal generosity, almost single-handedly responsible for revitalising the study of early Persian history, in a manner that has changed the field enduringly. It is sad that her early death has prevented her from fulfilling one of her most cherished wishes - to visit Iran. 1 An excellent summary of her approach and conclusions of this aspect of her work can be found in her article, "The personality of Xerxes," ArchaeologiaIranicaet Orientalia,Miscelleneain honoremLouis VandenBerghe(eds. L. de Meyer and E. Haerinck), Ghent, 1989, 549-562 2

After teaching history in a secondary school for some years, she was appointed

Groningen.

V

to a lectureship

in ancient history at the University of

3 In 1984, Heleen and I drew up plans for six further workshops which would explore broad issues and made a firm decision to end them in 1990. All were held in Groningen, apart from 1985 (London) and 1990 (Ann Arbor, Michigan). 4 AchaemenidHistoryI-VIII, Leiden, Netherlands Institute for the Near East, 1987-1994. 5 Subsequent volumes: M.B. Garrison and M.C. Root; 1996-98, PersepolisSeal Studies(AchHist IX); P. Briant, 1996, Histoirede l'empire perse(2 vols. [co-published with Fayard, Paris], AchHist X); M. Brosius & A. Kuhrt (eds), 1998, Studiesin Persian History:Essays in MemoryofDavid M. Lewis(AchHist XI); D. Kaptan, in prep., TheDaskyleionBullae (AchHist XII). 6 See, for example, the many studies of P. Briant, an influential participant of the Workshops, on aspects of Alexander and Hellenistic history; also the studies of the Seleucid empire by A. Kuhrt and S. Sherwin-White (1987, 1993). 7 It was a tribute to her achievement in putting Achaemenid history "on the map" of ancient history, that she was chosen to hold the Dutch Professorship in Ann Arbor, Michigan (1989-1990), followed by her appointment to the Chair of Ancient History in Utrecht in the spring of 1990 and her election to the Dutch Research Council. 8 These range from her own fundamental analyses of the pernicious influence of "orientalism"on Achaemenid studies and a revolutionary approach to the "Median empire" to discussions of the royal practice of gift-giving (in P. Briant & C. Herrenschmidt (eds.), Le tributdans l'empireperse,Paris 1989), "Persian political concepts" (in K. Raflaub (Hsg.), AnfiingepolitischenDenkensin derAntike Leiden 1999). (Munich 1993) and historiography (in C. Kraus (ed.), TheLimitsof Historiography, 9 An article of particular relevance for readers of this journal is "ExitAtossa: images of women in Greek historiography on Persia",in A. Cameron & A. Kuhrt (eds.), Imagesof Womenin Antiquity,London 1983-1993. 10 She co-edited a book on the history of food (with sample recipes), which reached the bestseller list in The Netherlands in the summer of 1994. See also her "Persianfood and political identity", Foodin Antiquity(eds.J. Wilkins, D. Harvey, M. Dobson, Exeter 1995). 1 The Ninth Achaemenid History Workshop (1989) was devoted to this subject. Simultaneously, Heleen organised an exhibition of relevant books and drawings, accompanied by a volume discussing, for example, the limitations imposed on European visitors to Persian sites by prevailing artistic ideas and conventions. This abiding interest was taken further in her involvement with a group interested in the Dutch eighteenth-century traveller, Cornelis de Bruijn (cf. the exhibition catalogue of the Allard Pierson Museum (Amsterdam 1998) on de Bruijn'sjourneys). 12 Just a few days before her death, the papers from a conference on Peisistratos, which she had organised and edited were published (Peisistratosand Tyranny:a Reappraisalof theEvidence).A symposium on the classical tradition, set up by Heleen, will be held in Athens later this year.

AMELIE KUHRT University College London

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THE INTERNATIONALMERVPROJECT PRELIMINARYREPORT ON THE EIGHTH SEASON (1999) By Georgina Herrmann, K. Kurbansakhatov,StJohn Simpson et al. Londonand Ashgabat

This has been an exciting year for Merv. It has been selected for inclusion as one of UNESCO's prestigious Sites of World Heritage Status and Merv has also been listed as one of the world's hundred most threatened sites in their list for the Year 2000 by World Monuments Watch. This dual recognition of the unique cultural and historical importance of this great series of cities and their associated monuments is a major achievement for Turkmenistan and will lead, it is hoped, to grants to fund desperately needed training programmes and conservation work on Merv's threatened monuments. Appropriately this is also the year when the Archaeological Park "Ancient Merv"with its minimal funds managed to begin conservation work on the Greater and Lesser KyzKalas.The outer walls of these buildings have been seriously eroded during the centuries, leaving mudbricks hanging totally unsupported. A programme is underway, as funds permit, to rake out the loose soil under the hanging walls and dig down to the pakhsaplatform on which these buildings are constructed (P1.Xa). Having reached a firm base, a supporting mudbrick wall is built and plastered (P1. Xb). During work on the south facade of the Little Kyz Kala an entrance at lower storey level was revealed in the centre, below the raised rectangular panel (Herrmann 1999, 87, fig. 100). Finally, this year has seen the first of the final publications of the International Merv Project. Appropriately this is recording some of the monuments of the oasis, the most fragile, that is those predominantly built of mudbrick. These include residences, palatial and otherwise, pavilions, kepter khanas, and the remarkable icehouses, once well known on the Iranian plateau but still extant at Merv. The Monumentsof Merv: TraditionalBuildings of the Karakum, was published by the Society of Antiquaries of London, in November 1999. Publication of this richly illustrated volume has been made possible thanks to generous sponsorship by Monument Resources Petroleum and by Mobil E & P Ventures, to whom the IMP is deeply grateful. 1999 was the eighth season of work by the Turkmen-British archaeological collaboration, the International Merv Project, and the second year of the third, three-year collaboration, agreed in 1997 1

between the National Institute for the History of Turkmenistan of the Cabinet of Ministers, University College London and the British Museum. Permit, No. 0007 of 2 September 1999, signed by the Deputy Minister of Culture of Turkmenistan, G. Vasova, and issued to Dr. Kurbansakhatov, entitled the expedition to carry out multi-disciplinary investigations of the city-sites of Ancient Merv from 1 September to 31 October 1999. We are very grateful to the Archaeological Park "Ancient Merv"for making available to us their expedition house and for turning their new and excellent site museum into our workroom for the duration of the expedition. We thank the Director, Rejeb Dzaparov, for his ready help and support, and for lending to us two members of his staff, our representative from the Ministry of Culture, the invaluable Akmohammad Annaev, and his architect, Rejeb Akhmedov. Work began on 6 September and continued to 20 October. During this period four sets of excavations were undertaken, two in Gyaur Kala and two in Sultan Kala. The Gyaur Kala excavations were: 1. the 4-5th century Sasanian house in GyaurKala: MGK5, on which work was concluded, and 2. the walls of Gyaur Kala:MGK6. These excavations were undertaken by St J. Simpson (British Museum), V. A. Zavyalov (Institute for the History of Material Culture, St. Petersburg), N. Smirnova (Pushkin Museum, Moscow), D. Demey (University of Ghent, Belgium), K. Rutten (University of Ghent, Belgium) and E. Leoni (University of Ravenna), assisted by a volunteer, A. Pospielevski, and a number of workmen, five in Gyaur Kala Area 5 and up to fifteen on the Gyaur Kala walls. Bulldozers were hired to remove spoil and to backfill MGK 5 at the end of the season. At the dig-house the ceramics were processed by G. Puschnigg (University College London). Excavations in Sultan Kala were conducted in: the palatial building in the medieval citadel, 1. ShahryarArk, MSK 1: and 2. existing sections through the north, east, west and south fortification walls of Sultan Kala, which were cleaned to enable re-assessment of their construction history.

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Work on the palatial building was conducted by D. Wicke (University of Mfinster), A. Daems (University of Ghent) and I. Cheyne (University College London), assisted by five workmen. Work in the 1999 season was focused on recording the decorative scheme of the iwanssurrounding the principal internal courtyard. The programme of mapping the fortifications of Merv was continued by a further team consisting of A. Annaev, P. Brun and G. Akhadanat, assisted by workmen. They were joined by Professor T. Khodjaniasov (University of Ashgabat) at the beginning and end of the season. He continued work on his unfinished excavations to the north and south of the presumed Kushmeihan Gate, with the aim of determining whether there was indeed a major gate and road at this point, or whether the impressive defences were designed to protect the outflow of the Majanacanal. Towards the end of the season the walls of Abdullah Khan Kala were photographed, prior to recording in the year 2000. The ceramics were processed by D. Gilbert (University College London). Work on the excavated animal bone recovered from excavation was undertaken by I. Smith (Chester Archaeology). F. Pewtress (MOLAS) drew the ceramics and small finds, and D. Gilbert and G. Herrmann photographed the excavated coins and small finds. 126 coins from previous YuTAKE excavations were cleaned by P. Pearce (British Museum) who also conserved other finds. The Monuments programme was continued in 1999, with the focus on the mosques and mausolea of the oasis. A two-week programme was undertaken by Professor R. Hillenbrand (University of Edinburgh), D. Gye and J. Rock (University of Edinburgh, photographer), together with G. Herrmann, K. Judelson and A. Annaev. The monuments team was assisted by the architect of the Archaeological Park, R. Akhmedov. As always,the I.M.P. is deeply grateful to KathyJudelson with her incomparable linguistic skills. We were fortunate that she was with us much of the season: she also helps throughout the year. Funding for the field season was generously provided by grants received from the Max van Berchem Foundation, Geneva, the British Museum and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York*. The visit by Professor Hillenbrand was funded by the Iran Heritage Foundation. The on-going programme of post-excavation work is funded by grants from the Arts and Humanities Research Board, the British Academy, the Charlotte Bonham Carter Charitable Trust and the Max van Berchem Foundation, Geneva, while the British Institute of Persian Studies provided funds for the preparation for publication of the Monuments of Meru series. We are deeply indebted to all for their generous support.

STUDIES

A SASANIAN RESIDENTIALQUARTER: Gyaur Kala Area 5 1. Architecture,stratigraphyand smallfinds, byStJ Simpson During the 1999 season the excavations were brought to a close in this area of the site where investigations began in 1993/94. The primary aims of this final season were to check remaining stratigraphic and architectural points and excavate, where possible, a larger sample of the earliest contexts in one building (Structure C). These were successfully realised within the fortnight allotted although recording continued thereafter on a limited scale. Structure C consisted of two parts, a storeroom and four inter-connecting rooms that were used for residential and domestic purposes. It was bounded by a narrow alley on the east, from which separate doorways led into the storeroom and residential rooms, and a broader street on the south. The main architectural features and site-formation processes have been outlined in earlier preliminary reports. This season's investigations added the following principal results. A. Thestoreroom(Room606): The earliest construction phase was reached at an approximate depth of 2 m. below present ground level. The plan consisted of a rectangular room measuring 9.50 m. east/west by 2.30 m. north/south and entered from the east by a doorway 0.85 m. wide. The interior plan consisted of a long narrow gangway, between 0.70 and 1.10 m. across, surrounded on the three sides opposite the entrance by a low plastered bench, the top of which was raised between 0.15 and 0.20 m. above floor level. This bench was used to support rows of large coil-built storage jars (khums), the lightly rounded bases of which were invariably wedged with broken fired bricks or, occasionally, large potsherds, often three in number and equally spaced around the foot of the vessel (P1.If). This is a feature noted by earlier excavators of such jars in Gyaur Kala (e.g. Pumpelly 1908, 215; Katsuris and Buryacov 1963, 140, fig. 9). The primary floor, benches and walls were covered with green mud plaster. The floor and benches were repeatedly raised in later phases-as found in previous seasons-but usually plastered with a light brown mud plaster. The walls themselves remained substantially unchanged until the end of this building. The lowest floor context (ctx 1071) produced several small finds, including a red-slipped horse figurine (Fig. 1:1, P1. Ia), two curved iron knife blades and a decorated copper alloy hook. In order to test the archaeological deposits beneath this room and to the north of it a 1 m. wide section was excavated across the centre. This revealed an earlier floor level and the remains of a

INTERNATIONAL

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ON THE EIGHTH

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(1999)

3

Fig. 1. SelectedMiddleSasanian smallfindsfrom GyaurKala, Area5: 1: head of red-slippedhorsefigurine with bridle(SF10242), 2: bodyof horsefigurine withsaddle(SF4978), 3: rearend of horsefigurine(SF10283), 4: headoffigurine (SF 10279), 5: head offigurinewith diadem(SF4975), 6: headand bodyoffemalefigurine holdinga mirror(SF10253), 7:female riderfigurine holdinga mirror(SF 10282), 8: maleriderfigurinewith high cap (SF10243), 9: bodyoffemalefigurine holdinga mirror(SF10239), 10: bonepin, 11: bonepin with redinfilling on thehead (SF10286).

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plastered circular hearth, 0.66 m. across, with verti- white colour, the appearance of which superficially cal coil-built clay walls blackened on the interior and resembles plaster. Similar hearths have been supported on the outside by a thick clay plaster coat reported from a fourth century level in YuTAKE constructed from floor level and containing an ashy Trench 8 in Erk Kala (Usmanova 1991, 30). The prifill. This belonged to an earlier structure with a dif- mary fills of the hearths consisted of a thin black ash ferent function to the excavated storeroom above. followed by a densely compacted cake of white ash, Green plastered floors, a hearth and other deposits perhaps resulting from the burning of dung fuel. The upper parts of the hearths were invariably associated with a separate structure were also found of the the north wall storeroom, indicating destroyed as part of the levelling-up for the next abutting that on this side Structure C was bounded by another floor, hence the hearths only survived to a height of some 0.10 m. The regular replacement of the house rather than a street or open courtyard. B. The residentialunit (Rooms600, 603, 604, 841): hearths also suggests a relatively short lifespan for each. Further evidence was found for regular remodelling The last remaining room (Room 604), situated and refurbishment of these rooms, although each due west of Room 600, and entered through a its main function and to have characappears kept ter. During the earliest excavated phase, the square 0.70-0.90 m. wide doorway with a heavily worn plasroom in the south-west corner, measuring 2.80 m. tered brick threshold, measured 2.70 m. east/west by 3.20 m. north/south. The floors were found to have east/west by 3.50 m. north/south, appeared to open via been onto the street to the south, kept very clean, a constant feature of this room immediately directly a doorway some 1 m. across. This was the only exca- in later phases; a single small hearth, probably for vated phase during which there was direct access to heating rather than cooking, was found near the this street from this building. An architectural fea- centre of the room; other architectural features ture of this room was a low plastered bench (sufa) included a low rectangular plastered brick sufa along running along the eastern side, rising some 0.25 m. one wall and a niche in the south-west corner of the above the latest plastered floor. This door was later room. blocked and a new 0.90 m. wide doorway opened C. Thealleyand street:Excavations were continued from the adjacent room (Room 841) onto the alley along and across the alley and street located due east and south of Structure C. The removal of a door to the east. Rising floor levels in Room 841-trigstreet outside-necessitated levels blocking leading into Room 603 revealed a later gered by rising the construction of a pair of steps, covered with sequence of deposits, totalling 1.40 m. in depth. green mud plaster, sloping down some 0.70-0.80 m. These were excavated in a nearby section-deepto Room 603 (P1.Ig) before the occupants eventually ened from last season-over an area measuring blocked the connecting 0.70 m. wide doorway, 3.30 m. north/south by 1.45 m. east/west and stopinfilled the room to a depth of 0.50-0.60 m. and ping at the level of a 2.20 m. wide bricky pavement rebuilt the walls on a foundation course of single running alongside the south exterior face of Structure C. Finds from refuse deposits within this A bricks and a thick layer of bonding. semi-complete so-called "Margian goddess" figurine of a standing street included fourth-fifth century Sasanian coins, female figure holding a mirror was found in this provisionally identified by N. Smirnova (Table 1), a infilling (Fig. 1:6, P1.Ic) along with several semi-com- finely modelled head of a female figurine wearing an elaborate diadem (Fig. 1:5, P1. Ib) and two small plete or partly reconstructable pottery vessels. was the to the Room 841 east, largest sherds belonging to Sasanian thick-walled glass Immediately room in the house, measuring c. 5.10 m. north/ bowls, one belonging to a fifth century hemispherisouth by 4.75 m. east/west. Its floors were regularly cal shape with circular facets. Sadly the high degree plastered, and it presumably functioned for most if of decomposition of the glass fabrics prevents comnot all of its life as the equivalent of a sitting room. positional analysis, although the vessels were probaAccess to the last two remaining rooms was, during bly imported from Mesopotamia. Further sections were excavated along the alley. the earliest phase, from a doorway with a plastered brick threshold 0.90 m. across in the north-east cor- The general sequence of regularly alternating levelner. This entered into Room 600, a small rectangu- ling-up deposits and greenish, organic refuse-filled lar space with regularly plastered floors, ashy infill- gullies, flanked by one or more narrow pavements was repeated. Evidence was also found for in situ ings and a sequence of consecutively constructed and dismantled hearths similar to that found below burnt spots close to the doorways, suggesting the the storeroom. These were built to a standard circu- lighting here of small casual fires on a regular basis. Small finds included a complete bone pin with a lar plan, c. 0.53-0.60 m. across, with vertical coiled clay walls reinforced around the exterior with low carved head infilled with red pigment (Fig. 1:11). Sixteen sherds belonging to small or mediummud plaster kerbs. The interiors were blackened and scorched, particularly near the bottom, or burnt to a sized vessels inscribed in black ink with a single line

INTERNATIONAL

MERV PROJECT-PRELIMINARY

REPORT

ON THE EIGHTH

SEASON

(1999)

5

in cursive Parthian script were also found during the processing of the pottery. These resemble examples found in previous seasons in this building and have been reported from earlier excavations of fourth century deposits at G6bekli-depe, Erk Kala (YuTAKE Trench 8) and Gyaur Kala (YuTAKE Trench 2). They presumably have a similar content, namely marks of ownership with personal names (cf. Usmanova 1963, 182-83; Usmanova 1991). The shapes fall within the repertoire of Middle Sasanian pottery. This fact, combined with the fourth century date of the deposits in which they were found, implies that Parthian continued to be written as late as the fourth or even fifth century whereas MiddlePersian only appears on sixth century and later ostraca from the site. The completed excavations in Gyaur Kala Area 5 will now be prepared for final publication as a monograph within the planned series of Merv Excavation Reports.It will provide a detailed case study of daily life at Sasanian Merv during the fourth-fifth centuries.

uation of earlier Soviet data from Merv, and will finally enable the ceramic production of this region to be set within a broader context by comparison with other areas of the Sasanian Empire and Central Asia. Sasanian pottery shapes have proved to be highly standardised and over several excavation seasons a "core" group of vessel forms have been identified at Merv. These are distinctive and are easily recognisable in the published literature on earlier YuTAKE excavations at Merv (Plan 1). Some of the Soviet trenches in Gyaur Kala show a combination of vessel types that is similar to that found in Area 5. However, excavations in Erk Kala seem rather poor in terms of producing Middle Sasanian shapes. It is also remarkable that the vessel type referred to in Soviet literature as a "bowl with a waisted profile" that is so well documented in Area 5 is not illustrated in any of the YuTAKE publications from Erk Kala (cf. Herrmann, Kurbansakhatovand Simpson et al. 1999, 10, fig. 3). Throughout the five excavated occupational phases of Structure C, no significant changes could be detected in the range of diagnostic Sasanian pot2. TheSasanian and earlierpottery,by G. Puschnigg tery shapes. An assessment of the fine chronological The excavations in Area 5 have produced a rich and behaviour of single shapes still awaits the completion closely dated Sasanian pottery assemblage that allows of the quantitative analysis for Structure C which the first comprehensive analysis of material of this thus far only includes material up to 1997. However, period in this region. The stylistic characterisation of the overall period of occupation of this structure Middle Sasanian pottery, dating to the fourth-fifth appears to be too short for decisive changes to occur centuries, thus provides the basis for a detailed re-eval- in the associated ceramic repertoire.

Plan 1. ErkKala and GyaurKala: schematicsite-planshowingtheexcavatedoccurrenceof selecteddiagnosticMiddle Sasanian potteryforms: 1: ErkKala, YuTAKETrench3, 2: ErkKala, YuTAKESounding5, 3: ErkKala, InternationalMervProjectArea 1, 4: GyaurKala, YuTAKETrench8, 5: GyaurKala, YuTAKETrench6, 6: GyaurKala, InternationalMervProjectArea 5, 7: GyaurKala, YuTAKETrench13.

6

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OF PERSIAN

One of the street contexts (ctx 1004) produced a fragment of an incense-burner. This has a slightly angular shape with rectangular openings in the walls alternating with deep triangular cuts that imitate arrow-slits. Tower-shaped incense-burners of this type have previously been found in Soviet excavations in Gyaur-Kala (Filanovich 1978, 31) and on our own systematic surface artefact survey. Another fragment with an incised grid pattern, found in Room 604 (ctx 973) probably represents part of the base of an incense-burner (Fig. 2:2). Tower-shaped incense-burners of this type are dated to the fourth-sixth centuries in the Soviet literature (Filanovich 1978, 36). Their distinctive architectural decoration have prompted comparisons with contemporary Sasanian ceramic ossuaries, likewise decorated in imitation of fortifications (Filanovich 1978, 37). A number of these ossuaries have been found in the excavated necropolis located c.seven kilometres to the west of Gyaur Kala (Ershov 1959, 173, tab. 3). In addition, similar cut-out designs recur on fourth-fifth century portable incenseburners in central Mesopotamia (Simpson 1997, 76).

STUDIES

From a typological point of view the Area 5 pottery assemblage generally reflects a combination of unchanging Sasanian material plus a selection of earlier forms. These residual fragments show much variation in open shapes, which seem mostly to date to the Hellenistic and Parthian periods. Contexts from brickwork, door-blockings and sufas have provided a range of open bowls, including "fish-plates". These vessels also display different surface finishes. Most of the so-called "fish-plates"and related forms show a red and white bichrome effect on the surface resulting from the preferred method of stacking within the kiln. This firing technique appears particularly popular with vessels related to the Late Hellenistic and Early Parthian periods (Rutkovskaya 1962, 44). Other bowl shapes are burnished and fired in a reducing atmosphere, resulting in a polished dark grey fabric which is documented for the Parthian period in north-east Iran (Haerinck 1983, 188). Gradually more red-slipped bowls appear, some of which are very fine. Finally, parts of the pottery assemblage recovered from Structure C this year bear witness to distinct taphonomic processes. With increasing depth the

Fig. 2. SelecteddiagnosticMiddleSasanian pottery,GyaurKala Area5.

INTERNATIONAL MERV PROJECT-PRELIMINARY

destructive effects of salination on the ceramic material became more and more noticeable. Some of the semi-complete vessels found in the lower levels inside the rooms showed a thick crust of silt and salt, preventing the study of decorative detail. Fragments from these lower parts of the structure are also more brittle and flaky. The sherd material from the refuse-rich street deposits is characterised

REPORT ON THE EIGHTH SEASON

(1999)

7

by a thick greenish layer of organic deposit which covers the entire surfaces. Both processes are postdepositional; the latter has obvious implications for the preservation of pottery in the deeper occupation levels at the site. The final analysis of the pottery from this excavation area will be published in the forthcoming final report on this part of the site.

Fig. 3. SelecteddiagnosticMiddleSasanian pottery:1, 3-4, GyaurKala Area5, 2, GyaurKala Area 6.

JOURNAL OF PERSIAN STUDIES

8

3. The Coins,provisionallyidentifiedbyN. Smirnova TABLE1: Coins from the end of the 1998 and the 1999 seasons at Merv 1998 attribution

inv.no.

weight

size

thickness

Provenance

note

MGK6, 71 MGK6, 1

Margiana Margiana? Margiana?

type 3?

Parthian Phraates IV(38-2B.C.).

1.

9741

3.20

18

3

Artabanus II? (10-38).

2.

9739

4.58

18

7

3. 4. 5.

9724

2.01 2.9

17 15

6 3

4805

2.06

14

3.5

MGK6, 6 MGK, 7F.III MGK5, 658

6.

4832 4944

1.02 1.40

15 17

2 3

MGK5, 707 MGK5, 948

9721 4800

1.24 1.13

13x14.5 17

2

MGK6, 66

2

9727 9714

0.47

9.5

3

MGK5, 851 MGK6, 1

Fragment

1.23

17.5

1.5

0.21 0.55

9

1.5

MGK6, 36 MGK6, 1

top of bastion

2 1

Margiana Margiana

Sasanian Shapur II?

7. 8. 9.

type 5

Peroz?

10.

KavadI?

11.

Husro I? Varahran IV?

12. 13.

9734

time of Varahran IV?

14.

4901

0.50

14x12.5 14

Sasanian, 5th century Sasanian?

15.

9742 4833

0.22

10

1

0.32 1.81

13.5

1

18

3

1.18

18

1.5

MGK5, 830-74 MGK5, 850 MGK6, 1

3.05

22

2.5

MGK4

inv.no.

weight

size

thickness

Provenance

4974 4968

1.84

12

3.5

MGK5, street?

Margiana

2.85

18.5

3

0,75 1.29 3.13

16

2

MGK5, 1002 MGK5, 1038

Margiana ?

17.5

3

15

4

19

16. 17.

Abbasid? + 1 unidentified coin

18.

4802 9735

19.

MGK4, 1 MGK5, 740 MGK6, 36

Fragment new? fragment 2 fragments Erased

1999 Attribution

note

Parthian Vologases III (105-47) (Pilipko: V.2)

1. 2. 3. 4.

10200 4997

5. (near Pilipko, group VI) Rv?

MGK5, 904 wall Surface

Margiana? Margiana? II-III A.D.? Parthian?

6.

9971

3.69

7.

10259 9747

2.09

13

2,5 4

2.86

16

3

MGK5, 1071 MGK6, 66, SG

late?

2.56

14

1

MGK 7DE.III, surface

late?

8. 9.

MSK 1, 301

Sasanian Shapur I Varahran II

1.

10202

2.50

17.5

2

MGK5, 1045

2. 3.

9748 10206

2.71 2.58

18.5 15

2 2.5

MGK5, 1 MGK5, 603 MGK5, 1023 MGK 5, 1036

Merv king for Shapur I? Merv king for Shapur I?

4.

4995

0.88

17

4

Merv king for Shapur I?

5.

4998

1.22

17

3

type IX new?

INTERNATIONAL

Shapur II

type 5

MERV PROJECT-PRELIMINARY

Peroz?

Varahran IV? Kushano-Sasanian ? Late Sasanian

ON THE EIGHTH

SEASON

(1999)

6.

4966

1.95

7.

4979

1.56

8.

4990

14.5

9.

10121

0,48 1.06

2 1

18

2

10.

10200

0.75

16

2

11.

10201

0.39

14.5

2

12. 13.

10215

0.88

16

3

10249

1.76

17

2.5

14.

10229

1.37

16

2

15.

10252

1.83

17

2.5-4

MGK5, 1018 MGK5, 1071

16.

10255

1.00

16

2-3

MGK 5, 1

type 5

17.

0.88

18.5

2

18.

10256 9744

1.65

18

fragment type 5?

19.

9745

2.19 1.29

20.5 16

2.5 1.5

MGK5, street MGK 6, 66, SG

3

MGK6, 126, SG MGK5, 1053

type 5? type 4 type 5? type 5?

20.

Shapur III

REPORT

20 16

2.5

MGK5, 1002 MGK5, 1004 MGK5, 1019

type 5? type 5?

MGK5, 1018 MGK5, 1038

type 5? type 5?

MGK5, 1045 MGK5, 1040 MGK5, 1079

?

21.

10228

1.69

17.5

2

MGK5, 1071

22.

1.58

16

MGK 6, 40

0.99

15-16 -

2 1.5

23.

9752 4967

24.

10210

25.

4972

0,20 0.35

26.

4992

0.53

27.

10205

28.

10207

1.29 1.34

29. 30.

10251 9938

31.

10217

32. 33.

14

0,5 2

MGK5, surface MGK5, 1045 MGK5, 1003

12.5 17

2

MGK5, unstrat.

2

15

3

MGK5, 1045 MGK 5, 949

1.55

15.5

1.5

0.23 1.17

10

1

14

0.35

14

2 1

1.35

16

MGK5, 1079 MSK 1, surface

type 3 type 3

Fragments Street to S.

MGK5, 1057

? courtyard new?

2

MGK, 7DE.III Early Sas. House

surface

surface

Sasanian unidentified

Islamic

34.

4984

0.45

15

1.5

MGK5, 1019

35.

4982

16.5

2 3

MGK5, 1015 MGK5, 1114

37.

10247 4973

0.62 1.18

13

36.

1.31

18

3.5

38.

4987

15.5

2

39.

4989

0.72 0.41

15

40.

4996

1.05

18

2 4

MGK5, 1003 MGK5, 1020 MGK5, 1020

41.

4999

14.5

42.

9960

0.20 1.80

22

44. 45.

13101

2.29 1.13 2.27

17.5 21 27.5

46.

13100

2.57

27

43.

Khorezmshah, Tekesh (1172-1200) + 7 unidentified coins

2 1 3

MGK5, 1023 MGK5, 1018

Fragment

MSK 1, 301 surface

1.5 0.5

MGK, 7DE.III MGK, 7DE.III MSK8

0.5

Little KyzKala

surface

surface

9

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4. Thezooarchaeological remains:faunal/body part and taphonomicindications,byI. Smith representation Methods: The fieldwork has been conducted at two levels of recording. Firstly weights, fragment counts and fragment size ranges have been calculated for cranial, axial and limb bone elements. These categories have been further subdivided into large, medium and small mammal, bird, reptile and fish bone. Secondly, records have been made of the following selected elements: mandibles with two or more teeth, scapula, humerus, radius, ulna, metapodial, pelvis, femur, tibia, calcaneus, astragalus, phalanx 1, 2 and 3. Records were made of context, species, element, side, proximal and distal fusion, fragmentation, preservation, butchery, sex and selected measurements. Aims: The main aim is to investigate differences between context types, phases and parts of the site through a basic quantification of element types and to relate this to other artefactual evidence. Ultimately, it is intended to produce information on age structures, butchery practices, taphonomic factors and body part representation at intra and inter-site levels, and to reveal how different cultural groups at Merv are represented by faunal remains. Results from Gyaur Kala Area 5: Sheep and goat dominate the fauna according to the percentages of recorded selected elements. Pig, cattle, equid, dog, camel and gazelle are also present. These results are remarkable in their similarity to those obtained from the same area in 1997 (Smith 1998, 57). Another aspect common to the two datasets is the level (22%) of recorded carnivore gnawing. It can be expected that this process will have discriminated against the bones of young animals and against small bones in general. A related factor is the presence of partly digested bone which occurs in a number of contexts and which signifies that dogs swallowed bone elements or chunks of bone which became damaged by their strong stomach acids. The bones affected include the smaller distal elements of the medium-sized mammals which could have been swallowed whole, and fragments of other bones (such as long-bone shaft fragments) which sometimes also bear gnawing marks. The presence of these carnivore damaged bones may indicate that rubbish was disposed in situations where dogs or other canids could regularly scavenge, such as streets, open pits or middens, and/or that bones were deliberately

STUDIES

thrown to dogs. Comparisons between internal and external deposits are planned and hopefully this work will help in the interpretation of carnivore activities. The records of weight from MGK5 are given as percentages in Table 3. These show the relative weights from a sample of 1559 fragments. No fragments were excluded from the sample which comes from 34 contexts selected at random. Thus it includes a range of bone from tiny fragments which remain unidentified, to near-complete sheep limb bones. This method allows the rapid quantification of all fragments including those which are not in the selected list of diagnostics. The weakness of such an approach is demonstrated by the fact that in the large mammal group there may be camel, horse and cattle bones yet it is not clear what proportion each of these animals made to the total. However, it is thought that this method is useful when used in conjunction with the results of the work based on selected elements (Table 2). The large proportion of limb bone fragments (Table 3) amongst both large and medium sized mammals appears to suggest that in addition to the supply of whole carcasses, limb bones were supplied to this part of the site as separate joints. Analysis of context type groups is still at an early stage but a number of street contexts have been studied. One point of interest is the heavy fragmentation of many of the large mammal bones. In some cases it is clear that this is due to butchery but in others, although butchery may well be the cause of fragmentation, no clear chop marks can be seen. In one street context (ctx 857) there is a heavily fragmented equid radius, and one could argue that-given the context typethe degree of fragmentation is likely to be the result of trampling. However, in the same context there is a pig pelvis with an intact ilium, sheep/goat ribs (of 146 mm.), and sheep/goat scapulae with virtually intact blades. Furthermore there seems to be no evidence on the equid radius for trample in the form of random scratch marks on the surfaces of the bone. Thus it seems more likely, in this case, that butchery is the cause of fragmentation. One can speculate that a vital factor in the consideration of fragmentation within street deposits is the depth of such deposits. The more substantial levelling or dumping layers might be expected to protect their inclusions from mechanical damage whereas any material deposited within a thin surface layer is likely to be crushed.

INTERNATIONAL MERV PROJECT-PRELIMINARY

REPORT ON THE EIGHTH SEASON (1999)

11

Frequency of recorded fauna from MGK5(n = 506)

% 8070-605040--

3020p/goat

10

Sheep/goat TABLE 2: Frequency

Pig

Cattle

Horse/ass

Camel

Gazelle

Dog

Pig

Cattle

Horse/ass

Camel

Gazelle

Dog

of recorded fauna from Gyaur KalaArea 5 based on the selected elements listed in methods.

Bone weight percentages (n = 1559 fragments) 35-E 30-25 o 20 15-

10

-

0-

LM cranial

LM axial

LM limb

MM MM cranial axial

MM limb

SM cranial

SM limb

BD limb

WUNID

TABLE 3: Bone weights from grouped animal bones from Gyaur KalaArea 5. (LM = large mammal, MM = medium mammal, SM = small mammal, BD = bird, UNID = unidentified). Cranial weight includes maxillary and mandibular teeth, axial includes ribs and vertebrae, limb bone includes pelvic and scapula weights. Large mammal includes camel, equid and cattle. Medium mammal includes pig, sheep/goat, gazelle and dog. The few small mammal fragments are of rodent.

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THE SELEUCID-SASANIANFORTIFICATIONS GyaurKala Area 6, by V.A. Zavyalovand StJ. Simpson Work began on 22 September and continued to the end of the season. The aim was to complete a new section through the fortifications and to excavate in plan where possible. The results proved the sequence to be more complex than suggested by the 1997/98 investigations but added important new details (compare Herrmann, Kurbansakhatov and Simpson et al. 1998, 64-67, pl. VII; Herrmann, Kurbansakhatov and Simpson et al. 1999, 15-16, pls. III-IV). Phase 1: During 1998 the remains of a wallwalk with a plastered floor and a plastered semi-circular pilaster were discovered near the summit of the presumed Hellenistic wall. This area was expanded and a section commenced through the wall. A second similar pilaster was discovered two metres to the south of the first (P1.IIa-b). This pilaster was better preserved and survived to a height of c. 1.75 m., with the plastered top indicating the full original height of the Hellenistic wall. The function of these pilasters was therefore structural rather than decorative and was to support the thin breastwork (epalxion) which was one course thick at this point. The top of the wall was crenellated (P1. IIc) but no traces of slits have been found. The wallwalk behind was a metre across (P1. IIa-b), implying that it was used by foot soldiers, although artillery may have been mounted on the towers. There are no indications of a superstructure. One metre below the level of the parapet floor the top of a vaulted arch was uncovered while excavating a new section (Pls. IId, IIIa, b). This arch was supported by plastered cross-walls that defined a small room (P1. IIe). Opposite the vaulted arch, a metre to the east, ran a green plastered wall delimiting the inner face of a second wallwalk, the chafftempered mud-plaster floor of which continued into the vaulted bay. Immediately above the plastered floor lay a large concentration of sundried, clay, eggshaped slingshot, 7-13 cm. across and weighing between 200-1300 gr. each, fired clay tetrahedra, measuring 10-18 cm. across and weighing between 300-2000 gr., and a single large camel-bone. The room was therefore used for the storage of ammunition rather than simply being an infilled casemate (emplecton).A further cluster of clay slingshot was discovered immediately below the plastered floor of the upper wallwalk where they had been used as part of an infilling. The lower part of this defensive curtain and the pakhsa socle have not yet been fully excavated. However, a third wallwalk is expected, as is a massive proteichisma,the edge of which was exposed at the

STUDIES

end of the season below a Phase 3 proteichisma. Excavation along the interior face of the wall exposed a steeply sloping plastered surface which was followed-by removing a thick later sand infilling--almost to the present water table. This plastered surface requires sectioning but it offers a rare opportunity to examine the original appearance of the inner face of a Hellenistic wall. The layout of the defences of Gyaur Kala were based on a "straight-line"principle, whereby the circuit was equally accessible from the interior but would nevertheless have required considerable expense and a considerable garrison, both doubtless subsidised by the urban inhabitants. The exact date of construction of the first fortifications is uncertain, but the available written sources for this period provide a useful context against which they should be viewed. Later sources refer to Merv as an Alexandrian foundation but these are of dubious reliability (Fraser 1996, 31, 91, 116-18). In the early third century B.C. Margiana appears to have been attacked by Parni tribes as part of the Dahae confederacy: these were repulsed on behalf of Seleucus I (c. 305-281) by Demodamus, satrap of Bactria. According to Strabo, Margiana was reconstructed and enclosed within a long wall, the probable remains of which have been identified near the edge of the oasis. Again during the reign of Antiochus I Soter (c. 281-261), Merv was refounded as Antiocheia in Margiane. It is reasonable to assume that Gyaur Kala was fortified on this occasion and that the first wall dates to the second quarter of the third century B.C. Later historical sources are unfortunately scanty and ambiguous. In c. 245 B.C., Arsaces I (c. 248/247-before 210) attempted to seize Margiana but was defeated by Diodotus I of Bactria. According to some scholars, Euthydemus ruled Margiana and Aria as governor on behalf of the Seleucid satrap Diodotus II of Bactria (c. 236-221). It is hoped that the discovery of coins associated with the fortifications might throw some light on these later phases in the Hellenistic history of the city. Phase2: Tashkhodjaev (1963) proposed that there was a second wall constructed immediately in front of the so-called "Hellenistic Wall", a hypothesis confirmed at the end of the season. This new construction made use of a deliberate brick infilling of the upper and lower wallwalks of the Phase 1 wall to create a solid construction measuring c. 4.5 m. (twelve courses) across in total; the bricks infilling the upper wallwalk continued over the plastered top of the Hellenistic wall to a height of 1.50 m., also implying a higher summit (Pls. IIb-c, e, IIIa, b). Some of the bricks employed in the infilling were marked on the underside, as were a number of bricks in the original wall. Both included Greek letters, simple vertical or diagonal finger marks drawn across the clay and dog

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paw prints impressed on the mudbricks before they were dry. These presumably reflect, at least in part, a form of alphabetic notation either during brick manufacture or construction of the walls. Although it was sealed by later Sasanian deposits, direct archaeological evidence for the date of this construction is lacking, apart from a small number of potsherds reused in bonding between bricks. These include some diagnostic sherds which could date to the third or second century B.C. The greater solidity of this wall suggests concern on the part of those responsible over the threat caused by mechanised assault, particularly heavy stone-throwers, which sparked a new phase in Hellenistic defensive architecture after c. 325 B.C. (McNicoll 1997, 212). Phase 3: This was a wall and not, as Tashkhodjaev (1963) proposed, a Parthian tower. It was constructed immediately in front of the former solid wall and was a "hollow wall", standing two or more stories in height, originally possibly with a wallwalk along the top, although this has not survived. The lower archers' gallery is indicated by a row of large rectangular arrowslits, exposed during the 1997 season but not yet excavated inside (cf. Herrmann, Kurbansakhatov and Simpson et al. 1998, 64-67, pl. VIIc-d) plus a large arrow-shaped false slit between (P1. IIIc). This measures 1.35 m. in height and up to 0.45 m. across and resembles arrowslits found at Old Nysa (Levina 1949, 139) and Afrasiab (Chichkina 1986). The upper gallery was excavated in 1999, exposing a row of five arrowslits along the exterior before reaching the junction with a massive semi-circular corner bastion. The three slits closest to the bastion are aligned to enable clear fields of fire along the bastion face (P1. IVc): the fourth slit directly enfiladed a sally-port in the proteichismabeneath (P1. IIId). The position of this concealed postern would have allowed defenders to sally with their shielded left sides facing outwards, whereas attackers would have exposed their unshielded side. The method of closing this sally-port is unclear, as no traces of a pivot-stone survived, perhaps because it had been removed at the time of abandonment of this wall in the next phase. As McNicoll (1997, 103) commented in connection with Hellenistic defences at Dura and Coressus, "the sally-ports.., .bear witness to the desire to carry resistance to the enemy rather than to leave the initiative in his hands". The proteichismahas been more fully excavated this season and curves in a semi-circular plan to follow the presumed alignment of the bastion face (P1.IIId). The proteichismastands on a high platform, at least 2.50 m. in height, although the base has not yet been reached. Angled slits in the proteichisma were designed to enfilade the base of this platform. In addition, a plastered step ran around the exterior

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of the proteichisma,as an outer walkwayas well as an added obstacle to an attacker: this step was 2 m. across and raised 0.50 m. above the level of the platform (P1. IVa). Its surface was carefully plastered to create an even slope to allow water to drain from the base of the wall. The outer face of the platform itself has a complex configuration, stepped when seen in plan, thus resembling a feature described by Philon of Byzantium whereby the "saw-tooth trace" enabled archers to enfilade from two directions (McNicoll 1997). Beyond this platform there may have been ditches but, if so, these have not yet been located and are likely to have been adversely affected by medieval and later irrigation ditch digging. Phase 4: The lower gallery of the Phase 3 wall was infilled, the top of the proteichismawas levelled and a steep sloping bermconstructed over the top, rising to the base of the second storey of the Phase 3 wall (P1. IVb). This presumably now became the first but, if so, the storey of a rebuilt-heightened-wall upper part has not survived, owing to reconstruction in Phase 5. The berm was constructed of wellcompacted clay and mudbricks. Incorporated within the construction near the foot was a deposit of human, cattle, equid and sheep/goat bones. The significance of this apparently ritual deposit is unclear, but damage to the articular ends suggests that they were already old when they were interred. The abandonment of the earlier proteichismamarks the end in this sequence of the classical tradition of defensive

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Phase5: During the next phase of the remodelling of the fortifications, the upper part of the Phase 4 wall was levelled, the Phase 3/4 slits blocked (P1.IVd) and a new vaulted gallery constructed, with the arch supported on new walls built immediately above the Phase 4 floor level. This gallery, first exposed in 1998, was narrower than the previous one. It lacks slits, and its function may have been simply to offer access to the corner bastion. The bastion itself was also reconstructed in this phase with a vertical outer face rather than the steeply sloped facade of its predecessor. The inner-east-facing-facade of the Sasanian wall was carefully and repeatedly plastered to form a level open walkway around the interior face of the wall and corner bastion. The lowermost of these deposits directly overlaid the remains of the Phase 2 wall. Several, as yet unidentified, coins have been recovered from these plaster deposits. Phase 6: The Sasanian gallery was later blocked with mudbricks, large potsherds and refuse (P1.IVe). Four coins have been recovered from these contexts, two of which have been provisionally identified by Smirnova as minted by Shapur II (309-379). This is a small basis for dating this infilling, and the coins may

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twelfth century date of construction. In the centre was a square courtyard measuring 8.5 m. across. This was paved with fired bricks, consistently measuring 30 cm. square, laid to form a cross shape within a square frame (P1. VIb). The four corners of the square are laid with bricks arranged diagonally but there appears to be a slight depression in the centre, possibly indicating a drainage sump here. The initial phase of occupation was marked by stucco decoration, all traces of which were removed when the decoration was remodelled in a second Seljuk phase. The fragmentary remains of the earliest stucco were found reused as make-up for a raised level of floor in the north iwan, which measured some 15-20 cm. higher than the level of the adjacent paved courtyard. Carved and painted stucco was found in situ up to a height of approximately one metre along the interior walls of the south (1998) and north iwans (P1.V). More stucco in situ came to light on the piers THE PALATIALBUILDING IN SHAHRYARARK, of the corridor walls (P1. VIa) onto the interior MSK 1 courtyard and in the niched corners of the outer corridor walls. The main elements of the stucco were 1. Architectureand stratigraphy,byD. Wickeand stepped panels with decorative motifs in their centre StJ. Simpson (Pls. Vb and c, VIa). Another common motif is that Excavation of the palatial building began in the of four tulip shapes within a cruciform frame. Fleurdomestic area in 1995-97. In 1998 excavations were de-lys designs in rows and quatrefoil designs in sepashifted to the east end, where the surface plan rate blocks also occur. Frames for the decorative appeared to indicate a four-iwan plan. This was panels are provided either by simple ribbon or knot partly confirmed in 1998 with the excavation of an decoration and/or lozenge/triangle designs incoriwan on the southern side of a paved central court- porating X patterns. In the corner niches of the yard. The remains of Seljuk cut and painted geo- outer corridor walls in the south-west, south-east, metric stuccoes were found to survive here to a north-east and north-west corners of the courtyard it height of 1 m., confirming this to be the higher-sta- was possible to establish another design consisting of tus and public part of the building (Herrmann, a "bow-tie"with a dot on all four sides in a framed et and Kurbansakhatov field. Fragments from the vicinity of the east iwan al. 1999, 16-17, Simpson revealed floral motifs (P1.VIc). The motifs are also pls. V-VI). The aims for 1999 were to confirm the overall closely comparable to stucco designs and decorative cut bricks in the galleries and courtyard of the mauplan of the eastern part of the building, together with its decorative system: areas for excavation were soleum of Sultan Sanjar (1118-1157), and other selected accordingly. Area H was an extension of the Seljuk buildings at Merv (cf. Rempel 1963, 259, 1998 excavation area to both the west and east to 262-63). include the southern corridors of the presumed Although the south iwan (4.5 x 5 m.) has nothing western and eastern iwans. Area K to the north was leading off it, there is access to a small room (3 x 4 m.) from the north iwan, which measures planned to reveal the arrangement of the northern corridors of the west and east iwans and to establish 4.5 x 5 m. The presumed east iwan survived to a whether there was access to the presumed north higher level than the others and turned out to have iwan and paved inner courtyard from the north. An undergone major changes with regard to its architecadditional area, L, to the west was also necessary ture. Indeed, no evidence was found for an iwan. because of questions arising about the original Instead the original plan-partly excavated-conentrance. sisted of two massive square piers, each measuring 1 x 1.2 m. across, which must have supported the The building rests on a pakhsa platform, encountered in a sounding under the paved floor of the superstructure. There was no evidence for corridors internal courtyard and in soundings along the either side, but this is not surprising as they were not north, east and south exterior walls. A small sound- required for purposes of access to the rest of the building. Instead there was a single narrow wall runing in the inner courtyard (0.50 x 1.0 m.) yielded several potsherds suggesting a late eleventh or early ning from the west pier to the east exterior wall, con-

be residual. However, they do imply a fourth century or later date for Phase 6, and a fourth century or earlier date for Phase 5. Phases 3 and 4 may, therefore, date to the Early Parthian and Late Parthian/Early Sasanian periods, although the identification of further coins is required to substantiate this hypothesis. The primary aim of excavating a full new section through the fortifications was not realized this season but is expected to be concluded, along with excavation inside the bastion, during the next season. The spectacular state of preservation, particularly of the Phase 1 and 3 walls, ensure an important contribution toward the study of military architecture in Central Asia. A comparative analysis of these fortifications and illustration of the full section will follow further excavation and analysis of the stratified finds.

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sisting of a 30 cm. wide mudbrick partition wall with a row of vertically arranged mudbricks, constructed on a footing of five courses of fired brick. The main east wall of this structure was constructed in two parts, namely a central section constructed of pakhsa and an additional part constructed of mudbrick. This poorly built wall differs from the standard Seljuk construction as seen in the south wall, of mudbrick on fired brick foundations (Herrmann, Kurbansakhatovand Simpson 1999, 17). The question of the use of the building after its main period of occupation proved to be interesting. As emerges from the above description the north and east areas of the building underwent a major change in function. Only a small distance above the original floor of the northern end of the so-called east iwan evidence was found for secondary use and also of the paved courtyard, complete with a small hearth. At least two further floor levels of habitation were found in this area. A secondary brick installation was also added in the south-west corner of the room. In an important phase of secondary use-probably during or after the Ilkhanid period-the courtyard entrance of the north iwan was defined by a single course of mudbricks constructed across the front. Within this iwan, narrow benches faced with mudbrick but filled with rubble were built along the west and east walls, and around the adjoining room to the north (P1.Va). The walls above the sufas were coated with a thin layer of white wall plaster, as was the floor inside; no traces of the earlier stucco decorative scheme were therefore visible in this phase. The subsequent floor and courtyard deposits consisted of a thick light brown deposit resembling in colour, smell and consistency the appearance of dried dung. The axis of this building had therefore remained the same but the quality and style of architectural decoration had changed considerably from that of the Seljuk period. It is likely that the secondary occupation of the north-eastern area of the south iwan (excavated in 1998) also belongs to this phase of secondary occupation. After this last phase of rebuilding, no further major reoccupation seems to have taken place, if we disregard what are probably no more than the traces of open fires. Since that time the building has accumulated erosion material to a depth of between 1 and 1.5 m. Questions requiring investigation in 2000 include those regarding the architectural and decorative arrangement of the presumed west iwan and the question of access. Area L has yielded up-but not yet conclusively-the first interesting leads in this connection, and it is necessary to link this in with the domestic area in the west of the building. The phases of secondary occupation in the so-called east iwan also need further investigation. The secondary occu-

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pation phases here can shed light not only on the history of this small palace but also on the occupation history of the citadel of Sultan Kala and of postSeljuk Merv. 2. Technicalreporton thestucco,byP. Pearce Carved stucco and painted plaster were examined both in situ on the walls of MSK1 and as fallen fragments. The carved stucco is in layers approximately 2 cm. thick with carving approximately 1 cm. deep. In many areas original pigment is preserved in the carved recesses. In situ the carved stucco can be found on either fired brick or mudbrick. On fired brick the pure white stucco is usually applied without an intermediary layer, but on mudbrick there tends to be a middle layer of coarser plaster, often with a pinkish hue from a granular inclusion. The stucco bonds well to fired brick and even on mudbrick the stucco is able to survive the necessary physical pressures of excavation and cleaning for photography, etc. In some areas there is a visible "bellying out" lower down in the panel, where the stucco has lost contact with the substrate. The stucco is carved rather than moulded and was presumably executed with a sharp metal implement. The stucco on the east wall of the north iwan shows evidence of the tool slipping in usage and leaving jagged cut marks. The design is not completed in all areas and there are many examples of a lightly incised outline awaiting carving. There are also elements roughed out and not finished. This is different to the technique used in the gallery of the mausoleum of Sultan Sanjarwhere the design was guided by equally spaced incised vertical lines that cut across all areas of the patterns. Finally, there were faint traces of a graffito on fallen stucco collected from the west pier of the south iwan in Area H. It is not currently possible to determine what this represents. The pigment, where it survives, is usually well bonded and can bear brushing to remove mud etc. These pigments are usually either dark blue/black/ grey (especially on the long straight cuts) and a brilliant orange-red-pink. Occasionally there is a golden yellow, both in the carving and on the vertical plane of the stucco. Compositional analysis of pigments is programmed within the Department of Scientific Research in the British Museum. In some instances the decoration has been changed during occupation with either a coat of thick white paint visible on Small Find 11126, where the white paint has covered coloured areas, and this is evident even on some larger pieces. Another occupational change is filling up the carving with thick plaster, which is visible on Small Find 11160. Windowframe and glass. A quantity of fragmentary window glass was excavated in MSK1Area H but only

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three pieces were found still in their original stucco settings (ctx 473, 476, 477). The glass was decayed and weathered with a brown incrustation, but showed little colour at the broken edges against the light. Additional stucco fragments from one context (ctx 477) showed the deep grooves for fitting glass. Painted thin plaster "skim".There have been a few patches of in situ white plaster skim over mud plaster and of fallen thin painted plaster. The latter are usually less than 2 mm. thick and have been applied over a coarse mud plaster with obvious organic inclusions (grass, chaff, etc.). Being so thin, they have not survived well and are liable to damage during excavation, as they are soft when damp. When they dry out they do harden, but tend to be brittle and crumbly. The fallen pieces have usually come away attached to uneven lumps of coarse mud plaster. The pigmented fragments were decorated in loops of black with areas of blue, both pigments being lightly powdery and liable to come away with aggressive brushing. Post-excavationchanges. Both the carved stucco and the thin plaster skims toughen up with drying. In the case of carved stucco, small pigmented slabs (approximately 10 cm. square) make easily exhibitable items in their own right. Carved stucco on fired brick is a very hardy item. In situ stucco also hardens as it dries. There is the distinct possibility that some crispness of detail is lost if it is brushed too vigorously before this occurs. Cracks widen with drying out. Along the east side of the north iwan there was some sort of crystal growth that obscured detail. This developed towards the end of the day as the light went after approximately seven hours of exposure. The growth was more of a gradually formed incrustation rather than needle-like crystals and had the effect of fogging over the decoration. Joins in the stucco were difficult to stick with just HMG cellulose nitrate adhesive. The stucco has to be well dried out before it can be attempted and the joins need to be as clean as possible. Surfaces to be glued have to be given a sealing coat of adhesive first. 3. Thepottery,byD. Gilbert The excavations in MSK1 this season produced over 6000 sherds, of which 366 were diagnostic. Since the building was initially an elite residence, it was kept clean, and there was little build up of material during this phase. However, the upper erosion and collapse layers produced almost 40 kg. of sherds. The basic quantification of the ceramics was completed in the field and the final analyses are underway in preparation for the final report. The following summary is designed to give a flavour of the principal types of plain and glazed wares excavated thus far in the different parts of the building.

STUDIES

A. Plainwares Plainwares are the most common type of ceramic from the site and come in a wide variety of forms and styles (Figs. 4-5). Jars: The example illustrated is a typical example of an Islamic plainware from Merv. The form has a long tradition and is derived from eighth century styles, identified during earlier YuTAKEexcavations. These earlier versions are not as tall as Seljuk types. The form is that of an open jar. The handles are decorative rather than functional. The vessel was presumably used for storage, although the lid has not survived. Incisedjugs and pitchers:These vessels are uniform in shape with a high neck, slightly wider at the mouth than at the shoulder, rounded shoulders tapering inwards towards the base, a strap handle and, rarely, a pouring lip (Fig. 4:1-3). The base diameter varies between 8-14 cm., averaging approximately 12 cm. The overall height is between 30-60 cm. The diameter of the neck of the jug varies between 4-8 cm., averaging 6 cm., with a simple rolled rim. The majority of these vessels occur in a grey-green fabric. The shoulder is delimited by incised lines and heavily decorated with incised patterns opposite the handle and under the lip, if present. Sometimes the shoulder is incised with patterns suggestive of flowing liquid. The rest of the body is plain. The neck is rarely decorated but occasionally has a few incised lines or waves near the rim. The survivabilityof this type of vessel is good, as the base and lower body walls are thick and do not fragment heavily. Ewershave a globular body and a flat base, a tall neck, a small strap handle and an upwards-pointing spout. The body of these vessels is relatively thin, and the neck is even thinner, not good for preservation. The most identifiable part to survive is the spout, which tends to be thick and durable. These vary in size from 4-8 cm. in length, averaging 6 cm., and 1-3 cm. in diameter at the body junction. The spout is usually plain, although sometimes decorated with an incised tapered spiral (Fig. 5:2). The body is also often plain but again sometimes incised with lines or wave patterns. The ewer appears to be a common vessel type, judging by the quantity of spouts recovered. Ewers are in general fired to a buff colour, occasionally grey-green. Pilgrimflasks have an enclosed form, a squat flattened body with two small handles and a short circular spout (Fig. 4:5). The overall diameter varies from 15 to 30 cm. The handles are fitted onto the top of the body either side of the spout in a manner which would allow suspension, in which case the spout would be vertical. The spout is quite short, from 2 cm. on the smallest flasks and up to 4-5 cm. on the larger examples. The walls of the flask are relatively

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Fig. 5. Seljuk ceramicsfrom Sultan Kala.

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thin and thus do not survive well. The most identifiable part of the flask is the spout and handles with their unusual method of attachment to the body. The latter are generally approximately 4 cm. long on smaller flasks but up to 8 cm. on larger examples. Incised lines and patterns, similar to that on the jugs and pitchers, is occasionally found on these vessels. Other incised wares. Incised patterns are not restricted to pitchers or flasks. The decoration is usually linear or in the form of waves, in both cases executed using a comb prior to firing. In some cases more elaborate patterns are incised. One of the most unusual examples belongs to a plainware bottle with an incised Kufic inscription (Fig. 4:4). This type of inscription appears to be rare at Merv as most are in a pseudo-script. The bottle has a wide body, narrowing sharply towards the base and neck. Moulded wares:The form of these vessels, flasks, jugs and bottles, is generally closed (Fig. 4:6-12). Their walls are relatively thin and they fragment heavily, often surviving as sherds no more than 2-4 cm. across. Full forms could not be reconstructed, although the appearance of the decoration on the sherds resembles that found on more complete vessels excavated by earlier YuTAKE expeditions. Due to fragmentation, the size of vessels is also uncertain: bases are 6-12 cm. in diameter and the height ranges from 10-20 cm. The fired fabrics tend to be grey-green in colour although occasional pieces are oxidised to a buff or reddish colour. The moulded designs are usually floral, often combining dots and combed lines over the mould junctions. Moulded roundels, stars, pentagrams and Kufic inscriptions also feature. The bases of these vessels are rounded; the necks are separately wheel-thrown but left plain. Alborellosare relatively common in the Seljuk period, as shown by the increased number found in the lower layers of MSK1 (Fig. 5:3). The most identifiable part of this form is a shaved chamfer on the outside of the body wall just above a flat wheelthrown base. Base diameters varyfrom 6-12 cm. The walls are relatively thin, hence the survivabilityof this form is not good, and the associated rim type has not been confirmed. These vessels are generally fired to a grey-green colour with small numbers of buff examples. Basins are open, wide and shallow (Fig. 6:4-7). Their size varies from 26-36 cm. at the rim but generally average between 30-34 cm. The rims are simple, slightly thickened and usually everted; a small number of inverted rims also exist. The bases are invariably flat. The vessels are usually fired to a greyish buff colour. They are usually undecorated, but some examples were decorated with comb-incised lines and wave patterns on the upper exterior. The survivabilityof this form is good, as they do not tend to fragment easily.

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B. Glazedwares(Fig. 6) A small number of mouldedsherds were found, covered with a green glaze. A single, possibly postSeljuk alborellowas found, covered in a mottled brown-yellow glaze. The forms and sizes of basins match those found in plainware. Most glazed examples are covered with a green glaze, although yellow and a single blue example are also attested. These glazed versions appear to increase in frequency in the late Seljuk and Ilkhanid levels, when there also appears to be a downturn in the rim (Fig. 6:5). Three types of lamp are represented, usually glazed. The first type has a circular body with a large heavy squared spout opposite a small ring handle. This type tends to be uniform in size, with base diameters of 4-6 cm. and covered in green glaze, although plainware equivalents do exist (Fig. 5:1). The second type consists of a lamp on a pedestal, 6-10 cm. high, above a small circular base, with a strap handle connecting the base to the lamp. The basic form resembles that of the first but with the addition of a pedestal and the replacement of a strap for a ring handle. It is scarce, and the few examples found are green glazed. The third type is the most common. It consists of a simple wheel-thrown form with a base diameter of 4 cm., a rim diameter of 6-7 cm., thin walls and a lip formed by pinching the rim between the thumb and forefinger, with a small ring handle added to the opposite wall. These lamps are invariably glazed, sometimes green but usually yellow. Black underglazewares have been regarded as a diagnostic of the Ilkhanid period during YuTAKE excavations at Merv. The most common form from MSK 1 is an open hemispherical bowl with a ring base and rim diameter of 16-24 cm. or a larger deeper dish with an extenuated upturned rim measuring 20-28 cm. across: base diameters range from 6-12 cm. across. They are covered with a white slip, decorated with black designs and covered with a deep blue glaze (Fig. 6:1-3, 8). Lustrewaresare rare, perhaps because these tend to fragment heavily to sherds averaging less than 2 cm. across. Both bottles and ring-based bowl forms are nevertheless present. The best-preserved piece, a "Kashan Ware", was recovered from excavations at the Kushmeihan Gate and belonged to a ringbased bowl with figural representation and a potter's mark on the underside of the base (Fig. 6:11 and P1. IXc). Chineseporcelain.A single fragment of fourteenth century Chinese celadon ware (P1.IXd, e) was recovered in the 1999 season from MSK1, the east end of Area H. Ms. J. Harrison-Hall (Department of Oriental Antiquities, The British Museum) kindly identified it as coming from Longquan in Zheijiang province.

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Fig. 6. Seljukceramicsfrom Sultan Kala.

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4. Otherfinds,byStJ. Simpson Analyses of the pottery and other finds is still at an early stage. However, some general remarks are appropriate. There is a high degree of fragmentation in the finds assemblage and a proportion are residual; nor is there a large quantity of in situ material surviving on floors, implying that the building was maintained and regularly swept. Pottery is, not surprisingly, the most common type of container but heavily fragmented glass is relatively common in all contexts. A large proportion is blown window-glass: this is normally semi-transparent with a light blue or light green tinge and a folded-over rim, with a diameter of c. 20-24 cm. that was set within composite stucco grilles. The fragility and frequency of this glass implies that it was locally produced, although glass workshops have not yet been identified at Merv. The remainder of the assemblage is dominated by sherds of plain vessel glass, including bowls, stemmed goblets and bottles. Decoration is scarce on these, although fine trailing and mould-blowing occur on a small number of pieces. The third category of vessel are softstone cooking pots. Two partly reconstructable vessels were found, in addition to sherds (Fig. 7). Most were carved from a dark grey stone and were heavily blackened through use. They frequently show evidence of repairs in antiquity, with copper wire being twisted through drilled perforations. These pots were imported from north-east Iran where chlorite is still mined in the "stone mountain" (kuh-e sang) near Mashhad. After mining, roughouts are made in nearby workshops and sent to the city for trimming, roughing out the interior, thinning the walls, cutting the exterior with a toothed hammer, scraping the interior and final finishing with a file (Wulff 1966, 131). Stone cooking pots have the advantage of being fireproof, are easy to clean and are less fragile than their ceramic counterparts. The absence of ceramic cooking ware sherds from this excavation suggests that these had been replaced by stone [and/or metal] cooking pots by the Seljuk period. Indeed softstone cooking pots first appear at Merv in the ninth century and were a speciality of Tus in the tenth century (cf. Herrmann, Kurbansakhatov and Simpson et al. 1997, 15-16). Identifiable metal artefacts are scarce: indeed, most of the evidence for metal is in the form of small sections of copper sheet or repair strips for stone cooking pots. Small copper alloy studs are occasionally found, as are heavily corroded circular or squaresectioned nails between 6-8.4 cm. in length. Two complete iron spikes, 14-14.5 cm. long, were also found (ctx 451, 495). Coins are surprisingly rare and are usually heavily residual; the same applies to a small trilobate copper alloy arrowhead (SF 11116)

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that likewise probably derives from melted mudbrick that contained cultural materials. Finally, a small number of beads and pendants have been recovered. They include trailed glass beads, several holed shells, two polished cowries that may have been sewn onto clothing, and a light blue glazed quartz pendant of a type popularly known as "Tears of Christ". These have a distribution stretching from Palestine to Afghanistan; they are Seljuk in date although they are often mis-attributed to earlier periods. THE MEDIEVALFORTIFICATIONS 1. Theexcavationof Curtain C6 and TowerT7 (Citadel, North wall), byP. Brun and A. Annaev The programme of investigating sections through the medieval fortifications, initiated in 1998, was continued with an excavation across the north wall of the citadel of Sultan Kala, designated MSK7. The 1996-97 survey had showed that, with the exception of the north wall of the citadel, the military architecture of Sultan Kala was initially based on hollow walls with galleries and chambers, followed by solid fortifications (Herrmann, Kurbansakhatov, Simpson et al. 1997, 20-22; Herrmann, Kurbansakhatov, Simpson et al. 1998, 67-71). However, the north wall did not appear to display this evolution. No evidence of the hollow fortifications were found on the survey and the standing remains of the north wall appeared to be solid. The north wall was 330 m. long, about 5 m. wide and had fourteen semi-circular flanking towers, often only surviving as a single wall. It was characterised by the presence of right angle staircases on its inner face leading to the top of the towers or wallwalk and by the presence of posterns giving access to the outer platform. Two hypotheses were suggested to explain this different evolution: either the hollow wall had been destroyed and been replaced by a solid wall, or the location of the north wall of the citadel had been altered. If the second hypothesis was correct, we would need to find the earlier hollow wall and to study the possibility of an extension of the citadel during the move to solid fortifications. Curtain C6 and Tower T7, about 150 m. from the north-eastern corner tower of the citadel (P1.VIIa), was chosen to answer these questions because of the presence of the best preserved postern of the north wall and a staircase, ST13, leading to the top of Tower T7 (P1. VIIb). It was therefore possible to study the functions and the relationships between the main elements of the north wall. Before beginning excavation we were given access to a section and plan of 1955 by Pugachenkova (YuTAKE), which gave a different picture of the site (Fig. 8).

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Fig. 7. SoftstonecookingpotfromMSK1.

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Fig. 8. Sultan Kala: MSK 7, thenorthfortificationwall of thecitadel,Pugachenkova'sdrawingsof CurtainC6, Tower T7 and CurtainC7.

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According to the drawings, the remains identified as the eroded Tower T7 were in fact the eastern wall of a big tower and the postern was the corridor leading to its small chamber. The section showed the presence of a fausse braie,no longer visible. Another purpose of the excavation was therefore to check the veracity of the drawing. Excavation progressand methodology. After preliminary cleaning the area was planned and drawn, proving that Pugachenkova was correct: T7 was larger than expected and had a small chamber accessed by the so-called postern. We also understood that her plan and section were partly a reconstruction, as no traces were found of the western part of Tower T7, of the outer platform or of the fausse braie.If these had collapsed during the intervening 45 years, some traces would have survived. Excavations were undertaken on both sides of the wall (Fig. 9). Inside the citadel (Area A), a small trench (S1), 1.50 x 2.5 m., was opened to obtain the stratigraphy of the inner platform and showed that one minor rebuilding had taken place. The access corridor and the chamber of Tower T7 were also excavated to link them to the inner platform. The original floor was revealed under a subsequent infilling of the tower. Outside the citadel (Area B), one trench (S2), 2 x 3.20 m., set perpendicular to Curtain C6, was excavated to find the edge of Tower T7 and link its stratigraphy to that of C6. Another trench (S3), 2 x 8.5 m. long, was excavated between Tower T7 and the moat. Under Tower T7 was found the hollow tower and its platform under an important levelling. To complete our information on the shape of both towers, another trench, 3.50 x 2.50 m., was excavated (S4). As before, plans and sections were made throughout. Ceramics, small finds and samples for archaeobotanical analysis and for accelerator dating (AMS) were collected. A systematic sampling of the bricks and plaster from the different phases of the fortifications took place. The results of the excavation are presented in chronological order for a better understanding. Excavationresults.The moat was probably dug first to obtain the material needed to build the fortifications. These were built on a platform made of heavily compacted clay taken from canals and at least 50 cm. thick. The tower found under Tower T7 and the base of Curtain C6 belonged to this period. The first Tower T7 was only preserved to the height of 5.50 m. up to the level of its chamber (Fig. 10). The outer face of its base was made of fired bricks of various sizes (17-302 x 4-7 cm.) up to 2.20 m. above the platform (P1.VIIIa). The outer face was pierced by a fake arrow slit, which was probably accompanied by three others. This outer face was more than simply decoration, serving as protection against water infiltration from the moat, the curtain being situated at a safer

STUDIES

distance. An alternating laying pattern of ten courses of mudbricks and three courses of fired bricks was then used for the outer face of the tower, up to the level of the chamber. The inner core of the base was constructed with pakhsa, which was used as a floor for the chamber. Only the western wall of the chamber has survived, but unfortunately below the level of the arrow slits. The first Curtain C6 was also preserved to a height of 5.50 m. It has not been excavated down to the platform but sufficient to demonstrate that its base was built of pakhsa blocks up to 3.30 m. high. Above, the wall was built of mudbricks (22-252 x 5 cm. and 302 x 7 cm.), bonded with strongly compacted clay. A change in the pattern of the masonry indicated that the curtain had been rebuilt slightly above the floor of its gallery. The base of Curtain C6 was not covered by a fired brick outer face, which seems to have been reserved to the towers of the citadel. No data has been gathered on the type of access to the wall. There may have been in Area A a very low inner platform, similar to that excavated at Curtain C20 on the north city wall [MSK4] (Herrmann, Kurbansakhatov, Simpson et al. 1999, 18-22, pls. VII-IX). The chamber of the tower was probably accessible via the gallery, and the gallery via staircases from the inner platform. The dimensions of the first Tower T7 and Curtain C6 were similar to those of the fortifications of the hollow period excavated or surveyed elsewhere and showed that they belonged to this period. In a later phase, Tower T7 seems to have been damaged. Part of its eastern side, where the tower was in contact with Curtain C6, was repaired with good-quality mudbricks and reused fired bricks. The nature of and reason for this damage are unknown, possibly caused by rain or the appearance of a crack in the masonry. The nature of the remains of the hollow fortifications and their analysis suggest that, in a second period, the wall suffered extended damage with the destruction of its upper part (gallery, chamber and wallwalk). In the other parts of the citadel, the hollow fortifications have been maintained to the top of the gallery or higher, filled and incorporated in the solid wall. This was also true for most of the fortifications of the city. This practice allowed the builders to save on material and time for the new solid fortifications. In MSK7, the fortifications were not preserved above the floor of the gallery or the chamber (apart from part of the west wall) and were uneven. This difference of preservation means that the upper part of the wall had either collapsed or was too damaged to be of any use. The builders did incorporate the first Curtain C6 and Tower T7 in the solid wall but only what was left after the collapse of their upper part.

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MOAT N

FAUSSEBRAIE

83-1

AREA

B

FIRST

7

4 SCHAMBER

cs

CORRIDOR

STAIRCASE STAit

AREA

ST43 STAIRCAISE

A

O-

I1

Fig. 9. Sultan Kala: MSK 7, thenorthfortificationwall of thecitadel,plan of CurtainC6, TowerT7 and CurtainC7.

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SECOND

T7 CORRIDOR

CHAMBER

SFIRST

T7

S

1

0

1

3

PLATFO

.

L 2

3M.

Fig. 10. Sultan Kala: MSK 7, thenorthfortificationwall of thecitadel,elevationof CurtainC6, TowerT7 and Curtain C7 (AreaB)from thenorth. A natural collapse, such as an earthquake or a subsidence of the platform on which the wall was built, is unlikely to explain the destruction, because the base of the hollow fortifications would have been affected and seemed to be intact. A destruction occurring during an attack of the citadel is the most plausible alternative explanation. The fact that the north side of Tower T7, the side facing the enemy, was the most damaged and that only the upper part was destroyed suggests an attack with clay balls or stones thrown by catapults set up in front of the north wall. The bombardment could have destroyed the weakest part of the hollow fortifications, the

gallery and the chamber, provoking the collapse of the wallwalk. The pakhsa base of the walls probably opposed a better resistance to the shelling. A last argument in favour of an attack was the discovery of a skeleton buried in the platform of the hollow wall (Fig.10). This could have been the body of a soldier killed during the attack and buried here because the cemeteries were not accessible, the city being besieged. The burial took place just before the important levelling marking the beginning of the reconstruction of the wall during the next period. During the third period, the damaged fortifications were rebuilt and strengthened. The recon-

INTERNATIONAL MERV PROJECT-PRELIMINARY

struction probably started shortly after the attack, as no surface layers have been found in the stratigraphy and because the citadel could not have been left without defences for long. The outer platform on which the hollow fortifications were erected was probably extended before a 5.20 m. levelling of the whole Area B took place. The levelling was made of successive layers of qumquyi(or clay from the canal) and sandy clay. Material from the damaged parts of the hollow wall, including blocks of pakhsaor fired bricks, seemed to have been reused (P1. VIIIc). The remains of Tower T7 were more carefully levelled, as they were destined to support the new tower. Its fake arrow slit was blocked. On top of this levelling, an outer platform made of pakhsa was constructed. The eroded platform was only preserved to a height of 15-50 cm. The excavation of the edge of the moat revealed the remains of a mudbrick wall, which was probably the base of a fausse braie,built on the outer platform at the same time. Compared to examples from other excavations, the levelling which occurred at MSK7 was unusually large-scale. The size of the new tower, twice as big as the first T7, was surely the main reason behind it. The first tower could not provide a base large enough for the projected construction. Half of the new tower needed to be built on a platform. This platform had to be strong enough to support the weight of the 2.60-2.70 m. wide walls of the new tower. The levelling also had the advantage of covering and protecting from the enemy's artillery the structural weaknesses of the wall (such as the line of reconstruction of the upper part of the walls and possibly the damage caused by the suggested attack to the base of the hollow wall). The first architectural element to be rebuilt was the upper part of Curtain C6 (Fig. 10 and P1l.VIIIb). Today, the new curtain is 4.20 m. wide and 5 m. high but its original width was probably 5 m. It was built of mudbricks (222 x 5 cm. and 30-312 x 7 cm.). Unfortunately, the wallwalk and its battlements are not preserved, but they were probably higher than the earlier hollow wall. A right angle staircase (ST13) was constructed within the new Curtain C6 to get access to the summit of the new Tower T7. The new Tower T7 abutted Curtain C6 (Fig. 10). It was erected on a special platform made of broken fired bricks (192 x 4 cm. and 322 x 5 cm.), which probably also served as the floor of the new chamber (P1. IXa). The new Tower T7 was about 7 m. wide and the walls of its chamber 3 m. wide. It was carefully constructed using mudbricks measuring 28-332 x 7 cm. The rectangular chamber, 1.50 x 2 m., was blind and rather small: it was possibly used for storing weapons. The chamber was accessed via the inner platform and a corridor.

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An inner platform (Area A) was erected against Curtain C6. From it, soldiers could access the outer platform via the posterns or use the staircases leading to the towers or wallwalk. This inner platform was at least 4.50 m. high and built of a mudbrick wall encasing a clay infilling. The fourth period was characterised by a strengthening of the fortifications. As shown by other excavations, this strengthening was probably gradual (Herrmann, Kurbansakhatov, Simpson et al. 1999, 20-21). In Area A, the inner platform was widened by constructing an additional wall against its outer face. This widening was possibly linked to the repair of the floor of the chamber of Tower T7. In Area B, an additional mudbrick wall was erected against the edge of the platform, and the fausse braie was probably widened and heightened. The chamber of Tower T7 and its corridor were filled with rubble encased between small mudbrick walls (P1. IXb). This infilling was not an isolated event as some staircases of the north wall were also blocked. It could have been a final attempt to strengthen the wall or could have been linked to the events of the next period. During the fifth period, most of Tower T7 collapsed, perhaps because erosion of the north wall led to a subsidence of the outer platform. Because the western part of the tower was erected on this platform, any subsidence would have led to the collapse of the tower. On the other end, erosion could not really explain why some sections of the north wall were relatively intact like Curtain C6 and why others were missing. Moreover, the east wall of the citadel which was probably as fortified as the north wall, had no section missing. These facts might be explained by another attack on the citadel during which Tower T7 would have been damaged. Some towers being destroyed, the staircases leading to their summit and the access to their chamber would have been blocked. The possible attack would have been the last significant event at MSK7 as the area was then abandoned. Conclusion. The excavation of MSK7 produced crucial results for the study of the fortifications of Sultan Kala. First, the question of the presence and location of the first phase wall (the hollow wall) has been solved by the discovery of a tower and a curtain from this period below the north wall. It demonstrated that the layout of Sultan Kala corresponds to the layout of the first phase wall and that the move to solid fortifications was not marked by a remodelling of the defensive system. Second, the evolution of the north wall of the citadel is clearer. The first fortification was a single hollow wall constructed on a platform. This wall was seriously damaged during an attack. The remaining hollow fortifications were filled and the whole area

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canal (MSK, Kushmeihan Gate, Trench 1) and on the west bank of the canal as the canal leaves the city. MSK Kushmeihan Gate 1 measured 1.2 x 3.45 m. and was sunk to the level of the bed of the canal, i.e. 2.6 m. from the modern ground surface. Four floor levels were encountered on the way down. The original one was at a depth of 2.2 m., with sand below, while the latest (or uppermost) was at a depth of 1.5 m. from the modern ground surface. In the south part of the trench part of a large pit was found, which was full of loose earth and ash. The pit and the absence of well trodden soil or a possible fired brick paving--typical for streets of large medieval cities in Central Asia-makes it improbable that one of the main streets of Merv passed through this point. Small trenches of a reconnaissance type (MSK, Kushmeihan Gate) were cut to clarify whether there had been a road and defensive wall on the west bank of the canal. YuTAKE excavations had previously uncovered the floor of a structure with bronze household objects, spoons, bowls, jugs, decorated articles made of ivory, and numerous beads, dated to the Khorezmshah period. This year's excavations below the Khorezmshah floor revealed numerous walls of fired brick and mudbrick and a floor of an earlier, probably Seljuk period. In the debris between the floors large quantities of carved fired bricks of various shapes were found, and pottery of the eleventh and twelfth centuries, among which there were fragments of costly vessels including lustrewares, "Kashan"ware (Fig. 6:11, P1l.IXc) and 2. TheKushmeihanGate,Sultan Kala, by pierced grain-de-rizwares. One of the rich houses of T. Khodjaniasov the city had been located on the bank of the canal The Majan canal ran north-south through the prior to the building of the city wall. Two and a half metres from the edge of the west centre of the medieval city, as has been established by a series of soundings undertaken by YuTAKE. bank and below the upper floor, a wall of fired brick When the city was fortified in the second half of the ran parallel with the canal. However, it is hard to eleventh century the canal had to be altered to accept that this 2.5 m. expanse formed a road. enable it to pass through the north wall and cross the Further excavation is required to clarify whether or moat. It has long been assumed that this was the not there are fortifications. Since this section of the location of the Kushmeihan Gate, which was set in wall is the weakest link in the city's defences, there the north wall: it would have been vulnerable to should have been a major bastion to protect it from the north-west. attack. Excavations to prove that there was a street as well Finally, to establish the course of the canal as a canal leaving the city at this point, and therefore through the moat, another trench, 1.2 x 15 m., that this was indeed the Kushmeihan Gate, were ini- running east/west was sunk 22.5 m. to the north of tially carried out under the auspices of YuTAKEand the fortified wall of Sultan Kala, i.e. between the were recommenced in 1999 from 13-21 September wall and the "structure in front of the gate" (MSK, and 15-19 October. The aim was to clarify how the Kushmeihan Gate 2). A fired brick wall, possibly to be canal crossed the moat; and what was the nature of identified as the face.of the canal, was found at a the rampart which ran along the outer edge of the depth of 1.35 m. from the modern ground surface of the moat. This survived to a height of 65 cm. (12 rows canal and shielded the gate-house from the northof bricks). Below was the natural bank of the channel line the first as scholars a building regarded by some which was not faced with bricks but consisted of hard of defence at the gate? To establish whether there had been a street run- granular brown clay. The floor of the channel at the ning beside the canal, trenches were dug 23.9 m. to edge of the moat was at a depth of 3 m. below surface. the south of the fortified wall on the west bank of the After turning west, which involved a step-like drop,

levelled. An outer platform and an inner platform were erected, and the upper part of the wall was replaced by solid curtains and large towers. Finally, a fausse braie was erected on the outer platform. Subsequently, various strengthenings of the wall took place, including the construction of an additional wall against the fausse braieand the inner platform. This evolution differs slightly from that revealed in other sections. The main difference, apart from the more impressive scale of the strengthening, is the absence of the solid wall usually built against the hollow fortifications. There was no need to build one because MSK7 was already sufficiently strengthened by the building of its solid upper part (its width was equivalent to those of a hollow wall plus a solid wall). In consequence, the construction of the upper part of MSK7 must have taken place before or at the time of the construction of the solid additional wall. The infilling of the hollow wall and the building of the solid additional wall were the first measures adopted when it was decided to move from hollow to solid fortifications. Therefore, it is quite possible that the attack on the hollow fortifications of Sultan Kala had triggered the move to solid fortifications. Following the attack, sections of the hollow wall that were too heavily destroyed were replaced by a solid wall, and a solid wall was built against the sections relatively intact.

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from the text: similarly the north point is usually off true. Please note the following specific mistakes. 4. The Lesser Kyz Kala, p. 148, fig. 143 left, Pilyavsky'splan of the ground floor requires rotating so that the stairway,5, is at the bottom right instead of the bottom left; p. 149, fig. 143b left, Pugachenkova's plan of the ground floor, should be smaller. 6. Garam K6shk, p. 153, fig. 145b. The doorway behind Iwan 1 should match that behind Iwan 2. 16. Porsoy K6shk, p. 165, fig. 155a. Pugachenkova's plans are too small and should match those of Fig. 155b. 18. Dig-house K6shk, or House in the Potters' Quarter. Much of the text on p. 168 has been omitted. It should have read as follows: 18. TheDighouseKishk, orHouse in thePotters' Quarter This ruined building lies west of Sultan Kala just behind the expedition house and the park offices in an area corresponding to the medieval potters' quarter. It was built on a small mound, c. 2.00 m. high, and is orientated to the cardinal points. It is about 100 m. south of 3, the k6shk near the mausoleum of Muhammad ibn Zayd. The two-storey building is poorly preserved. Even the edges of the mound may have been reduced to allow for modern developments. It is not possible to reconcile either Pugachenkova's measurements of 27.00 x 36.00 m. or her plan with what remains. Surviving walls of the upper storey occupy an area c. 20.90 x 16.80 m., with additional mounding to the south of c. 6.00 m., giving possible maximum dimensions of 20.90 x 22.80 m. It survives to a height of some 4.00 m. Of the lower storey, only the upper part of a room in the south corner, 1, is visible: it is roofed with a balkhivault, also preserved on the upper storey and measures 3.10 x 3.20 m. To the east there is a central domed room, 2, THE MONUMENTS PROGRAMME w. 3.88 m., probably flanked by corridors, only one of which, w. 1.30 m., survives. There is a The Monumentsof Merv:TraditionalBuildings of the similar large central room, 3, width 4.10 m., to the west, flanked by stairways,1.55 and 1.32 m. Karakum,was published by the Society of Antiquaries of London, in November 1999. Unfortunately, respectively. This was probably a four-iwan because of takeovers of both companies sponsoring courtyard building with corner rooms. As usual the volume during 1999, publication had to be accomPugachenkova restores a central domed room instead of a courtyard. plished in a very short period of time, and the author Mud bricks, 3002 x 70 mm. Slots for putlogs was not shown final proofs. As a result there are a and tie-beams. number of errors, particularlyin the Gazetteer, some of which are listed below, together with new observaPrincipal reference: Pugachenkova, 1958, 206-7. tions made during the 1999 season. Such observations are likely to continue to be made and will be reported 22. The KepterKhana in Shahryar Ark, p. 175, fig. 161: scale should be 1:5 not 1:10. in this section of ongoing preliminary reports. The reduction of plans is not precise throughout, The plans of 23, KepterKhana in the south of and measurements of the buildings should be taken Sultan Kala, Pugachenkova's plan, p. 177, fig. 162a,

the channel descended steeply towards the moat. It must subsequently link with the channel, previously excavated by YuTAKE, emerging from under the moat. The channel passed through the centre of the "structurein front of the gate". A trench, 2.7 x 13 m., was cut into the rampart protecting the gatehouse, to define its function (MSK, Kushmeihan Gate, Trench 3). A wall of poor quality pakhsa,surviving to a height of 45-60 cm., was found under the loose surface soil. Below was a loose earth infill containing pieces of fired brick, lumps of clay and pottery of the tenth and eleventh centuries: there was no later material. Below was a further layer, 2.1 m. thick of poor quality pakhsa, under which passed the channel of the Majan canal. This had a vaulted roof of fired brick. The width of the channel at the bottom was 1.5 m. Higher up the edges of the channel were reinforced with fired bricks. The depth of the channel in the reinforced part was 1.55 m. The lower part of the channel was filled with clayey sand brought in by rain. The northern slope of the rampart was later turned into an ash dump, in which pieces of multi-layer ganch plaster were found, along with bones and fragments of pottery, including a lamp typical of the fourteenth-fifteenth centuries. The rampart was presumably originally defensive, as is borne out by the fact that the channel of the canal passes underneath it and by the height of the clay mass-2.1 m. Thereafter, probably before the Mongol invasion, it was hastily reinforced, and the canal blocked. The question of the location of the Kushmeihan Gate has not yet been resolved. One possible solution for its location would be where the city wall meets that of Shahryar Ark. However, although advantageous for the defenders, test excavations undertaken by Brun and Annaev in 1997 failed to find any evidence for a gate in this area. Work is scheduled to continue in 2000.

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and 26, the Timurid pavilion, p. 183, Fig. 165, are slightly too large. Although attractive, the book is not user-friendly because of a lack of full cross-referencing of the illustrations, caused both by the speed of production and by their being scattered throughout the volume. Although illustrations of each building are listed at the end of Gazetteer entries, they are not described nor their page numbers given. Furthermore the selection of photographs by the editors has not always been felicitous. The most famous monument, the Greater Kyz Kala, for instance has three distant views of its best preserved southern facade (figs. 28, 137 and 177) but none dedicated to it, and neither is there an overall view of the interior. A full photographic archive is currently held in the Institute of Archaeology, UCL. The 1999 Season.Work on the second volume in the Monuments Series, the mosques and mausolea in and around the cities and in the oasis, was continued with a visit to the oasis by Professor R. Hillenbrand, accompanied by David Gye and Jo Rock. The IMP is grateful to Professor Hillenbrand for agreeing to write Mosques and Mausolea of the Oasis,scheduled to be ready for press in the autumn of the year 2000, followed by TheMausoleumof Sultan Sanjar.The inscriptions of these buildings are being prepared by Dr. Venetia Porter (British Museum). Professor Hillenbrand also visited comparable monuments elsewhere in Turkmenistan, including the mausoleum of Abu Said at Mekhneh, the Astanababa and Alamberdar Mausolea at Kerki, the Mausolea of Sarakhs-Baba and Yarti Gumbaz at Sarakhs and the monuments at Kunya Urgench, as well as the caravanserai at Daya Khatun, Akcha Kala and Shaim Kala. The Pavilion at Kurtly (Herrmann 1999, pp. 172-73, no. 21). While visiting the poorly preserved mosque at Kurtly, the monuments team also examined the pavilion. Gye correctly interpreted the remains of the surviving trilobed squinch (P1. XIa), incorrectly described in Herrmann 1999, 57. Instead of being framed within the typical Seljuk arch, as suggested, this was set within a curving rectangular panel, a development from the squinches of the Greater and Lesser Kyz Kalas (1999, 53, fig. 45). He also noticed the remains of a pair of lobes, one on each side of the panel. Although no longer preserved in 1997, Pugachenkova had published a drawing of a squinch within a rectangular panel from Room 15 of the palace in Shahryar Ark (Fig. 11; 1958, 205b), and its existence has been confirmed by an archive photograph supplied by Dr. Kurbansakhatov. This squinch contained two stepped niches, decreasing in size. Linking the ninth century squinch with its series of concentric arches set within curving rectangular

dora

napyc IJepcnemmueir•ixbcd, np&a7tmey 8 1Izaxrpzap-apz.e Mep6a

Fig. 11. ShahryarArk, thesquinch,no longersurviving, fromRoom15 in thepalace, drawnbyPugachenkova

(1958,205b).

panels, seen in the KyzKalas,with these Seljuk examples are some in the remarkable koshk or caravanserai at Shaim Kala (P1.XIb), located on the "silk road" between Merv and Amul. Much of the ground floor of this two-storey corrugated building is still preserved: the domed rooms are supported on squinches formed of four rather than six concentric arches within rectangular panels (P1. XIc). There is clearly scope for a study of squinch development and variety in the mudbrick architecture of Merv from the ninth century examples of the Kyz Kalas to the rectangular squinches at Kurtly and the Palace in Shahryar Ark, presumably then evolving into the standard arched form, seen for instance in fired brick in the Mausoleum of ibn Zayd. Another feature characteristic of the Seljuk buildings of ShahryarArk is the employment of transverse vaults for roofing. These are most clearly seen in the iwans of the Palace and the kepterkhana (Herrmann 1999, 59-60, figs. 258, 262 and 277-8). There was not time, unfortunately, to prepare elevations and reconstructions of these vaults for the publication, but work on these is underway and will hopefully appear in the next preliminary report. These crossvaults were not confined to these two elite buildings, but were also employed on the large, four iwan courtyard house to the west of MSK 1, located between the street and the west wall of the citadel. This was cleared of camelthorn, but time did not permit planning. The one standing wall at the west end retained traces of transverse arches, as well as the chequerboard bricklay typical of the palace. The remains of transverse vaults were also noted on an

INTERNATIONAL MERV PROJECT-PRELIMINARY

enigmatic structure immediately adjacent to the north wall of the citadel and to the east of the main north-south cross-wall. Only two walls are still standing, one with an elegant recessed arched niche with incurving hood and the remains of transverse arches, with a parallel wall to the east. This con-

tained two arched entrances,one complete and one only partially preserved. Transversevaults seem, therefore, to have been a standardform of roofing in SeljukMerv:the vaultswerebuilt in mudbrickand regularlyrise from coursesof firedbricks. Workis continuingon planningand recordingin greater detail these outstandinglyimportant mudbrick buildings of Seljuk Merv,which provide vital new informationon the architectureof the period. * We were delighted to be visited by Dr. Stefano Carboni of the Metropolitan Museum, and his wife Maria.

Bibliography Chichkina, G. V., 1986. "Les remparts de Samarcande A l'epoque hellenistique", in La fortification dans l'histoiredu mondegrec (Leriche, P. and H. Treziny, eds.), 71-78, figs. 287-302, Paris. Ershov, S. A., 1959. "Nekotorye itogi arkheologicheskogo izucheniya nekropolya s ossuarnymi zakhoroneniyami v raione goroda Bairam-Ali"(Some results of the archaeological study of the necropolis with ossuary burials in the district of the town of Bairam-Ali), TrudyInstituta Istorii,Arkheologiii EtnografiiAkademiiNauk TurkmenskoiV, 160-204, Ashgabat. Filanovich, M. I., 1978. "Bashneobraznye kul'tovye kuril'nitsy iz Merva" (Tower-shaped ritual incense-burners from Merv), TrudyYuTAKEXVI, 31-43, Ashkhabad. Fraser, P. M., 1996. CitiesofAlexanderthe Great,Oxford. Haerinck, E., 1983. La ceramiqueen Iran pendant la piriodeparthe, Gent. Herrmann, G., 1999. Monumentsof Mero,TraditionalBuildingsof the Karakum,London. Herrmann, G., K. Kurbansakhatov, and StJ. Simpson et al., 1997. "The International Merv Project: preliminary report on the fifth season (1996)", Iran XXXV, 1-33, pls. I-IV. 1998. "The International Merv Project: preliminary report on the sixth season (1997)", Iran XXXVI, 53-75, pls. VI-X. 1999. "The International Merv Project: preliminary report on the seventh season (1998)", Iran XXXVII, 1-24, pls. I-IX.

REPORT ON THE EIGHTH SEASON (1999)

31

Katsuris, K. and Yu. Buryacov, 1963. "Izucheniye remeslennogo kvartala antichnogo Merva u severnykh vorot Gyaur-Kaly" (The study of the craftsman's quarter of ancient Merv near the northern gate of Gyaur-Kala), TrudyYuTAKEXII,119-63, Ashgabat. Lerner, J. D., 1999. The Impact of SeleucidDecline on the Eastern Iranian Plateau,Stuttgart. Levina, V. A., 1949. "Stena i bashnya i Staroi Nisy" (Walls and towers of Old Nysa), TrudyYuTAKEI, 133-46. McNicoll, A. W., 1997. HellenisticFortificationsFromtheAegeanto the Euphrates,Oxford. Pugachenkova, G. A., 1958. Puti razvitya architekturyyuzhnogo Turkmenistanapory rabovladenyiai feodalizma (Trends in the ArchitecturalDevelopmentin SouthernTurkmenistanat the Timeof Slaveryand Feudalism),TrudyYuTAKEVI,Moscow. Pumpelly, R, ed., 1908. Explorationsin Turkestan.Expeditionof 1904, Washington; two volumes. Rempel, L. I., 1963. "Arkhitekturniyi ornament yuzhnogo Turkmenistana X-nachala XIII vv. i problema 'sel'dzhukskogo' stilya" (The architectural decoration of southern Turkmenistan from the tenth to the beginning of the thirteenth century and the problem of the "Seljuk"style), Trudy YuTAKEXII, 249-308. Rutkovskaya, L. M., "Antichnaya keramika drevnego Merva" (Antique ceramics from ancient Merv), Trudy YuTAKEXI, 41-116, Ashgabat. Simpson, St J., 1997. "Partho-Sasanian ceramic industries in Mesopotamia", in Pottery in the Making: World Ceramic Traditions (Freestone, I. and Gaimster, D. eds.), 74-79, London. Smith, I., 1998. "The zooarchaeological analyses" in Herrmann, G. et al. 1998, 53-75, pls. VI-X. Tashkhodjaev, Sh. S., 1968. "Razrez gorodskoi steny Gyaurkaly" (The section through the city wall of Gyaur Kala), Trudy YuTAKEXII,95-118, Ashgabat. Usmanova, Z. I., 1963. "Raskopkimasterskoy remeslenika parfyanskogo vremeni na gorodischche Gyaur-Kala"(The excavations of the workshop from Parthian times in the city of Gyaur-Kala), TrudyYuTAKEXII, 164-200, Ashgabat. 1991. "Kultovyi sosud s Erk-Kaly"(Cult vessel from Erk Kala), Monumentsof Turkmenistan51 (1991/1), 30-31. Wulff, H. E., 1966. The TraditionalCraftsofPersia. TheirDevelopment, Technologyand Influence on Eastern and WesternCivilizations, Cambridge, Massachusetts/London.

KIRMAN,TERRE DE TURBULENCE' Par Malek Iradj Mochiri Paris

' En 1985 je redigeais un article propos d'un atelier de Kirman. Disposant de cette occasion et encourage par le regrette N. Lowick, j'y abordai l'6tude geographique des autres ateliers de cette province.2 Le present article pourrait etre considere comme son prolongement, mais de tendance plut6t historique. Depuis sa publication mes tentatives de reconnaissance des sigles d'ateliers de Kirman demeurent infructueuses, maisj'espere apporter par le present article des elements documentaires supplementaires a l'intention des chercheurs qui s'aventureront dans ce domaine. Dans cet article j'ai reuni les monnaies arabosassanides des ateliers de Kirman 6mises au nom des gouverneurs arabes. Cette tiche fut facilitee par des planches illustrees des livres de numismatique et l'apport de quelques collections riches en monnaies de Kirman.3Mais le but de reunir ce lot de monnaies dans l'article present depasse largement les limites d'un simple inventaire et s'engage, avec preuves historiques a l'appui, dans la recherche de la veritable identite des monnaies d'CAbdallahb. Zubayr dont apparemment aucune n'emane de lui ni de ses gouverneurs. L'etablissement de cette imposture conduira, je l'espere, au resultat souhaite ta savoir qu'il permettra plus facilement a certains lecteurs de reconnaitre les raisons qui m'ont amene~ douter de l'origine de certaines categories des monnaies arabo-sassanides.4

Lesgouverneursarabesde Kirman Dans l'ordre chronologique, sont classes cidessous les gouverneurs dont le nom est repr6sent6 par son abreviation au tableau 1 : Ab-Kh = CAbdallahle Kharijite5 Ab-Am = CAbdallahb.CAmir Zyaid-Sf = Ziyad b. Abi-Sufyan Ab-Zyd = CAbdal-Rahman b. Zayd6 Hk-a-As = Hakam b. Abi 'l-As Ub-Zd = cUbaydallah b. Ziyad Ab-Zb = CAbdallahb. Zubayr Um-Ub = cUmar b.cUbaydallah Ms-Zb = Muscab b. Zubayr At-As = CAtyab. Aswad = Muhallab b. Abi-Sufra Mhlb = Yazid b. al-Muhallab Yzid Abrh-Mh = CAbdal-Rahman b. Muhammad Amr-Lq = CAmrb. Laqit Le tableau 1 indique les monnaies de ces gouverneurs emises aux ateliers de Kirman entre 52 et 83 A.H. Elles sont, -a cinq exceptions pres, toutes illustrees, les indications de ref6rence se trouvant au tableau individuel de chaque atelier dont la liste suit immediatement le tableau 1.

TABLEAU1 A.H.

52

53 54 56

KRMANNAR GRM GV HRJN XPYC WANGY KRMANKRMAN- KRMAN-GRMKRMANKRMAN-KRMAN- KRMAN KRMANWKRMAN-KRMANAN WAT GY NAR GV HRJN XPYC WANGY Ab-Kh Ab-Kh Ab-Am Zya-d-Sf Zyad-Sf Ab-Zyd

Zyad-Sf

Zyad-Sf Ab-Zyd Ab-Kh Ab-Zyd Ab-Zyd Hk-a-As

Ab-Zyd

59

Ab-Zyd

Ab-Zyd

Hk-a-As

Hk-a-As Hk-a-As Hk-a-As Hk-a-As Hk-a-As

57 58

PYR

Ub-Zd

Hk-a-As Ub-Zd

33

Hk-a-As

34

JOURNAL OF PERSIAN STUDIES

TABLEAU 1 (suite) A.H.

NAR GV GRM KRMANXPYC WANGY KRMANHRJN KRMAN- KRMAN- GRMKRMAN KRMAN- KRMAN- KRMAN KRMANW KRMAN- KRMANAN WAT NAR GV GY XPYC WANGY HRJN

60

Ub-Zd

Ub-Zd

61

Ub-Zd

Ub-Zd

62

Ub-Zd

63

Ub-Zd Ab-Zb

Ub-Zd

Ub-Zd Ab-Zb

Ab-Zb

Ab-Zb

64

Ab-Zb

65

Ab-Zb Um-Ub

66

Ab-Zb

67

Ab-Zb

68

Ab-Zb

Ab-Zb

Ab-Zb

Ab-Zb

69

Ab-Zb

Ub-Zd

Ab-Zb

Ms-Zb

Ab-Zb

70

Ms-Zb

71

Ms-Zb At-As

72 73

At-As

74 75

At-As

76

Mhlb

77

Mhlb

78

Yzid

83

PYR

At-As

At-As

At-As

At-As

At-As

At-As

At-As

At-As At-As

At-As

At-As At-As

At-As At-As

At-As

At-As

At-As

Mhlb Mhlb Yzid Amr-Lg

Amr-Lg

Yzid

At-As Yzid

Liste des ateliers NAR et KRMAN-NAR Date : A.H. a - NAR CAbdallahle Kh-rijite

48

Mhlb

Abrh-Mh

(WK, Dam.3, p.51,pl. XXXIII, 6)7 20(52) (WK,Dam.2, p.51, CAbdallahle Kh-rijite pl. XXXIII, 5) 20(52) (WK, ETN.10, p.49, CAbdallh b.cAmir pl. VIII, 10) 52 (WK,63, p. 43, pl. VII, 10) Ziyad b. Abi-Sufydn 53 (WK, 64, p. 43, non illusZiya-db. Abi-Sufyan tree) CAbdalldhle Khanrijite 42(54) No 2 (P1.XIV, 8) (Garmkirman,9) CAbdal-Rahman b. Zayd 54 Hakam b. Abi 'l-~cs 56 (WK,ETN.17,p. 86, pl. XVI, 2) b - KRMAN-NAR 60 No 9 (P1.XIII, 6). cUbaydalla-hb. Ziyad 61 (ASCWC,no 16, pl. V, 27) cUbaydallah b. Ziyad 61 No 12 (P1.XIII, 2) cUbaydallah b. Ziyad No 13 (P1.XIV, 9) 62 cUbaydallah b. Ziya-d

cUbaydallah b. Ziyad

63

CAbdallahb. Zubayr CAbdallahb. Zubayr cAbdallah b. Zubayr Muscab b. Zubayr

63 67 68 71

CAtiyab. Aswad CAtiyab. Aswad cAtiyab. Aswad Muhallab b. Abi-Sufra

71 72 75 76

Muhallab b. Abi-Sufra

77

Yazid b. al-Muhallab

78

(ASCWC,n' 77, pl. XII, 69) No 17 (P1.XIII, 3) (Garmkirman,18) (WK,40, p. 32, pl. V, 8) (WK, 207, p. 104, pl. XIX, 4) No 27 (P1.XV, 13) No 28 (P1.XIV, 11) No 37 (P1.XVII, 29) (WK, So.2, p.115, non illustree) (WK, 1.48, p.115, non illustr&e) (Gaube, Tf. 9, 105)8

GV, KRMAN-GV, KRMAN-GVA a - GV cAbdallih le Kharijite 20(52) (WK,Th.8, p. 50, pl. XXXIII,3) No 3 (P1.XVII,. 27) 52 Ziyad b. Abui-SufyLn yazidi (ASCWC,n' 8, pl. Ziyad b. Abfi-Sufyin VII, 37)

35

KIRMAN, TERRE DE TURBULENCE

CAbdal-Rahman b. Zayd 52 (WK, 151, p. 84, pl. XV, 13) CAbdal-Rahman b. Zayd 53 (WK,Dam.5, p. 84, pl. XXXV, 4) CAbdal-Rahm-n b. Zayd 54 (Garmkirmdn,8) b - KRMAN-GVA 63 (Garmkirmdn,16) CAbdallahb. Zubayr c - KRMAN-GV 72 No 29 (P1.XIV, 12) CAtiyab. Aswad b. Aswad 73 (WK,I.45, p.111, pl. XXXVI, CAtiya 10) 74 (Garmkirman,25) cAtiyab. Aswad cAmrb. Laqit 83 (Gaube, Tf. 6, 68) GRM, GRMKRMAN a - GRM 52 (Gaube, Tf. 10, 109) Ziyad b. Abi-Sufyain CAbdal-Rahman b. Zayd 54 (WK, 152, p. 85, pl. XV, 14) Hakam b. Abi 'l-CAs 58 (WK,Dam.7, p. 86, pl. XXXV, 6) b - GRMKRMAN 78 (Garmkirman,31) Yazid b. al-Muhallab cAmrb. Laqit 83 No 40 (P1.XV, 14) HRJN,KRMAN-HRJN a - HRJN CAbdal-Rahman b. Zayd 54 (WK,Dam.6, p. 85, pl. XXXV, 5) Hakam b. Abi 'l-cAs 56 (WK,B. 27, p. 87, pl. XXXV, 7) b - KRMAN-HRJN 60 cUbaydallah b. Ziyad 61 cUbaydallah b. Ziyvd 67 cAbdallahb. Zubayr Muscabb. Zubayr 70 b. Aswad 73 CAtiya 73 CAtiyab. Aswad 74 CAtiyab. Aswad Muhallab b. Abi-Sufra 77 78 Yazid b. al-Muhallab XPIC, KRMAN-XPIC a - XPIC10 Hakam b. Abi 'l-CAs Hakam b. Abi 'l-cAs

(Garmkirman,15) No 11 (P1.XV, 15) No 19 (P1.XIV, 10) No 26 (P1.XV, 16)

(Garmkirman,22) No 30 (P1.XVII, 28) No 32 (P1.XV, 17)

N' 38 (P1.XIII, 5) (ENISII, fig. 1555)9

56 (Garmkirmdn,10) 57 No 5 (P1.XIII, 4)

b - KRMAN-XPIC 59 No 8 (P1.XIII, 1) cUbaydallah b. Ziyad 60 (WK,95, p. 65, pl. XI, 13) cUbaydallah b. Ziyad yazidi (ASCWC,no 75. WK, cUbaydallah b. Ziytd pl. IX, 3) CAbdallahb. Zubayr 63 (WK, 39, p. 31, pl. V, 7) 67 (Garmkirmdn,17) CAbdallahb. Zubayr 73 (Garmkirmdn,23) CAtiyab. Aswad 74 No 33 (P1.XV, 18) CAtiyab. Aswad 75 No 36 (P1.XVI, 22) CAtiyab. Aswad Yazid b. al-Muhallab 78 No 39 (P1.XVI, 19)

CAbdal-Rahman b. Muhammad

83

(Gaube, Tf. 4, 40)

WANGY, KRMAN-WANGY a - WANGY CAbdal-Rahman b. Zayd 54 No 4 (P1.XIV, 7) 56 (Garmkirmdn,11) Hakam b. Abi 'l-As Hakam b. Abi 'l-CAs 57 No 6 (P1.XVI, 20) b - KRMAN-WANGY 60 No 10 (P1.XVI, 21) cUbaydallah b. Ziyad b. Zubayr 62 (WK, Z. 1, p. 30, pl. XXXI, CAbdalla-h 10) 67 (Garmkirman,19) CAbdallahb. Zubayr 73 (Garmkirman,24) CAtiyab. Aswad Aswad 75 (Garmkirmdn,29) b. CAtiya 77 (Garmkirman,30) CAtiyab. Aswad Muhallab b. Abi-Sufra 78 (WK, RB.10, p.115, pl. XXXVII,1)

KRMANW KRMAN, cUbaydallah b. Ziyad Amir al-Mu'minin CAbdallahb. Zubayr cUmar b.cUbaydallah CAbdall-thAmir al-Mu'minin CAbdallahAmir al-Mu'minin CAbdallahAmir al-Mu'minin CAbdallahb. Zubayr cAbdallah b. Zubayr cAtiyab. Aswad cAtiyab. Aswad CAtiyab. Aswad Muhallab b. Abi-Sufra

58 64 65 65

(ASCWC,n' 63, pl. VII, 41) (ASCWC,n' 118, pl. IV, 23) No 18 (P1.XVII, 25) (WK, 202, p.101, pl. XVIII, 11)

65 No 22 (P1.XVIII, 31) 66 No 24 (P1.XVI, 23) 66 No 23 (P1.XVII, 26) 67 No 20 (P1.XVIII, 33) 69 (WK,Th.5, p.32, pl. XXXII, 1) 73 No 31 (P1.XVIII, 35) 74 No 34 (P1.XVI, 24) 75 (WK, 218, p. 112, pl. XX, 5) 76 (Gaube, Tf. 6, 62)

KRMAN-GY cUbaydallah b. Ziyad cAbdallah b. Zubayr CAtiyab. Aswad

64 No 14 (P1.XIX, 39) 67 (WK, 48, p. 35, pl. VI, 7) 75 (Garmkirman,27)

KRMAN-AN Muscab b. Zubayr CAtiyab. Aswad CAtiyab. Aswad

69 (WK, 206, p.103, pl. XIX, 3) 72 (WK, 216, p.111, pl. XX, 3) 74 N0 35 (P1.XVIII, 34)

KRMAN-WAT CAtiyab. Aswad

75 (Garmkirman,28)

PYR Hakam b. Abi 'l-CAs Hakam b. Abi 'l-CAs

56 (WK,ETN.18, p.87, pl.XVI, 3) 58 N0 7 (P1.XVIII, 36)

36

JOURNAL

OF PERSIAN

b. Zubayravant 64 A.H. Monnayaged'CAbdalldh La succession au califat s'obtient au suffrage universel. En 56 A.H., Mucawiya b. Abi-Sufyan en transgressant les regles sacrees de l'Islam, imposa une sorte de succession dynastique au profit de sa famille. ILobtint ainsi de son vivant le serment d'allegeance pour son fils Yazid. Cette decision allait attiser les oppositions. Mais tant que Mucawiya etait en vie, les insurrections demeurerent latentes. L'un des premiers insurges ai la mort de Muca-wiyafut Husayn b. CAli.I1 perit le 10 muharram 61 A.H. lors de l'engagement de son armee contre celle d'cUbaydallah b. Ziyad a proximite de la petite ville de Karbala en Irak. La mort de Husayn provoqua la revolte ouverte au sein de tous les groupes d'opposants. CAbdallahb. Zubayr, allie pendant quelque temps aux khawa-rijNajadat, se r6volta en Arabie en occupant ses deux villes principales Medine et la Mekka. Une expedition de Damas reprit Medine en 63 A.H. et la d6pech6e ' mit sac. Elle assiegea ensuite la Mekka. cAbdallah ne dut son salut qu'a la mort soudaine de Yazid. Le faible successeur de ce dernier, Mucawiya II, ne gouverna que 3 mois et mourut aussi soudainement que son pere. Ces disparitions successives eurent des consequences graves et provoquerent des troubles en Irak. Basra et Kfifa demeurerent sans securite pendant quatre mois et furent livrees aux truands et violeurs de femmes. Syriens et irakiens inquiet6s par la situation, firent appel a CAbdallah b. Zubayr en le priant de se rendre a Damas pour les cer6monies du serment d'allIgeance. CAbdallahrefusa de quitter la Mekka, la ville la plus adequate, selon lui, pour recevoir le serment puisqu'elle fut le berceau de l'Islam. Les croyants, se pliant a son souhait, s'y rendirent en masse pour accomplir leur devoir. Une fois l'allegeance obtenue, CAbdallaih designa les gouverneurs de provinces, et cela se passait en l'an 64 A.H.11 Cette chronologie permet d'etablir le fait important qu'avant 64 A.H. : - les gouverneurs etaient design6s par Yazid b. Mucawiya, - l'administration officielle d'Iran et d'Irak obeissait aux ordres de Damas, - CAbdallahb. Zubayr se trouvait en Arabie, - aucun 6l6ment ne repr6sentait officiellement ce dernier sur le plateau iranien. Or, la numismatique rev6le l'existence des monnaies au nom d'CAbdallahb. Zubayr 6mises par les ateliers et aux dates suivants : en 61 A.H. N0 15 (P1.XIX, 37) GD GD en 61 A.H. N0 16 (P1.XIX, 38) KRMAN-WANGYen 62 A.H. (WK,Z.1, p. 30, pl. XXXI, 10)

STUDIES

KRMAN-XPIC

en 63 A.H. (WK,39, p. 31,

pl. V, 7)

en 63 A.H. N' 17 (P1.XIII, 3) en 63 A.H. (Garmkirman,16) Ces dates sont anterieures ta la proclamation du califat et a la nomination des gouverneurs par cAbdallah b. Zubayr. KRMAN-NAR KRMAN-GVA

Monnayaged 'Abdalldhb. Zubayrapres64 A.H. La liste suivante presente historiquement le nom des gouverneurs et generaux des provinces orientales designes par cAbdallaih b. Zubayr apres son avenement : CAbdallahb. Khazim, gouverneur du Khurassan

en 64 A.H.

Muhallab b. Abi-Sufra, lieutenant de ce dernier

en 64 A.H.

cUmar b. cUbaydallah, gouverneur de Basra

en 64 A.H.

CAmirb. Mascfid, gouverneur de Kfifa en 64 A.H. Harith b. cAbdallah,gouverneur du en 64 A.H. Seistan A noter que nous n'avons aucune connaissance de gouverneurs nommes pour le Jibail, ni pour la province de Kirman, ni pour Yazd. Les monnaies au nom d'CAbdallah b. Zubayr emises en province de Kirman (tableau 2) se placent en importance de nombre d'ateliers et d'annees, en deuxieme position, apres celles d'CAtiyab. Aswad. Les deux gouverneurs zubayrides connus par leurs monnaies emises en province de Kirman, sont cUmar b. cUbaydallah et Muscab b. Zubayr. I1 n'existe aucune attestation historique prouvant leur nomination au gouvernement de Kirman. 1-cUmar b. cUbaydallah dont le monnayage se limitejusqu'a present au seul atelier de KRMANet a la seule annee 65, fut nomme gouverneur de Basra en 64 avant d' tre remplace par Nafic b. Azraq, un kharijite, suivi de Harith b.CAbdallah.12Il semble tres douteux qu'ayant eventuellement ete nomme gouverneur en Kirman, cUmar n'ait utilise qu'un seul atelier de cette province. Ou bien aurait-il ete charge de soumettre celle-ci manu militari, et dans l'affirmatif, son action n'aurait pas eu le succes espere, ou bien cette emission it son nom aurait-elle ete effectuee a son insu ? Par ailleurs cUmar fut nomme gouverneur de Fars en 67. Un abondant monnayage emis a son propre nom, provenant de cinq ateliers de cette province, demontre qu'il etait tres fier d'afficher sa haute situation. Au cours de la mime ann&e 67, six ateliers de

KIRMAN,

TERRE

37

DE TURBULENCE

TABLEAU2 A.H.

KRMAN

62 63 64

+

65

+

66

+

67

+

68 69

K-GV

K-NAR

K-XPIC

+

+

+

+

+

K-GY

K-HRJ

K-WANGY +

+

+

+

+ +

Kirman emettent des monnaies au nom d"Abdallah b. Zubayr et pas une seule monnaie au nom d'cUmar. Il ne serait par consequent pas difficile de conclure que la responsabilite d' missions de monnaies au nom d'CAbdallahb. Zubayr en province de Kirman ne releve pas d'cUmar b. cUbaydallah, et que ce dernier ne maitrise pas la situation en Kirman. 2-Muscab b. Zubayr, succedant a Hafrith b.cAbdallah, fut nomme gouverneur de Basra en 67 avant d'etre a nouveau remplace par Harith en 68. Son monnayage de Kirman, assez tardif, concerne trois ateliers de cette province, etale sur trois ans, de sorte qu'a chaque annee correspond un atelier diff6rent : KRMAN-AN

en 69 A.H. (WK,206, p. 103, pl. XIX, 3) KRMAN-HRJNen 70 A.H. N' 26 (P1.XV, 16) KRMAN-NAR en 71 A.H. (WK, 207, p. 104, pl. XIX, 4) Ce changement d'ateliers au cours de trois annees successives ne serait-il pas le temoignage de quelques incursions sporadiques ayant pour but de soumettre les rebelles de Kirman ? En tous cas les monnaies de Muscab b. Zubayr n'apportentjusqu'fa present aucune attestation prouvant sa fonction de gouverneur en Kirman. Pour les memes raisons, la rare emission de l'atelier de KRMANen l'an 69 A.H. au nom d'cAbdallah b. Zubayr ne pourrait etre attribuee a Muscab. 3-cAbdallah b. Zubayrne quitta pas l'Arabie pendant toutes ces annees. Conclusion : aucune de ces monnaies n'emane ni d'Abdalldhb. Zubayrni de sesgouverneurs.

Ibn Zubayret Amir al-Mu'minin A la mort de Yazid b. Mucaiwiya,CAbdallah b. Zubayr se proclama calife. Cet avenement fut commemore en 64 A.H., bien loin de 1'Arabieoil residait ce dernier, par une emission de l'atelier de KRMAN.13Les monnaies issues de cette emission ne v'hiculent que l'unique epithete d'Amir alMu'minin ial'exclusion de tout nom propre. Des 65, on denombre quelques emissions oi <> remplace CAbdallahb. Zubayr. Mais loin d'etre generalement suivi, ce changement n'est adopte que par un nombre limite d'ateliers. Deux ateliers de Kirman l'utilisent pour une periode restreinte : KRMAN KRMAN-GY

en 65 et 66 en 67

Cependant quelques emissions, en 65, du premier atelier sont l'apigraphie d'cAbdallah b. i Zubayr. En dehors de Kirman, nous ne connaissons avant 64 que l'emission de GD en 61. Apres la proclamation du califat, deux ateliers de Fars emettent des monnaies au nom d'cAbdallah Amir al-Mu'minin : DA ST

en 65, 66, 68, 69 et 72 en 66

Enfin deux autres ateliers emettent des monnaies al'?pigraphie d'cAbdallah b. Zubayr: YZD14 en 66, 67 et 69 ART en 65, 66 et 67 La monnaie d'ART en 65,je le rappelle, est d'une conception tout 'afait speciale et unique pour toutes les monnaies arabo-sassanides.15 Le tableau 3 expose le monnayage d'CAbdallaihb. Zubayr sous toutes ses formes de composition.

38

JOURNAL OF PERSIAN STUDIES

TABLEAU3

A.H.

KRMAN K-GV K-NAR K-XPIC K-GY K-HRJN K-WANGY GD

61

ART DA

ST

YZD

A

Z

Z

62 63

Z Z

64

(A)

65

A&Z

66

A

67

Z

Z

Z

68

Z

Z

A

Z

Z

Z

69

Z

A

Z

A

Z

Z A

Z

A

Z

70 71 72

A

(A) = Amir al-Mu'minin

A = CAbdallah Amiral-Mu'minin Z

= CAbdallahb. Zubayr

La liste suivante constitue le catalogue des monnaies d'CAbdallah b. Zubayr provenant des autres ateliers que ceux de Kirman a savoir les cinq derniers ateliers du tableau 3. CAbdallah b. Zubayr

GD

61 A.H. No 15 (P1.XIX, 37) CAbdallahb. Zubayr ART 65 A.H. (ASCWC,n' 106, pl. XVII, 101) CAbdallahb. Zubayr ART 66 A.H. (WK,1.14, p.29, non illustree) b. Zubayr CAbdallath ART 67 A.H. (WK,B.4, p. 30, non illustree)

CAbdallah b. Zubayr

YZD 66 A.H.

CAbdallah b. Zubayr

YZD 67 A.H.

(ASCWC,n' 105, pl. XV, 87) No 21 (P1.XVIII, 32)

CAbdallahb. Zubayr YZD 69 A.H. (ASCWC,n' 56, pl. III, 18) CAbdallahAmir al-Mu'minin DA 65 A.H. (WK,ANS 7, p.33, pl. V, 9) CAbdallahAmir al-Mu'minin DA 66 A.H. (WK,ANS 8, p.33, pl. V, 10) CAbdallahAmir al-Mu'minin DA 68 A.H. (WK,Z.2, p.34, pl.XXXII,3) CAbdallah Amar al-Mu'minin

DA

69 A.H.

ST

66 A.H.

(WK,45, p. 34, pl. VI, 4) Amir al-Mu'minin CAbdalliah DA 72 A.H. (WK,Th.6, p. 35, pl. VI, 6) CAbdallahAmir al-Mu'minin (WK, 49, p.36, pl. VI, 8)

L'identite d'CAbdallah sur les monnaies inscrite de quatre manieres diff6rentes: i ii iii iv

est

'pdwl'yzwbyl'n 'pdwl''mylywlwysnyk'n 'pdwl'bwny zwbyl 'mylywlwysnyk'n

' Le passage d'CAbdallahb. Zubayr (i) CAbdallah Amir al-Mu'minin (ii) est en accord chronologique avec sa proclamation de califat. La formule iv, qui ' sert de charniere ce point de passage, souligne que l'"Amir al-Mu'minin" est bien le titre porte par en 64 A.H. Cependant, un certain nombre CAbdallaih d'anomalies s'observe dans l'6volution d'emissions de ses monnaies : -adoption des deux formules (i) et (ii) par le meme atelier en 65, -adoption des trois formules (i), (ii) et (iii) par diff6rents ateliers en 65, -retour a la formule (i) par l'atelier de KRMAN en 67, -absence de coordination dans le choix des formules par les ateliers DA et ST d'une part et ART et YZD de l'autre, -d6saccord, en 67 A.H., entre l'atelier KRMANGY utilisant la formule (ii), et sept autres ateliers qui ont choisi la formule (i). Ainsi, le tableau 3 est le representant d'autant d'emissions anticonformistes et un tantinet anarchiques. Il en emane une incoherence qui va a l'encontre des monnaies arabo-sassanides courantes. Comment expliquer le fait qu'apres avoir decerne le titre d'Amir al-Mu'minin, on puisse l'6ter s'il ne s'agit pas d'anarchie ? Ces indices et ces questions

KIRMAN, TERRE DE TURBULENCE

39

Zubayr devait faire partie des taches a accomplir par les agents venus d'Arabie. Elle allait dans le sens des souhaits du pouvoir local las des Umayyades. Les ateliers monetaires, sans doute aux mains des artisans iraniens, allaient remplacer les monnaies d'cUbaydallah b. Ziyad par celles d'CAbdallahb. Zubayr. Pour remplir leur tache, ces artisans surveilles et conseill6s par des superieurs coreligionnaires, d'une foi non musulmane, auraient ajoute aux indices islamiques graves sur les monnaies, ceux de leur propre foi. Dans la cUmarb. cUbaydalldhet le gouvernementdeFars cUmar fut nomm6 gouverneur de Fars en 67 marge de l'avers de celles-ci nous observons ainsi la A.H. Son abondant monnayage concerne cinq ate- juxtaposition de deux formules representant deux croyances, I'une en arabe relative a l'Islam et liers de cette province. Darabgird, l'un des plus l'autre en pahlavi en rapport avec une religion importants, est absent de cette liste, il aurait donc iranienne. echappe6 son contr6le. Or, Darabgird partage La premiere entente entre agents zubayrides et avec deux autres ateliers de Fars sous le contr6le artisans d'atelier mon6taire eut lieu en cette m me d'cUmar, i savoir ART et ST, des emissions de a Ispahan. Mais un retour en force annee 61 monnaies au nom d'CAbdallah b. Zubayr. A b. Ziyad coupa court a cette coalition Darabgird, ne seraient-ce donc pas des rebelles qui d'cUbaydallah et 6mission de l'atelier de GD au nom la premiere sont t l'origine de ces emissions au nom fut aussi sa derniere. On ne b. Zubayr d'CAbdallah d'CAbdallahb. Zubayr ? defense la d'Ispahan autrement pourrait envisager Qui sont donc les veritables responsables d'emisune forte les armee, moyens dont ne dissions monetaires au nom d'CAbdallahb. Zubayr ? que par les rebelles de cette ville Nous n'allons pas nous ecarter des recits historiques, posaient probablement pas en 61. mais je serai contraint d'y echafauder quelques supMais il en allait tout autrement a Kirman. positions autour pour mieux comprendre les raisons Contree montagneuse inaccessible aux envahisde ces emissions. seurs, habit6e par une population indomptable, La rebellion ouverte d'Ibn Zubayr se declare en elle servit plus d'une fois de terre d'asile aux 61 A.H. en Arabie. Convertis et non convertis 'a rebelles Une partie de l'histoire de bienvenus. l'Islam (et il existe encore un nombre respectable cette concernant province l'6poque de notre de ces derniers) menant une existence de pers6est au relat6e chapitre III de I'ASCWC.Elle cutes sous le joug des Umayyades, aspirent a n'im- etude, de illustre bien le refuge quejouait Kirman en r1le porte quelle insurrection dans le sillage d'un offrant aux opposants au gouvernel'hospitalit6 rebelle puissant pouvant contrecarrer l'armee de a une fuite eperdue. Par ment de Damas en proie Damas. La premiere tentative de ce genre fut celle des l'association agents zubayrides et consequent de Husayn b. CAliqui s'etait deroul6e au debut de artisans de Kirman, moins vuln6rable qu'a cette meme annee 61 et qui s'etait avortee cata- les aurait eu l'occasion de durer plusieurs Ispahan, Son souvenir etait encore strophiquement. trop frais et il aurait et6 dommage de ne pas battre le fer annees; et c'est la mort d'cAbdallah b. Zubayr qui en sonna le glas. Les artisans kirmanis 6taient, pendant qu'il etait encore chaud. Ainsi l'Iran devait se montrer accueillant a l'appel d'cAbdallah b. selon les apparences, de croyance mazdeenne. La formule qui suit le bismillah a la marge de l'avers Zubayr clame depuis l'Arabie centrale. Les nou- des monnaies, se lit farnbdghanalys6e en details a la velles ainsi que les invitations au soulevement 65 de I'ASCWC.Elle est associ6e a la formule page devaient etre propagees par les agents debarquant arabe sur les monnaies d'CAbdallah b. Zubayr de l'Arabie et s'infiltrant sur le plateau iranien. emises par les ateliers de Kirman. Dans les relations historiques on insiste sur l'union Yazd se trouve aussi parmi les villes pour qui s'6tait formde entre Ibn Zubayr et les khawatrij lesquelles CAbdallah b. Zubayr n'a jamais design6 Najadat. Ne pourrait-on pas voir ajuste titre dans de gouverneur. A l'instar des monnaies de Kirman, ces derniers, les agents de propagande d'CAbdallah celles d'CAbdallahemises par Yazd, sont de nature b. Zubayr? religieuse hybride; le terme mazdeen de gusn, Comme dans toutes les insurrections, les en d6tails a la page 66, para. 2 de 1'ASCWC,y d6crit monnaies repr6sentent l'6l1ment indissociable de est grave au premier quart de la marge de l'avers, prise de pouvoir. Un nombre de rebelles ne sont alors que le repr6sentant islamique se trouve au connus qu'uniquement grice a leurs monnaies. deuxibme quart. Un m en pahlavi est grav6 au L'6mission de monnaies au nom d'CAbdallah b. troisieme quart de ces monnaies.16 Les monnaies fournissent la preuve que la confection des monnaies pendant ces annees troubles n'obeit pas a une meme direction administrative, que chaque atelier en chaque ann6e-ou meme plus d'une fois dans la meme annee-de'tient ses propres initiatives. Ces ateliers sont en outre aux mains des non musulmans et, comme nous le verrons plus loin, le nom du calife grav6 sur la monnaie ne leur sert que de couverture.

40

JOURNAL

OF PERSIAN

STUDIES

plut6t le nom du calife que celui du gouverneur, d'CAbdallah b. Zubayr emises en 66 a l'atelier d'Istakhr vehiculent le meme m que celui de ses ils assuraient une continuite d' missions indemonnaies de Yazd, tandis que le terme de gusn s'ob- pendantes des changements de gouverneurs, serve sur une monnaie d'un gouverneur zubayride, frequents et imprevisibles a l' poque. a savoir cUmar b. cUbaydallah mise par l'atelier de ST en 72.17 Atelierde NAR La ressemblance des monnaies de ces deux Apres avoir ecrase la resistance de la population derniers ateliers n'est pas une surprise, car les deux turbulente des montagnes de Pariz, le souci de regions, en accord avec les donnees historiques Khusraw I selon toute probabilite aurait ete d'y obeissaient aux memes directives administratives de maintenir l'ordre.21 La consecration de NAR en l'epoque : tant qu'atelier monetaire sous le re'gne de ce souFurtherit must be noted that, during the caliphate, verain, pourrait avoir une signification 'a cet Farsincluded Yazdwith its district,also the district egard. Le rapprochement des deux donnees, hisof Ruban(betweenAnarand Bahram-abad),both of torique et numismatique, ferait de NAR la villethis havingformedpartof IstakhrKirah.18 caserne abritant les forces de securite mises en Les monnaies d'CAbdallah b. Zubayr emises 'a place. Cette condition exigerait une position Darabgird vehiculent des symboles appartenant aux strategique pour une telle ville. La numismatique divers groupes parmi lesquels on decele le terme de sassanide ne nous apprend rien a ce sujet. La dyn que j'ai attribue? i celui de den-dvaran.19Celles numismatique arabo-sassanide, loin d'etre abonqui sont emises a Ardashir Khwarrah,affichent la sig- dante, nous livre neanmoins quelques indices prenature des drust-dindn.20 cieux. Sur les 27 annees d'emissions de monnaies Par consequent, les monnaies d'CAbdallah b. observees au tableau 1, nous relevons 17 au nom Zubayr suscitent bien des doutes quant a. leur attri- de 11 gouverneurs, deux totaux superieurs a ceux bution. CAbdallahn'a jamais designe de gouverneur des autres ateliers de la region. Par consequent, a la province de Kirman, ni 'i la ville de Yazd. Les NAR parait tre aussi la ville la plus disputee de la monnaies de Muscab b. Zubayr et d'cUmar b. province de Kirman. Ces emissions attestent avec une precision relacUbaydallah concernent un nombre si restreint d'ateliers et s'etendent sur une periode si limitde tive la date d'un certain nombre de batailles pour qu'elles temoignent plus d'incursions sporadiques la possession de NAR, une ville qui n'est apparemque de l'existence d'un gouvernement stable. Or, les ment pas la plus grande de la province. Ce fait susmonnaies d'CAbdallahb. Zubayr emises par les ate- cite la question de savoir pourquoi les belligerants liers de Kirman existent et il a bien fallu un respons- tenaient tellement 5 l'investir. La reponse equivable pour les emettre. audrait peut-etre 5. l'explication que j'ai fournie Le role des mazdeens iraniens dans la confecplus haut 5. propos de la creation de son atelier tion de ces monnaies semblerait primordial. En sous le regne de Khusraw I, 5. savoir la position s'appuyant sur les habitants de Kirman, rebelles strategique de la place. Dans ce cas NAR devrait par essence, dans une atmosphere de pro- jouir du r1le d'un poste-cle pour la conquete et la zubayrisme crde par les groupes anti-Umayyades domination des autres villes de Kirman. A cette et profitant de la securisante configuration geotheorie s'oppose d'une part le fait que NAR graphique des montagnes de Kirman, ils auraient change souvent de maitre, sa defense laisserait elabore ces monnaies arabo-sassanides non con- donc plut6t 5. desirer, et d'autre part sa possession ventionnelles. L'abondance des monnaies au nom n'est pas suivie de la conquate des autres ateliers, d'cAbdallah b. Zubayr en 67 proviendrait du fait puisque sa presence au tableau 1 ne s'accompagne qu'en cette annee cUmar b. cUbaydallah fut pas toujours de celle des autre villes; ce sont autant nomme au gouvernement de Fars. Les pro- d'embarras creant des doutes quant 5.son identification liee jusqu'a5 present 5. la ville de Narma-shir zubayrides de Kirman, se sentant alors plus en dont les ruines sont situees 5. Tchaghfik-a5ba5d.II securite de voisinage, auraient opere plus aisement reste 5. valuer la valeur stratdgique de ce dernier puisque leur inspiration traduisait tout de mtme celle du gouvernement legal de la Mekka. Ces kir- site. manis avaient leur propre mode d'organisation a base religieuse. Craignant des expeditions puniSh, Shir et Sheruy tives et l'ingerence zubayride, ils auraient essaye Dans l'article de Garmkirmdan j'avais fait allusion d'emousser leur marginalite en emettant des monterme de shir l'avers des monnaies des qui figure au 5. naies au nom d'CAbdallah b. Zubayr, le nom qui article nous catalogue present Au du Muhallabites.22 leur servait de couverture. En outre en choisissant retrouvons ce mime shir 5. la marge d'une nouvelle

KIRMAN, TERRE DE TURBULENCE

monnaie de Yazid b. al-Muhallab emise par l'atelier de Khabis (mon. no 39, P1.XVI, 19), ce qui pourrait en principe appuyer ma these. En outre, t la marge de l'avers d'une monnaie de Muhallab emise par l'atelier de HRJN, figure la lettre sh qui pourrait representer le terme de shir sous forme de son initiale (mon. n' 38, P1.XIII, 5). Par ailleurs, a la marge de la monnaie d'un autre gouverneur, sans parente apparente avec les Muhallabites, ia savoir CAmrb. Laqit, emise par l'atelier de GRMKRMANen 83 A.H., figure un nom propre de personne : shiruy (mon. n' 40, P1. XV, 14). cAmr b. Laqit partage cependant avec Muhallab et Yazid les memes ateliers monetaires de Kirman. On pourrait par consequent voir dans les trois termes sh, shiret sh-ruyla m me origine kirmanie. Il s'agirait de l'initiale, de l'abreviation et du nom propre de SHIRUY, une personnalite iranienne qui aurait exerce la fonction d'camilsous les gouvernements de Muhallab b. Abi-Sufra, de Yazid b. al-Muhallab et d'cAmr b. Laqit vers la fin des annees 70 et le debut des annees 80 A.H.

1

2

3

5

6

8

9

10

11 12

Descriptiondesmonnaiesillustriesaux planchesXIIIaiXIX L'iconographie des monnaies arabo-sassanides n'est que l'imitation de celle de Khusraw II. De petites entorses 'a cette regle concernent surtout la forme de la boucle d'oreille et du medaillon pectoral. L'effigie classique de Khusraw II reproduite avec sa propre boucle d'oreille El et son propre medaillon B1 n'aura aucune mention particuliere dans la description des monnaies du catalogue cidessous23. Mais des que ces ornements s'ecarteront de leur type classique, nous les signalerons par les indices du tableau 4 emprunte ia la page 90 de 1'ASCWC.

13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

21 22 23

24 25

41

Presente le 7 septembre 1999, cet article fit l'objet d'une conference dans le cadre de la SocietasIranologicaEuropaea (4e Conference Europeenne d'Etudes Iraniennes, Paris, 6-10 septembre 1999). Je recommanderais, au passage, une lecture prealable de l'article de "Garmkirman",NC, 1985, p. 109-22. Je remercie vivement the American Numismatic Society, H. M. Malek et W. B. Warden Jr, pour leurs precieux concours documentaires. M. I. Mochiri, Arab-SasanianCivil WarCoinage,Leuven, 1987, d6sign6 dorenavant par ASCWC. Pour la nouvelle designation de l'identite de ce gouverneur se referer a l'ASCWC,op. cit., p. 37. Pour la correction patronymique de ce gouverneur, voir ibid, p. 39-40. J. Walker, A Catalogue of the Arab-Sasanian Coins, Oxford, reprint 1967. H. Gaube, Arabo-sasanidischeNumismatik, vol. 2, Braunschweig, 1973. M. I. Mochiri, Etude de Numismatique Iranienne sous les T. II, T6hhran, 1977. Sassandeset Arabe-Sassanides, Dans Muljam al-Buldan, en se r6ferant a Muhammad Bahr Rahni, Yaqut rapporte le nom de cette ville Habitch, cette prononciation semble plus proche de son orthographe que la prononciation actuelle de Khabis. D. Sourdel, HistoiredesArabes,collection "Que sais-je ?",Paris, 1976. Une monnaie apparemment inedite de ce gouverneur, emise A l'atelier de Basra, est publice au no 25 du catalogue du present article (P1.XIX, 40). ASCWC,p. 69. Pour le signe YZD voir Mochiri, "The Mint Signature of the Mint Place ofYazd", ONS, 1998, No 155, p.10-11. ASCWC,p. 67. ASCWC,p. 48, para. g. Ibid,no 108, pl. XVII, 102. G. Le Strange, The Lands of theEasternCaliphate,Cambridge, 1905, p. 248-9. ASCWVC,p. 83. Ibid,p. 84. Garmkirmnnn, p. 115. Ibid,p. 122, footnote 35. Une monnaie de Khusraw II de l'atelier KR (Kirman) et arabise avec l'adjonction de la formule <>est publice au no 1 (P1.XVII, 30) du present catalogue. Pour l'interpretation de la formule arabe, voir ASCWC, p. 59-60. pour l'interpretation de la legende en pahlavi, voir ASCWC, p. 65-6.

42

JOURNAL OF PERSIAN STUDIES

4 TABLEAU

Earring

BI

E2

E3

E4

0

%

Q

0

oo

0

0 o0 Breast-ornamcnt

El

a

0

o

o o

~i

6

o0

B2

oo

ES

B3

B4

0

B5

B6

B7

J 00

B8

B9

CATALOGUE AVERS

REVERS

Nom

No

date

atelier

plancheet fig.

Khusraw 1

= xwsly au 2e quartde--J la marge : = bismillah UtL.-,o c/m hephthalitea 02 H

XVII, 30

.u.51

vwyst= 26

KR Collection H.M. Malek

cAbdallah le kharijite 2

= 'dwl' au 2Cquartde la marge : = bismillah ,,•• " c/m 01 H e

_ dwchl= 42

XIV, 8 NAR Collection M.I. Mochiri

ZTyadb. Abi-Sufyin 3

= zh "'tw y wu = "bwswp'n ?t-au 2e quartde la marge : tlL9..,= bismillah au 3"quartde la marge : c2. = rabbi OrnementE5 3-- .

,-192 dwpnj'= 52

XVII, 27

GV Collection M.I. Mochiri

CAbdal-Rahman b. Zayd

4 ,ta

=yzyt'n au 2e quartde la marge: j,9J

= bismillah 4J.L&

XIV, 7

dlm'n

chlpnj'=54

WANGY Collection H.M. Malek

KIRMAN,

TERRE

43

DE TURBULENCE

Hakam b. Abi 'l-~As 5

--j

= hkm y

'bwl'c'n : de 03.30 a 05.30 de la marge =

(

-a ,O C•a

hptpnj'= 57

XIII,4 XPICW

bismillahrabbi 'l-Hakam24 Un croissantet un point sur l'epaule gauche de l'effigie

6

7

Le nom comme au N' 5 La meme l6gende, mais gravee de 02 a 05.30 H

Le nom comme au No 5 La meme 16gendemarginale Un point sur l'paule gauche du souverain

Collection W.B. Warden Jr. . C

_" hptpnj'=57

""r

XVI,20

WANGY

Collection W.B. Warden Jr. XVIII,36

,

.,.-,f = hknj '= 58

PYR

Collection W.B. Warden Jr.

cUbaydallahb. Ziyad &"

=

8

9

=

.:90 Ornementpectoral: B5 c/m a 10 H

XIII,1

'wbyt'l'or

= y zh't'n i-n, au 2' quartde la marge :

nwpnj'= 59

KRMANXPIC

bismillih

Nom et 16gendemarginalecomme au N' 8 Ornementpectoral : B5

Collection W.B. Warden Jr. ,,--" jStw= 60

_

S,>

KRMANNAR

XIII, 6 Collection H.M. Malek

44

JOURNAL

10 Nom comme au No 8 au 2' quartde la marge

11

12

Nom comme au No 8 au 2' quartde la marge : = bismillah ::a-t.L• Petit croissant sur l'6paule gauche du souverain Petit point i 11 H

,,•,•, = stw = 60

(victorieuxcUbaydallah) **-., = y zh't'n L6gendemarginalecomme au N' 8 Ornementpectoral: B5 Petit croissantsur l'6paule gauche du souverain 13 Nom et 16gendemarginalecomme au N0 8 Petit croissantsur l'6paule gauche du souverain

14 Nom comme celui du N' 8 Au 2' quartde la marge: = bismillah ::aUL

XVI, 21

"e = KRMANWANGY Collection W.B. Warden Jr.

XV, 15 i

.. *-,•= 61 ',wstw

•

KRMANHRJN Collection WB. Warden Jr.

= pylwz'byt'l'

L

,pt

STUDIES

l)

= bismillah

P, . a~tl.•

OF PERSIAN

XIII,2 'ywstw=61

KRMANNAR Collection W.B. Warden Jr. XIV, 9

"e = dwkstw= 62

I..,L ) = KRMANNAR

I)

Courtesyof the American Numismatic Society XIX, 39

,W--I-C

chlist = 64

KRMANGY

cAbdallih b. Zubayr

Collection W.B. Warden Jr. XIX, 37

15 ,.= e-J

"dlh' = y zwbyl'n

au 2e quartde la marge : J_

o.ld.IiL.

=

y

61

GD

'zst=

bismillah

t02.30 H : , S03, 06 et 09 H : 1 point Omementpectoral: B3

Collection M.I. Mochiri

KIRMAN,

TERRE

45

DE TURBULENCE

XIX, 38 16 Meme type que le N" 15

17

Meme date que le N" 15

Meme atelierque le N" 15

Collection M.I. Mochiri

= dwl' = y zwpyl 'n au 2' quartde la--• *' marge : Jd, ,

a a

=

bismillah bismillah

XIII, 3 sist = 63

KRMANNAR

t, •__~a,_ bplnb'q25 Ornementpectoral: B5 18

l-'

=="dwl' = y zwbyl'n

Collection W.B. Warden Jr.

1, >

XVII,25

au 2' quart de la -r-marge : =

bismillahbplnb Troispoints A01 H - =y A 11.30 H : -O-d

-L...

19 Nom et marginalecomme au N" 18l•gende Troispoints a'08 H Un point sur le cou de l'effigie c/m de lillah A02 H 20

Nom et l6gendemarginale comme au N" 18 a 06.30 H : 6toile

pnj.st 65

Collection M.I. Mochiri

cA

,'"'

hptAstw=67

22

XIV, 10

>

= KRMANHRJ

)

"*a

Collection M.I. Mochiri XVIII,33

-'

hpthstw= 67

21 Nom comme au No 18 au 2' quartde la marge: "s = bismillah -•.JL• S08 H : --: = m

KRMAN

KRMANW

Collection W.B. Warden Jr. XVIII,32

=__Or_ hptstw = 67

= YZD

Collection W.B. Warden Jr.

er

.Jw•" = "dwl"myl •r w, J -- = y wlwybnyk'n au 2' quartde la marge: = .-

,1L

bismill•h

^0'>" = 65 pn&stw

,-, KRMAN

XVIII,31 Collection

W.B. Warden Jr.

46

JOURNAL OF PERSIAN STUDIES

23

Avers comme celui du N0 22 ?Sktw= 66

24

Avers comme celui du N0 22, mais a 08 H : -L.J = bpl

XVII, 26

>6 -U

KRMANW

Collection M.I. Mochiri XVI, 23

roru = 66

KRMANW

f•tw

Collection W.B. Warden Jr.

Harith b. cAbdallah

25

__-j -

= h 'tw y

w"VC= pdwl'n

au 2' quartde la marge : .J-LtL = bismillah au 3' quartde la marge :

,

"LXV = y zwpyl 'n ~r_ : au 2bquartde _, la marge a

07

H

:

bismillah

= u

=

= 65 pnjgst

BCRA Collection W.B. Warden Jr.

= mwc

26

**'

XIX,40

= rabbina

Omementpectoral: B6 Muscab b. Zubayr

J~C~JL-

. ,,

bpinb

16 hpt't=70

KRMANHRJ

GDH

Collection Warden W.B. 7H =GDH Jr.

cAtlya b. Aswad 27

=

= y 'swdI'n au 2' quartde la marge : = bismillah , ,L-Wall al-amr S-'

XV, 13

,L,/

.y.hpt't= 71

KRMANNAR Collection W.B. Warden Jr.

Petit croissantsur l'6paule gauchedu souverain 28

Nom et 16gendemarginale comme au N0 27 Un petit batonnetet un point &02 H et un petit point sur de l'6paulegauche l'effigie rn = lillah 11 H c/m

XIV, 11 = dwhpt't= 72

= KRMANNAR

Collection M.I. Mochiri

KIRMAN,

29

30

Avers comme celui du N' 27, " mais un point 06.30 H de la marge

TERRE

*a,,,,

Avers comme celui du No 27, ' mai 06.30 H : ?

Avers comme celui du N' 27

_-c.-s KRMANGV

dwhpt'tw= 72

"""

KRMANHRJ croissantet point ' 06.30H

I P ,Y

Avers comme celui du N' 27

34

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Collection W.B. Warden Jr.

KRMAN

Collection W.B.Warden Jr

.-"/

,

YJ,

alhpt 't= 74

33

Collection M.I. Mochiri

XVIII,35

syhpt 't= 73

32

XIV, 12

XVII, 28

CILt

syhpt 'tw= 73

31

47

DE TURBULENCE

,._.3,= chlhpt't= 74

XV, 17 = KRMANHRJN " de 12 01 H : 3 petits 1C6ments Collection indefinissables Jr W.B.Warden ,.

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)

KRMANXPYC Collection W.B. Warden Jr.

Avers comme celui du N0 27

XVI, 24

,,.J, chlhpt't= 74

KRMAN

>

35

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,•oiJ,<

dlhpt '= 74

KRMANAN

Collection W.B. Warden Jr. XVIII,34 Collection W.B. Warden Jr.

48

36

JOURNAL

Avers comme celui du NO27

OF PERSIAN

STUDIES

ou<,, ,

pnjhpt't= 75

37

Avers comme celui du N0 27

KRMANXPYC Collection W.B. Warden Jr. XVII, 29

o"Do04" 1, -.

pnjhpt't= 75 11.30H : 6toile "A 38

XVI, 22

,

KRMANNAR

Collection M.I. Mochiri

Muhallab b. Abi-Sufra *'

'

XIII, 5

= mwhl gw

s,-'- = y'bwcpy'n au 2e quartde la marge : = bismillah ,--"

hpthpt't= 77

KRMANHRJ

Collection H.M. Malek

Yazid b. al-Muhallab 39

= yzytwy --,,---- , = mwlh'ip'n au 2' quartde la marge:

XVI, 19

hhpt 't= 78

S=

KRMANXPYC KRMANXPYCW

quwwatuYazTdbillah, a 07 H : --.

Collection W.B. Warden Jr.

= $l

cAmr b. Laqit 40

K

XV, 14

= pylwzw'nl

(victorieuxcAmr) t--j =ylkyt'n au 2' quartde la marge : = bismillah glwy ._iL1•t.. au de la marge: 3' quart = CAmru lillah

••." A03, 06 et 09 H: un point

syh't = 83

GRMKRMAN

Collection

W.B. Warden Jr.

THE PERSEPOLISSCULPTURES IN THE BRITISH MUSEUM' By T. C. Mitchell London

R. D. Barnett in his very useful article "Persepolis" in IraqXIX (1957) lists the fragments of relief sculpture from Persepolis in the collections of the British Museum, and seeks to identify their original locations in the palace. He indicates that most of them derive from a visit to the site by Sir Gore Ouseley in 1811.2 Sir Gore, Bart (1770-1844), who was His Britannic Majesty's Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary at the Court of Persia from 1810 to 1814,3 was accompanied on this expedition by his elder brother Sir William Ouseley, Kt (1769-1842), who was his Private Secretary; James J. Morier (1780-1849), Secretary to the Embassy and subsequently Minister Plenipotentiary ad. int. from 1814 to 1815, who had already visited the site in 1809;4 and Robert Gordon (1791-1847),5 Attache at the Embassy. Both Sir Gore and Sir William Ouseley brought away fragments of sculpture for their own private collections, and Robert Gordon obtained pieces for his brother George Hamilton Gordon (1784-1860), 4th Earl of Aberdeen, a Trustee of the British Museum 1812-60, President of the Society of Antiquaries 1812-46, and subsequently Prime Minister 1852-55,6 and it is mainly these reliefs which constitute the British Museum collection.

Much of this is indicated by Barnett, but there is some lack of clarity in his article about which pieces came from which private collection.7 The main purpose of this article is to clarify these points, which bear more on nineteenth century than on ancient history, but occasion has been taken to include other data, particularly concerning the inscriptions. There are two main sources for distinguishing the different original private collections: (a) the registration and other records of the former Department of Antiquities and its successor Departments in the British Museum; and (b) information provided by Sir William Ouseley in his publication Travelsin VariousCountriesof theEast;moreparticularlyPersia.A workwhereintheAuthor has described,asfar as his own Observationsextended,the Stateof thoseCountriesin 1810, 1811, and 1812; and has endeavouredto illustrate many subjectsof Antiquarian Research..., II (London, 1821),8 where some, though not all, of the pieces are illustrated. The basic data from these sources can be set out in tabular form as follows, in which the columns give (1) the British Museum serial numbers; (2) the registration or collection numbers; (3) whether relief or inscription; (4) the plate references in William Ouseley's book; and (5) the item numbers on pp. 60-62 of Barnett's article, with his plate references: 5 13, pl. XX.3 3, pl. XV.2 1, pl. XV.1 16 16, pl. XIX.3 6, pl. XVI.4 7, pl. XV.3 21, pl. XX.2

1 118837 118838 118839 118840 118841 118842 118843 118844

2

118845

1818-5-9,4 1861-5-24,3+4

relief

118846 118847

1870-12-10,2

relief

2

1861-5-24,5+6 1861-5-24,12

relief

5, pl. XVI.2

1861-5-24,15 1861-5-24,11

relief

118848 118849 118850 118851

1825-4-21,2 1825-4-21,3 1825-4-21,4 1825-4-21,1(part) 1825-4-21,1(part) 1818-5-9,1 1818-5-9,2 1818-5-9,3

3 relief relief relief

4 XLVI,bottom left XLVI,bottomright XLVI,bottomcentre XLVI,top left XLVI,top right XLV,bottom left XLV,top left

inscription inscription relief relief relief

19, pl. XX.4

relief

relief 8

relief

49

50

JOURNAL OF PERSIAN STUDIES

1

2

3

4

118852 118853

1861-5-24,14

inscription

XLI, right

1870-12-10,1

inscription

XLI, left

118854 118855 1188569 118857 11885810 118859 118860 118861 118862 118863 118864 118865 118866 118867

1871-1-1,1 1861-5-24,2 1873-3-19,2 1861-5-24,8 1873-3-19,1 1873-3-19,5 1873-3-19,7 1873-3-19,6 1873-3-19,4 1873-3-19,3 1861-5-24,1 1861-5-24,9,10, 13 1861-5-24,7 1818-5-9,5

inscription relief relief relief relief

118868

1894-3-31,20 1894-3-31,19

relief relief

118869

inscription inscription inscription inscription inscription relief relief relief

5

XLV,bottomright XLIII XLV,top right XLIV XLVII.16 XLVII.14 XLVII.1 XLVII.13 XLVII.12

XLV,bottomcentre

18, pl. XIX.2 4, pl. XIX.4 15, pl. XVI.1 14,pl. XIX.5

20, pl. XXI.3 12, pl. XX.1 10, pl. XIX.1

inscription

The serial numbers (1) were introduced by E. A. W. Budge and to a large extent relate to the locations of the sculptures on exhibition in the Museum at the time that they were assigned.11 The collection numbers (2) indicate the dates at which the objects were accepted for acquisition by the Trustees of the Museum. The subjects of these sculptures, all bas reliefs or inscriptions, and the original buildings from which they probably came, as suggested by Barnett in his article, are listed again here by serial number. The final plate numbers refer to the present article. Only the principal sculptures in the British Museum, and none of the inscriptions, are illustrated. They are grouped according to the English collections from which they came, and how best they fit on the plates. 118837. Persian to right, from the Apadana (P1. XXII.d). 118838. Four Susians to right, from the Apadana (Pl. XXII.c). 118839. Two Medes to right, from the Apadana (P1. XXII.e). 118840+118841. Parts of the Old Persian inscription Xerxes Persepolis b (XPb), from the collonaded hall in the Palace of Xerxes.12 118842. Mede to right with horse, from the Apadana13 (P1.XX.b). 118843. Persian in chariot to right, from the Apadana14 (P1.XX.a).

17, pl. XXI.1 9, p1.XVI.5

118844. Persian to left, perhaps from Palace H (P1. XXI.d). 118845. Persian archer to left below band of rosettes sloping up to left, perhaps from Palace H (P1.XXI.b). 118846. Rosettes. 118847. Leg of a stool, from the Apadana. 118848. Susian to left with head turned back to right, from the Apadana (P1.XXII.a). 118849. Curls from an animal. 118850. Part of a piece of furniture with lions' feet (P1.XX.d). 118851. Reins and part of chariot horse, from the Apadana. 118852. Fragment of the Babylonian text Darius Persepolis c (DPc), which is repeated 18 times on window frames in the Palace of Darius: trilingual inscription: Elamite (118853) up the left, Old Persian across the top, Babylonian (118852) down the

right: [ku-bu]-ur-re-e abanga-la-la i-na bi-it "stone [mda-a-ri-ia-a-mus sar-ri ip-i-'],15

window frame [made] in the house [of king Darius]".

118853. Fragment of the Elamite text DPc, probably from the same window as 118852: har-da-iz-dana hharIg-in[-na vda-ri-ia-ma-u-i' Vsunki.. .].16

118854. Fragment of an Old Persian inscription:

] i-a : a-r-y-v[.

118855. Mede climbing stairs to left, probably from the Palace of Darius (P1.XX.c).

51

THE PERSEPOLIS SCULPTURES IN THE BRITISH MUSEUM

118856. Head of a Susian to right, from the Apadana. 118857. Mede to left with bearded man following lower to right, from the Apadana (P1. XX.e). 118858. Persian to left, from the Apadana. 118859. Fragment of one line of what is probably a Babylonian inscription: no complete sign surviving. 118860. Fragment of one line of a Babylonian inscription: [ma-ha]-ma-an-nil-li[-'], "[(the) Achae]menid".1 118861. Fragment of two lines of an Old Persian inscription: [ ]: v-z-r-k[I s]-a-y--[i-] .18 118862. Fragment of one line of an Elamite inscrip"[Dar]ius." tion: [da-r]i-ia-ma-u-is,19 118863. Fragment of one line of an Old Persian ]. inscription: [ ]?-s: 118864. Persian to left, perhaps .h-?[ from Palace H (P1. XXI.a). 118865. Three Persians (heads effaced) to right, probably from the Apadana (P1.XXI.c). 118866. Persian archer to left, probably from the Apadana (P1.XXII.b). 118867. Parts of the trilingual inscription Xerxes Persepolis e (XPe) in three separate "boxes"of four lines each, left to right: Old Persian (ends of lines only), Elamite (complete, but damaged), Babylonian (lines 1-2 and end of 3 only), from the Palace of Xerxes.20 118868. Mede climbing stairs to right, probably from the Palace of Darius or the Palace of Xerxes. 118869. Man to left with nose of camel behind, from the Apadana. SYNOPSISOF THE INSCRIPTIONS

Text DPc

Old Persian

Elamite 118853

DP-

XPb XPe

Babylonian 118852

118862

118840+118841 118867

BMCollection

118867

118860 (?) 118867

Text

Old Persian 118854

Elamite

Babylonian 118859 (?) 118860

118861 118863 The three Elamite fragments may be added to those listed by C.B.F. Walker in his article "Elamite Inscriptions in the British Museum".21 SCULPTURES FROM THE OUSELEY EXPEDITION Sir William Ouseley marks the owners of the different pieces which he illustrates on his plates as follows: "in Sir William Ouseley's Collection":pls XLIII, XLIV,XLVII "in the collection of the RightHonourablethe Earl of Aberdeen":pl. XLV "inthe collectionof The RightHonourableSirGore OuseleyBart";pl. XLVI The British Museum sculptures, grouped by collection number, together with these Ouseley attributions, may be set out as follows: 1818-5-9 Presented in 1817 and 1818 by the 4th Earl of Aberdeen, who had kept these sculptures in his London home, Argyll House,22 on the east side of Argyll Street,23 near Oxford Circus (sometimes known at that time as Regent Circus). This presentation was perhaps made to make way for building works carried out at Argyll House in 1819. At that time, however, he retained a number of the sculptures, and these came to the Museum when the house was sold after his death as indicated below.

BMSerial

Ouseleyplate

Ouseleyattribution

here P1.

1 2 3 4

118842 118843 118844 118845

XLV,bottomleft XLV,top left

Earlof Aberdeen Earlof Aberdeen

XX.b XX.a XXI.d XXI.b

5

118867

1818-5-9

52

JOURNAL

OF PERSIAN

1825-4-21 Presented in 1825 by Sir Gore Ouseley. It is not recorded where these sculptures had been kept, but it is likely that they had been in his London residence, 12 Bruton Street, a large house near the north east corner of Berkeley Square, only a little further from the Museum than Argyll Street. He was BMCollection 1825-4-21 1 2 3 4

STUDIES

evidently clearing the house at that time, since he had left London by 1826,24 having moved from his previous country seat, Claremont (or Claramont) at Cheshunt, Hertfordshire, to a larger house, Woolmer's Park, Huntingfordbury, also in Hertfordshire, at some point between January 1820 and April 1823.25

BMSerial

Ouseleyplate

Ouseleyattribution

here P1.

118840-41 118837 118838 118839

XLVI,top XLVI,bottomleft XLVI,bottomright XLVI,bottomcentre

SirGore Ouseley SirGoreOuseley SirGoreOuseley SirGoreOuseley

XXII.d XXII.c XXII.e

Ouseleyattribution

here P1.

XLV,bottomright

Earlof Aberdeen

XXI.a XX.c

XXII.b

1861-5-24 Presented in 1861 by the 5th Earl of Aberdeen, son of the 4th Earl, following his father's death in 1860, and presumably in preparation for the sale of Argyll House in 1863. BMCollection

BMSerial

Ouseleyplate

1861-5-24

1 2

118864 118855

3+4

118846

5+6 7

118848 118866

XLV, bottom centre

Earl of Aberdeen

8

118857

XLV, top right

Earl of Aberdeen

9+10+13 11

118865

12 14

118849

15

XXII.a XX.e XXI.c

118851 118852 118850

1873-3-19 Purchased in 1873 from Madame Cordelia de Valmency, daughter of Sir William Ouseley.26 This group includes five inscriptions which are illustrated on pl. XLVII of Sir William Ouseley's Travels,II. This plate consists of copies of eighteen fragments of cuneiform inscriptions of which four of these five were probably among the better examples, though no. 16 (118859) is inferior. The Departmental correspondence shows that Dr Samuel Birch, the then Keeper of Egyptian and AssyrianAntiquities, had vis-

XX.d

ited Madame de Valmency at her home, 108 Ledbury Road, Bayswater,to examine the collection, and it seems unlikely that all eighteen inscriptions were still in her possession, since in that case he is more likely to have chosen no. 1 and perhaps no. 7.27 Ouseley's plate XLVII has been cited in the context of Babylonian,28 Elamite29 and Old Persian30 inscriptions, but apart from nos.1 (118861) and 8, which might have formed part of the inscription Xerxes Persepolis k (XPk),31 the others have not been considered worth specific mention.32

THE PERSEPOLIS

BMCollection

SCULPTURES

IN THE BRITISH

53

MUSEUM

BMSerial

Ouseleyplate

Ouseleyattribution

118858 118856 118863 118862 118859 118861 118860

XLIV XLIII

Sir William Ouseley Sir William Ouseley Sir William Ouseley Sir William Ouseley Sir William Ouseley Sir William Ouseley Sir William Ouseley

here P1.

1873-3-19

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

XLVII.12 XLVII.13 XLVII.16 XLVII.1 XLVII.14

OTHER COLLECTIONS 1870-12-10 and 1871-1-1 Presented by the Royal Institution: 1870-12-10,1 (118853): Fragment of the Elamite text DPc 1870-12-10,2 (118847): Relief showing the leg of a stool 1871-1-1,1 (118854): Fragment of Old Persian inscription Dr Frank A. J. L. James, Reader in History of Science at the Royal Institution, kindly informs me that on 14 July 1870 the Managers of the Royal Institution had appointed a committee consisting of John Tindall, William Odling and Henry Bence Jones to supervise the disposal of "old Apparatus, Minerals, &c" held by the Institution.33 On 7 November 1870 a list of objects still to be disposed of was read to the Managers, and the committee was authorised to dispose of them. The list itself was not recorded in the Minutes, and no Minutes of the proceedings of the committee have come to light,34 but some information can be derived from the following letter, which was read to the Managers on 6 February 1871: BritishMuseum 24Jan 1871 Sir, I am directedby the Trusteesof the BritishMuseum to acknowledge receipt of the Present from the Royal Institutionof the objects mentioned on the other side, and I am to requestthat you will return to the Council of the Institution the thanks of the Trustees for this addition to the National Collections. I have the honour to be, Sir, your obedient servant

J. WinterJones.PrincipalLibrarian Dr BenceJones.

A list "on the other side" mentions "7. Black stone with Median cuneiform inscription" (probably 118854), and "8. Fragment of marble seat from Persepolis", (118847), the third piece in the Museum (118853), which is very fragmentary, presumably also being part of this consignment.35 Dr James has found no indication in the archives of the date or manner of the first acquisition of these pieces by the Royal Institution, but he reports that in 1806 Gore Ouseley was elected as an Annual Subscriber, so it is possible that they derived from his 1811 expedition.3 This possibility is supported by the fact that 118853 (Elamite), presented by the Royal Institution, has part of the window frame inscription, DPc, which matches that on 118852 (Babylonian) which is from the collection obtained by Robert Gordon for Lord Aberdeen during the 1811 expedition. 1894-3-31 and 1895-10-22 Purchased from Rollin & Feuardent of 12 Rue Vivienne, Paris, the 1894-3-31 collection consisting otherwise of Egyptian pieces. 1894-3-31,19 (118869, formerly E.2527437): Man leading a camel to the left, only a small part of the nose of the camel surviving. 1894-3-31,20 (118868, formerly E.25275): Median ascending stairs to the right, carrying a stemmed cup. 1895-10-22,6 (92253): Fragment showing a headdress and the top of the face of a Persian to the left. 1938-1-10 Presented by the National Art Collections Fund: 1938-1-10,1 (129381). Fragment showing a seated human-headed crowned winged lion to right with its left forepaw on a stylised plant; horizontal bands of rosettes above and below.38 This was "excavated" by Colonel (later Sir) John Kinneir Macdonald, sometimes known as

54

JOURNAL OF PERSIAN STUDIES

Macdonald Kinneir,39inJune 1825, in the sense that at the site he "employed people in clearing away the earth from a staircase"and discovered this piece and another showing four tribute bearers mounting a staircase to the left. Macdonald was the agent or Envoy Extraordinary of the East India Company on a mission to the Shah, and from 1826 until his death in 1830, Envoy from the East India Company, occupying at a lesser grade the position earlier held by Sir Gore Ouseley. The uncovering of the reliefs is reported by J. E. Alexander, a member of Macdonald's suite, in his book Travelsfrom India to England. Comprehending... A Journey throughPersia, Asia Minor,EuropeanTurkey,&c. In the Years1825-26 (London, 1827), p. 140, with two facing plates, the first being of the four ascending figures and the second of this sculpture. The latter shows seven rosettes across the top and the bottom, and the paw of the sphinx resting on the left of two and a half small stylised plants, and above, the lower left quadrant of a large rosette, probably part of the winged disc of Ahura-Mazda. The plate shows a crack above the lion's paw, and the British Museum piece represents only the part to the left of this crack. It is clear from Alexander's account that Macdonald and his party did not remove these sculptures from the site at the time. Once exposed, however, they were ready to be taken away, and Dr StJohn Simpson has shown that the British Museum piece was removed by Sir John McNeill in 1828.40

3. 4.

5.

6.

7.

1964-6-17 No records yet traced: 1964-6-17,1 (134385): A fragment showing a bearded warrior to the right, holding a spear, the face largely obliterated. This was found unnumbered in the Museum basement in June 1964. It presumably came to the Museum in the nineteenth century, possibly originally as part of the material collected during the Ouseley expedition of 1811, lost its collection number at some point, and not being thought of sufficient quality for exhibition, did not receive a registration number in the late nineteenth century. 1.

2.

I am indebted to DrJ. E. Curtis and Dr StJ. Simpson for reading through a draft of this paper and making helpful suggestions, and to Mr C. B. F. Walker for checking and improving my transliterations of inscriptions, and in particular for clarifying the reading on WA.118860. For details of this visit to Persepolis with quotations from accounts by some of the participants see J. E. Curtis, "A Chariot Scene from Persepolis", Iran XXXVI (1998), pp. 45-51, specifically 45-49. The Ouseleys were descended from an ancient Shropshire family of Courteen Hall in Northampton (Burke's Peerage, 1846, pp. 768-69). I am indebted to Mr E. P. Uphill for this information.

8.

9.

10. 11.

On whom see D. Wright, The English Among the Persians (London, 1977), pp. 12-15,188. Author of A SecondJourney throughPersia, Armenia, and Asia Minor to Constantinoplebetween the years 1810 and 1816: ... togetherwith an account of the proceedingsof His Majesty's EmbassyunderSir GoreOuseley,Bart. (1818). Among his several other publications the best known is probably Adventuresof Hajji Baba of Ispahan (London, 1824). He was able to visit Persepolis on 15 January 1809 as part of the suite of Sir Harford Jones on the way from Shiraz to Teheran (H. McK. Johnston, Ottomanand Persian Odysseys. JamesMorier,Creatorof Hajji Baba of lspahan, and His Brothers(London and New York, 1998), p. 99; I am indebted to Dr Curtis for drawing my attention to this volume). Later Sir Robert Gordon. In 1828 he was sent to Constantinople as Ambassador Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to restore diplomatic relations after Britain had played a major part in the sinking of the Turkish fleet at Navarino in 1827, and from 1841 to 1846 he was Ambassador in Vienna. He modified a shooting lodge in "Scottish Baronial style"on leased land at Balmoral in Scotland. Queen Victoria and the Prince Consort knew about it through her Physician, SirJames Clark, and after Gordon's death there in 1847, they purchased the lease in 1848, acquired ownership of the estate in 1852, and replaced the lodge by a granite Castle on an adjacent plot in 1853-55 (see T. Whittle, Victoria and Albertat Home (London, 1980), pp. 34-36, 54 [plan 2, showing old building (12) in relation to the new], and pls 12 [the old building], 14 [the new in course of construction]. In a letter dated 21 August 1811 (quoted in full in Curtis, Iran XXXVI (1998), pp. 48-49), Robert Gordon refers to these as "some of the best specimens that have yet appeared of Persepolitian workmanship" (p. 48), and he makes much the same remark in a letter dated 2 December 1811, quoted in M. E. Chamberlain, Lord Aberdeen. A Political Biography (London, 1983), p. 58. I am indebted to Sir David Wilson for drawing my attention to this biography. Note also in IraqXIX (1957), p. 61, under no. 4, for "Ouseley II, pl. xlvii" read "xliii",p. 62 under 16, for "Xerx.Pers.6"read "Xerx.Pers.b", under no. 18, for "Ouseley, II pl. xlvi" read "xlv", and for "Sir Gore Ouseley's" read "The Earl of Aberdeen's". I was able to consult this publication in commodious conditions in the Watson Library of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and am indebted to the staff there for permission to do so, and to Melanie Hatz of the Department of Ancient Near Eastern Art for introducing me to the Library and for locating the volume for me. 118856 and 118858 were transferred to the Israel Museum, Jerusalem, in 1972 in exchange for a Chalcolithic clay ossuary BM.WA.135740. See note9. In the 1st (1900) and 2nd (1908) editions of Budge's Guideto the Babylonianand AssyrianAntiquities,it is stated that in the Assyrian Transept "Affixed to the walls are fragments of Persian sculptures and casts of reliefs at Persepolis" (pp. 19 and 21), but this was modified in the 3rd edition (1922) by the omission of the words "and casts" (p. 42). The casts of Persepolis sculptures include a set made at the site by H. Weld-Blundell and Giuntini in 1891 on the basis of a selection made in 1887 by C. Harcourt-Smith, and illustrated in his portfolio, Photographsof Persian Sculpturesof the Achaemenid PeriodMostlyfrom Persepolis(British Museum; London, 1932), where all but pl. 9 [winged figure from Pasargadae] are from Persepolis. The Museum also has casts of the Persepolis inscriptions A3Pa (91236 (C.45)+22480 (C.46)) and parts of XPd (22476). See also on these and other Persepolis casts held by the British Museum, St J. Simpson, "Bushire and Beyond: Some Early Archaeological Discoveries in Iran", in

THE PERSEPOLIS SCULPTURES IN THE BRITISH MUSEUM

12.

13.

14.

15.

16.

17.

18.

19. 20.

21. 22.

55

E. Errington and V. S. Curtis (eds), From Persepolisto the London home of the Dukes of Argyll, had been purchased by the 4th Earl of Aberdeen in 1808. He carried out a major conPunjab: 19th-centurydiscoveries(British Museum; London, in press). version, only completed in 1811, in order to accommodate F. H. Weissbach, Die KeilinschriftenderAchiimeniden(Leipzig, his art collection (Chamberlain, LordAberdeen,p. 56), but his 1911), pp. xxiii-xxiv, 108-110; R. G. Kent, Old Persian. first wife died in 1811, and for some years he could not bring Grammar.Texts.Lexicon [American Oriental Series 33] (2nd himself to live in it. He finally had further major building ed.; New Haven, 1953), pp. 112, 148; other versions in work done on the house in 1819 (ibid. p. 178), and thereafter E. Schmidt, Persepolis,I, Structure,Reliefs,Inscriptions[OIP 68] occupied it until his death in 1860. The house was sold by his son in 1863 and was demolished in 1867-68, when a substan(Chicago, 1953), pl. 60, with p. 82; and E. Herzfeld, tial structure known as the Corinthian Bazaar and Exhibition Altpersische Inschriften(Berlin, 1938), pl. IX left. Rooms was erected on the site together with some neighbourPossibly the sculpture referred to as "No.1. Two separate pieces composing head & neck of a horse and a man by its ing plots. From 1871 to 1895 the building was occupied by side" in a letter of 16 July 1811 from Robert Gordon to his Hengler's Circus, and after some other varied uses it was conbrother (Curtis, Iran XXXVI (1998), p. 49). This consists of a verted in 1910 into the theatre now known as the London single piece only, with no sign of a join, and this is all that is Palladium, the eight-columned facade of the Corinthian illustrated in William Ouseleys book (his pl. XLV lower left). Bazaar being largely retained. While part of the horse's neck is preserved, there is no head, 23. Listed as 9 Argyll Street in Boyle'sCourtGuideforJanuary 1818 so it may be that, like the horses' heads on 118843 (see n. 14 and Town VisitingDirectorycorrected for January 1818, p. 137. below), also missing in Ouseley's illustration (his pl. XLV 24. He is listed as resident there in Boyle'sFashionableCourtand upper left), this was a second fragment which did not reach CountryGuide and Town VisitingDirectoryfor 1825 (pp. 29, Lord Aberdeen. 396), but by 1826, 12 Bruton Street was occupied by "Benj. On a fragment, now in the Miho Museum near Kyoto,Japan, Travers, surg. & occulist" (Guide, p. 29), and Ouseley is nowhere listed. showing the horses' heads which belong to this relief, see Curtis, Iran XXXVI (1998), pp. 45-51; and on the intention 25. Boyle'sCourtGuide corrected for January 1820 gives his country that the two pieces be exhibited together alternately in Miho residence as Claremont but in the Guidecorrected forApril 1823 and London see BritishMuseumMagazine 33 (Spring 1999), it is given as Woolmers. (At the City of Westminster Archives Centre, where I was able to consult this guide, the volumes p. 10. Weissbach, Keilinschriften,pp. xvi, 81; Herzfeld, Altpersische for 1821 and 1822 are missing). Claremont does not appear to have been a particularly distinguished building. It was Inschriften,pp. 22-23 no. 9; and see V. Scheil, MDP21 (1929), described in the early twentieth century as "a modernised p. 31 re line 31. Identification and reference to Scheil by C.J. Gadd (pencil note in the Departmental records). Poor qualhouse, to which is attached a small park" (W. Page (ed.), The Victoria History of the Counties of England, A History of ity copy of the inscriptions in Ouseley, Travels,II, pl. XLI, right; reasonably good photograph of another of the many Hertfordshire,III (London, 1912), p. 445), with no mention of Ouseley as a former resident. The name is there spelt examples of this text in Schmidt, Persepolis,I, pl. 131A, with "Claramont". According to the Victoria County History p. 223. Weissbach, Keilinschriften,pp. xvi, 80; using the conventions: Woolmer's Park goes back to the 13th century, and was forprefixed superscript h = horizontal wedge V= vertical wedge, merly in possession of Frances Duke of Bridgewater, and after his death in 1803, of his nephew George Granville Earl of affixed superscript lg = logogram (Weissbach's signs nos 1, 90 and 102 ("id")); these conventions set out in H.H. Paper, The Gower and Duke of Sutherland who died in 1833. It is then "said to have been afterwards sold to SirJohn St Aubyn, bart, Phonologyand Morphologyof Royal AchaemenidElamite (Ann Arbor, 1955), ? 2.4; and used in W. Hinz and H. Koch, and to have been subsequently possessed by Sir Gore ElamischesW6rterbuch (Berlin, 1987). Copy and photograph of Ouseley, bart.. ." (History of Hertfordshire,III, p. 466). The the text as in n. 15 above, the beginning, to hharg, damaged information given in BoylesCourtGuideis probably to be prein the example in Schmidt, Persepolis,I, pl. 131A. ferred to this chronology, the most natural assumption being This spelling is found in the Xerxes Persepolis b (XPb) that George Granville sold the house in his own lifetime. 26. Cordelia Magdalena was the 9th (Burke'sPeerage,1846) or inscription, line 13 (Herzfeld, Altpersische Inschriften,p. 25 [his text 13]; I am indebted to Mr C. B. F. Walker for identifying 10th (Burke'sPeerage,1880) child of Sir William Ouseley. She this extract and singling out the reference in Herzfeld. The was married to Adolphe Dominique Richard de Valmency of Babylonian text is not included where it might be expected in Boulogne, and died on 13 May 1873, very soon after this transaction. I again owe this information to Mr E. P. Uphill. Weissbach, Keilinschriften,pp. 109-11, and the only instance of this spelling cited in his "Verzeichnis der Eigennamen" (p. The collection included seven other objects (1873-3-19, 136) is in the Darius Suez b (DZb) inscription (his p. 103 n.). 8-14), namely three cuneiform tablets (12-14 = 30224-26), This transliteration is given by M. Mayrhofer in his Supplement an Egyptian figure (11), two pottery lamps (9-10), and a zur Sammlung der AltpersischenInschriften [Osterreichische crude basalt animal (8). The Museum paid ?13 for these fourAkademie der Wissenschaften. Phil.-Hist. Klasse. teen objects. 27. If the remaining pieces were not simply thrown away, and it Sitzungsberichte 338; Ver6ffentlichungen der Iranischen Kommission 7] (Vienna, 1978), p. 35 ? 10.3.1, where ":"repseems likely that no. 1 at least would have been of sufficient resents the word divider. interest to be retained, it is possible that they were sold on the For this spelling see Hinz and Koch, ElamischesWhrterbuch, I, antiquities market, and could still be in existence. They are p. 291. quite small, being represented at a 1:1 scale on Ouseley's Weissbach, Keilinschriften, pp. xxv, 114-115; Kent, OldPersian, plate, mostly no more than 15 cm. long, and the cuneiform pp. 112, 149; Schmidt, Persepolis,I, pp. 238-39 and pl. 182A signs only about 2 cm. high, with blank areas above and below. (similar text). For an account of its removal see a letter of 21 28. R. Borger, Die Welt des Alten Orients-Grabungen-Gelehrte. Handbuch und Katalog zur Ausstellung [Zum 200 August 1811 from Robert Gordon to his brother transcribed in Curtis, Iran XXXVI (1998), pp. 48-49; this may be the Geburtstag George Friedrich Grotefends] (G6ttingen, 1975), third piece mentioned in Gordon's letter of 16 July 1811 p. 171 n. 9. (Curtis, p. 49). 29. Hinz and Koch, Whrterbuch, II, p. 1332. IranXVIII (1980), pp. 75-81. 30. Mayrhofer, Supplement,? 10.3.1. This building together with a large garden, originally the 31. See Mayrhofer, Supplement,?? 4.4 and 10.3.2.

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In 1978 in response to an enquiry to the British Museum from Professor Mayrhofer, who was then preparing his Supplement,I sent him a list of what I believed to be the examples of Old Persian inscriptions in the collections. It has only been in preparing this article that I have realised that two of the Old Persian pieces on Ouseley's plate, which are included in his "Verlorenes" section (Supplement,? 10, pp. 34-35), are in the British Museum (nos 1 (118861) and 12 (118863)). As indicated above, three other pieces, 13 (118862: Elamite), 14 (118860: Babylonian) and 16 (118859: possibly Babylonian), are also in the British Museum. 33. Royal Institution Managers' Minutes (RI MM) 4 July 1870, 12:342. These minutes have been published in facsimile. 34. RI MM 7 November 1870, 12:345. 35. The list is transcribed in the RI MM 6 February, 12:354-355, the other objects being 1. Marble foot in a sandal, 2. AngloSaxon urn, 3. Mediaeval stirrups, 4. Two Egyptian tablets 32.

36.

37. 38.

39. 40.

(sepulchral), 5. Greek Christian sandstone tablet, 6. Egyptian Hieratic papyrus. Concerning this Dr James wisely says no more than that Gore Ouseley "was therefore acquainted with the Royal Institution". The prefixed E indicates that this and the next piece were first recorded in the Egyptian Register. S. Smith, "AnAchaemenian Relief from Persepolis", BMQ 12 (1938), p. 35, pl. XI; Barnett, IraqXIX (1957), p. 62, no. 22, pl. XXI.4. Wright, EnglishAmonstthePersians,pp. 18, 188. See Simpson, "Bushire and Beyond" in FromPersepolisto the Punjab (n. 11 above), where he acknowledges information concerning it kindly supplied by Mrs F. S. Farmanfarmaian. I am indebted to Dr Simpson for furnishing me with a prepublication copy of his article.

THE KHAZINEH PAINTED STYLEOF WESTERN IRAN ByYosef Garfinkel HebrewUniversity,Jerusalem

I. INTRODUCTION CaspianSea

Dancing is an importance motif in the artistictradition of the Protohistoric Near East. In my systematic examination of this phenomenon I have located some 400 depictions of dance, which appear in many variations from the seventh-fourth millennia B.C. over a vast geographical range: from Western Pakistan to Anatolia and Egypt, as well as Southeast Europe (Garfinkel 1998). In this work, however, I would like to focus on a specific geographical region (Western Iran), a specific time span (late sixth Millennium B.C.), and a specific decorated style (see below). In 1902-3 the French archaeologists J. E. Gautier and G. Lampre (1905) excavated Protohistoric layers at Tepe Musiyan (Moussian) and Khazineh in the Deh Luran Plain, Khuzistan, Western Iran (Fig. 1; for an enlarged map of the Deh Luran Plain, see Hole et al. 1969:14). Their publication presented the first examples of a distinct type of decoration painted on pottery vessels (Fig. 2). In the later work of Hole, Flannery and Neely this decoration is described as: "a motif which shows stylized human dancers standing on each others' shoulders. This design often occurs in conjunction with panels of white and black scalene triangles. Usually the 'dancing men' are arranged as an almost geometric design" (Hole et al. 1969:157). The term "Khazineh Painted Style"will be used in this paper for this decoration, in honour of Gautier and Lampre's pioneer work, undertaken some hundred years ago. Similar items have been reported over the years from Western Iran, either unearthed during excavations or collected on the surface during site surveys. In the autumn of 1995, when I was a research affiliate at the Department of Anthropology of Yale University, I had the opportunity to study and analyse some seventy items decorated in this style, which were discovered by Prof. F. Hole at seven different sites in the Deh Luran Plain. The purpose of this article is to present the Khazineh Painted Style and to analyse various aspects of this artistic tradition. It is adding another dimension to the subject of painted prehistoric pottery of Western Iran, which was dealt by other scholars as well (see, for example, Hole 1983, Pollock 1983).

MTepe Giyan

Kozagaran0 ChaghaSefid TepeSabzM0mMusiyan Farukhabad0MKhazineh 0 Chogha Mish

Seoo o__gh 0

100

0 Do Tulune .........................................

200 km

IPersian

Gulf

Fig. 1. Thedistributionof theKhazinehPaintedStylein WesternIran.

II. THE DATA 1. Geographical Distribution Items decorated in the Khazineh Painted Style, as defined in the next section, have been discovered at various sites in Western Iran. They are presented here according to the order in which they were published:

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1. Khazineh: This site is located in the Deh Luran Plain. As mentioned above, it was excavated by Gautier and Lampre in 1902-1903, and was the first site to produce pottery decorated in this style (Fig. 2:1, 3-4, 6). Another item bears a more realistic depiction of dance (Fig. 2:5). 2. Tepe Musiyan: This site is located in the Deh Luran Plain. It was excavated together with the previ-

STUDIES

ous site by Gautier and Lampre in 1902-1903. They published one item which may be relevant to the Khazineh Painted Style (Fig. 2:2). In 1963 Hole, Flannery and Neely (1969:65-72) excavated a small test pit (Area E) at the site. Black-on-buff pottery decorated with the motif of "dancing men" is reported in the text (Hole et al. 1969:68-69). No drawings have been published. Examination of the

Fig. 2. VariousitemspublishedbyGautierand Lamprein 1905: 1, 3-6. TepeKhazineh;. Musiyan. Scale1:2for items 1-3, 5; scale 1:1for items4, 6.

THE KHAZINEH PAINTED STYLE OF WESTERN IRAN

original material at Yale University revealed ten such decorated sherds from the site. A selection of six items is presented here (Figs. 3:1; 4:4; 6:1-2; 9:1-2). 3. Tepe Giyan: This site is located in Luristan. It was excavated in the early 1930s by Contenau and

59

Ghirshman (1935) and a few items which are related to the Khazineh Painted Style have been published (Fig. 7:5, 7, 10). 4. Tul-i Bawa Muhammad: This site is located in the Bakhtiari mountains in Khuzistan. It was discov-

bell-shapedbowls(scale1:2): 1. Musiyan;2-4. TepeSabz. Fig. 3. Smalland medium-sized

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ered during a survey conducted in the region by Sir Aurel Stein in the mid-1930s (1940:136, P1. 111:20). The small collection of sherds from the site includes one item decorated in the Khazineh Painted Style (Fig. 7:9). 5. Kozagaran: This site is located in Luristan. As with the previous site, a small assemblage of sherds was collected here by Stein (1940:198-205, pl. VIII). A few examples of the Khazineh Painted Style have been published (Figs. 4:8; 9:3-4). 6. Tepe Sabz: This site is located in the Deh Luran Plain. Hole, Flannery and Neely excavated it in the

STUDIES

early 1960s. Here items decorated in the Khazineh Painted Style were discovered for the first time in large quantities and in a clear stratigraphic context. They have been dated to the Mehmeh phase (Hole et al. 1969:157). The Khazineh Painted Style appears on bellshaped (Type 11) bowls and it belongs to the "Susiana Black-on-Buff' pottery ware. The report presents a few items (the best-preserved ones) decorated in the Khazineh Painted Style (Hole et al. 1969, pls. 25:a-b, 27:b,j, 28.j-k), with a short commentary (Hole et al. 1969:157). Examination of the original

Fig. 4. Medium-sizeddecoratedbell-shapedbowls(scale1:2): 1-3, 5-6. TepeSabz;4. Musiyan; 7. DL-22; 8. Kozagaran (Stein 1940, pl. VIII:21);9. DL-28; 10. DL-31.

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PAINTED

STYLE OF WESTERN

IRAN

61

Fig. 5. Largedecoratedbell-shapedbowlsfrom TepeSabz(scale1:2). material at Yale University revealed fifty-two such decorated sherds (see, for example, Figs. 3:2-4; 4:1-3, 5-6; 5; 6:3-4; 7:1-3, 6, 8; 9:5-7; 11:3-5; 12). This is the largest assemblage from a single site known to date. 7. Chogha Mish: This site is located in the Susiana Plain, Khuzistan. Delougaz and Kantor have conducted large-scale excavations here during the 1970s. On one bowl, published only in a photograph, two vertical rows of schematic figures are visible (Fig. 8:1). This item has been described as a "Middle Susiana 2 fine-ware bowl with abstract tiered designs" (Kantor 1976:189, fig. 7). A similar pattern appears on another bowl, also dated to the Middle Susiana phase (Fig. 8:4). This decoration has been described in the final publication report as "the elements here seems to be superimposed human torsos (Delougaz and Kantor 1996:186, pl. 171:d) 8. Chagha Sefid: This site is located in the Deh Luran Plain. It was excavated by Hole in the early

1970s (1977). Examination of the original material at Yale University revealed two sherds decorated in the Khazineh Painted Style (Figs. 6:5; 11:2). 9. Farukhabad: This site is located in the Deh Luran Plain. The excavations here concentrated on the fourth-third millennia B.C., but a few earlier sherds were also published (Wright 1981). One of them bears a net-covered area, typical of the Khazineh Painted Style (Fig. 11:1). 10. Do Tulune: This site is located near Behbehan in Western Iran (Dittmann 1984). A survey collection included one painted sherd decorated with a vertical row of schematic human figures typical of the Khazineh Painted Style (Fig. 8:3). 11. DK-14: This site is located outside the Deh Luran Plain, in the direction of Luristan.It was discovered during a survey conducted in the region by F. Hole (pers. comm.). One sherd decorated in the Khazineh Painted Stylewas collected from the site surface, and is now in store at Yale University (Fig. 8:2).

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Fig. 6. Largedecoratedbell-shapedbowls(scale1:2): 1-2. Musiyan;3-4. TepeSabz;5. ChaghaSefid. 12. DL-22: This site is located in the Deh Luran Plain. It was discovered during a survey conducted in the region by F. Hole (pers. comm.). Two sherds decorated in the Khazineh Painted Style were collected from the site surface, and are now in store at Yale University (Figs. 4:7; 7:4). 13. DL-28: This site is located in the Deh Luran Plain. It was discovered during a survey conducted in the region by F. Hole (pers. comm.). Two sherds decorated in the Khazineh Painted Style were collected from the site surface, and are now in store at Yale University (Figs. 4:9, 9:8). 14. DL-13: This site is located in the Deh Luran Plain. It was discovered during a survey conducted in the region by F. Hole (pers. comm.). One sherd decorated in the Khazineh Painted Style was collected from the site surface, and is now in store at Yale University (Fig. 4:10). A total of fourteen sites have been listed here, at which about ninety items relevant to the Khazineh Painted Style were unearthed. As regards the geographical distribution, most of the sites are located in the Deh Luran Plain (eight sites, 57%). Most of the other sites are located nearby in other parts of Khuzistan or in Luristan; only the site of Do Tulune is located further to the south-east. When the distrib-

ution of the items is examined, 74 (c. 80 %) of them turn out to have been discovered in the Deh Luran plain. It is thus quite clear that the Deh Luran Plain was the core area for the production and use of the Khazineh Painted Style. 2. Chronology The best stratigraphic evidence for the Khazineh Painted Style comes from the Tepe Sabz excavations. Here pottery items decorated in this style are "particularly characteristic of the Mehmeh phase" (Hole et al. 1969:157). Hole, Flannery and Neely note that "ties with the Mehmeh phase are widespread, including Susiana c, Ras al 'Amiya, and Eridu XII" (1969:61). This phase is thus dated to the first half of the 5th millennium B.C. (uncalibrated). With calibration it is dated to the late 6th millennium B.C. (Hole 1987:57, Table 2; Voigt and Dyson 1992, fig. 2). III. THE KHAZINEH PAINTED STYLE The Khazineh Painted style appears on the "Susiana Black-on Buff' ware, together with other motifs, like the "rowsof goats". This ware has already been described in detail by Hole et al. (1969: 124-26,

THE KHAZINEH

PAINTED

STYLE OF WESTERN

IRAN

63

hands orfigures holdingbranches:1-3, 6, 8. TepeSabz(scale1:2); 4. DL-22 (scale1:2); Fig. 7. Figureswith "wing-like" 5,7, 10. TepeGiyan(Contenauand Ghirshman1935, pls. 41, 43, 42); 9. Tul-iBawa Muhammad(Stein1940, pl. VIII:20). 132-35). It is a hard, well-fired and sand tempered pottery with a buff to greenish-buff colour. The surface is well smoothed, but not burnished. In some cases a wash or slip of the same clay as the paste provides a suitable background for the paint (self slip). On this surface the design was painted in one colour (monochrome). The painting was done on the exterior face of the bowl. The paint was based on iron compounds and is usually black but occasionally red. The painting was done with a very delicate brush, as the pattern includes very thin lines. The Khazineh Painted Style usually appears on bell-shaped bowls. In the assemblage from Tepe Sabz, thirty-eight of the fifty-two sherds, are fragments of medium-sized bell-shaped bowls (Figs. 3:3-4; 4:1-3, 5-6). Five items are fragments of similar small bowls (Fig. 3:2) and nine are fragments of similar large bowls (Figs. 5:1-2, 6:3-4). One of these items is somewhat bigger, and may be a fragment of a large crater (Fig. 6:4). Only in one clear case, on an

item from Tepe Musiyan, does the Khazineh Painted Style appear on a closed vessel (Fig. 9:1). The best-preserved items, which should be used as the basis for analysing the Khazineh Painted Style, are one complete bell shaped bowl from Khazineh (Fig. 2:1) and two large fragments of similar bowls from Tepe Sabz (Fig. 3:3-4). These three items are almost identical, and seem to represent the "classic" style. Most of the other items bear the same composition, but some sherds testify that slightly different versions co-exist side by side with the "classic"one. The decoration is composed of a central register, which occupies most of the vessel surface. This register is framed by horizontal lines above and below. Above, there is a thick line at the rim and a thin line immediately below it. Below, there is a thin line first and than, immediately below it, a thick line closer to the base of the vessel. In one example the frame's pattern is more elaborate, including black and white triangles (Fig. 5:1).

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Fig. 8. Itemswith a verticalrowof singlefigures: 1. ChoghaMish (Kantor1976, fig. 7); 2. DK-41 (scale1:2); 3. Do Tulune (Dittmann1984, fig. 10:1); 4. ChoghaMish (Delougazand Kantor1996, pl. 1 71:d). In the main register the composition includes two components: schematic human figures and geometric panels. Since the decorative pattern on the pottery vessels is usually symmetrical, it seems that the human figures and the geometric elements would have appeared twice on the vessel's periphery. 1. TheHuman Figures A head, a triangular torso, arms and the hand's fingers represent the human figure. This unit can be multiplied in two different directions: a. Horizontally: One (Fig. 8), two (Fig. 2:6), three (Figs. 2:1, 4; 3:3-4, 5:1-2), four (Fig. 6:4) or six (Fig. 9:1) such units can be placed together horizontally. When more than one figure appears, only the arms and fingers of the outer figures are portrayed. This gives the impression that the figures are standing shoulder to shoulder. Naturalistic representations of

this grouping have been reported from Protohistoric sites in the region: Choga Mami (Fig. 14:1) and Tepe Sialk (Fig. 14:2). b. Vertically: Any of the above-mentioned horizontal compositions may be multiplied vertically, one on top of the other. There are clear examples of one (Fig. 5:1), two (Figs. 2:1, 4; 3:2-4), three (Fig. 8:4), four (Fig. 8:1) and five (Fig. 2:6) such combinations. In Figure 10 the different combinations are presented in a chart that juxtaposes the horizontal and the vertical possibilities, as well as the specific combinations that have been used. The most common combination is a horizontal row of three figures, multiplied by two. Close examination of the various parts of the human figures reveals the following details: Heads: What may be interpreted as heads or necks is a group of short, parallel, vertical lines

THE KHAZINEH

PAINTED

STYLE OF WESTERN

IRAN

65

Fig. 9. Additionalexamplesof theKhazinehPaintedStyle(scale1:2): 1-2. Musiyan;3-4. Kozagaran(Stein1940, pl. VIII:3-4);5-7. TepeSabz;8. DL-28. which appear between the topmost triangles and the upper frame (Figs. 2:1, 4, 6; 3:3-4; 4:1-3; 5:1-2). In cases where the vertical row is composed of single triangles, there is one head. In one such item there is an elongated narrow neck and a small round head (Fig. 8:2). In another item there is just one schematic line (Fig. 8:1). In cases where the vertical row is composed of double triangles three (not two) short lines represent the heads (Fig. 2:6). In cases where the vertical row is composed of three triangles the heads are represented by four (Fig. 2:1), five (Figs. 2:4; 3:3-4), six (Figs. 4:1-2; 5:1) and seven (Fig. 5:2) lines. There is clearly no correlation between the number of "heads" and the number of triangles below them. Torso: The torso is usually triangular. In some cases the triangle is wider in proportion (Figs. 2:4; 5:1), while in others it is narrower (Figs. 2:1; 6:1). Human figures with triangular torsos appear in naturalistic representations from the same period (Figs. 2:5; 14:1-4). At the site of Kozagaran the human body is sometimes represented as rhomboid (Fig. 9:4). Only one

such example is presented here, but a few more have been collected from the same site (Stein 1940, pl. VIII). Arms and Hands: There are a few possible combinations for the arms and fingers: a. The arms are bent, first downwards and then upwards away from the body. Similar bent arms are shown in some naturalistic items dated to the late 6th-early 5th millennia B.C. (Figs. 2:5; 14:1-2, 4). In some of these examples the human figures are depicted shoulder to shoulder, with a triangular torso (Fig. 14:1-2). The arms end with three fingers. The fingers can be shown either as thin straight short lines (Fig. 2:1, 4, 6) or in more rounded shapes (Figs. 4:3; 9:1). The fingertips are at the same height as the top of the torso (Figs. 2:1, 4; 3:2), or slightly higher (Figs. 2:6; 4:3, 8; 9:1). b. As in the previous category the arms seem to be bent upwards but do not end with fingers at the top. Instead, the parts of the arms that bend upwards are covered with a series of short straight parallel lines, projecting awayfrom the body. The number of these

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short straight lines varies: five (Fig. 7:8, 10), six (Fig. 7:4, 6), seven (Fig. 7:2) and nine (Fig. 7:3). It thus seems that these short lines do not represent fingers and another interpretation is required. Some items from Layer X at Tepe Gawra (Fig. 14:4) and from Tall-i Bakun A in the Fars (Fig. 14:3) may supply a solution to this: in these examples one can see human figures holding branches in their hands. In analogy to this it may be suggested that some of the figures in the Khazineh Painted Style are shown not with bent arms but with the arms extending diagonally downward, holding branches. Of the ten examples shown in Figure 7, five are vertical rows of single triangles. Most of these items have been reported from Luristan: Tepe Giyan (Fig. 7:5, 7, 10) and Tul-i Bawa Muhammad (Fig. 7:9). There is only one example of this type from Tepe Sabz (Fig. 7:8). Since no complete vessel with this specific composition has been reported, their classification as Khazineh Painted Style is not conclusive.

6

5

4

STUDIES

They certainly resemble rows of flying birds, a motif which has occasionally been reported from southern Mesopotamia and Iran (Stucki 1984, pl. XXVIII). Panels 2. The Geometric In all the cases where the preserved sherds were large enough, the human figures were found near another, geometric, element. Sometimes this element is to the left of the figures (Figs. 2:1; 3:4; 4:4-5; 5:1) and sometimes to the right (Figs. 3:3; 4:6-8, 10; 5:2). The figures can be located very close to the geometric element (Fig. 4:7-8, 10), or at some distance from it (Figs. 3:3-4; 4:4; 5:2). The following different versions of the geometric element have been noted: a. A rectangle or square area divided into three parts. It is framed by four vertical lines on both sides (Figs. 2:1; 3:3-4). The centre is decorated with a checkerboard pattern. Additional divisions halve each chequer into two triangles. Alternate triangles

3

2

1

3

5

figures in theKhazinehPaintedStyle. Fig. 10. Thedifferentcombinationsof theanthropomorphic

THE KHAZINEH

PAINTED

were painted black. Not all the rows of triangles were painted in the same order: in some rows the upper triangles were painted black and in other rows the lower ones. This is the most common type of geometric panel. On one exceptional item, the central checkerboard pattern is framed by a single vertical line (Fig. 4:8), and not by four, as with all the other examples. b. In a few cases, instead of triangles the chequers squares were alternately painted black, creating a chessboard pattern (Figs. 5:1; 11:3). c. On a sherd from Tepe Sabz there is a rectangular area covered by a net pattern adjacent to the area covered by the triangles (Fig. 11:4). d. One fragmentary item from Tepe Sabz bears an unusual composition (Fig. 11:5). A bent hand is shown in front of a net covered area, with a vertical line with five perpendicular short lines extending from it. A somewhat different pattern appears on an item from Tepe Giyan (Fig. 7:5). e. It seems to me that there is another pattern that can be reconstructed from two fragmentary items, each of which preserves only part of it. Further excavations may clarify more details of this pattern. On one item there is a bent arm ending with three fingers, with three fingers from another figure below. At the other side of the sherd, instead of the vertical lines and checkerboard composition, there are traces of a zigzag pattern (Fig. 12:2).

STYLE OF WESTERN

IRAN

67

Another item, in a better state of preservation, bears the classical triangle checkerboard composition; in front of this is a complete zigzag pattern, composed of three vertical parallel lines (Fig. 12:1). This is the only example I have seen from Tepe Sabz in which motifs other than human figures appear near the geometric panel. If we combine the evidence from these two sherds, it is possible that in some cases three elements were portrayed together in the Khazineh Painted Style: the human figures, the zigzag lines and the geometric panel (Fig. 13). The meaning of the zigzag pattern is not clear, though Ms. Diana Mickle of Yale University has suggested that it may represent a river (pers. comm.). f. One item from Khazineh presents a vertical row of schematic human figures next to a vertical row of three round elements (Fig. 2:6). Another item from the site, painted in a naturalistic style, depicts a horizontal row of human figures and a horizontal row of three round elements (Fig. 2:5). The round elements in both examples are similar. The function of these circles is not clear, though it has been suggested that they represent the moon (Ackerman 1967). g. One item from Chogha Mish bears a pattern composed of thin parallel vertical lines, with no checkerboard pattern and no alternately painted triangles (Fig. 8:1). Since the human figures on this

area (scale1:2): 1. TepeFarukhabad(Wright1981, fig. 11:c);2. Chagha Fig. 11. Variousexamplesof thenet-covered Sefid;3-5. TepeSabz.

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Fig. 12. Itemsdecoratedin theKhazinehPainted Style withzigzaglinesfrom TepeSabz(scale1:2). item are extremely schematic, it is possible that the geometric element includes only the vertical lines from both sides of the frame, without the central checkerboard pattern. IV. INTERPRETATIONOF THE MOTIF The Khazineh Painted Style is a rather schematic representation and its meaning is not self-evident. Nevertheless, Gautier and Lampre suggested it might be interpreted as depicting human figures (1905:131). Hole, Flannery and Neely described this motif as "stylized human dancers" (1969:157), and used a naturalistic painted sherd of dancing figures from Tepe Sabz to support their argument (Hole et al. 1969:157; fig. 63:n). I agree with these observations, and would like to address two more points: a. The Arrangementof the Figures in VerticalRows: The arrangement of the dancing human figures in vertical rows is exceptional. In most cases where dancing figures are shown in Protohistoric Near Eastern art scenes, they are represented in horizontal rows around the vessel (see, for example, Figs. 2:5; 14; Garfinkel 1998). In such an arrangement the dancing figures create a circle around the vessel's periphery. On the other hand, the Khazineh Painted

STUDIES

Style organisation of the figures is totally different: they are presented vertically. Hole, Flannery and Neely explained the vertical arrangement of the figures literally: "standing on each others' shoulders" (1969:157). However, the examples in which four (Fig. 8:1) or five (Fig. 2:6) such units appear one on top of the other clearly indicate that a realistic interpretation is impossible. Since two basic forms of dance exist, circle dance and line dance (Lange 1976:85), I suggest interpreting the Khazineh Painted Style as a graphic representation of line dancing. This looks like the traditional Near Eastern Debqa dance, in which the dancers stand shoulder to shoulder in a row, rather than in a circle. Depictions of line dance were noted at other cultures as well (Kechagia 1995). b. The Geometric Panels: No interpretation has been suggested for the geometric element near the dancing figures. However, it is worth noting that such net-covered geometric elements do appear in some naturalistic depictions of dancing (Fig. 14:2, 4). In later cylinder seal impressions of the Near East, dated to the first half of the third millennium BC, similar compositions of dancing figures and geometric elements have been discovered (Amiet 1980, Nos. 1351, 1354; Ben-Tor 1978:57-61, Lapp 1989: 5-6, Delougaz and Kantor 1996, pl. 154). In these cases it has been suggested that the geometric element represents a structure. Given the urban context of the third millennium BC, the motif has been understood as depicting dancing near a temple. If we apply the same interpretation to the Khazineh Painted Style and other naturalistic scenes (see, for example, Fig. 14:1-2, 4), the geometric elements in the scenes may represent structures. Since we now know that temples were built in the ancient Near East as early as the seventh millennium B.C. (Hauptmann 1993; Schmidt 1998), it is possible that the geometric element in the Khazineh Painted style represents a cultic structure.

Fig. 13. A suggestedreconstruction of thezigzaglines motifof theKhazinehPaintedStyle.

THE KHAZINEH

PAINTED

STYLE OF WESTERN

IRAN

69

Fig. 14. Relativelyrealisticrepresentations of dancing humanfigures: 1. ChogaMami (Oates1969, pl. XXXIb); 2. TepeSialk (Ghirshman1938, pl. LXXXD:10;3. Tall-iBakun A (Herzfeld1932, fig. 1); 4. TepeGawra(Tobler1950, pl. CXLV.398). V. CONCLUSION In this work the Khazineh Painted Style has been identified and analysed. The basis for this was a firsthand examination of a large collection of painted sherds from Tepe Sabz, as well as other items from the Deh Luran Plain, now stored at Yale University. The Khazineh Painted Style is a schematic representation of human figures performing a row dance in front of a temple, dated to the late sixth millennium B.C. The geographical distribution of the motif is Western Iran, mainly in the Deh Luran Plain, with a few sites in Luristan.

Acknowledgements I would like to thank Professor F. Hole of the Department of Anthropology of Yale University for his kind permission to study and publish relevant data from his excavations and surveys in the Deh Luran Plain. I benefited greatly from discussions with him, as well as from his technical assistance. Drs. Annie Caubet and Agnes Benoit, curators of the Department of Oriental Antiquities, Musee du Louvre, enabled me to examine the original painted pottery excavated by Gautier and Lampre. Dr. P.R.S. Moorey of the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford has drawn my attention to important references. G. Hivroni has assisted with the preparation of some drawings.

70 Bibliography

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Ackerman, P. 1967. "Symbol and Myth in Prehistoric Ceramic Ornament", in SurveyXIV, pp. 2914-29. Amiet, P. 1980. La glyptiqueMesopotamienne archaique,Paris. Ben-Tor, A. 1978. Cylinder Seals of Third Millennium Palestine, Cambridge, Mass. Contenau, G. and Ghirshman, R. 1935. Fouilles du Tepe Giyan, Paris. Delougaz, P. and Kantor, H. 1996. ChoghaMish, I, Chicago. Dittmann, R. 1984. Eine RandebenederZagrosin derFriihzeit,Berlin. Garfinkel, Y. 1998. "Dancing and the beginning of art scenes in the early village communities of the Near East and southeast Europe", CambridgeArchaeological Journal VIII/2, pp. 207-37. Gautier, J. E. and Lampre, G. 1905. "Fouilles de Moussian", MDP VIII, pp. 59-148. Ghirshman, R. 1938. Fouillesde Sialk,I. Paris. Hauptmann, H. 1993. "Ein Kultgebaude in Nevali (ori", in Frangipane, M., Hauptmann, H., Liverani, M., Matthiae, P. and Mellink, M. (eds.) Between the Rivers and Over the Mountains,pp. 37-69, Rome. Berlin. Herzfeld, E. 1932. IranischeDenkmdler, Hole, F. 1977. Studies in the ArchaeologicalHistoryof the Deh Luran Plain: TheExcavationof ChaghaSefid,Ann Arbor. S 1983. "Symbols of Religion and Social Organization at Susa", in Young T. C. et al. (eds.) TheHilly Flanks and Beyond, pp. 315-33, Chicago. 1987. TheArchaeologyof WesternIran, Washington. Hole, F., Flannery, K. V. and Neely, J. A. 1969. Prehistoryand Human Ecologyof theDeh Luran Plain. An Early VillageSequence from Khuzistan,Iran, Ann Arbor.

Kantor, H.J. 1976. "The Prehistoric Cultures of Chogha Mish and Boneh Fazili", in Kiani, M.Y. (ed.) TheMemorialVolumeto the VIthInternational Congressof Iranian Art and Archaeology,pp. 177-93, Tehran. Kechagia, H. 1995. "The Row and the Circle: semiotic Perspective of Visual Thinking", RockArtResearchXII, pp. 109-16. Lange, R. 1976. TheNature of Dance. An AnthropologicalPerspective, NewYork. Lapp, N. L. 1989. "Cylinder Seals and Impressions of the Third Millennium B.C. from the Dead Sea Plain", Bulletin of the AmericanSchoolof OrientalResearch273, pp. 1-15. Oates,J. 1969. "Choga Mami, 1967-68: a preliminary report", Iraq XXXI, pp. 115-52. Pollock, S. 1983. "Style and information: an Analysis of Susiana ceramics",Journal of Anthropological II, pp. 354-90. Archaeology Schmidt, K. 1998. "Friihneolithische Tempel: Ein Forschungsbericht zum Neolithikum Oberprfkeramischen mesopotamiens". MDG 130, pp. 17-49. Stein, A. 1940. OldRoutesof WesternIran, London. Stucki, W. 1984. Unterlagenzur Keramikdes Alten VorderenOrient, Zurich. Tobler, A.J. 1950. Excavationsat TepeGawra,II, Philadelphia. Voigt, M.M. and Dyson, R. H. 1992. "The Chronology of Iran, c. 8000-1200 B.C." in Ehrich R. (ed.) Chronologiesin Old World Archaeology(3rd edition), pp. 122-78, Chicago. Wright, H.T. 1981. An Early Town on the Deh Luran Plain. Excavationsat TepeFarukhabad,Ann Arbor.

THE KHWARAZMAHAHSOF THE BANU CIRAQ (FOURTH/TENTH CENTURY) By Michael Fedorov Ilmenau, Thuringial

The line of Khwarazmshahs of the clraq or CAraq line is almost unknown as a distinct line or dynasty and little mentioned by Islamic historians. The compilers of manuals of Islamic genealogy and chronology, if they have mentioned these rulers at all, have tended to treat them as part of the shadowy line of Afrighid Khwarazmshahs who ruled in the ancient Iranian province of Chorasmia/Khwarazm (the later Khanate of Khiva) before the rather better-known, subsequent lines of Shahs: those of the Ma3miinids; of the Ghaznavids' Turkish commander Altuntash and his sons; and of the Seljuq commander Aniishtegin Gharcha i, whose descendants made Khwarazm the centre of a powerful Eastern Islamic empire until swept awayby the Mongols.2 One of the first persons to distinguish the line of cIraqas a separate one was I. Yu. Krachkovskiiin connection with the biographical entry on the great Khwarazmian scholar Abu 'l-Raybanal-Biruni given by Yaqfit in his Irshad al-arib,in which is given the text of an Arabic poem by al-Biruini.In this, amongst other things, he praises those patrons who had encouraged him and given him shelter at their courts, beginning with his time under the patronage of the Banfi CIraq: The greater part of days passed in the shade of [their] munificence, and as part of this last I ascendedto high placesof honour.

Mansfir b. CAli b. CIratqdied somewhere between 408/1018 and 427/1036, so that he flourished essentially in the later tenth and early eleventh centuries. Bulgakov thought that he must have been aged around fifty at the turn of the century.4 His grandfather CIraqhad been Khwarazmshah at the beginning of the fourth/tenth century, and his son Muhammad, Mansur's uncle, was Shah in 309/921-2 when the envoy from the CAbbasidcaliph to the king of the Bulghars, Ahmad b. Fadlan, visited the Khwarazmian capital Kfth en route for the middle Volga and saw the Shah.5 The tragic death of the Shah Abli CAbdallahMuhammad put an end to the line. Al-Birufnimentions as an outstanding personality in his own right AbuiSacid Ahmad. The main facts known about the line relate to its rise to power and its fall, but it is possible to reconstruct an outline history of the dynasty from the end of the third/ninth century onwards. In the later third/ninth century, the eastern Islamic world, comprising Khurasan and Transoxania, was dominated by the two rival powers of the Saffarids, centred on their capital in Sistan of Zarang but endeavouring to maintain a hold on Khurasan, and the Samanids of Transoxania with their capital in Bukhara. In 259/873 the founder of the Saffarid dynasty, Yacqfib b. al-Layth, had expelled from Nishapur the governor for the caliphs, Muhammad b. Thus the familyof cIraq(al CIrdq)have nurturedme Tahir, but the Saffarids were unable definitively to with the flow of their bounty (lit. "milk"),and control Khurasan in the next two decades. During this time, Yacqfib's successor CAmrb. al-Layth disamongstthem Mansfirtook it upon himself to rear me.3 puted control there with various military adventurHere al-Birufnimentions Abfi Nasr Mansfir b. CAli ers, most notably Rafic b. Harthama, a former comb. cIraq,who was himself an outstanding scholar and mander of the Tahirids, who in 279/882 became de author of some twenty works on mathematics and facto governor of Khurasan, making the khutbathere astronomy, and an outstanding figure in the intellec- for the deposed last Tahirid governor, Muhammad. tual history of mediaeval Islam. P. G. Bulgakov has CAmr expelled him from Nishapur in 270/884 and also mentioned this line in connection with the biog- again in the next year, and Ra-fic fled to Rayy and raphy of al-Biruni and has provided a summary of all allied with the Zaydi ruler in the Caspian provinces the available information about it, scanty and desul- against the Saffarids. In 279/892 the new CAbbasid tory as this is. According to Fuat Sezgin, the scholar caliph al-MuCtadidrecognised CAmr as ruler over

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southern and eastern Persia, including Khurasan, this last still controlled by R~ific'sgovernors.6 In Samanid Transoxania, Nasr (I) b. Ahmad (I) had ruled from Samarqand, nominally as governor for the CAbbasidsbut in practice as an independent ruler, with his brother IsmacCilas his deputy in Bukhara. The latter had endeavoured to seize supreme power in Transoxania, defeating and capturing Nasr, but the situation had been restored by Nasr's remaining as nominal overlord but making Ismacil his heir. Nasr died on 23 Jumada- I 279/21 August 892, and Ismacil became Amir with Bukhara as his capital, proving an outstanding administrator and military leader and achieving a great posthumous reputation as a wise and pious ruler. 7 Such was the position in the East on the eve of the final Saffarid-Samanid struggle for supreme control there. In 280/893 CAmrdrove out Rafic's governors from the cities of Khurasan. Rafic secured military support from the Zaydi ruler in Gurgan and in 283/896 marched on Nishapur, but was twice defeated by cAmr. He fled northwards with only a handful of his remaining troops across the Qara Qum desert towards Khwarazm,being plundered en route by his own ghulaims,who tried to kill him, and arrived in Khwarazm. Here he was recognised and killed in 283/896, either by the Khwarazmshah's envoy or by a governor there of CAmr, Muhammad b. CAmral-Khwarazmi, and his head sent to CAmr at Nishapuur. Muhammad b. CAmr travelled to Nishapur and received as his reward a robe of honour from CAmr,who then sent him back as his representative in Khwarazm. But in his absence, the Samanid Ismacil had sent a force to Khwarazm and installed there his own nominee, cIraq or CAraqb. Mansuir, so that in this year 293/896 the future founder of the CIraqline enters the historical scene.8 The Samanids had originally been governors apppointed to various cities in Transoxania and the upper Oxus region by the Tahirids, and as such subject to them. CAmr,as successor to the Tahirid heritage in Khurasan, expected the same obedience from the Samanids. But Ismacil b. Ahmad was indisposed to accept this subordination, despite the fact that in 285/898 al-MuCtadidpublicly proclaimed to the returning pilgrims of Khurasan the deposition of IsmaiCil and the succession of CAmr to his Transoxanian territories. Warfare ensued in the East, and CAmr sent Muhammad b. CAmr alKhwatrazmiand another commander of the Saffarids to take over Khwarazm.They were adversely affected by the intense heat of the Qara Qum, but crossed the

Oxus in Rabic II 285/May 898, encountering then an army sent against them and led by IsmaCil. Because of the roughly equal strength of the two opposing armies, negotiations took place and in the early summer, the Saffarid forces withdrew. cAmr then sent a more powerful army under Muhammad b. Bishr or Bashir, but in Shawwal 285/October 898 Muhammad b. Bishr was killed in battle and the Saffarid army routed. cAmr then set out with all his forces towards the Oxus, but in spring 287/900 IsmaCil managed to encircle the Saffarid army outside Balkh, and a fierce battle took place. Certain sources speak of the defection of some of CAmr's commanders to the Samanid side. Undeniably, CAmrwas defeated and himself taken prisoner, being afterwards despatched to the caliph in Baghdad and ultimately killed there in 289/902.9 After the defeat of CAmrand removal of all threats from the Saffarids, Ismacil aimed at extending his sway over Khurasan. His nominee cIra-qb. Mansfir managed to maintain his position in Khwarazm,and the death of Ismacil in 295/907 brought a period of instability for the Samanid amirate. Ismacil's son Ahmad was murdered by rebellious commanders in 301/914; his son and successor, Nasr (II), was only eight years old and faced challenges to his throne brother Is1afiqand rebellious comfrom IsmaCTil's manders.10 Conditions for the Banfi CIratq in Khwarazm to pursue an independent course were therefore propitious. We do not know, even in general terms, the course of events in Khwarazm at this time. Bulgakov considered that cIrajqb. Mansfir was governing the province at the opening of the tenth century A.D., but he was obviously not still ruling when Ibn Fadlatn visited the court of his son Muhammad in 309/921-2. It was Muhammad's brother CAllwho was the father of al-Biruini's mentor Abfi Nasr Mansfir. Abfi Sacid Ahmad, Muhammad's son, is mentioned by al-Birufni in his account of the reform of the Khwarazmian calendar, and in this account the historian mentions an otherwise unknown attempt of the Samanids to reassert their control over Khwarazm. For some time, Abui Sacid Ahmad had lived as a prisoner of the Samanids in their capital Bukhara, but was eventually allowed to return to Khwarazm, where he became Khwarazmshah, presumably acknowledging the Samanids as his overlords. Al-Birufinistates in his great work on historical information, chronologies and eras, al-Athar al-bdqiya can alqurtn al-khaliya:

THE KHWARAZMSHAHS

OF THE BANU

Descriptionof how theKhwarazmshah proceededin regard to thefestivals of thepeopleof Khwarazm Abu-Sacid Ahmad b, Muhammad b. cIraq... having been loosed from bondage and brought out of his place of captivityat Bukhara, and having returned to his capital (dar al-mulk),asked the mathematicians at his court about the festival of Ajghar, whereupon they pointed out to him [its place in the calendar]. Further, he asked with what day of the month of Tammfiz it corresponded, and this also they told him. ...When seven years later, at the same time of year, the same sort of problem came to his mind, he rejected that sort of calculation ... The Shah ordered a reform of the Khwarazmian calendar to be made: This plan was carried out in the year 1270 of the era of Alexander [= A.D. 959] and they arranged... so that AjghaSrwould always fall in the middle of Tammufz.Accordingly, they used this as the basis for regulating the time of agricultural activities ... In the same way, they fixed all the times for sowing, for the fertilisation of trees, for planting and staking up, etc. From this passage, we may deduce that Abui Sacid Ahmad was a hostage in Bukhara before 340-1/952 (sc. A.D. 959 minus seven years) and then released to return to the capital Kath, and was still Khwarazmshahin 347-8/959.11 However, Ibn al-Athir mentions under the year 332[/943-4] that a certain cAbdallah b. Ashkam was Khwarazmshah. Thus the reign of the CIra-kid Muhammad b. cIraq cannot have lasted longer than this year. It seems that CAbdallahhad usurped the throne and resisted the authority of the Samanids, so that the Amir Nuh (I) b. Nasr (II) had sent an army against him, causing CAbdallathto flee for refuge to "the king of the Turks" (malik al-turk).Since the son of this "king"lived in Bukhara at the 'Samanid court as a hostage for his father's good behaviour, Niuh offered to send back the son provided that the Turkish ruler extradited 'Abdallah b. Ashkam to Bukhara. CAbdallahin fact left Khwarazm (having returned from the Turkish king's court?), returned to Samanid allegiance and was apparently restored to rule in Khwarazm, with Amir Niuh pardoning him and showing him favour. One might speculate that, after this reconciliation, Nfiuhdeported the legitimate, CIraqidheir to the throne in Khwarazm,Abmad b. Muhammad b. CIraq,to captivityin Bukhara, where he was kept until 340-1/952. So could this last date be that of CAbdallahb. Ashkam's death?12 Fortunately, at least four coins minted by Ah)mad b. Muhammad are extant, three dirhams from

'IRAQ

(FOURTH/TENTH

CENTURY)

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348/959-60 (i.e. around the time of the reform of the Khwarazmiancalendar, see above) and one from 366/976-7. This last coin is of special importance since it gives the latest date so far known for Ahmad's reign. The coins of both years have no mention of the Samanid Amir's name, implying that Ahmad was ruling in Khwarazmas an independent ruler.13 Theoretically, CAbdallahb. Ashka-m could have been a member of the Baniu CIraq,but was probably not, since al-Biruinidid not include him in his list of the Khwarazmshahs.He states that: The governorship (wildya) [over Khwarazm] remained alternately (tataraddadu) in the hands of this family (sc. of the cIraqids) for some periods of time and in thehands of othersat othertimes(my italics, M.F.) until both the wilayaand the shahiyya(sc. independent sovereign power) slipped out of their hands after [the death of] the martyr Abui CAbdallah Muhammad b. Ahmad b. Muhammad b. CIraq b. Mansur b. CAbdallahb. T.r.k.s.batha b. Shaw.sh.f.r b. '.s.k.j.muk b. '.z.kajwar b. S.b.ri b. S.kh.r b. '.r.th.mukh, in whose time, as I have mentioned, the Prophet's divine mission took place.14 Just before this, al-Birfinitraces back the genealogy of the Khwarazmshahsto one Afrigh, who is said to have built the castle of al-Firon the banks of the Oxus in the year 616 of the era of Alexander (= A.D. 305), this being the beginning of the history of the city of Kath.15 But as V.A. Livshits has shown, al-Biruni's genealogy of Shahs before the eighth century A.D. does not coincide with the names of Khwarazmshahs as known from coins and epigraphic evidence; 16and al-Birulni, although on intimate terms with the CIraqids,acknowledges that the history of the Shahs is obscure in places. Like many other newly-established dynasties, the Banti CIraqmay well have pretended to descend from famous rulers of the past, just as the Buyids, in reality obscure Daylami mercenary soldiers in origin, were provided by obliging genealogists with a glorious family tree going back to the Sasanid emperors, or the local rulers of Badakhshan, who claimed Alexander the Great as their progenitor.17 So it is quite possible that an imposing genealogy was invented for the Banfi cIraq tracing them back to Afrigh (who must be regarded as a legendary figure; his name is never mentioned on early coins) and the ancient Khwarazmshahs, whose names were still vaguely remembered in the fourth/tenth century and transmitted, in some form or other, to al-Birfini living at their court; but the latter is definite that it was the Banff CIraq,and not the house of Afrigh, which nurtured him in his early years.'s

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The last Khwarazmshah of the Banu CIratq was Abff b. b. b. Muhammad Ahmad Muhammad CAbdallah of the founder of the and line, CIraq,great-grandson whose reign began not earlier than 366-7/977 and ended in 385/995. Like its rise, the fall of the line was connected with the fortunes of the Samanids, by now in deep decay and with much of their power in the hands of their Turkish generals and the members of the powerful Simjilri family. In 379/989 Abff CAll Simjuri defeated the army of his rival, the Samanid general Fa'iq Khassa, in a struggle for control of Khurasan. The Samanid Amir Nuh (II) b. Mansidr(I) (365-87/976-97) awarded the governorship of Khurasan to Abu CAll, but required annual tribute, which the latter refused. Abu CAli,fearing attack, turned to the Turkish Qarakhanid Bughra Khan as an ally, urging him to attack Nidh's dominions in Transoxania. In Rabic I 382/May 992 Bughra Khan and his troops entered the Samanid capital Bukhara in triumph, and Nidh fled to Amul on the Oxus in order to raise a new army. The Khwarazmshah Abu CAbdallahMuhammad at this and in exchange point sent reinforcements for the Amir granted the Shah NI.h, the northern Khurasanian town of Abiward. However, this was actually in Abu CAli'shands, and he refused to cede the town. Meanwhile, the Khan was compelled through illness to leave Bukhara for Samarqand and thence for his territories in Turkestan, dying en route. Having betrayed Nl h, Fa'iq allied himself with Abu CAllSimjuri, so that the Amir had to turn to another powerful vassal, Sebiktegin, who came from Ghazna and in 384/994 defeated the rebellious generals, dispersing them so that Fa'iq had to flee to Gurgan. They returned to invade Khurasan in spring 385/995 but were again routed by Sebfiktegin. AbuCAlhfled to the court of the local ruler at Urgench in Khwarazm, one Ma3mffn b. Muhammad, who promised him refuge, but near Hazarasp on the

Oxus, he was intercepted and captured by the Khwarazmshah Abu CAbdallahMuhammad, hostile to Abu CAlisince the latter's refusal to cede Abiward to him, and AbWCAllwas brought to Kath in fetters. Ma3mun b. Muhammad now used this as a pretext to attack the Shah. Kath was besieged and stormed, Abu CAbdallaihMuhammad captured, carried in chains to Urgench and put to death under the eyes of Abd-CAll, now freed by Ma3mun. This was the end of the Banff CIraq,with Ma3mfin himself assuming the title of Khwarazmshah and ruling over the whole province from the new capital of Urgench.19 In conclusion, attention should be drawn to an artefact which is probably to be connected with the BandfCIraq.In c. 1870 there was found in the Perm governorate in northern Russia a silver ewer. Sold at the annual fair of Nizhniynovgorod (the Gorki of Soviet times) to Count C. Stroganov, it eventually, in 1911, entered the collections of the Hermitage in St. Petersburg (Inv. no. Vz-795). The upper part of the ewer is decorated with an exquisitely-drawn inscription in floriated Kufic, with the name "Abu(?) Sacid CIraiqibn (a)l-HIusayn, client of the Commander of the Faithful." Art historians have century Khurasan or suggested fourth/tenth another region of Persia as its place of origin.20 The present writer agrees with the putative date, but suggests that the vessel was made in Khwarazm for a member of the Banu CIraq,since the uncommon personal name cIraq is mentioned plus the formula mawldAmir al-Mu'minin,used only by a head of state to signify his direct submission to the caliph and rarely used at this time by subordinate rulers and governors; thus at this time, the Samanids employed it on coins. 21 So the name on this ewer might be the name of an otherwise unknown member of the Banu CIrajq. A tentative genealogy of the BandfCIraqmay now be attempted:

1. CIraqb. Mansfir (896--not later than 921-2)

CAll

AbdiNasr Mansfir, mentor of al-Birbdini (c. 950-c. 1018 to 1036)

2. Muhammad (not earlier than 921-2-not 3. Abd-Sacid Ahmad (not later than 952-not

later than 943) earlier than 977)

4. Abdi CAbdallaihMuhammad (not earlier than 977-995) ? Abd-SaCidCIrafq b. al-Husayn

? cAbdallah b. Ashkaim (not earlier than 943-not

later than 952)

THE KHWARAZMSHAHS OF THE BANU

1 This article was first written in Russian and then translated into English in Germany. I had referred primarily to texts, translations and secondary works available to me in Russia, but Professor C. E. Bosworth suggested that I should amplify these with references to Western European works since the Russian ones were not readily available in Western Europe. Dr Stefan Heidemann, of the Jena University, has kindly helped with this task of amplifying the references, and I am grateful to him for this and also for reading the English translation and improving some passages. I should also like to thank Mr Gert Rispling of Taby, Sweden, for his help with the new finds of coins of Ahmad b. Muhammad b. cIraq (see above, p. 75). 2 Eduard Sachau was the first to study the successive lines of Khwarazmshahs in detail, including the Afrighids and the Shahs of the Banti CIraq("Zur Geschichte und Chronologie von Khwirazm", Sitzungsber. der Kaiserl. Akad. der Wisenschaften, Wien, philos.-hist. Classe, LXXIII (1873), pp. 499-501, LXXXV (1873), pp. 285-87. Some of the writers of the standard works on chronology and genealogy either ignored altogether the Khwarazmshahs before the line of Anishtegin (e.g. S. Lane Poole, The MuhammadanDynasties (London, 1893), pp. 176-8) or else included only three or four of the pre-Ma~munid Shahs as either "Gouverneurs" or members of a "Premiere dynastie," as did E. de Zambaur, Manuel de genealogieet de chronologiepour l'histoirede l'Islam (Hanover 1927), p. 208. C. E. Bosworth, The New Islamic Dynasties. A Chronological and Genealogical Handbook (Edinburgh, 1996), pp. 178-80, includes all the preMa~miinid Shahs mentioned by al-Birfini and Ibn al-Athir (see above, pp. 73, 75) as the Afrighids of Kith. 3 Yaquftal-Hamawi, Irshddal-arib,ed. D.S. Margoliouth, Ydquit's Dictionaryof LearnedMen, GMS, VI, 1-7 (London, 1923-31), vol. VI, p. 312; I.Yu.Krachkovskii,Arabskayageograficheskaya literatura,in Izbrannyesocheniniya,vol. IV (Moscow-Leningrad, 1957), p. 245. Cf. al-Birumni,Opredelenyegranits mest dlya utochneniyarasstoianiimezhdunaselennimipunktami(Geodeziya), ed. P. G. Bulgakov, in Izbrannyesochinenya,vol. III (Tashkent, 1966), p. 10. 4 Krachkovskii, op. cit., p. 185; Bulgakov, "Biruni i ego 'Geodeziya"', in Opredelenye granits, 11; F. Sezgin, Geschichtedes arabischen Schrifttums,vol. V, Mathematik bis ca. 430 H. (Leiden, 1974), pp. 338-41. Abh. fdirdie Kunde des 5 A. Z. V. Togan, IbnFadldnsReisebericht, Morgenlandes, XXIV, 3 (Leipzig, 1939), Ar. text 6-7, German tr. 10-12; EI2 art. "Ibn Fadlan" (M. Canard). 6 For the general background of events here, and, in particular, for the tortuous story of events in Khurasan at this time, see R. Vasmer, "Uber die Miinzen der Saffariden und ihre Gegner in Fatrsund Hurasan,", NumismatischeZeitschrift,N.S. LXIII (1930), pp. 131-62; C.E. Bosworth, "The Tahirids and Saffarids,", in Camb.Hist. of Iran, vol. IV, FromtheArabsto the Saljuqs,ed. R.N. Frye (Cambridge, 1976), pp. 114-21; idem, The History of the Saffarids of Sistan and the Maliks of Nimruz (247/861 to 959/1542-3), Columbia Lectures on Iranian Studies, 8 (Costa Mesa and New York, 1994), pp. 193-202, 209-15. 7 V. V. Bartold', Turkestanv epokhumongol'skogonashestviya,in Sochineniya,vol. I (Moscow 1963), pp. 274-82; W. Barthold, Turkestandown to the Mongol Invasion, GMS, N.S. V, 3rd ed. (London, 1968), pp. 219-24; R.N. Frye, "The Sam~mids,",in Camb.Hist. oflran, vol. IV, pp. 136-41.

lIRAQ (FOURTH/TENTH

8

9 10 11

12

13

14 15 16

17

18

19

20

21

CENTURY)

75

Bosworth, op. cit., pp. 220-22. Ibid., pp. 223-25; Bartold', Turkestan, pp. 278-9, 282-4; Barthold, Turkestan,pp. 222, 224-25. Bartold', Turkestan, pp. 300-10; Barthold, Turkestan, pp. 240-6; Frye, op. cit., pp. 140-2. al-Athdral-bdqiya,Ar. text ed. E. Sachau, Chronologieder orientalischen V'lker (Leipzig, 1878), p. 241. Eng. tr. Sachau, The Chronologyof Ancient Nations (London, 1879), pp. 229-30, Russian tr. M. A. Sal'e, Abu ReikhanBiruni, Pamniyatnikiminuvshikh pokolenii, in Izbrannye sochineniya,vol. I (Tashkent, 1957), pp. 262-3. Ibn al-Athir, al-Kdmilfi 'l-ta rikh, ed. C.J. Tornberg (Leiden, 1851-76), vol. VIII, pp. 310-11, ed. idem, with differing pagination (Beirut, 1385-87/1965-67), vol. VIII, p. 415. I am grateful to Dr Heidemann for translating this passage for me. On these coins, see U. Linder-Welin, "The Coins from Khwa-razmand the Swedish Viking Age Hoards," Meddelanden fran Lunds UniversitetsHistoriskaMuseum (1961), pp. 155-79. A.K. Markov, Inventarnyi katalog musul'manskikh monet Ermitazha (St. Petersburg, 1896), p. 225, lists Imperatorskogo two fals from different dies, mint illegible, year 366 A.H., rev. central legend Ahmad/ibn Muhammad/Khwarazmshdh,and p. 975, Khwairazm,year 348 A.H., legend on rev. Ahmad ibn This last coin is probably indentiMuhtammad/Khwdrazmshdh. cal with the one first published with a good illustration in C. M. Frihn, Novae symbolaead rem numaniammuhammedanorum ex museisPflugiano atqueMannteufelianoPetropoloi,nec non NejelowianoKasani (St. Petersburg and Halle, 1819), p. 26 no. 11, and pl. II no. 10. Two further coins from Khwarazmof 348 A.H. are to be found in the Swedish Historical Museum (SMH 9136; 3.85 gr; 30 mm.) and from the same die (SMH 16184; 3.28 gr; 29 mm.). al-Athdral-baqiya,,p. 36, tr. Sachau, p. 42, tr. Sal'e, p, 48. Ibid.,p. 35, tr. Sachau, p. 41, tr. Sal'e, p. 48. "Khorezmskii kalendar' i eri drevnego Khorezma," in PalestinskiiSbornik,XXI (1970), pp. 166-67. On the history of KIth, see EI2 art. "KIth"(C. E. Bosworth). Cf. on this whole phenomenon, Bosworth, "The Heritage of Rulership in Early Islamic Iran and the Search for Dynastic Connections with the Past," Iran, XI (1973), pp. 51-62, and for the claims of the rulers of Badakhshain, M. E. Masson, "Istoricheskii etiud po numizmatike Djagataidov," Trudi Universiteta,CXI (Tashkent, Gosudarstvennogo Sredneaziatskogo 1957), p. 91. The first scholar who doubted the reliability of the genealogy of the Banuf CIrfiqwas Sachau, "Zur Geschichte und Chronologie von Khwirazm,", p. 503. On the events surrounding the decline of the Samanids, the fall of the Banui CIraq and their replacement by the Ma mfinid Khwarazmshahs, see Bartold', Turkestan,pp. 314, 318-27; Barthold, Turkestan,pp. 253-67; Bulgakov, "Biruni i ego 'Geodeziya'," pp. 12-13; Frye, "The Samanids," pp. 156-59; Bosworth, TheNewIslamicDynasties,p. 179. V.P. Darkevich, Hudozhestvennyi metall vostoka (Moscow, 1976), p. 43, pl. 28. nos. 2-4; and recently, W. Lukonin and A. Iwanow, PersischeKunst (Bournemouth and St. Petersburg, 1996), p. 117 no. 94. E. A. Davidovich, "Moneti Ferghani kak istochnik dlya kharakteristiki instituta feodal'nikh pozhalovanii za sluzhbu v Srednei Azii X v.," Pis'mennye Pamiyatniki Vostoka 1969 (1972), p. 132.

DECODING THE TWO-DIMENSIONALPATTERNFOUND AT TAKHT-I SULAYMANINTO THREE-DIMENSIONALMUQARNAS FORMS By Mohammad Ali Jalal Yaghan King Saud University,Riyadh

ABSTRACT

2. Ascending form: where the overall form gives an ascending effect starting from one point or from a line (which is not continuous), and the other starting points and lines have different elevations. An example is the muqarnas of the portal in front of the shrine in the FridayMosque in Veramin, dated 1341.

The purpose of this paper is to propose new three-dimensional translations of the two-dimensional plan of a muqarnas found incised on a plaster slab, discovered in Takht-i Sulayman, Iran, and studied and analysed by Ulrich Harb. Harb proposed a three-dimensional interpretation, but this does not match the general historical context suggested by the contemporary examples of muqarnas forms, nor does it match the logic of the composition suggested by the two-dimensional plan. New three-dimensional decodings of the plan are therefore proposed. The method used by this paper is proposed as a model for later studies concerning the decoding of similar historical patterns.

2. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND The subject of this paper is the decoding of the two-dimensional pattern plan (2DPP) of a muqarnas, found inscribed on a plaster slab at Takht-i Sulayman, the site of an Il-Khanid palace, into a three-dimensional muqarnas form.1 First the site and the archaeological findings (including the slab) will be introduced. Takht-i Sulayman is located in the northern part of modern Iran to the south-east of Lake Riza'iyya/ Urmiya, at about 165 km. south of Tabriz (see map in Fig. 1). During the time of the Mongol Il-Khans it was known as the town of Saturiq. It is the site of a palace built by Abaqa Khan in the 1270s on the ruins of an earlier Saljuq palace. The German excavations there uncovered parts of the palace, which consists of a huge central courtyard with an oval lake and surrounded on all sides by various units, including rectangular halls, cross-shaped buildings and iwans [3, p. 112; 4, pp. 293-5; 5, p. 34]. There are three major archaeological findings that concern the muqarnas, which were studied by Harb [2], and the following is a short description of his findings and work. 1. There are many fragments of plaster muqarnas units, which had fallen from the southern vault of the palace. Harb produced full orthogonal drawings of these units. He showed that they are based in plan on shapes of 450, 900 and 1350 (squares, rhomboids and right-angled triangles). The lengths of the edges of the squares, the lozenges and the shorter sides of the of the right-angled triangles are equal (21 cm.). This length is referred to as the "scale". Harb classified these pieces into "cells with roofing" and "filling elements".2 The height of the "cells with roofing" is 42 cm., while that of the "filling elements" is 21 cm. This difference is due to the curve's shape

1. TERMINOLOGY The following are some basic concepts that will be referred to throughout the paper. Point-base muqarnas: The muqarnas form whose base is a point. The pendentive-like muqarnas forms are only one example of the point-base muqarnas. Another example is the corbel-like muqarnas (like that found under each rib of the ribbed dome over the Mosque of Amir Yiinus Dawadar, Cairo, dated A.D. 1381-9). Line-base muqarnas: The muqarnas form whose base is a line. Examples of such muqarnas forms are many. One of the simplest examples is that of the transitional zone of the Friday Mosque at Ardistan, Iran, dated 1055-8. Composite-base muqarnas: Many of the muqarnas forms are seen to have mumerous starting points and lines. Nevertheless, the overall arrangement of the form implies similar patterns to the point-base and line-base types. They can be divided into: 1. Composite-base with the same elevation "CBSE":where all starting points and lines have the same elevation, and the overall conceptual effect of the form gives a similar effect to that of the line-base. An example is the muqarnas of the portal of the Imamzada of Muhammad Bistam Mirza in Bistam, dated 1300.

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TURK

EY

IA

4

amarq nd

TURKMENISTAN0.

oTabr,

o

0

Takh - ulayi1 o0,stam jTehran oVeramin

0

Ma hhad o

Turbat-i-5ha h Jam

o Natanz

BaEh

0Ardistan o Isfahan

AFGHANISTAN

o Yazd 05hiraz

SAUDI

0

ARA5A

0Kirman

IR-AN

A

o000 km Fig. 1. Map of Iran showingthemajorsitesmentionedin theresearch.

that can be seen as two parts, vertical and curved, each of 21 cm. The filling elements have only the curved part because they fill the space between two "cellswith roofing". These units were corbelled in tiers one on top of the other to produce the muqarnas. Fig. 2 shows computer reproductions of the basic units of each type reproduced from Harb's drawings.3 2. The remaining parts of the southern vault. These were constructed of the units described in 1. as demonstrated by the four preserved tiers. Harb produced a reconstructed plan of this vault. Fig. 3 shows a computer plan and perspective of Harb's reconstruction of the vault produced by the present author and depending on Harb's plan and the units.4 3. A plaster slab. The slab is almost a square (47-50 cm.) with a thickness of 3.5-4 cm. [2, p. 10]. It has an incised pattern composed of squares, rhomboids and triangles forming an overall square of almost 41.6 cm. (Fig. 4a). It represents the earliest known example of an architectural drawing incised

on plaster [6, p. 4]. There are no actual remains of the muqarnas which it represented. But if we suppose that it was built from the same units described above (which have 21 cm. as their major length or "scale"), then an approximate scale of 1:6 can be assigned to the pattern, indicating that the room below should have been a square of 5.01 m. [2, pp. 65-6]. Harb analysed many muqarnas plans where the above units were used (or where the plans of the muqarnas forms were based on 45', 90' or 1350 degree lines, resulting in compartments similar to the two-dimensional projections of these units), and presented his decoding of the two-dimensional pattern plan 2DPP found inscribed on the plaster slab. Fig. 5 shows a plan and three-dimensional view of his decoding. It is this decoding with which this paper deals, suggesting that it is incorrect and proposing new decodings. Usually such a process of decoding would result in different possibilities. Nevertheless, in this case, the

DECODING THE TWO-DIMENSIONAL

PATTERN FOUND AT TAKHT-I SULAYMAN

Cells with Roofing Harb presented more "cells with roofing", but with minor differences in the rear side which were used to help mounting them to the wall of the building.

Filling Elements

Fig. 2. A computerreproductionof themuqarnasplasterunits usedin Takht-iSulaymanas reconstructed byHarb.

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Fig. 3. Reconstructionof themuqarnasof thesouthernvault of Takht-iSulayman.

DECODING THE TWO-DIMENSIONAL

PATTERN FOUND AT TAKHT-I SULAYMAN

a. The pattern as found inscribed, representing a quarter vault.

b. Four quarters, representing the whole vault, with the two major parts, and the repeated elements indicated.

Fig. 4. Thepatterninscribedon a plasterslab at Takht-iSulayman.

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historical context and the two-dimensional composition can provide strong leads to the rejection of the decoding suggested by Harb. His decoding portrays the muqarnas form as a base-point (pendentive-like) muqarnas (Fig. 5). This paper suggests that his decoding is inaccurate and does not represent the intended form, which would be a composite-base with same elevation (CBSE). This conclusion is drawn upon studying the two-dimensional pattern plan 2DPP from the following standpoints: 1. The two-dimensional pattern plan (2DPP) composition properties. The historical context. Two issues were investi2. gated here: a. The type of muqarnas forms that were generally used during that period in Iran b. The comparison of some parts of the 2DPP with similar parts of muqarnas forms that are available. 3. Studying some forms that are point-base type and assessing their 2DPP. These standpoints are first discussed in detail in the next part, and then the new decodings are presented. 3. ANALYSISOF THE TWO-DIMENSIONAL PATTERN PLAN (2DPP) The following analysesare based on the assumption that the two-dimensional pattern produced by Harb from the remains of the slab is accurate (comparing it with the photograph of the slab) and that it was actually a quarter of a vault. Reference will be made to the whole plan (of four quarters); thus the centre point of the whole pattern plan is actually one corner point of the pattern inscribed on the slab) (Fig.4b). The standpoints just presented will be now discussed in detail. (a) The two-dimensional patternplan (2DPP) composition. This section deals with the 2DPP from a compositional point of view and tries to suggest its best possible interpretations into a three-dimensional form. There are no fixed rules, but some logical guide lines that support the conclusions suggested by other points. Some examples of the three-dimensional forms that are suggested by two-dimensional shapes are: - A square (or a rectangle) would suggest a cube (or a parallelogram) in the third dimension. - A square, with its centre point indicated, would be interpreted as a pyramid. - Multiple concentric squares would suggest a stepped pyramid (this would still apply even when the lines of the concentric squares are not straight lines but visual lines created by the repetition of an element (Fig. 6)).

view ofHarb'spointFig. 5. Plan and three-dimensional base (pendentive-like) decoding.

DECODING

Two-dimensional

THE TWO-DIMENSIONAL

plan

PATTERN

FOUND

AT TAKHT-I

Three-dimensional Looking down

SULAYMAN

view. Looking up

Central point is emphasised

Concentric squares

Concentric visual squares created by the repetition of half circles)

Corner points are emphasised

Fig. 6. Two-dimensional interpretations. plans and theirmostprobablethree-dimensional

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- The centre point of a star is a focal point that can be of a higher (or a lower) level from the rest of the points. The two-dimensional plan can be visually divided into two parts, which are integrated and hardly noticed in the third dimension (see Fig. 4b). The first part, which is the central one, is arranged around the central point. The second part, which spans from the square boundaries to the edges of the first part, is arranged according to a squared grid, as if there are concentric squares (visually drawn by the repetition of many elements, like half-stars, squares, etc.; see Fig. 4b) diminishing in size. On the contrary, in the first part, this ordered manner changes and an attempt to reach an octagonal shape is gradually made. This scheme of visually-concentrated squares would suggest that the decoding of the second part into the third dimension is of layers that start from the same elevation on the walls and diminish in size according to the pattern lines (analogous to the stepped pyramid discussed above). The muqarnas would be of composite-base with the same elevation (CBSE) type. The corner points of the 2DPP are not focal, nor indicated as having a special value. This further supports the "CBSE" decoding, and contradicts the decoding suggested by Harb (base point pendentivelike), which gives the corner points a special value by interpreting much of the second area as a pendentive muqarnas form.

(b) Thehistoricalcontext. i. Concerning the type of muqarnas forms that were generally used during that period in Iran, the available historical examples of the period suggest that the point-base (pendentive-like) muqarnas was a rare case, while the line-base and the CBSE were the dominant forms. Of all the examples provided by Harb himself, none was a point-base (pendentivelike) muqarnas (see Table 1). All of them are of linebase or of composite-base-same-elevation CBSE types, except for one example (the vault over the portal in front of the shrine in the Friday mosque in Veramin , dated 1341, Fig. 7), which is a compositeascending form type (not point-base). This view is supported by reviewing 215 muqarnas plans in the area of central Asia and other 392 plans in the area of Iran, tabulated and analysed by Naoko Fukami [9, 10]. Not a single muqarnas vault was a base-point type. This clearly indicates that the general tendency in the muqarnas forms of these regions did not include the point-base (pendentivelike) muqarnas forms (not only during the I1-Khanid period but almost throughout the nine centuries of the existence of muqarnas there); a further reason for rejecting Harb's decoding. ii. The comparison of some special parts of the 2DPP with exact parts of muqarnas forms that are available also supports the line-base decoding. This part is half of an eight-pointed star (of four lozenges) touching the square edge (Fig. 4b). Harb

TABLE 1: Muqarnas examples studied by Harb and their base types. place Bistam,shrine

Mugarnas Vaultovereasternportal

date 1300-13

base type line

plan rectangle1 : 2 withrecesses

Takht-iSulayman Bistam Bistam

1270s 1300 1300

line line CBSE

Abarquh,Fridaymosque Veramin,Fridaymosque

Southernvault Vaultoveriwanof Bayazid Vaultoverthe portalof Imamzadaof MuhammadBistamMirzaVaultoverthe south iwan Vaultoverentranceportal

1337-8 1322-6

line line

square Half ellipse rectangle almost1 :2 rectangle1 : 2

Veramin,Fridaymosque

Vaultoverthe portalin front of the shrine

1341 1315-16 1304-9

compositeascending line CBSE

rectangle 1: 0.79(?) rectangle 1 : 0.27(?) rectangle1 : 2 rectangle1 : 2

1307

line

octagon

Ashtarjan,Fridaymosque Vaultoverentranceportal Vaultovera niche in the groundfloor of Natanz,Fridaymosque north iwan Natanz Vaultoverthe mausoleumof Shaykh CAbdal-Samad

DECODING THE TWO-DIMENSIONAL

PATTERN FOUND AT TAKHT-I SULAYMAN

Fig. 7. Plan and 3D view of themuqarnasof theportalof theshrinein theFridaymosqueof Veramin type). (composite-ascending

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a. As decoded by Harb.

b. As suggested by this paper and supported by muqarnas examples.

Fig. 8. Half of an 8-pointedstar touchingtheboundariesof themuqarnas,and its proposeddecoding. decoded this half-star by assigning one lozenge to a certain layer and the other three to the layer on top of it (Fig. 8a). Such an interpretation ignores the compositional qualities of the two-dimensional star that suggests the four lozenges as having the same value in relation to their centre point (Fig. 8b). To support this suggestion, reference will be made to muqarnas forms that contained the same part. The first two are cases mentioned by Harb himself; the vault over a niche in the north iwan in the Friday mosque at Natanz, dated 1304-9 (Fig. 9), and the vault over the portal of Imamzada of Muhammad Bistam Mirza (Fig. 10). Here the same half-star appears, and its three-dimensional from is as suggested by this paper. Other examples in Samarqand are Shad-i Mulk Aqa, dated 1372, Qutham ibn cAbba-s,dated 1334-5, and also the muqarnas of the entrance portal of the shrine complex at Turbat-i Shaikh Jam, dated to the early fourteenth century. Whenever a part of such a star (with two, three, or four lozenges) appears touching the edges of the muqarnas, the lozenges have the same interpretation (same layer) around the their centre point (see

as an example for three lozenges Fig.11, which represents the muqarnas over the eastern portal of the shrine in Bistam). This also supports the rejection of Harb's decoding and supports the new one suggested in this paper. (c) Studyingsomeformsthat arepoint-basetypeand assessingtheir2DPP. A study of some forms that are point-base type shows that the corner points of their 2DPP have a special treatment and that the point-base decoding is easily read from the plan accordingly. Examples of point-base (pendentive-like) forms are those in the Mosque of al-Mu'ayyad, dated 1420, and in the Madrasa of Sultan Barqiiq, dated to the end of the fourteenth century, and many other examples in Egypt from the second half of that same century (Fig. 12 shows a geometrical form representing such muqarnas, the actual forms differ in the number of tiers and minor alternations in the shape of some cells). Other examples of the point-base muqarnas integrated with the dome over it, are those of the

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FOUND

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Fig. 9. Plan and 3D view of themuqarnasof a nichein theFridaymosqueat Natanz; noticethe3D form of thehalf-star.

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Fig. 10. Plan and 3D view of the muqarnasof theportalof ImamzadeMuhammadBistamMirza at Bistam;noticethe 3D form of thehalf-star.

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89

Fig. 11. Plan and 3D view of themuqarnasovertheeasternportalof theshrineat Bistam.Noticethe3D form of the3/8 part of thestars touchingtheboundaries.

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dome at the portal of the Qusun-Yashbak palace in Cairo, dated 1337 (Fig. 13), and the dome over the entrance lobby of the Sultan Hasan mosque also in Cairo, dated 1356-63. In all of these cases, the 2DPP clearly indicate that the corner points are of special importance and that a pendentive-like form can be visualised, contrary to the case of the 2DPP of the plaster slab of Takht-i Sulayman. 4. NEW THREE-DIMENSIONALDECODINGS

Fig. 12. Point-basemuqarnasform similarto thosefound in Egyptin thelate 14th-early15th centuries.

After reaching the conclusion that the muqarnas form intended by the 2DPP is a CBSE type, the next step is to attempt producing the form itself. The basic guidelines for such an attempt are the same points of two-dimensional properties and the historical context, as well as the units described by Harb. However, it is important to indicate that these units do not lead to the three-dimensional form by themselves, as the possibilities of their combinations are enormous. They represent a method of construction. The form itself can be produced by other methods as well. Many of the examples provided by Harb did not use the units found in Takht-i Sulayman, but their two-dimensional pattern plans are based on the same 450, 900 and 1350 degree lines. As mentioned earlier, the decoding process, which can be seen as defining the layer lines of the muqarnas, can result in many outputs. The difference between these outputs is a result of interpreting a part of the 2DPP (conceptually) in different ways taking into consideration its surrounding parts, for example four squares can be interpreted as a small dome (Fig. 14a), but when the whole form is seen to ascend, and the centrality of the four squares is not emphasised by its surroundings, then they can be interpreted as two half-domes of two levels (Fig. 14b), or as two brackets (Fig. 14c). Such interpretations would create forms with obvious differences, while others can be of minor effect on the final output. The 2DPP (as shown earlier, see Fig. 4b) can be conceptually divided into two parts. The first is the central part, which is dome-like, starts from a visual square (i.e. not an actual square but one that is visually perceived from the composition), to an octagon on the top. The second is the outer one, which stretches from the boundaries of the muqarnas to the edges of the central part. For the purpose of this paper, two alternatives for each part are produced (resulting in four different outputs). The central part alternatives are based on the same conceptual perception (dome-like). The outer part alternatives are based on two different interpretations of a group of four squares (repeated sixteen times in the overall plan), first as small domes, sec-

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PATTERN FOUND AT TAKHT-I SULAYMAN

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palace in Cairo(1337). Noticehowthe Fig. 13. Half of the domeof thecentrelobbyof theentranceof the Qusun-Yashbak read the can be easily from 2DPP. point-baseparts

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a. Dome

b. Two Half-domes

c. Two Brackets

offour squares. Fig. 14 Differentinterpretations

ond as brackets. Fig. 15 shows a table of four alternatives in plan and Fig. 16 shows their three-dimensional forms. Two of the four alternatives are composed of twelve tiers and the other two of thirteen tiers. Harb's decoding was composed of eighteen tiers, giving the proposed vault a total height of 7.35 m.5 [2, p. 66]. According to the current decodings, the total height ranges between 5.04 m to 5.46 m.6 Finally, it is important to indicate that these alternatives are only possible interpretations. Never-

theless, they do portray the general overall form intended by the 2DPP. The new decodings provided are important in terms of muqarnas research in general. The reason here is that, since Harb's decoding was proposed, it has been incorporated into many later studies. Accepting it affects the historical context of muqarnas examples and the evolution of the muqarnas form in any later study. This paper has aimed at correcting such a line of thought and at providing the best possible interpretation.

DECODING THE TWO-DIMENSIONAL

PATTERN FOUND AT TAKHT-I SULAYMAN

0 0

C:

o

Outer part

The four squares are interpreted as brackets

Alternative 1 (12 tiers)

Alternative 2 (13 tiers)

a The four squores interpreted os b domee

Alternative 3 (12 tiers)

Alternative 4 (13 tiers)

of thecentraland outerparts. Fig. 15. Fouralternative2DPPsresultingfromdifferentinterpretations

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Alternative 1

Alternative 2

Alternative 3

Alternative 4

forms of thefour alternatives Fig. 16. Three-dimensional

DECODING THE TWO-DIMENSIONAL

PATTERN FOUND AT TAKHT-I SULAYMAN

5. CONCLUSION

5

The general height of a tier according to the units is 42 cm. Thus the total height for 18 tiers is 18 x 42 = 756 cm.; but the lower tier of Harb's decoding is of a single "filling element" which has a height of 21 cm.; thus the value 735 cm. was proposed by Harb. These dimensions, as well as Harb's ones, do not include the final small covering-dome on top of the muqarnas, which could have been composed of any shape and size and not from the units described above.

A two-dimensional pattern plan of a muqarnas was found at Takht-i Sulayman. It was first decoded into a three-dimensional form by Harb. The decoding portrayed the form as a "point-base"pendentivelike muqarnas. This does not match the historical context suggested by the contemporary examples, nor does it match the compositional logic of the twodimensional pattern plan, hence short in representing the form actually intended. This paper has pointed out the incorrectness of Harb's decoding and has proposed new decodings that satisfy the two conditions mentioned. It is hoped that a conception that might affect muqarnas evolution research to come has been corrected and that the method suggested may be used for similar subsequent studies.*

Bibliography

*

[5]

I would like to thank Prof. Stefan Kaiser, Institute of Languages and Literature, University of Tsukuba, Japan, for his kind help with the German text of Harb's study.

1 Muqarnas may be defined as: "A three-dimensional form, whose visual function is the gradual transition between two levels, two sizes, and or two shapes. It consists of orderly horizontal 'TIERS' of small units 'UNIT-SURFACES' that are stacked one on top of another, connected via their bases and tops 'layer-lines', the base 'layer-lines' of a tier and the top layer-lines of the layer below are either identical or separated by 'LAYER-JOINTS',any horizontal gaps in-between layerlines of same heights (like stars) are filled by flat, or slightly round 'ROOF-PATCHES."'[1, p. 21]. For a full thorough discussion of muqarnas, its origin, and its geometry the reader is directed to [1] and to the detailed and illustrated article [13]. 2 His analysis of the unit system corresponds to one type (curved muqarnas) of the earliest study on muqarnas by alKishi [7], as well as to the units used until now in Morocco, See the photos 1-8 at p. 282 in [8]. 3 The units reconstructed by Harb in his work are larger in number, but some of them are identical except for their shape from behind, which varied according to the method by which the unit was mounted on the wall; here only the generic units were reproduced (see Figs. 4-19 in [2]). 4 All muqarnas three-dimensional drawings of this paper are produced using a software designed and written by the author. For a full discussion of this software, see [1].

6

[1] [2] [3] [4]

[6]

[7] [8]

[9]

[10]

[11] [12]

[13]

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Yaghan, Mohammad Ali, The Islamic ArchitecturalElement 'Muqarnas'.Definition, GeometricalAnalysis, and a Computer GenerationSystem,Ph.D. thesis, University of Tsukuba, 1997. Harb, Ulrich, Ilkhanidische Stalaktitengew6lbe.Beitriige zu Entwurfund Bautechnik.Berlin, 1978. Wilber, Donald N. The Architectureof Islamic Iran. The II KhanidPeriod.New York, 1955. Huff, Dietrich. "Iranzusammengestellt von Andreas Lippert (Innsbruck)", in Archiv fiir Orientforschung,vol. 29-30 (1983-4), pp. 293-7. Blair, Sheila. "The I1-Khanid Shrine Complex at Natanz, Iran. Harvard Middle East Papers, Classical Series No. 1. Cambridge, Mass., 1986. and Ornament Necipoglu, Gulru, The TopkapiScroll.Geometry in Islamic Architecture.Santa Monica, The Getty Center for the History of Art and Humanities, 1995. al-Iishi, GhiyLth al-Din Jamshid. Miftdh al-hisab ["Key to Arithmetic"], ed. Nader Nabulsi. Damascus, 1977. Paccard, Andre. Traditional Islamic Craft in Moroccan Architecture.Tr. Mary Guggenheim, Vol. 1. Saint-Jorioz, France, 1980. Fukami, Naoko. "Studies on Muqarnas-vaulting in the Islamic Architecture. 1. The Area of Central Asia: Khorasan, Khwarazm and Turan," inJournal of theSocietyof Architectural HistoriansofJapan, 22 (1994), pp. 2-36. idem, "Studies on Muqarnas-vaulting in the Islamic Architecture. 2. The Area of Iran: Mazandaran, Azerbaijan, Tehran, Isfahan and Yazd-Fars-Kerman,"in ibid., 25 (1996), pp. 23-61. Golombek, Lisa. "The Chronology of Turbat-i Shaikh Jam," in Iran, 9 (1971), pp. 27-44. Pauty, Edmond. "Contribution Ail'etude des stalactites," in Bulletin de lInstitut Frangaisd'Archeologie Orientale,29 (1929), pp. 129-53. Behrens-Abouseif, Doris. Art. "Mukarnas",in E12, Vol. VII. pp. 501-6.

SCHOLARSHIPAND A CONTROVERSIALGROUP OF SAFAVID CARPETS By Murray L. Eiland III

Johann WolfgangGoetheUniversity,Frankfurtam Main

the South Kensington Museum (later the Victoria Although Islamic textiles, particularly the knotted pile carpet, are held in high esteem by their cultures and Albert Museum) in the 1890s,4 and the bulk was of origin, they have more often than not been sub- given to the museum upon his death, although a jected to unreliable scholarship. This is particularly fraction was left to his brother's family.5 Salting the case with Persian carpets because there are so donated an important carpet of the group, which few examples surviving from earlier periods. The came to be the type specimen, to the V&A, and all earliest Persian carpets, as opposed to depictions of examples of this type share certain common feacarpets on miniatures, that can be reliably dated are tures. These carpets are finely woven in soft wool and from the sixteenth century (the Ardabil carpet, on an all-silk foundation, with metal-wrapped thread including its mate in Los Angeles, and Milan in some areas. While there has been some disagreement as to which rugs of this description properly Hunting carpet). While there is a wealth of sixteenth century Iranian ceramics, carpets and textiles in belonged with the Salting group, it is clear that there Western museums, the evolution of their ornamen- are at least twenty-seven (plus or minus one or tation has not been the subject of detailed study.' A two examples and three fragments) in medallion group of Safavid Persian carpets usually described as designs, with a field of elaborate scrolling vines, the "Saltings,"2has been particularly misunderstood, palmettes, arabesques, cloudbands, birds and other as they have been, for reasons that are now unconanimals.6 The main border is usually composed of labeled as several notable scholars vincing, by prod- cartouches containing elaborate calligraphy, often ucts of nineteenth century Turkish looms. Recently, slightly overlapping the bounds of the cartouche. however, there has been a fresh approach to the sub- Some carpets have calligraphy in the guard stripes. ject, and a re-evaluation of previously held theories is The use of animal figures in the medallion design in order. New documentary evidence and up-to-date rugs may already suggest the origin of the carpets, methods of analysis have cast doubt upon previous as Patricia Baker notes: ". .. it is the inclusion of scholarship. There has been a more thorough assess- human and animal motifs that immediately distinment of the literature and the discovery of one such guishes Safavid dress weight silks, velvets and carpets carpet in a seventeenth century inventory. Records from Ottoman textiles. The reader must decide if from the Topkapi Palace, where most of the surviv- the usual explanation that Ithna cAshari Shicism ing Saltings were found, have been re-examined, permitted such representation, whereas Ottoman and Carbon 14 dates have been obtained for a num- Hanafi Sunni convention condemned it, is adeber of specimens. The present author has dealt with quate.'"7 A good example of a rug similar to the above metallurgical questions relating to the use of a silverin thread used the fields of these As rugs. description appears on a miniature of Mir Sayyid wrapped most of them show elaborate inscriptions, these have cAll of c. 1555. Although this painting was made for been carefully translated, and even here there is the Mughal court, the artist had previously been information bearing on the question of whether they attached to the court of Shah Tahmasp, and he reflected the court style of naturalism prevalent in are Safavid or late Turkish rugs.3 The convergence of a number of specialists, each investigating a partic- Persia at the time.8 Although only a part of the ular aspect of these carpets, may serve as a model for medallion is visible, the scheme of the carpet in the how complex issues of art history may be resolved. miniature clearly reflects Salting style. The main borThis group of carpets are named after George der is made up of calligraphy in cartouches, while a he As collector was particu- the field shows widely spaced scrolling vines. The Salting (1835-1909). in for his interest Chinese ceramics. well-known medallion, in order to be represented in miniature, larly He chose examples with little regard for historical has been simplified. The design of this rug differs interest, instead relying upon his artisticjudgement. substantially from one surviving fragment thought to on in his of date from the Timurid period.9 It is likely that this Part of collection porcelain was display

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fragment represents one carpet-weaving tradition active during the early Safavid period, which at least suggests that designs on the Salting carpets are consistent with early Safavid designs. However, one cannot propose, on the basis of surviving fragments or other arts, just when the Salting designs first came into use. Carpets of the so called "small format silk rugs," which have been assigned to the town of Kashan, and which may date to the early sixteenth century,10 are of a distinctive style. They may date to about fifty years before the production of Saltings first began and may represent a different style. The largest group of these rugs, approximately seventy, is in prayer rug designs (which will be described here as niche rugs), and again the calligraphy is prominent. The same range of decorative elements are to be found, except for the birds and animals, which may be less than appropriate on pieces presumed to have been intended for use as prayer rugs. Thirty-five of these rugs are currently in the Topkapl Museum in Istanbul,11 and most others in various Western collections are either mates to examples in the Topkapi Museum or thought to have be acquired from this source sometime around 1880.12 A small number may have survived in Persia. When rugs of this type were first recognised in the West, during the late nineteenth century, they were usually, based on no hard evidence, assigned to Tabriz of the sixteenth or seventeenth century. F. R. Martin was of this opinion13, which was expressed also in Pope and Ackerman's Survey.14The first real challenge to this attribution came in 1931 with a new edition of the Victoria and Albert's Guide to the Collectionof Carpets.15There the writer, in a discussion of the Salting carpet, conceded its strongly Persian character, but doubted that such carpets were actually woven there. He commented that: "A mass of evidence makes it likely that they were made in the neighbourhood of Constantinople not earlier than the 18th century," and he expressed his contention that some confirmation of this view was provided by the fact that the Salting carpet had come to light in Turkey.16 While this "mass of evidence" was never brought forward, F. Sarre17 followed with similar comments about the Lobanof-Rostovsky18 carpet in his 1939 review of the Leningrad Exhibition of Iranian Art. Pope, aware of both views, strongly rebutted them in the Survey,as he described the "curious panic" around the authenticity of these carpets, prompted by the brilliant colours of several pieces and the fact that a number of them reached Western buyers through the market in Istanbul. Pope pointed out that: (1) examples of these carpets had survived from Safavid times in such Iranian shrines as Ardabil; (2) many rugs from Persian sources had

STUDIES

reached Western markets through Istanbul; (3) he had been assured by the former director of the Topkapl Museum that these carpets had been in their inventories for centuries, and; (4) that the complexity of the designs had never been successfully matched by later weavers. He noted that the metal thread was much like that of the Polonaise carpets, and he indicated that the wool of these carpets matched that of the Ardabil carpets.19 K. Erdmann countered with a long and detailed review of the Surveyin an article of 1941.20 Without explaining the differentiating factors, he divided the Saltings into two groups. Among the rugs he considered to be authentically Persian were the Baker Carpet in the Metropolitan Museum of Art,21 two rugs formerly in the Yerkes Collection,22 a rug now in the Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection, a Bargello Museum fragment in Florence and an example now in the Mobilier national in Paris. The Salting carpet itself was placed in another group, together with the Marquand carpet in Philadelphia,23 the Lobanof-Rostovski piece in St. Petersburg, the Ali Ibrahim Pasha carpet in Cairo, an example in the Musee Historique des Tissus in Lyons, and, among others, a group of over thirty rugs in the Topkapi Museum24. These Topkapl pieces in prayer rug designs were considered particularly significant, as the majority of them were close to the medallion rugs in materials, structure, colours, and design details, as well as including a wealth of inscriptions. They also showed the same gilded silver-wrappedthreads. Rugs of this latter group were also considered suspect because of what Erdmann thought to be their "overlybright colours." He also drew the conclusion that all of the Topkapi prayer rugs were of the same group, and he found that "There can therefore be no doubt that all carpets of the Topkapl Serail were produced in the same workshop within a short space of time."25 He singled out two very non-Persian examples, one with a vaguely para-Mamluk design and another with only two colours.26 Since the designs did not appear to be Persian, he believed that those with a clearly Persian-type design, albeit with bright colours, were also not Persian. He went so far as to suggest that the rugs could be the first production of the Ottoman court workshop at Hereke. Later, Erdmann changed his dating of the group to the early nineteenth century and added the Baker carpet in the Metropolitan Museum to the list of Saltings, but otherwise the issue lay dormant through the war years and into the 1960s.27 By the time M. H. Beattie produced the catalogue of the Thyssen-Bornamisza Collection in 1972, Erdmann's beliefs were accepted, since the Von Pannwitz carpet

SCHOLARSHIP AND A CONTROVERSIAL GROUP OF SAFAVID CARPETS

in that collection was described by her as a Turkish court carpet of the nineteenth century.28 Even Erdmann had accepted it as a sixteenth-century Persian one.29 Charles Grant Ellis supported Erdmann's observations, and throughout his life he continued to add other rugs to the Salting group.30 The dating was also pushed farther into the present, which related to Ellis's growing awareness that Hereke, the late Ottoman court manufactory, was not founded until the middle of the nineteenth century, which would place any rugs woven there in the last half of the century, a date Ellis initially used. By the time more reliable information was uncovered that carpets were not woven in Hereke until 1891,31 Ellis was referring to the Saltings as very late nineteenth-century work. This trend was carried even further in a paper by Walter Denny at the Third International Conference on Oriental Carpets that described the Saltings as early twentieth-century work, perhaps influenced by the Young Turk movement, although a number were already documented as being in Western hands during the 1880s.32 In adding other rugs to the Salting group, with its suggestion of a late nineteenth century Turkish origin, Ellis began to include an important early carpet in the Poldi Pezzoli Museum in Milan, and in personal conversation later in his life he began to suggest that the Chelsea carpet in the Victoria and Albert Museum was a Salting, finally including among them examples with no metal brocading and no inscriptions in non-medallion or non-prayer rug designs.33 These views were enormously influential in the rug field and permeated the 1987 publication of the catalogue of the Topkapi holdings. There J. M. Rodgers and Hiilye Tezcan34 described the Salting-type niche rugs in their inventory as late nineteenth century Turkish work, again, as Erdmann had done, placing all the prayer rugs in the same category and assuming that they were woven in the same place and time. Even with the publication of the Topkapi carpets, revisionist ideas were beginning to surface, particularly as a result of dye testing. Working at Marmara University, Nevin Enez ran a series of tests on the dyes of some of the Topkapi carpets, with results that suggested re-evaluation of their origin was in order.35 While dye testing had often previously focussed upon reds (distinguishing between madder and the various insect reds), Enez's most significant results concerned several distinct yellow dyes. The importance of yellows is that they may be obtained from diverse local sources. They can consequently be gathered virtually without cost and need not be imported over long distances, as is often the case with indigo, madder and the insect reds. Most relevant was Enez's determination that the yellow in three of the seven tested carpets consisted

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of quercetin,kaempferoland isorhamnetin,indicating that it was derived from Delphinium semibarbatum (Topkapi numbers 13/2015, 13/2029 and 13/2041). This plant grows wild in Iran, Afghanistan, and regions of Central Asia, but it does not grow in Anatolia. This result, first presented at the 1990 International Conference on Oriental Carpets at San Francisco in 1990, established a solid basis for re-evaluating the then-prevailing wisdom about the Saltings.36 Enez subsequently reported the presence of lac in four of the rugs (Topkapi numbers13/2035, 13/2040, 13/2029 and 13/2015), which argued against both a nineteenth-century and a Turkish origin for the carpets.37 While lac appeared in Indian and classical Persian carpets, as well as carpets from the early Ottoman court, it had been replaced by the nineteenth century with American cochineal, which is used on Turkish carpets with insect reds from this era. One of the same carpets with lac also showed the use of juglon, from walnut husks. As Enez pointed out, no Turkish carpets yet tested had been found to contain juglon, although it was commonly found on Persian carpets. The dyes in these carpets were clearly more consistent with a Persian rather than a late Turkish origin. While Erdmann had assumed that all thirty-seven of the Topkapi prayer rugs were made in the same place at about the same time, Enez found that one rug (Topkapi 13/2024) contained both picric acid and another synthetic dye. Considering that the design is a mixture of para-Mamluk and Anatolian motifs, the presence of dyes not available before the last half of the nineteenth century confirms the visual impression that it does not belong with the most common type among the thirty-seven Topkapi pieces. Its structure (a wool warp and weft and knotting of only forty-nine knots per square inch) is also at variance with the structure of others of the group, which may range upward of 500 asymmetrical knots per square inch on a silk foundation. Thus, while the material Enez examined did not prove that the rugs dyed with juglon and D. semibarbatumwere Persian rather than Turkish, at the very least it undermined Erdmann's notion that all the Topkapi prayer rugs were of one group woven at about the same time and in the same place. Another rug of obvious Turkish provenance (Topkapl 13/20/26) was found to have symmetrical knotting, the knot also known as the "Turkish knot." These two rugs were the very ones cited by Erdmann as demonstrating the Turkish origin of the group, and now it had been clarified that they were not part of the Salting group. One was the only example with a synthetic dye and the other was the only example with a symmetrical knot.38 While Erdmann's notion never appeared logically based upon design similarities, the dye and struc-

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tural information had prompted a closer look and had seriously undermined the notion that the Salting carpets were Turkish. Yet those believing in the late nineteenth century Turkish origin of the Saltings stoutly maintained that their case was strengthened by the lack of a Salting-type carpet in any inventories before the late nineteenth century, along with the excellent state of preservation shown by many of them, which appeared to suggest that they were not particularly old. There was a possible exception, as one carpet that appeared to be a Salting was reputed to have been seized as booty when a Polish army lifted the second Turkish siege of Vienna in 1683. It was also alleged to have appeared in an inventory of 1812, but apparently no Western scholar had been able to examine it in the Czartoryski Museum in Cracow. Ellis had known of the piece, but had not seen it and questioned its relevance. Erdmann had allegedly not seen it, but stated flatly that it was a "nineteenth century Turkish copy."39 The author examined this carpet in Cracow in 1996 and found that it was a Salting type rug, with a dark green ground similar to the Philadelphia Marquand rug and typical Salting-type metalwrapped thread in the field.40 While no one at the museum could confirm its appearance in an early nineteenth century inventory, it was clearly grouped with hundreds of objects taken from the abandoned Turkish camp after the siege of Vienna had been lifted, and kept together in various noble houses until the museum acquired them. This material included Ottoman tents and hundreds of other objects, many of them military, all of which were booty from the war.41 There were also Salting-type carpets examined by the author in the early 1990s at the National Museum of Iran (formerly Iran Bastan) in Tehran that were alleged to have been survivals from the possessions of the Shahs, and these seem particularly unlikely to be Turkish products. While at least one of these carpets was alleged to have been found in the Shrine of Ardabil, there is no clear documentation as to when the rugs were first found or acquired.42 Reliable documentation of another example has been provided by John Mills, who accomplished an impressive piece of detective work in producing the long-lacking piece to the puzzle involving a Salting carpet in an early inventory.43 The carpet, currently in the Islamic Art Museum in Cairo, had long been placed in the Salting group, and Mills was able to trace it back to a Parisian dealer, M. Chappey, from whose estate it was sold in 1907. This example was known to have been purchased by Chappey from the Cathedral of Palencia in Spain, as Martin and others mentioned this source. Mills visited Palencia in 1996 and was able to determine that inventories from

1623, 1649, 1725 and 1783 had survived, and he was able to make use of the relevant passages. The description of a carpet in the 1649 inventory is particularly descriptive: Un tapetericofondo coloradocon una Ruedaverdeyoroen el medioy dentrode ella otra colorada.Con lacos de oro cenefaa la rueda blancay coloraday por orla unas letras aranigas. Sirve a las oppossicionestiene una trencapor rematede oroy seda acul y coloradacon sus sordoncillos

doradosy acules.["Acostly rug; red ground with a compartmentof green and gold with another red one within it. With gold interlacingsand a border with white and red cartouchesand for the border some letters. It serves at the discussions.It has a fringe for end finish of gold and blue and red silk withits gold and blue tassels."]44 One need only look at the unusual design of this carpet as published by Pope in the Survey45to recognise how clearly this description fits the carpet. Here, for the first time, was the clear documentary evidence that had so far been lacking, as the description could hardly apply to another carpet, and this made the Czartoryski carpet seem more likely to have been acquired just when it was purported to be. Mills also presented information to the effect that the inscriptions on the Czartoryski piece had been translated by the French orientalist Jaubert sometime shortly after 1809.46 Mills also found earlier mention of the Reinaud medallion carpet (another Salting-type medallion carpet), which had been described by Martin. At the beginning of the nineteenth century it had been among the possessions of Marquis de Lagoy, a member of the Chamber of Deputies, and had been described in a book on the Marquis's collection by Reinaud and published in 1828. After failing to sell at Sotheby's in 1982, at a time when Saltings were in ill repute, this carpet has subsequently disappeared.4 Mills mentions yet another carpet, currently in the Walters Gallery in Baltimore and known to have been in the Goupil collection, which was sold at auction in 1888. Not only is it extensively repaired, with both ends completely rewoven, but the repair was almost certainly accomplished before it was in the Goupil collection.48 A rug requiring such massive repairs prior to 1880 was not likely to have been woven only several decades earlier. In addition to providing the documentation long lacking, Mills followed with a convincing account of why so many of the Salting-type carpets had apparently reached Western buyers around 1880 and why they looked so fresh. Noting that there is no mention of rugs of this sort being sold in Istanbul before 1878, Mills makes reference to the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78, during the course of which the Russians were at the gates of Constantinople in early

SCHOLARSHIP AND A CONTROVERSIAL GROUP OF SAFAVID CARPETS

1878 and thought able to take the city. Istanbul was in a disturbed state. Crowded with refugees with disease raging, the city was desperate, and there are eyewitness accounts, quoted by Mills, describing the selling of treasures of the imperial harem in the bazaar during the winter of 1878. That a number of pieces reached the market at that time is almost certainly the explanation why many were acquired by Western buyers. 49 Evidencefrom the TophapiMuseum But what could account for their being so many of these carpets, ostensibly Persian, in the Topkapi if they were not woven in Turkey? This also is explainable by several well-documented occasions when the Persian Shah sent lavish gifts to the Ottoman Sultan, and in each case carpets are specifically noted. While gifts were sent on a number of occasions, the arrival in 1567 of gifts to the Ottoman court was witnessed by the Hungarian ambassador.50 He specifically noted "silkcarpets from Hamadan and Dargazan ... twenty large silk carpets and many small in which birds, animals, and flowers were worked in gold... The train consisted of 700 men and 19,000 pack animals, bearing.., .luxuries, including woollen carpets so heavy that seven men could scarcely carry them." At times the arrival of such gifts was also documented by miniature painters.51 To suggest that such gifts could have been deposited for safekeeping in the Topkapi Palace is merely to state the obvious. Whether the objects were paintings, precious porcelain or other textiles, the Palace customarily became the repository of gifts to the Sultan, and it appears that many of the carpets were never used. This provides an adequate explanation for the fact that many looked almost new when they were acquired and led to the suspicion that the Salting carpet was in too pristine a state to be from the sixteenth or seventeenth centuries. Indeed, there are records of such carpets in the Topkapi Museum, and Hiilye Tezcan of the museum staff, co-author of the 1987 catalogue, has subsequently modified her views in print.52 Revealing information from surviving Treasury ledgers for the first time, she has described a group of Persian rugs that had been in the Topkapi inventories since at least 1680. Ninety-eight Persian prayer rugs were listed, and there were clear descriptions about the use of metallic thread. Some were described as "Persiancarpets with inscriptions and figures." The plausibility of these entries in the ledgers is enhanced by the above-mentioned accounts of lavish Persian gifts of carpets to the Ottoman Sultans from the Persian Shahs. That survivors of these massive gifts should still be at the Topkapl by 1878 and 1999 is not only plausible but probable.

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thread The metal-covered The present author's part in solving the puzzle involves the metal-covered thread woven into the field of the Salting carpets.53 Pope's comment on this issue is unenlightening: A microscopicexamination of the silver found in severalof these carpets,small areas of which were extracted,suppliesconvincingevidenceof antiquity. The correctmethod of winding the metal stripson the silk core seems not to have been known in Istanbul, for all the falsifications enriched with metal thread that can be traced back to Istanbul exhibit many faults in the thread. Nor has any modern silverthread been found there that resists tarnish.54 Pope had assumed that the thread was made of pure silver tape over a silk core, while the samples examined in this study demonstrated that the material is of gilded silver. It is therefore not surprising that no modern silver threads were found similarly to resist tarnish, as the Salting threads had tapes that were plated with gold. Pope's error is understandable, however, as without the removal of surface dirt and oxidation and examination under high magnification, the thread would appear to be silver. Four samples of thread from different Salting carpets55 (sample numbers 14929, 16436, 16784 and 16895) were prepared for micro-analysis. They were embedded in resin, and ground and polished to a 1Fm diamond finish and then etched with an ammoniacal aqueous solution of hydrogen peroxide to allow identification of metal phases in the samples with the optical microscope. Due to difficulties of out-gassing of the samples in the high vacuum environment of the scanning electron microscope, only qualitative analysis was performed using energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry.56 All Salting samples were found to be of uniform type. The threads were of metal wrapped around a silk core. The silver was very pure, probably in excess of 98%, and the majority of the impurities were of gold and lead, which occur naturally in association with silver ore and are difficult to remove. The presence of amalgam gilding and the interdiffusion of silver, gold and mercury made a more precise estimation more difficult. This information made it relatively simple to reconstruct the manufacturing process of the metal. A sheet of fine silver was amalgam-gilded by first covering it with a thin layer of mercury, which readily forms an amalgam with silver. The gold was then applied as a leaf, and when this composite sheet was exposed to moderate temperature, a layer of silvermercury intermetallic under a gold-mercury alloy layer was created, with some interdiffusion of gold and silver. The sheet could then be worked into a

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thinner layer, and there is some evidence of cold working, as demonstrated by the small grain size of the silver, suggesting repeated forging and annealing. The sheet of metal was then forged down to a very thin gauge, and narrow strips were cut, with their widths varying because they were cut by hand. The typical width is about .25 mm., and the tape is wound spirally around the core of the silk thread so that they abut but do not overlap. It is clear that the desired end result was to create a metallic sheen on discreet areas of the carpets. But in carpets which show little pile wear, why would the metallic areas show so little gold, which one would expect to have more stability? Recent studies of archaeological materials have suggested that gold corrodes in a special way if it is in contact with decaying organic matter. This could result from the micro-environment being acidic, or due to the presence of bacteria that slowly dissolve gold.57 In addition there is evidence leading one to suspect that the wool used in the carpets may also be a source of tarnishing gasses that attack silver.58 It is also clear that the metallic threads of the Salting carpets did not wear as well as their silk cores. Such carpets could hardly have been intended for routine use on the floor. The first question that arose after determination as to how the thread was made involved the question of whether this technique was specifically Persian or whether it might also have been used in Turkey. Since no relevant data base exists, there was no way to prove that such a technique had not been used in Turkey. The focus thus became one of making microscopic comparisons between other types of metal thread from carpets known to have been made in Persia, in this case the so-called Polonaise group of Safavid carpets, and metal thread from other carpets known to have been woven in Turkey, specifically from Hereke in the Ottoman workshop founded during the nineteenth century. Samples known to be from Hereke were the easiest to differentiate from those used in the Saltings. While they are silver-plated, the substrate metal is copper rather than silver, which clearly differentiates them from the Salting samples. They were also noted to be more carelessly wound, with a sparser winding of narrower strips, leaving more of the silk core exposed. None of the Salting samples contained appreciable amounts of copper, as has been found on several Indian and Chinese metallic threads.59 Samples of Salting metal thread and those of three Polonaise carpets (sample numbers 18601, 16334b and 14838), known to be Safavid Persian,6o were found to be essentially identical. As before, amalgam gilding was used, and about 30% of the surfaces of the Polonaise samples were covered with

STUDIES

gold, while the Saltings had only traces left. This suggested that, while both groups used threads made using a similar technique, the Polonaise samples were younger. While an exact chronology cannot be proposed on the basis of wear and oxidation, one may suggest that the Polonaise rugs-in keeping with what has been previously proposed, were made perhaps fifty to one hundred years later than the Salting rugs. Based on examination of the metal thread, and comparison with examples of known provenance, that used in the Salting carpets appears to be Persian and consistent with metal-wrapped silk thread of the Safavid period. Several samples of metal-covered thread from Central Asia were also examined, as were several other Turkish examples. The conclusion of this work with the metal threads gave additional support to a Persian origin for these carpets in that: (1) the metal was prepared in essentially the same manner as for the Polonaise carpets, for which evidence of a Safavid origin is overwhelming; (2) the substrate metal of the metallic Hereke threads was found to be copper rather than silver; and (3) while mercury amalgam gilding was common in Europe into the nineteenth century,61it was also widely used in Persia during the period in which Saltings were made. However, a far more extensive data base is needed to demonstrate conclusively that the metal tape on the Salting carpets could not be Turkish. One other aspect of the use of metal threads concerns the manner in which they were woven into the carpet. The question here is whether it is accomplished in the same manner as the Polonaise carpets, the earliest of which presumably were woven about the same time as the Salting carpets. In both the Polonaise carpets and the Saltings, the metal threads are woven only on the top shed of wefts. On the Saltings (Fig. 1) the passing of the metal thread under one top warp and over the next top warp means that it actually passes over three warps before passing under one. There may be as many as six of these supplemental wefts in the space taken up by one row of knots (i.e. in the space between the passage of the ground wefts). While the Polonaise carpets are much more variable than the Saltings, the most common method is passing the metal thread under one top warp and under three, which--when one counts the bottom shed ofwarps-means that the metal thread actually passes over seven warps before passing under one (Fig. 2). This could be seen as a feature differentiating the Saltings from the Polonaise type, but this almost certainly follows from the fact that the Saltings are a much more finely-woven group of carpets, ranging in the neighbourhood of 400 to 600 knots to the square inch, while the Polonaise carpets, with some not even attaining a knot count of 200

SCHOLARSHIP

AND A CONTROVERSIAL

Fig. 1. Techniqueof metalbrocadingused in Salting carpets

GROUP

OF SAFAVID

CARPETS

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complexion, gradually became substantially Shicite in allegiance. This religious orientation brought the Safavids into military conflict extending over almost the whole of the dynasty's existence, in which the Persian Shahs upheld the banner of the Twelver Shicite Islam, whilst the Ottoman Turkish Sultans were regarded as the defenders of Sunni orthodoxy.63 Thus passages from the Koran when found woven into a carpet would not necessarily label it as the work of either major Islamic group. There are, however, certain invocations that are specially Shicite, and when these occur on a carpet one should assume that this is not accidental and is a deliberate reference to one of the two major Islamic traditions. The material Franses presents provides specific information to the effect that the inscriptions on a large number of the niche rugs are either specifically Shicite or suggestive of an origin within the Shicite tradition. Four of these carpets include specific reference to cAli, and eight include an invocation for

Fig. 2. Techniqueof metalbrocadingused in Polonaise carpets knots to the inch and few exceeding 300, are simply a less finely-woven type. The actual method of incorporating the metal threads is essentially the same in both types. Theinscriptions Far more definitive in terms of demonstrating the origin of the Saltings is material presented by Michael Franses on the inscriptions of the niche rugs.62 In order to understand their implications, one must be aware that, with the advent of the Safavid dynasty in the opening years of the sixteenth century, Persia, hitherto largely Sunni in religious

God to bless the Fourteen Innocents, a specifically Shicite focus. Eleven others show Seal Kufic panels that could be interpreted as Shicite, and yet others contain portions of Shicite prayers.64 What this indicates is that the group of Saltingtype niche rugs, of which thirty-five remain in the Topkapl Museum, is not likely to have been woven within the nineteenth-century Ottoman empire. As gifts from the Shah, they would presumably have been acceptable, although the fact that many were in such pristine condition may suggest that their lack of use may have come about because of the inscriptions. Quite possibly most of the large non-niche carpets that were part of Shah Tahmasp's original gift had been used, worn out and discarded while the niche rugs survived. We know concerning the non-niche Saltings, those with medallion designs, that the inscriptions were of a non-religious nature, including poetry from a number of sources, and none of this has been identified as originating later than the sixteenth century. Consequently, these do not provide evidence as to whether the Salting carpets were woven in Persia or Turkey, as one should recall that inscriptions in Persian would have been accessible to the Ottoman ruling classes during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, when it was a major cultural and literary medium at the Ottoman court. Conclusions Art historians and collectors, like the general public, are susceptible to allowing their judgments to be influenced by what they perceive to be the provenance of a given object. When several serious carpet scholars, most notably Ellis and Erdmann, suggested

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that the Salting carpets were late nineteenth-century work for the Turkish court, the stature of these carpets and their value as works of art declined accordingly. No more than pastiches, assembled from imperfect conceptions of Persian art by Ottoman designers during what was thought to be a decadent period, the Saltings were appreciated as no more than crude reproductions. Their value declined, and several were unable to attract buyers at auctions. Today, when the late nineteenth century Turkish attribution has emerged as false, these carpets are again being recognised as major works of art. While their exact provenance within Persia is unclear, as it is for most of the Safavid carpet production65, their dating to the sixteenth or possibly the seventeenth centuries appears as certain as we are able to determine at this point through the application of art historical methods of dating. Indeed, Franses has presented results of a number of Carbon 14 determinations.66 Samples from ten carpets were analysed, and the results can be interpreted as providing strong evidence for a sixteenth-century origin for the group. Results for niche rugs and non-niche rugs were within the same range, lending further confirmation to the belief that they are part of the same larger group. While there are a number of specialists who question the use of Carbon 14 in the dating of carpets, one should be aware that if the Saltings are truly sixteenth-century work, as could be supported on art historical grounds, then the results are just as expected. The contributions of a number of scholars were necessary to bring about this synthesis, which must be seen as putting to rest an aberration that now seems rather peculiar. The rugs were always recognised as having a decidedly Persian look about them, and they had essentially nothing in common with rugs known to have been woven in Turkey. Furthermore, they can now once again be appreciated for their remarkable aesthetic qualities, allowing us to appreciate, in contemplating those in pristine condition, just how the works of Safavid looms looked when they were new. 1

2

3

4 5

For a general discussion see V. Lukonin and A. Ivanov, Lost Treasures of Persia. Persian Art in the Hermitage Museum (Washington, 1996), p. 49. See below for an explanation of this term. A series of papers on the Salting carpets was presented at the 8th International Conference on Oriental Carpets in Philadelphia in 1996. The proceedings are published in M. L. Eiland Jr. and R. Pinner (eds.) Oriental Carpet and Textile StudiesV/II (Danville, California, 1999). J. H. Duveen, TheRise of theHouse ofDuveen (NewYork, 1957), p. 104. A. de Boulay, "The Blue Porcelain Room, Fenton House: Lady Binning's Inheritance from her Uncle, George Salting", in OrientalArtXLIV/2 (1998), pp. 4-7.

6 J. Mills, "The Salting Group. A History and Clarification," OrientalCarpetand TextileStudiesV/II, pp. 1-17. Mills lists all the known non-niche Saltings on p. 12. 7 P.L. Baker, Islamic Textiles(London 1995), p. 116. 8 S. C. Welch, A Flowerfrom EveryMeadow.Indian Paintingsfrom AmericanCollections,(New York, 1973), pp. 88-89. 9 This fragment is now in the Benaki Museum, Athens. See L. W. Mackie, "A 14th-15th Century Persian Carpet Fragment Revealed," HALI XLVII (October, 1989), pp. 16-23. 10 The Metropolitan Museum in New York has four examples of the small format "Kashan"rugs. For a discussion of these carpets see D. Walker, "Metropolitan Quartet," HALI LXXVI (August-September, 1994), pp. 104-107. 11 Thirty-seven prayer rugs in the Topkapi Museum have traditionally been grouped together, but discussion below will clarify why at least two do not belong with the others. 12 J. M. Rogers and Hiilye Tezcan, The TopkapzMuseum Carpets (Boston, 1987). 13 A Historyof OrientalCarpetsbefore1800 (Vienna, 1908), p. 50. 14 A. U. Pope, "The Art of Carpet Making," in Survey, pp. 2318-28. 15 While the text of this second edition is unsigned, there is some reason to believe that it was primarilywritten by C. E. C. Tattersall. 16 Ibid.,p. 97. 17 "Die Ausstellung Iranischer Kunst in Leningrad," Pantheon XVII (1936), pp.157-62. 18 C. Purdon Clark (ed.), Oriental Carpets(Vienna, 1892-95), pls. XI, XVI. 19 Pope, Survey,p. 2319 20 "p'The Art of Carpet Making,' in A Survey of Persian Art, Rezension."ArsIslamicaVIII (1941), pp. 121-91. Parts relevant to the Saltings have been translated into English by Mills and reprinted in OrientalCarpetand TextileStudiesV/II, pp. 18-23. Subsequent reference to Erdmann's work will include page numbers from this reprinting. 21 M. Dimand and J. Mailey, OrientalCarpetsin the Metropolitan MuseumofArt (New York, 1973), fig. 70. 22 T.J. Farnham, "The Yerkes Collection," HALICI (November, 1998), pp. 74-87. 23 C. G. Ellis, Oriental Carpetsin the PhiladelphiaMuseum of Art (Philadelphia, 1988), pp. 110-15. 24 Erdmann, op. cit., 1941, 18. p. 25 Ibid., 21. p. 26 Seven Hundred Years of Oriental Carpets (Berkeley, 1970), pp.76-80. Here Erdmann reiterates his belief that all the Topkapi rugs were made in the same place at about the same time. He cites the same two rugs, in un-Persian designs, as proof. Although he claims to have been allowed to examine these rugs in 1937, he apparently did not notice that the rug with two colours (13/2026) is symmetrically knotted, as none of the others are. He would, of course, have had no way of knowing about the picric acid in the other example (13/2024). 27 Ibid., pp.163-66. While Erdmann labels many of the Saltings as nineteenth century Turkish, in another section of the same book, his figs. 204, 205, and 206, which are as much Saltings as those he identifies as such, are apparently accepted as made in sixteenth-century Tabriz. 28 The Thyssen-Bornemisza Collectionof OrientalRugs, (Castagnola, 1972), pp. 105-11. 29 See n. 18 below. 30 Op. cit., p. 113. 31 0. Kilfiikerman, The Rugs and Textiles of Hereke (Istanbul, 1987), p. 51. 32 "The Origin and Development of the Ottoman Court Carpets," in Oriental Carpetand Textile Studies II (London, 1986), p. 256.

SCHOLARSHIP AND A CONTROVERSIAL GROUP OF SAFAVID CARPETS

33 The present author discussed the Saltings with Ellis several times, most recently at the International Conference on Oriental Carpets in Hamburg and Berlin in 1993.

51

35 H. B6hmer and N. Enez, "ATopkapi Prayer Rug: Arguments for a Persian Origin," HALIXLI (1988), pp. 11-13. 36 Enez, "Dye Research on the Prayer Rugs of the Topkapl Collection," in OrientalCarpetand TextileStudiesIV (Berkeley, 1993), pp. 191-204. 37 Enez, "Dye Research on the Prayer Rugs of the Topkapi Collection," in ibid.,pp. 31-32. 38 The rug with only two colours (13/2026, pl. 30 in Rodgers and Tezcan) is noted there to have wool warps and wefts, a symmetrical knot and only 30 knots per square cm. The typical Persian style rug in the collection is asymmetrically knotted with silk warps and wefts and about 100 knots per square cm. The rug with a design showing Mamluk features (13/2024, pl. 29 in Rodgers and Tezcan) also has a wool foundation and 49 knots per square cm. These structural differences alone should have been enough to suggest that these were not part of the same group as those rugs with Persian designs. 39 Erdmann, SevenHundredYearsof OrientalCarpets,p. 92. 40 Based on this author's examination of the Czartoryskicarpet in August 1996, I see substantial similarities in colouration with the Marquand carpet in Philadelphia, particularly in the use of a lighter green against a field that appeared to be an very deep green. 41 OdsieczWiedeska1683, 2 vols. (Cracow, 1990). 42 Pope published a rug as pl. 1156 in the Surveythat he was informed had come from the Ardabil shrine and was No. 6 in an early inventory (p. 2323). There are problems with the description, as Pope and others both indicate that it is silk, and there is no mention of metal brocading. Other observers have thought it to have a pile of soft, lustrous wool. If it has silk pile and metal brocading, could it be classified as a Salting? There is surely no reason to believe that the same workshop (or workshops) weaving the Salting carpets could not also have used silk for the pile of some rugs and no metal thread. The inscription border is typical of this group, although, to further complicate the matter, there is also in Tehran a similar carpet without the inscription border. During the author's last visit to Tehran in 1997 he attempted to see both rugs again, but they have been moved from the National Museum of Iran (former Iran Bastan Museum) to the new Islamic Art Museum. 43 Op. cit., pp. 8-9. 44 Op. cit., p. 9. Translation provided by Mills. 45 Pl. 1158. 46 Op.cit., p. 7. 47 Op. cit., p. 7-8. 48 Op. cit., p. 8. 49 Op. cit., p. 10. 50 J. von Hammer, Geschichtedes osmanischenReiches(Budapest, 1827-35), III, pp. 520-21.

53

52

34 Op.cit.

54 55

56 7

58

59

60

61 62 63 64

65 66

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Franses, "Some Wool Pile Persian-Design Niche Rugs," in OrientalCarpetand TextileStudiesV/II, p. 41. Hillye Tezcan, "Topkapi Palace Prayer Rugs," OrientalCarpet and TextileStudiesV/II (1999), pp. 33-35. Eiland III, "Gilding of the Silver used on the 'Salting' Carpets"in ibid., (1999), pp. 25-30. Survey,p. 2319. Samples of the metal from Salting and Polonaise carpets, as well as other fabrics, were supplied by Michael Franses, to whom I am very grateful. The Hereke samples were obtained from a private collection. I would like to acknowledge the work of Peter Northover in performing analyses of the Salting samples. J. Ogden, "Potentials and Problems in the Scientific Study of Ancient Gold Artifacts,"in P. S. England and L. van Zelst (eds.), Applicationsof Science in Examination of Worksof Art (Boston, 1985), pp. 72-75. C. Sease, L. S. Selwyn, S. Zubiate, D. F. Bowers, and D. Atkins, "Problems with Coated Silver. Whisker Formation and Possible Filiform Corrosion," Studies in ConservationXLII (1997), pp. 1-10. Wool contains reducible sulphuric gasses that can cause silver to tarnish. Crystals grow particularly in areas where water condenses by capillary action, and the region left behind shows a local preferential depletion of silver relative to copper. This effect could also explain the copper colour that is visible in areas of the metallic threads in many Salting group rugs. L. P. Stodulski, H. F. Mailand, D. Nauman, and M. Kennedy, "Atomic Emission Spectographic and Scanning Electron Microscopic-Energy-Dispersive X-Ray Studies of European, Middle Eastern, and Oriental Metallic Threads," in P. S. England and L. van Selst (eds.), op. cit., pp. 76-91. It is interesting to note that mercury gilding was commonly used in China in the third century B.C. and in the Mediterranean region by the third or fourth century A.D. This difference in time suggests that the speculation that the technique originated in China may have some credence. See P. A. Lins and W. A. Oddy, "The Origins of Mercury Guilding," Journal of ArchaeologicalScienceII (1975), pp. 365-73. Evidence for the Iranian origin of the Polonaise carpets can der mitbe found in F. Spuhler, SeideneRepriisentationsteppiche Dissertation tlerenbis spdtenSafawidenzeit.Die sog. Polenteppiche. (Berlin, 1968). und Webereiender Neuen Zeit und das F. Bock, Goldstickereien dazu venvandteGoldgesspinnst(Nurnberg, 1884). Op. cit., pp. 117-28. See R. M. Savory, Iran under the Safavids (Cambridge, 1980), pp. 27ff; H. R. Roemer, "The Safavid Period" in CHIr,vol. VI, TheTimuridand SafavidPeriods(Cambridge, 1986), pp. 189 ff. Franses, op.cit.,p. 127. For a general discussion see J. Housego, "Carpets,"in R. W. Ferrier ed. TheArts of Persia (New Haven, 1989), pp.118-149. Op. cit., pp. 115-16.

PRINCE CABDUL-HUSAYN MIRZA FARMAN-FARMA.

NOTES FROM BRITISH SOURCES By Denis Wright

FormerPresidentof theBritishInstituteof PersianStudies

Prince CAbdul-Husayn Mirza (1857?-1939), better known by his Qajar title Farman-Farma (FF), was a prominent member of the Qajar Royal Family, being both uncle and brother-in-law as well as son-inlaw of Muzaffar ud-Din Shah (1896-1907): he was also the father of thirty-six gifted children. These notes, based solely on British sources, throw some light on his relations with the British; a Persian translation of them having been published without my permission in Tehran last year, it seems right that the original text should now be made available. Early Years Born about 1857, the second son of Prince Firouz Mirza, a son of the Crown Prince Abbas Mirza, Fath Ali Shah's third son. 1880 Trained as an officer by the Austrian Military Mission in Tehran. 1886-7 Sent to Tabriz to command troops in Azerbaijan. 1891 On the death of his elder brother appointed to succeed him as Governor-General of Kerman. 1892 Given title of Farman-Farma. 1894 Dismissed from Kerman but returned there in 1895, again as Governor-General. 1896 November. Appointed Minister of War. 1897 September. Resigned and in October appointed Governor-General of Fars and the Gulf Ports with responsibility for farming the Customs. 1899 January. Went into exile in Egypt and Baghdad. 1903 Returned to Tehran and appointed Governor-General of Kermanshah and then of Kerman. 1907 March. Minister of Justice for few months before going to Tabriz as Governor-General of Azerbaijan. 1908 Dismissed and recalled to Tehran. 1939 November. Died in Tehran.

Appearanceand Personality In his mid-thirties he was said to be "slight, rather below the middle height, and somewhat shortsighted.., .generally speaking well informed for a Persian .... His thirst for knowledge was a passion, and his quickness in picking up facts was quite Gallic"I Ella Sykes describes him as short, wearing glasses and speaking fluent French, also as being considered as "the most civilised and enlightened of Persian princes".2 At about this same time, 1897, Lt. Col. Picot, MilitaryAttache at the British Legation in Tehran, described him as "a man of much energy, but wanting in judgement and tact".3 In 1905 G. P. Churchill, Oriental Secretary at HM Legation, produced a report on leading Persian personalities; in it he included much of the detail about FF contained in Picot's report, but two years later added in typescript and manuscript on what was probably his own copy of the report (now in private hands) some harsh words about FF, whom he describes as "an interesting personality; ambitious, vain and avaricious, but not devoid of personal charm"4; also, as being "one of the worst provincial governors ever known. Openly practices extortion on a large scale by which means he has accumulated considerable wealth." In his 1897 report. Picot had stated that FF was "credited with possessing great wealth in landed property and investments in Europe".5 Sir Percy Sykes, who knew FFwell and had worked closely with him when Consul in Kerman in the 1890s and again in Shiraz during the Great War, described him as "certainly one of the ablest men in Persia".6A photograph of FF in the 1921 edition of Sykes' A HistoryofPersiashows him, then about 60, as white-haired and with a heavy, drooping moustache. Reading papers in the PRO and British Library, one gets the impression of a strong character, rapacious and something of an intriguer who from his early days in Kerman, if not earlier, chose to attach himself to the British. During the Great War this required considerable courage. On the accession in 1896 of Muzaffar ud-Din Shah, to whom FF was closely related by blood and marriage, he was appointed Minister of War and led the opposition that brought about the fall of the Sadr

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Aczam (Prime Minister), Amin us-Sultan. But after only a few months in office, FF resigned rather than face dismissal. It was said that he had lost the Shah's confidence by intriguing to have the infant Prince Nasir ud-Din (the Shah's son by FF's sister) declared Crown Prince in place of the existing heir by a nonQajar mother; FF's object being, according to report, to secure for himself the position of Regent in the event of the ailing Shah's demise during the minority of FF's nephew. Other alleged reasons for FF's fall at this time were his non-payment of troops, his indifference to the robbery of soldiers by their officers, his interference with the appointments of other ministers and the acceptance of bribes amounting to ?100,000 during his nine months in office. According to Charles Hardinge, HM Charge d'Affaires in Tehran, FF wrecked his strong position at Court "byhis want of ability and of administrative capacity coupled with his insatiable appetite for intrigue and gain".7 After accepting FF's resignation as Minister of War, the Shah seems to have decided to keep FF out of the capital for the remainder of his reign (1896-1907). After refusing the governorship of Mazandaran, FF was sent to Shiraz in October 1897 as Governor-General of Fars and the Gulf Ports. However, he delayed his departure for some weeks, camping on the outskirts of Tehran from where he was said to have intrigued with the mullahs against the government. On arrival in Shiraz it was said that he refused to consider any petitions unless accompanied with bank notes.8 After little more than a year in Shiraz, FF was exiled abroad, travelling to Egypt before settling in Baghdad. He was allowed to return to Iran in 1903 when he became GovernorGeneral of Kermanshah and then of Kerman.9 It was not until February 1907, after the death of Muzzaffar ud-Din Shah, that he returned to Tehran. He then became Minister of Justice for a few months before going to Tabriz as Governor-General of Azerbaijan. FF and the QajarCourt FF was not only the uncle of Muzaffar ud-Din Shah but was also both his brother-in-law through the marriage of his sister to the Shah, and his sonin-law through his own marriage to the Shah's daughter Umm ul-Khakan. FF's sister, Hazrat-e Ulya, who married Prince Muzaffar ud-Din Mirza in 1881, was said to be the future Shah's favourite wife and to have given FF "great influence"10 at Court, as also did his strong personality. Because of this, although he fell out of favour with the Shah, FF remained an influential figure throughout the Qajar period.

STUDIES

Earlyrelationswith theBritish In 1893 when Lt. P. M. Sykes (later Sir Percy Sykes) of the 2nd Dragoon Guards travelled through Persia en route for India, he met and stayed for three days as FF's guest in Kerman. Early in 1895 Sykes, accompanied by his sister Ella, returned to Kerman to open the first British consulate there. He then struck up a warm friendship with FF. Both he and his sister wrote about FF's friendship and hospitality in two books which they subsequently published respectively, Ten ThousandMiles in Persiaand Through Persiaon a SideSaddle. In a letter addressed to Sir Mortimer Durand, HM Minister in Tehran, Sykes-who was inclined to blow his own trumpet-described his position as Consul in Kerman as: most enviable,as I merelyhad to expressmy wishes for them to be carriedout, while so evidentwasthe friendship of His Highness for Her Britannic Majesty'sGovernmentthat all the district officials and local chiefsinvariablycame to see me when they visited Kerman,and told me that such were their instructions.11 Durand forwarded this letter to Lord Salisburyat the FO with a covering despatch in which he stated that: FFis at presentthoroughlyfriendlyto us, and under our influence-this is mainlydue to the remarkable personal ascendency gained over him by Captain Sykeswho deservesmuch credit for the manner in whichhe has made His RoyalHighnesstrustand follow his advice.12 Sykes claimed that, thanks to this influence and friendship, he had been able to settle a number of long outstanding British-Indian cases; also that, thanks to FF's influence at Court, the Shah had agreed to accept British proposals for a frontier commission to demarcate some 300 miles of the Baluchistan frontier with British India. According to Sykes, who was a member of the Commission, FF instructed local officials to co-operate with the result that "the demarcation was concluded in less than a month".13 Sykes knew that FF had "a considerable sum of money in British securities" and thought that, if for no other reason, FFwould remain loyal to the British "as he cannot believe but that HBM's Government would confiscate his property in England were he to play us false".14 Already by the time he became Minister of War in 1896, FF was not only considered by the British Legation as the strongest member of the Cabinet but, along with the Mokhber ud-Dowleh the Minister of the Interior, as one of "our two best friends in Persia".15 FF's friendship was to prove invaluable 20 years later during the Great War.

PRINCE CABD UL-HUSAYN MIRZA FARMAN-FARMA Relationswith theBritishduring the 1914-18 War

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Mulk's new Cabinet. Before this, it seems that FF was slated to go to Shiraz as Governor-General and had (a) FF becomesMinisterof theInterior,1915 been given a letter signed by Marling promising him The British and Russians, whose forces had and his family HMG's protection in case of need.19 entered Persian territory on the outbreak of the war November was a very critical month for the Allies. despite Persia's declaration of neutrality, were gen- There was talk of the Shah abandoning Tehran and erally regarded with hostility by a succession of weak joining the Ministers of the Central Powers at CAbd governments in Tehran. Persian sympathies lay for ul-CAzimen route for Isfahan. the most part with Germany and her Muslim ally It was now that HMG, through their Minister in Turkey. In these circumstances, both the British Tehran, began negotiations with FF designed to and Russian Governments were only too happy to secure his position and continued support. Marling secure-and if necessary pay for-the support of reported to London that by accepting the post of highly placed individuals such as FF known to be Minister of the Interior "and his present vigorous pro-Allied. Both the British and Russian diplomats in action FF has now thrown in his lot with us and is Tehran did not hesitate to exert strong pressure on risking his life and property in our cause". Marling the Shah and his Prime Minister in favour of their recommended that HMG should agree to FF's candidates for ministerial office. request that if things went wrong and he had to leave In January 1915 Walter Townley, the British the country HMG would "allot him a reasonable Minister, failed to persuade the Prime Minister, pension until he is able to return to Persia and reMostowfi ul-Mulk, to appoint FF as Minister of the establish his fortunes".20 Interior and Vusuq ud-Dowleh, another pro-Allied The "vigorous action" mentioned in the above figure, as Minister for Foreign Affairs. However, in paragraph almost certainly refers to FF's successful April the new Prime Minister, cAin ud-Dowleh, gave pressure on the Shah not to quit Tehran andjoin the way to pressure from Townley's successor, Charles German and Turkish Ministers outside Tehran.21 On 26 November, only nine days after the aboveMarling, and included both men in his Cabinet. Rumours that the Nationalists and Democrats were mentioned request to Marling, FF told him that he plotting FF's dismissal caused both the British and was threatened with the destruction of all his properRussian Ministers, then working closely together as ties in western Persia unless he joined the anti-Allied allies, to warn cAin ud-Dowleh that the dismissal of Nationalists or left Persia. He now asked whether the FF would be regarded by both their governments as British and Russian Governments would indemnify giving way to German pressure and would mean that him if, as seemed likely, this threat was carried out. he could no longer count on Anglo-Russian support. On receiving Marling's report of this conversation In reporting this to London, Marling stressed the the FO instructed Buchanan, HM Ambassador in importance of supporting FF, whom he regarded as Petrograd, to inform the Russian Government and more resolute than the Prime Minister in dealing impress on them that "it was particularly important with German intrigue; to this end he had been "giv- to make FF secure".22 Then on 3 December Marling telegraphed to tell ing FF assistance of the nature he requires."16 Presumably this was cash. Marling hoped the Russian the FO that the worst had happened, FF's wheat graGovernment would instruct their Minister to do the naries had been plundered, the damage being estisame. Marling's message to the FO crossed with one mated by FF at 100,000 tomans, the equivalent of from them telling him that the Russians had agreed ?18,500 at the current rate of exchange. Marling recto pay FF a subsidy of ?1,000 a month "as an experi- ommended that FF should be compensated with ment if HMG concur"-the money to be used not to ?15,000, no small sum in those days, to be paid, at enable FF to plot the overthrow of the Prime FF's request, to his London agents, Cox and Kings, Minister but to check hostile propaganda and win notification being made only through the British over public opinion should the present government Legation.23 In response to London's query, Marling fall and a new one be formed under FF.17A rather said he thought the claim was genuine and pointed disingenuous idea, since it must have been evident out that FF was not claiming for possible destruction that CAin ud-Dowleh was on his last legs. Indeed, of his villages "but would like an engagement from barely a week later he resigned and FF went out of HMG and the Russian Government that after the office with him. Marling saw the Shah on 16July and war they will place him in a position to recoup himtold him that "unless a satisfactory Cabinet were self elsewhere by traditional Persian means".24 So formed (viz. one which included FF as Minister of anxious were HMG for FF's support that, without the Interior)" HMG would regard the Persian any further investigation, they telegraphed Marling Government as being under enemy influence.18 three days later to say that "?15,000 will be paid However it was not until November 1915 that FF shortly to FF's agents in London. We are discussing became Minister of the Interior in Mostowfi ul- other points with the Russian Government".25

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Meanwhile, the Government of India had agreed to share the cost of this payment with the FO, as they did subsequent payments to FF. The Russians were kept informed, and were told that HMG did not think they could give FF any assurance about recouping his fortunes after the war but hoped the Russian Government would agree to give him "some assurance of a reasonable indemnity in the event of the destruction of villages".26In reply, Buchanan reported that the Russians had instructed their Minister in Tehran "to promise FF in general terms a certain amount of pecuniary assistance",27 while a few days later Buchanan informed the FO that the Russians would be willing "in principle" to pay half of FF's subvention.28 (b) FF becomesPrimeMinister,January 1916 The British and Russian Ministers together had an audience of the Shah on Christmas Eve 1915, when they urged that Mostowfi ul-Mulk's Cabinet should be purged of hostile elements. They told him that a change of Prime Minister was inevitable in the near future, and Marling suggested that Mostowfi's place should be taken by FF. According to Marling, the Shah "quite agreed and urged that it should be done at once. He promised to urge FF to accept office immediately".29 Ahmad Shah was as good as his word and FF was appointed Prime Minister the following day, only to fall, however, three months later. During this brief period he submitted to both Ministers a draft Anglo-Russian alliance with Persia which, not surprisingly, came to nothing. During his early weeks as Prime Minister, FF was in touch with both Marling and the Russian Minister about financial support for both his government and himself in case he had to flee the country. Agreement was reached to guarantee the Persian Government a subsidy of 10,000 tomans (?1,800) a month for the duration of the war.30At the same time, HMG agreed to pay FF ?400 a month if he had to flee, provided they were satisfied that his reasons for doing so were adequate. This did not satisfy FF who claimed that he could not live reasonably in Europe on this amount.31 However the Russians were ready to match HMG's ?400. A FO minute records that "this will give him ?30,000 down and ?9,600 a year while he remains in office",32 from which I deduce that, apart from ?15,000 from both the British and Russians for the loss of his granaries, both governments were prepared to subsidise him to the tune of ?400 a month whether or not he had to flee. FF's tenure of the premiership was all too short. Marling saw this coming and reported that FF's "rapacity is fast making his continuance in office impossible". The next day, 29 February 1916, he warned the FO that FF's fall was imminent "due to

STUDIES

his rapacity, his disinclination to work honestly with the Russian Legation, and to intrigues of the proRussian party".33Two days later FF resigned. (c) FF becomeGovernor-General ofFars, 1916-20 FF's next appointment was as Governor-General of Fars. The British pressed hard for this, as they wanted a strong pro-Allied figure there to deal with the hostile, anarchic conditions then prevailing in the province: the British Vice-Consul, an Indian, had been murdered in September 1915, the British owned Imperial Bank had been looted, and, worst of all, in November the British Consul-General, his staff and other members of the British community had been seized and taken as prisoners to the coast. In May 1916 Marling reported that the Shah had reluctantly agreed to the replacement of his favourite uncle by FF as Governor-General of Fars on condition that the uncle was made GovernorGeneral of Kerman.34Although FF was due to leave Tehran shortly after this, together with a personal bodyguard of 400 men from his own villages, he did not reach Shiraz until October. On his appointment he had told Marling that, because of the province's ruined finances, he would need outside assistance of between 40,000 and 50,000 tomans (?6,500/?8,000) a month for a month or two after his arrival,35this being needed for administrative purposes, including payment of the Gendarmerie. Faced with the FO's insistence on "the important and urgent issues involved" the Treasury, while expressing concern at "the growing practice of subsidising high officials in the Persian Government", agreed to 40,000 tomans for three months to cover FF's expenses in Fars on the understanding that this was an advance on behalf of the Persian Government, recoverable from them in due course.36 The India Office agreed that the Government of India would foot half the bill. When discussing this subsidy, FF told Marling that the Persian Government would insist on detailed accounts and that he feared that his enemies in Tehran would then "contrive to get a large portion of the expenditure disallowed". He therefore proposed that the 40,000 tomans should be paid in two parts: 30,000 tomans, recoverable from the Persian Government for which he would submit "impeccable accounts": and 10,000 tomans, non-recoverable, to be paid direct to FF.37 Although Marling feared that some of this latter sum would find its way into FF's own pocket he supported the proposal, while the Treasury in London bowed to the FO's argument that "the political and commercial advantages to be obtained fully justify this irregularity of procedure".38 On 30 June 1916 Marling addressed a letter to the Persian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Prince Akbar

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Mirza, Sarem ud-Dowleh (who was, it seems, on both (say ?250) monthly for himself and his family "so the British and Russian payrolls39) informing him long as he remains (a) Governor-General of Fars that, as the Persian Government might find some dif- (b) friendly to us and (c) for the duration of the ficulty "in providing the financial resources neces- war".If his estates were confiscated or if he were drisary to enable Prince FF to carry out with success his ven into exile, HMG would consider paying FF "an mission in restoring the authority of the Imperial adequate allowance".46 Government in Fars, HMG are prepared in case of Marling considered this response unsatisfactory need to make advances for that purpose, such and decided not to pass it on to FF. In the event, advances being repayable from the revenues of Fars neither FF nor his son Prince Firouz were able to as soon as that is feasible or from any other subsidy extract any firm commitment from HMG other than or other financial assistance which HMG may make the letter of protection given to FF by Marling in to the Persian Government in the future, or from November 1915 and a similar letter given to Prince other sources". The sum of 30,000 tomans monthly Firouz after the signature of the Anglo-Persian was mentioned as considered adequate for the pur- Agreement in August 1919. During the dark days of early 1918, FF seemed to pose; nothing was said by Marling about the 10,000 tomans to be paid direct to FF by the British think that Persia would collapse and be divided between the Russians in the north and the British in Legation and Consul-General in Shiraz.40 In the early days of 1918, when the War was going the south. With this in mind, he proposed to HM badly for the Allies both in Europe and Persia, FF Consul-General in Shiraz that at the end of the war enquired what his fate would be in the event of HMG should guarantee him in writing the position Persia's collapse.4' Marling consulted the FO, who of Prince of Southern Persia which would be "tribuagreed that it was "desirable to give necessary sup- tary to Persia but practically independent". FF port to anyone who has committed himself to our claimed that this would ensure "a peaceful and wellcause and worked with us as has FF"and asked what managed country entirely under British control". FF had in mind.42 Marling, knowing that the Marling, normally very sympathetic towards FF and Germans had made generous promises to their main his demands, saw this as implying the annexation of south Persia by the British and regarded FF's suggesprotege Nezam us-Saltaneh, replied suggesting ?20,000 a year for FF and another ?10,000 a year for tion as "a piece of shameless duplicity".47 Prince Firouz, Nosrat ud-Dowleh, his eldest son, if There can be no doubt that FF's services to the were driven into cause during the Great War were considerAllied exile.43 they In June FF submitted his own demands in writing able. Already in 1916 these had been recognised to HM Consul-General in Shiraz. He asked for with the award of a GCMG, thus gratifying what ?40,000 a year as compensation for lost income from Sykes had described twenty years earlier as FF's the estates, during the past three years, of himself "greatest ambition", sc. a British decoration. 48 In Shiraz he co-operated very closely with both the and his five eldest sons, payment to continue until the estates were recovered. He also asked HMG to British Consul-General and his old friend Percy Sykes, who in late 1916 set up the headquarters of guarantee the life, property and honour of himself and his family and, if forced to leave Persia and aban- the South Persia Rifles (which he commanded) in don his estates, a grant of property in British terri- Shiraz. Although in 1918 Sykes accused FF of robtory together with an income for himself, and his bing his own people and seeking to profit from sons after his death, equal to what he had lost.44 Britain's troubles,4 he subsequently had this to say About this same time, FF also asked that HMG about FF's services in Shiraz: should provide him with a tract of Saniyeh land in The position of His Highnesswasone of the utmost Mesopotamia, then occupied by British forces. difficulty,caught between the Cabinet in Tehran and our demandson the spot, and perhapshe alone Marling telegraphed these demands to the FO. could have made it tenable. He certainlycould not us been that FF's "services to have Stressing very see inter he and eye to eye with us in manyquestions,but, influrecommended, alia, ?30,000 great", enced by his sons, he generallytook the rightcourse ?10,000 per annum respectively for FF and Prince in the end.50 Firouz if driven into exile, together with a lump sum In 1917 the Consul-General in Shiraz proposed of ?15,000 plus a tract of land in Mesopotamia as FF "who has done and is doing supreme work that his estates.45 for to damage compensation A measure of the importance attached to re- for us here" should be presented with a Hupmobile taining FF's goodwill can be gathered from the motor car such as was being provided for the South serious consideration given to these proposals by Persia Rifles.51 The Government of India and FO the Eastern Committee of the Cabinet. They asked readily agreed, and FF was duly given the car and for more details about FF's alleged losses, but were spares, also a little later a motor cycle. In October 1918 Balfour, the Foreign Secretary, took the unready to offer him an allowance of 6,000 tomans

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usual step of sending a personal condolence message to FF on the death of his son Ja'far, a schoolboy at Harrow, officials having told Balfour that "for many years past now Prince FF has been of considerable use to us".52Over two years later, when FF's days in Shiraz seemed numbered, Lancelot Oliphant, who had dealt with Persian affairs at the FO throughout much of the war, minuted that "some of us have never had any false ideas about His Highness' personal character: but he served us well in most difficult times and I think his departure even now is regrettable".53 Although payment of the 40,000 tomans subsidy to FF was in the first place only sanctioned for three months it was, at FO insistence, renewed for varying periods-with some changes in the sum paid-for more than three years until, with the War over and the Anglo-Persian Agreement signed in August 1919, both Treasury and India Office put their feet down and refused further payments. In September Percy Cox, who had taken over from Marling the previous year, strongly but unsuccessfully supported a plea from HM Consul-General in Shiraz (who was being importuned by FF) that FF's monthly "irrecoverable" payment of 11,000 tomans should continue "for some time longer". A telegram from Curzon told Cox that "in view of the general financial situation here and the imperative need of utmost economy I cannot make further representations to the Treasury and India Office for any continuance of the system of doles hitherto paid to FF." Instead, Curzon expected the Persian Government to cover these expenses from the ?2 million loan provided under the recently signed Anglo-Persian Agreement.54 All the Curzon could do was persuade the Treasury to allow the continuation until the end of the year of the "personal payment" of 2,000 tomans monthly to FF, Curzon having argued that it would be embarrassing to cut this off just when FF's son, Prince Firouz, then Minister for Foreign Affairs, was about to arrive in London with the Shah on a State Visit. Curzon had been incensed when Prince Firouz and the two other members of the Persian negotiating team, known to the British as The Triumvirate, had insisted on an advance payment of 400,000 tomans (?131,147), allegedly to enable them to buy off opponents of the Agreement, before agreeing to sign the Anglo-Persian Agreement on which Curzon had set his heart. His anger was reflected in a final telegram he sent Cox about any further payments to FF: In view of the large sums we have given the family during the war and particularlyin view of the first instalment out of the loan [from which the 400,000 tomans 'bribe' was to be deducted] of which Prince Firouzmust have receiveda consider-

able share, I see no reasonwhywe should be called upon to acuit ourselves of any further "debt of obligation". Some idea of the sums paid to FF under the recoverable/non-recoverable formula can be gathered from a statement prepared by Lt. Col. H. A. K. Gough, the Consul-General in Shiraz, for the FO. Described as payments "to enable the Prince FF to carry out his mission of restoring the authority of the Persian Government in Fars",it showed that during the twenty-eight months between 20 May 1916 and 21 September 1918 FF was paid a total of 614,704 tomans (say ?205,000), of which 393,047 tomans were recoverable from the Persian Government (including 150,000 tomans for the Gendarmerie) and 221,657 tomans (say ?73,900) which was nonrecoverable.56 There is a certain amount of mystery, perhaps understandably, about the non-recoverable payments made direct, via the Imperial Bank and Legation, to FF. The original 10,000 tomans soon became 11,000 tomans monthly, while in 1918 and 1919 there are references to 12,000 tomans though the reimbursements claimed each month by the Imperial Bank remain constant at 11,000 tomans. Perhaps the additional 1,000 tomans came from HM Minister's Secret Service funds. This is something which needs further research. An India Office minute gives the following breakdown of the monthly 11,000 tomans payments to FF: 2,000 tomans for personal allowance; 6,000 tomans for upkeep of forces; 3,000 tomans for administrative purposes of which 1,000 tomans "at any rate for personal administration".57 The "personal allowance" was, according to the papers, an arrangement made with FF before he went to Shiraz and was for the support of his family in Tehran58 An additional 2,000 tomans a month was paid to him as salary and was "recoverable"59i.e. came from the 30,000 tomans for which FF submitted accounts to the Persian Government. The nonrecoverable 6,000 tomans and 3,000 tomans mentioned above were described as being for "supplementary charges for his [FF's] personal escort and government troops and other administrative expenditure in excess of the established Government scale.60 These sums were paid direct to FF after approval by the Consul-General in Shiraz. Given the circumstances, it is most unlikely that the ConsulGeneral enquired too deeply into the details. Nor would he have been likely to have enquired deeply into some 317,000 tomans (say ?120,000) paid to FF between May 1918 and April 1919 by way of expenditure in suppressing the Qashqai tribal rising under Saulat ud-Dowleh. According to details supplied by HM Consul-General in Shiraz, payments

PRINCE CABD UL-HUSAYN MIRZA FARMAN-FARMA were for the cost of expeditions against the Qashqais and sums given to various individuals whose names are listed, presumably dissident tribal leaders. The money was drawn from Secret Service funds available to the British authorities in Tehran and Bushire. In addition, FF was also paid 8,400 tomans monthly about this time to cover wages of guards on the road between Shiraz and Isfahan.61 The termination of these personal payments was probably the reason why in November 1919 FF spoke about resigning his post in Shiraz. But when he did eventually leave Shiraz nearly a year later it was, according to Herman Norman who had succeeded Cox at the British Legation, because his position had become impossible owing to the "intense unpopularity" his rapacity had earned him, threatening an outbreak of popular violence against him. Norman described FF as "rapacious to a degree extraordinary even in a Persian prince".62 Because of this, Norman felt it was useless to try to maintain FF as Governor-General in Shiraz, a view with which the FO agreed. FF was replaced by Mosaddeq us-Saltaneh (the Dr. Mosaddeq of the 1951 oil crisis) a close relative of FF, whose sister was Mosaddeq's mother while Mosaddeq's sister was married to FF's son, Prince Firouz. Norman considered that Mosaddeq enjoyed neither political influence nor popularity.63 He would not have been able to say this in 1951! TheEnd of a Friendship The close, friendly relations that had existed for so long between FF, his family and the British came to an abrupt end on 21 February 1921, when Reza Khan not only staged his successful coup d'itat but also imprisoned FF and two of his sons, one of them being Prince Firouz. The trio were released three months later on the fall of the Prime Minister, Sayyed Ziya ud-Din Tabataba'i, possibly as the result of intervention on their behalf by the British Legation. Once free, Prince Firouz, convinced that the Legation lay behind the coup, turned violently anti-British and spent, it was said, some 60,000 tomans on securing an anti-British majority in the Majles.64 In consequence, relations between the Legation and FF and his family became very strained. FF got little comfort from Smart, Oriental Secretary at the Legation, when in October 1921 he enquired "whether it was possible for himself and his family to resume their former position vis-a-visthe Legation." Because of the "openly hostile" behaviour of FF and his family during the past five months, the Legation suggested to the FO that the letter of protection given to FF during the war should be cancelled.65 The FO, however, preferred to keep this as a weapon in reserve.

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Two years later Prince Firouz, having failed to secure office in five successive Cabinets, tried without much success to make his peace with the Legation by calling on Percy Loraine, the British Minister. Shortly afterwards, FF himself called on Loraine and enquired "what value was now to be attached to the letter of guarantee for himself and family given by Sir Charles Marling". Loraine avoided giving a direct answer. After telling FF that Prince Firouz's anti-British activities during the past three years had made a deplorable impression on HMG (as can be seen from a number of Curzon's acid minutes on papers in the Public Record Office), he advised FF to keep clear of politics and not to insist on the letter.66 Loraine consulted the FO, where virtually all papers concerning Persia were submitted to Curzon, the Foreign Secretary, who had been bitterly disappointed by the Persian rejection of the Anglo-Persian Agreement and was now without a good word for Prince Firouz. He was also aware that FF had done nothing to restrain his son's anti-British campaign. He now curtly minuted "I consider the letter [of guarantee] as cancelled by the subsequent action of his family."67 Papers prefixed FO are in the Public Record Office, and those prefixed L/PS are in the British Library'sIndia Office Collection. All these are telegrams unless otherwise indicated.

23 24 25 26

P.M. Sykes, Ten ThousandMiles in Persia(London, 1902) p.76. Ella C. Sykes, ThroughPersia on a Side-Saddle(London, 1901) p.148. FO60/592 Report by Lt. Col. H.P. Picot 1897. G.P. Churchill. Personalities Report 1905. No copy in the PRO but one in the Scottish Record Office; another copy with additions quoted owned privately. F060/592 op.cit. Sir Percy Sykes, A History of Persia (London, 1921) vol. II, p. 379. FO65/1549 Hardinge to FO 12.9.1897. ibid. 16.11.1897. G.P. Churchill. op.cit. F060/592 op.cit. F065/1539 Sykes to Durand. Letter 20.11.1896. ibid.Durand to FO Despatch 25.11.1896. ibid. Sykes to Durand. Letter 20.11.1896. ibid.Sykes to Durand. FO65/1529 Picot's Persian News Diary 23.11.1896. FO371/2428 Marling to FO 7.7.1915. ibid.FO to Marling 6.7.1915. FO371/2433 Marling to FO 17.7.1915. FO371/9025 Minute by V. Mallet 29.10.1923. L/PS/10/577 Marling to FO 17.11.1915. Sir Percy Sykes, op.cit,vol. II, p. 448. L/PS/10/577 Marling to FO 26.11.1915 & FO to Buchanan 28.11.1915. ibid.Marling to FO 3.12.1915. ibid.Marling to FO 8.12.1915. ibid.FO to Marling 11.12.1915. ibid.FO to Buchanan 15.12.1915.

27 28

ibid. Buchanan ibid. Buchanan

1 2 3 4

5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22

to FO 23.12.1915. to FO 6.1.1916.

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29 F0371/2438 Marling to FO 24.12.1915. 30 L/PS/10/577 Marling to FO 10.1.1916. 31 F0371/2732 FO to Marling 3.2.1916 & Marling to FO 7.2.1916. 32 ibid.Minute 17.2.1916. 33 ibid.Marling to FO 28 & 29.2.1916. 34 F0371/2725 Marling to FO 10.5.1916. 35 L/PS/10/577 Marling to FO 21.5.1916. 36 ibid. Treasury letter to FO 31.5.1916 & FO to Marling 3.6.1916. 37 ibid. Marling to FO 19.6.1916. 38 ibid.FO to Treasury Letter 24.6.1916. 39 F0371/2732 Buchanan to FO 6.1.1916 & Marling to FO 10.1.1916. 40 L/PS/10/577 Marling to Prince Akbar Mirza. Letter 30.6.1916. 41 ibid. Marling to FO 27.2.1918. 42 ibid.FO to Marling 27.4.1918. 43 ibid.Marling to FO 3.5.1918. 44 ibid.Marling to FO 16.6.1918. 45 ibid.Marling to FO 16.6.1918. 46 ibid.FO to Marling 23.6.1918. 47 ibid. Marling to FO 6.6.1918.

48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67

F065/1529 Sykes to Durand. Letter 20.11.1896. F0248/1200. Sir Percy Sykes, op.cit.vol. II, 503. F0371/2980 Gough (Shiraz) to New Delhi 12.5.1917. F0371/3275 Oliphant minute 9.10.1918. F0371/4927 Oliphant minute 24.9.1920. L/PS/10/577 FO to Cox 15.9.1919. ibid.FO to Cox 22.10.1919. F0371/3878 Cox to FO Despatch 2.12.1918. SeealsoF0371/4929, Norman to FO 23.7.1920. L/PS/577/10 India Office minute 3.10.1919. ibid.Cox to FO 4.7.1919 & 8.9.1919. ibid.Cox to FO 4.7.1919. F0371/3878 Cox to FO. Despatch 2.12.1918. F0371/4929 Norman to FO Despatch 23.7.1920. F0371/4927 Norman to FO 22.9.1920. F0371/4929 G.P. Churchill minute 22.10.1920. F0371/6401 Oliphant memorandum 21.1.1922. F0371/7802 Bridgeman to FO. Despatch 21.10.1921. F0371/9025 Loraine to FO 26.10.1923. ibid.Curzon minute November 1923.

(SeealsoF0248/1132 and 1200 for more about FF in Shiraz 1916.)

THE SURVIVALOF ZOROASTRIANISMIN YAZD* By Nile Green

Schoolof Orientaland AfricanStudies,London

INTRODUCTION Zoroastrianism has a long history in the province and city of Yazd in central Iran. With the arrival of the Arabs and Islam in Iran during the seventh century A.D., the politico-religious structure of the Sassanid state which had supported the Zoroastrian priesthood collapsed.1 The following centuries witnessed the conversion of Iran to Islam, initially in the cities and then, gradually, in the rural communities.2 Under the Sasanian dynasty, the heartland of Zoroastrian Iran was in Firs, and this continued to be the case for a number of centuries after the conquest.3 Several Muslim geographers record the existence of active fire-temples in the region through to the thirteenth century.4 However, in spite of enjoying a literary renaissance during the ninth century, when what might be described as a literature of popular instruction first began to appear in the Zoroastrian canon,5 the general situation appears to have been bleak for the Zoroastrians. Some of the texts composed during this renaissance themselves mention the increasing impoverishment of the priesthood as well as issues raised by family members converting to Islam.6 In the year 936, a group of Zoroastrians sailed to Gujarat and founded what would become India's Parsi community. It is against this background that Yazd entered the centre stage of Zoroastrian history, when the chief prelate, the Dastcir Dastfirin, and what may have been the sacred fires of Adur Farnbig and Istakhr from temples in Fars were moved to the village of Shariffibid on the plain of Yazd, probably at some point before the eleventh century.7 The villages around Yazd were chosen precisely for their qualities of provincialism and inaccessibility, positioned at the meeting point of Iran's two principal deserts, the Dasht-i-Lfit and the Dasht-i-Kabir. Here in their backwater, set away from many of the incentives or obligations to convert or even adapt, the Zoroastrians, by now a true minority, sank into near anonymity in terms of historical documentation.8 This state of affairs continued more or less uninterrupted until the nineteenth century, when firm

contact with their co-religionists in India was established. The main priests of the Zoroastrian communities in India and Iran had kept in sporadic contact since the fifteenth century, but it was only with the tremendous increase in the prosperity of the Parsis under British rule in India that this contact was able to rise above the level of an occasional exchange of letters. In 1854 the Parsis sent their agent, Manekji Limji Hataria (1813-90), to Iran to find out how they could best help their impoverished co-religionists. During the course of a number of visits to Iran, Manekji, bringing with him Parsi ideas as well as money, helped set up the first schools for Zoroastrian children in Iran and heralded a re-invigoration of the priesthood with money for new temples and new perspectives on theological matters. Although at the turn of the twentieth century many of the traditional legal restrictions on the Zoroastrians were still in place,'0 their contact with the Parsis lent them new advantages over their countrymen in terms of education and commerce. In time, the "modernising" reforms of the Pahlavi dynasty continued to improve the lot of the Zoroastrians.11 It was during the reign of the last Shah that the two principal studies of the Zoroastrians of Yazd by Western academics were carried out, by Mary Boyce in the early 1960s and Michael Fischer just under a decade later.12 By this time Yazd was no longer the isolated city it had once been: roads and, by the 1970s, an airport connected it with Tehran and elsewhere. Many Zoroastrians had moved from Yazd to seek opportunity in the capital; many of those in the villages around Yazd had moved towards Yazd itself. This picture of extensive rural-urban migration is, however, one the main forces in Iran's history in the twentieth century, and not a uniquely Zoroastrian phenomenon. In many ways, the last years of the Shah's regime saw Zoroastrianism in Iran reach its greatest degree of prestige since the coming of Islam. With the Shah's increasing hunger for emblems of "authentic" Iranian culture, images of Zoroastrian life began to enter the wider public arena, with, for example, the adoption of the fravahar as the symbol of both the air force and the national bus company and with the television

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broadcast of Zoroastrian priests carrying out their rituals for Nfi Ri^zin 1978.13 But the revolution of 1978-79 changed the entire credo of government in Iran, and, with the series of incarcerations and executions of those associated with the old regime during the early 1980s, many Zoroastrians feared that they might be among those singled out as 'collaborators'. Many of them fled abroad rather than stay in Iran to test their luck. In terms of sheer numbers, this exodus was probably of far greater importance than the first one to India over a thousand years before.

whenever possible.8s In spite of this, the neighbourhood was dealt a severe blow when a new road was driven through the heart of the quarter in 1993, demolishing dozens of houses to make way for it and leaving several dozen more partially destroyed and derelict along its fringes.19 With the new road, the neighbourhood has been split into two. It seems likely that new buildings, bought by members of the city's Muslim community, will soon be constructed along the periphery of the road, as they have been along all of the other modern boulevards that now criss-cross the old city, so destroying the integrity of the old quarter for ever. DEMOGRAPHY As well as the urban community in Pusht-i Khin cAli, there are a number of Zoroastrian villages The province of Yazd covers an area of some spread out across the plains that surround the city of 70 011 square kilometres in central Iran. The Yazd. A number of these-Khorramshih, Mariibid, population of the province in 1995 was approxi- Kihnfi, Kfiche Buyik, QasimTbid, Ahrestin and form suburbs of the city itself mately 582,000. Predominantly a desert province, Allahibid-now most of its inhabitants are to be found in the city of rather than exists as independent villages. To the Yazd (pop. 282 000) and the neighbouring towns west of Yazd lie a string of proper Zoroastrian of Meybud, Ardakin and Taft.14 The number of villages, namely Khairibaid, Mobarake, Cham, Zoroastrians remaining in the province as a whole Zainibad, Khalilaibid and Hussaini. To the north is a matter of considerable dispute, with given of Yazd, there are a series of others: cAlliabid, statistics ranging between five and twelve thou- Nusratibad, Mazra' Kalaintar and ShariffibTd.20A sand.15 A figure at the lower end of this scale seems general pattern emerges from visiting these villages, in that while the old villages that have been amalgamore likely. In common with other minorities throughout the Islamic world, the Zoroastrian mated into the bounds of the city itself are still essencommunity of Yazd province has traditionally lived tially fully populated, the proper villages are almost within its own neighbourhoods and villages, set all under-populated. The suburban villages still possess relatively high Zoroastrian populations. apart from the larger Muslim community. The main Zoroastrian quarter in the city of Yazd is Local people from both Khorramshih and Mariibid known among the community as Pusht-i Khin cAli. estimate the number of Zoroastrians living in their Today the quarter lies near the centre of Yazd, villages at around 500; the Zoroastrian populations of Kihnit, Kfiche Buyi^k and QasimTbhd were all though in earlier times it was at the city's edge. estimated at being somewhere between 150 and 200 Pusht-i Khan cAli is one of the most traditional areas of the city, still largely a network of souls, and the number of Zoroastrian inhabitants in labyrinthine kuiches,almost all of its houses in the Ahrestan was put at between 100 and 1200. conventional style of old Yazdi architecture.16 One Allahibid, however, has had most of its once considof houses is the existence erable Zoroastrian population displaced and local however, peculiarity, which contain two people estimated that only twenty-five Zoroastrians known as d6- or chahadr-pesgdmi, or four pesgdms,rooms or areas ritually set apart for remain there. The picture in the villages of the plains is strikliturgical purposes. With the increasing prosperity and security which came to the community in the ingly different. While the Zoroastrian population in the village of Khairbaid was estimated at around course of the present century, many residents abandoned Pusht-i Khan cAli for the newer sub- sixty, that of Mobarake was estimated at between urbs that developed around the old city. By the twenty-five and thirty souls, and those of both 1960s, Mary Boyce reported, most of the old d6- Cham and Zainibid at twenty. Many houses stand empty in these villages. Only seven Zoroastrians chahdr-pesgdmihouses had disappeared from the survived in Khalilmbad and one old Zoroastrian city.'7 A few do still remain, and at least one such building has been recently restored for rehabita- woman was all that remained of the community in tion after some years of neglect. Pusht-i Khin cAli the neighbouring village of Hussaini, now containremains a key Zoroastrian neighbourhood and the ing many Muslim families.21 Of the villages to the still had between ten and north of Yazd, has it. There keen to protect community appears cAlibitd fifteen Zoroastrians living there.22 Mazra Kalintar been, for example, a tendency among the community to sell property there to other Zoroastrians was said to be the home of some thirty-five

THE SURVIVAL

OF ZOROASTRIANISM

Zoroastrians, while the large village of Nusratabad, just five kilometres from Yazd, apparently housed between 100 and 120 Zoroastrians, though they were still outnumbered there by Muslims. The same figure was given in the village of Sharifibad, though this, having been swallowed by the Ardakan/Meybud connurbation, is no longer a proper village.23 These figures should be understood in some sort of context. It is in one respect quite remarkable, for example, that the process described by Mary Boyce,24 whereby the entrance of Muslim families into a Zoroastrian village heralded the subsequent demise of its Zoroastrian population, has not been completely carried through in any village in the years since her research in Iran. The Zoroastrians seem to have shown a marked tenacity in this respect. It is further noteworthy that there does not appear to be any correlation between a high Muslim population and a low Zoroastrian one in any of the villages of the plains. Rather, those villages with the lowest populations are those which remain almost exclusively Zoroastrian (e.g. Cham, Mobarake, Mazrac Kalantar, Zainabad and cAliabad); those villages with the highest Zoroastrian populations are also those with significant Muslim communities (i.e. Khairaibd, Nusratibad and the Meybud/Ardakin connurbation which includes Shariffibad). It appears that wider social forces concomitant with rural-urban migration-employment prospects, housing qualmore to ity and educational opportunities-have do with the decline of the villages of the plain than the presence of Muslim neighbours. Moreover, the low population figures given for those villages which are still most traditionally and uniquely Zoroastrian in character (particularly Cham, Mobarake and Mazra3 Kalantar) are misleading insofar as they present a picture of villages on the verge of extinction. What is significant is that although many of the houses stand empty, they are nonetheless well maintained for use as second homes by Zoroastrians from the cities who were often born in the village and have subsequently inherited their family homes. Those houses owned by Zoroastrians in Yazd are often visited at weekends, while others, whose owners may live as far away as Tehran, are visited during holidays and festival times. Although the resident populations of the smaller villages consist mainly of older people,25 there is a clear determination amongst the younger, urban generation to maintain their patrimonial connections with the countryside. Added to the fact that land and property in such villages currently have a very low market value, it is difficult to envisage this tendency changing in the foreseeable future.

IN YAZD

117

TEMPLESAND THE PRIESTHOOD Until the late nineteenth century, Iranian Zoroastrianism functioned largely without temples. Such rites as were necessary for the lay community were carried out in specially prepared and maintained areas within the home.26 From the latter part of the nineteenth century, however, and concurrent with the establishment of strong ties with the Parsis of Bombay, a number of new fire-temples were constructed in the Zoroastrian communities and old ones rebuilt throughout Iran. The temples at Mariibid, Kfiche Buyi k and Zainabfid were all rebuilt during this period, while those at Allahibid and Khairabid were both apparently built then for the first time, the latter after a Parsi design. Today, some eighteen Zoroastrian places of worship survive in the city of Yazd and its surrounding villages. In central Yazd, there are four. The main one, the Yazd Ateshkade, is a large, modern building, opened in 1940. It is well-kept and receives most of its visitors as a tourist attraction for both Iranian and foreign visitors. There is an elderly member of a priestly family present during opening hours to answer the visitors' questions. The oldest active Zoroastrian place of worship in central Yazd, dating back to at least Safavid times, it the Dar-i Mehr Mas (also known as the Qadim and Rachune'i). It is a very small and modest building, with an anonymity designed to conceal and protect it in past centuries, and is now used chiefly as a place for mourning the dead. There is also the Dar-i Mehr Nfish (known as the Khosravi after its builder, Arbab Khosrow Shah JehAn) which is kept in good condition and visited on a regular basis. Finally, there is the modern Qalce-i Asadan in the north-east of Yazd, built in the early 1970s. In the suburban village of Khorramshah there are two ddr-i mehrs.27The smaller of the two is maintained in perfect conditioned, with a completely marble interior and clear signs of regular use, while the larger one, a few hundred metres away, was being comprehensively renovated in 1996. In addition to these buildings, Khorramshah also has a sizeable and well-maintained tdldr.28The ddr-i mehr at Mariabad, another of the suburban villages, was re-built around 1900 and is still well-maintained by the local Zoroastrian population. An adjoining Zoroastrian boys' school closed in the early 1980s, but its rooms are still used on Friday to give religious instruction to the children of the community. Behind the ddr-imehrthere is a large new two-storey tdldr,built five years ago, and containing a large hall used for weddings and other social gatherings. In its grounds there is a basketball court and a playground for the local Zoroastrian children. Another of the suburban villages, KIhni, has a ddr-imehrwhich was built in 1994, its predecessor having been demol-

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ished to make way for it. Built in a peculiarly florid neo-classical style, it has at least the virtue of being large. It also contains all of the facilities of a tdldrr under its roof. KAhnu lies nearer to the centre of Yazd than some of the other suburban villages and many of its inhabitants are Muslims. A modern takiyehstands about a hundred yards away from the Zoroastrian temple. The former village of Kfiche-Buyilk, however, whilst being very much a part of the city, still contains many of its old buildings and its temple, built in 1890 to replace an older one, still stands intact. An adjoining boys' school has closed but, like the one in Mariibid, is still used to give weekly lessons on religion to the Zoroastrian children of the district. Qasimibid has a small ddr-imehr,rebuilt during the 1940s and surrounded by a new wall, which is still in regular use. Although there is no tdldtrthere, a sizeable room beneath the main hall provides space for communal events and a small Zoroastrian youth centre with an outdoor basketball court stands a few yards away from the temple. The old village of Ahrestin is now also a suburb of Yazd, and though many of its old buildings survive, they are being gradually destroyed and replaced. The temple itself, rebuilt in the 1950s and with an interior of polished marble, is kept in very fine order and is possibly in better condition than any other temple in the province. The nearby boys' school is said to have closed during the early 1980s, but it has since been converted into a tidldrfor the community and is also very well maintained. The temple at AllAihaibid,once the most important of the Zoroastrian villages, is still reasonably well-maintained. The village itself, however, is now attached to Yazd and is architecturally barely distinguishable from the concrete greyness of many of the more modern suburbs. The old village of Shariffibid, now forming part of the MeybudArdakan connurbation, maintains a core of old houses, but is essentially modern away from the small historic kernel around the fire-temple. The temple is very well maintained and is among the most active of all of the temples in the province. In general, the fire-temples in the villages of the plains are rather less well maintained. The most extreme example is found in the village of Khairibid, a large and now predominantly Muslim village a few kilometres to the north of Yazd. A new road, cut through the centre of the village in 1996, led to the destruction of most of the buildings along its edges, including the Zoroastrian ddr-imehr.Like the adjacent buildings, much of the structure of the temple remains, but the entire facades of the buildings have been destroyed. This has rendered them all derelict, the temple not least, and it is difficult to imagine that this could not have been avoided relativelyeasily. The interior of the temple had been depredated and a

number of "Islamic"graffiti painted over the walls at the time of my visit.29Ironically, a large new Islamic school stands further along the road. The Khairfibid ddr-i mehris the only temple to have suffered this fate, however, and most of the village temples have more to fear from depopulation than road-construction and vandalism. In the village of Cham, for example, as many as half of the houses lie empty and sinking into ruin. Its purported population of a dozen Zoroastrians seems hardly sufficient to support their temple unaided, but in 1996, the temple and its sacred cypress trees were still in reasonable condition, although the boys' school which forms part of the complex has long since been abandoned and left to fall into decay. There is no mobed resident in Cham. Conditions are rather better in the village of Mobarake, just a kilometre away from Cham. Despite its small population, most of its buildings have avoided the deterioration evident in Cham by being maintained as second homes by absentee owners in Yazd and elsewhere. The village ddr-i mehr,said to be as old as the village itself, is in good condition and tended to by a mobed living in Mobarake who also looks after the temple in Cham. The village school is still kept in perfect condition, although this too closed down in 1993, making it the last of the Zoroastrian village schools to do so. The nearby village of Zainaibid still has its ddr-i mehr, probably rebuilt in the 1890s, but it is in some need of restoration and appeared to be little used, though the village does have its own mobed who tends to the fire each day. The boys' school which adjoins the temple, said to have been founded in 1920 before closing down in the early 1980s, was in a very bad state of repair.30The village of cAliibid, to the north of Yazd, has a ddr-imehrwhichwas built as recently as 1957-58 when the population was much larger than today. It is reasonably well-maintained, but there is no longer a resident mobed in the village and in the mid-1990s it was being looked after by a loquacious retired actor living in a nearby house and acting as caretaker. In the same direction as cAliibid, the now predominantly Muslim village of NusratibAidstill sustains its ddr-imehr,built around 1938, but it is in fairly poor condition in view of its age. Nonetheless, the village still has its own mobed in residence. While the small adjoining school has closed down, it is still used to give weekly lessons on religion to Zoroastrian children. The village of MazracKalintar can boast of a gleaming new ddr-i mehrwhich is the only exception to this otherwise sombre catalogue. Completed only in 1991, and standing out in the midst of the almost entirely mud-brick village, it was built to replace a much older temple which had fallen into decay. There is a capacious tdldrwithin its grounds and both this and the temple are extremely wellmaintained. In spite of this, the village no longer has

THE SURVIVAL OF ZOROASTRIANISM IN YAZD

its own mobed. There have never been temples in the village of Khalilib id and Husaini. If some of their fire-temples are showing signs of neglect, the organization of the Zoroastrian priesthood itself in Yazd is showing a certain dynamism. While mobeds traditionally have had to belong to priestly families, the number of these families still living in Yazd is now very small. Only three priestly families survived there in 1996, one of which has no male heirs. In spite of this, the priesthood continues to survive through the initiation of mobed-iyadrs(literally "priest of the friend") who, though not belonging to priestly families, are authorized to carry out certain priestly functions and rituals.31At the time of my visit, some twenty-three individuals, both old and young, were undergoing training to become priests in Yazd.32Most of the village mobeds belong to the mobed-iyar category and the majority of them also have normal jobs when they are still of working age. All of the Zoroastrian communities in and around Yazd are said to have their own anjoman,and these keep in regular contact with the main one in Yazd and the Central Anjoman in Tehran.33 THE LAYCOMMUNITY The anjomans also carry out a number of functions in the secular sphere through the organization of social events. Through such activities they help to maintain the solidarity of their respective communities and to preserve their ties with the other communities in the province and throughout Iran. Similar groups exists for Zoroastrian youths, with provisions for such pastimes as basketball and table-tennis provided through the anjoman.34The religious instruction of the young is also sometimes carried out on a community level35as well as being left to individual families. This may reflect the decline of the Zoroastrian schools in the province and the increased emphasis on an Islamic religious heritage which has entered education in Iran since the Revolution. Even so, one exclusively Zoroastrian primary school for boys, the Dabestan-i DinyTri,was still operating in Pusht-i Khan cAli in central Yazd. The former Zoroastrian high school in Yazd, the Dabistin-i Khosravi, still runs but now caters largely for Muslim boys.36 The closure of the Zoroastrian schools, especially those in the villages, appears to owe more to the declining population of the Zoroastrians in the province than to any injunction from the current regime itself.37 The Zoroastrian upper and lower schools of the Dabestin-i Jamshid Jam in central Tehran, for example, are still running and accommodating mostly Zoroastrian pupils.38 The Yazd communities appear determined to pass on their Zoroastrian heritage to their children, both

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through the institutions they have founded on their behalf and through wider social and cultural pressures to uphold their traditions. As one Zoroastrian expressed it, the young are "trained to be strong". This is particularly the case with regard to marriage, for perhaps the greatest constraint imposed on the non-Muslim minorities in Iran since the Revolution is the legal necessity for any non-Muslim to convert to Islam should they choose to marry a Muslim. Marriage within the community and the extended family, then, is still the norm and is actively promoted as such.39 Although the anjomansplay some role in this, pressure is more often exerted on a family level. While there have been marriages to Muslims and subsequent conversions since the Revolution, parents and elders do their best to prevent such incidents. There is also a keenness to uphold a certain level of cultural life within the communities. The importance of such activityfor a minority community is not to be overlooked in a period which has witnessed colossal investment in Islamic cultural activities by various state agencies. One way in which this is achieved is through the medium of literature. The old Fravaharbookshop in Tehran continues to publish works on Zoroastrian subjects, and the most popular of their publications is their monthly magazine of the same name. This magazine contains a mixture of learned articles, community news and advices of forthcoming social events. The magazine is popular among the Zoroastrians ofYazd and is another of the ways in which they maintain their sense of community and tradition while inhabiting an Islamic state. RELATIONS WITH THE WIDER SOCIETY The precise nature of the relationship between the Zoroastrian communities and the state is a complicated issue, due in large part to the political and ideological concerns which envelop it. On those occasions when the subject arose in conversation, however, there was little sense of specific complaint, but rather the kinds of grumblings that may be encountered throughout Iran. Article XIII of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic protects the rights of religious minorities in Iran (with the exception of Baha'is) and the Zoroastrians are represented by a member in the national assembly, the Majles. While his single vote can have little legislative effect on its own, Iranian Muslims often indulgently point out that in view of the very small number of Zoroastrians in Iran, by having their own representative in the Majles, they are, from a strictly proportional point of view, generously over-represented.40 The Islamic Republic now appears keen to demonstrate its tolerance of religious minorities, and much

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was achieved by way of this in allowing the 1996 Zoroastrian World Congress to be held in Tehran.41 What has more often been a problem for the Zoroastrians ofYazd in the present century has been more individual instances of discrimination. During the 1970s, Michael Fischer reported that the dabambdrs (underground reservoirs) of Yazd often possessed two sets of staircases and taps so as not to have the water polluted for Muslims through contact with the Zoroastrians.42 Such practices as these reflect the traditional notion of najes,a problematic category of Shi'i law as well as popular belief, which presents Zoroastrians, among others, as being in some way polluting. Although this idea seems to have gradually been eroded, it still lingers on in some areas. There remains a Zoroastrian barber's shop in Yazd, for example, which Zoroastrians apparently use because some of the city's barbers refuse to cut their hair. An example of related prejudice came when a number of Yazdi Muslims explained to me that it was well-known that Zoroastrian women were ugly. These kinds of petty discriminations do continue, and this is evidently one of the reasons why even the older generation of Zoroastrian women have stopped wearing their traditional and distinctive bright garments publicly in Yazd, since such attire clearly distinguishes them from Muslim women in their chdadors.43 There is social to conform to the mores of strong pressure the Islamic dress code in Iran, and this has had a great deal of effect on the urban female Zoroastrians dress. But away from such pressures, there are some Zoroastrian women who still dress in their traditional costume in a few of the villages of the plains, particularly in Mazra' Kalintar and Mobarake.

lend them a certain prestige among many of their countrymen. Many Iranians have maintained a strong interest in their pre-Islamic past, despite some of the cultural consequences of the Revolution, and the historical Zoroastrian sites in and around Yazd are rarely short of Muslim visitors. The Revolution, in fact, seems to have given the Zoroastrians the impetus to try especially hard to maintain their identity, a determination which seems to have been less apparent during the 1970s.44 The revival of the anjomans, both on the village and national level, is only one example of this. The old Zoroastrian way of life, preserved for centuries in the isolation of the villages of the plains around Yazd, is regrettably close to extinction, but the decline of village life in Iran is not a uniquely Zoroastrian process. Yet there is great commitment on the part of the Zoroastrians to hand on their traditions to their children. Provided too many more of them do not either migrate to Tehran or emigrate completely, and so long as their parents manage to dissuade them from inter-marriage with Muslims, the Zoroastrians of Yazd seem assured of a prolonged future. *The main substance of this article is based upon research carried out in Iran between February and April 1996 and funded partly by a travel grant from the British Institute of Persian Studies. My thanks are also due to Professor Mary Boyce, the staff of the embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in London, and most of all to the proud and hospitable Zoroastrians of Yazd themselves.

1

2 3 4

CONCLUSIONS 5

In the early days of the Islamic Republic, many Zoroastrians feared for their futures in the new Iran, and there were numerous emigrations as a consequence. Ironically, it is perhaps this that has proven to be the most damaging force for Zoroastrianism in Iran in decades. The main problems facing the Zoroastrians of Yazd during the 1990s appeared to be their shrinking numbers and the legislation requiring conversion to Islam on marrying any Muslim Iranian. Technically, at least, the Constitution protects their rights and, regarding the noninstitutionalized forms of discrimination and harassment which they sometimes face, it may be remembered that minorities face such pressures to a greater or lesser extent in all societies. The Zoroastrians are buoyed by the fact that their religion is indigenously Iranian, which continues to

6

7 8

9 10 11

For convenience, all dates are given in the Western calendar. E.g. Richard Bulliet, Conversionto Islam in theMedievalPeriod, London, 1979. E.g. Kreyenbroek (1987). The Murij al-dhahabof al-Mascildi (d. c. 956) provides the greatest wealth of detail, though al-Istakhri (d. c. 961) and YaqiLtHamawi (d. 1229), among others, also record active fire-temples. See Tirmidhi (1950). E.g. W. E. West (trans.), Pahlavi TextsII: TheDddistdn-iDinik and theEpistlesof Mdnriskihar,Oxford, 1882. See West p. 153 and pp. 250-53 for the impoverishment of the priesthood and pp. 136-41 for the question of apostasy. Also Kreyenbroek (1987). However, the first actual evidence of the chief mobed's residence at Sharifibid does not come until 1478 C.E. See Boyce (1977; pp. 2-4). As one writer has described it, "after the opening decades of the eleventh century, Zoroastrianism drops almost wholly out of Persian life". C. E. Bosworth, MedievalArabic Cultureand Administration,London, 1981, p. 62. Boyce (1969) pp. 22-29. For example, restrictions on riding animals in town or wearing spectacles orjewellery. Malcolm (1905), pp.46-53. Though as Writer (1994; p. 80) points out, the 1907 Constitution included legalized discrimination against nonShicite Muslim Iranians in designating in Article LVIII, for

12

example, that government ministers must be Muslims of Iranian descent. Boyce's (1977) account was based on research carried out in 1963-4, while Fischer was in Yazd during 1970-71.

THE SURVIVAL OF ZOROASTRIANISM IN YAZD

13 See Amighi (1900; p. 228). The fravahar is still, in fact, the logo for at least one bus company in Iran, as well as appearing on countless other signs and decorative articles due to its associations with the history of the Iranian people. 14 According to the 1992 census, there were 282 751 people living in Yazd. 15 A TouristMap of YazdProvince(Ministry of Islamic Guidance, Tehran, undated), widely available in Yazd, claims that there are 12,000 Zoroastrians in the province. Local Zoroastrians themselves tended to suggest a figure of around 8,000, while a recent article in the Ettela'at International newspaper (24 June 1996) reported that "at present some 5,300 Zoroastrians are living in Yazd, Taft and Ardakan cities". Staff at the embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in London, supplied a figure of approximately 35,000 for the whole of Iran, based on the 1986 census. 16 That is to say, built mainly of mud and consisting typically of a number of rooms of varying size and ventilation around a central courtyard and often also including substantial underground chambers. The main purpose of this miscellany of accommodation is to cope with the extremes of Yazd's desert climate. 17 Boyce (1971) pp. 136-37. 18 I was first told this in conversation with a Zoroastrian estateagent in Yazd. Further enquiries seemed to confirm his report, though it was described as a "habit"rather than anything more formal. Fischer (1973; p. 162) noted, with regard to Pusht-i Khin'Ali, that " [T]here is some resistance to the sale of these houses to Muslims since they are the somewhat sacred loci of the ancestors.". 19 This road is called the B6ilvar-iBasij. Pusht-i Khin'Ali was one of the last remaining extensive quarters of the old city of Yazd. 20 Sharifibid, however, the site of Mary Boyce's research (1977), has been amalgamated by the growing connurbation of Meybud-Ardakin, two towns directly to the north of Yazd. 21 According to Boyce (1977; p. 27), in 1964 the populations of Chain and Mobarake were already "dwindling" because of drought, while in Khalidibid and Husaini there were "only a few Zoroastrian households remaining". Fischer (1973; p. 160) reported 63 inhabitants in Mobirake in 1970. 22 Even this small figure seemed difficult to credit, since only one house in the village appeared to be occupied during my visit. Fischer (1973; p. 160), however, found 74 Zoroastrians there in 1970. 23 By comparison, Boyce (1977) states that the Zoroastrian population of Sharifibid stood at 700 in 1964 and 455 in 1976 (p. 9), while in 1964 that of Mazra' Kalintar stood at 140 (p. 22). By 1970, the latter had apparently declined to some 113 inhabitants (Fischer, 1973; p. 160). 24 "Once the dominant faith [Islam] had made a breach, it pressed in remorselessly, like a rising tide . . . As long as the Zoroastrians remained in the majority, their lives were tolerable; but once the Muslims became the more numerous, a petty but persuasive harassment was apt to develop .... Those Zoroastrians who resisted all these pressures often preferred therefore in the end to sell out and move to some other place where their co-religionists were still relatively numerous, and they could live at peace; and so another village was lost to the old faith." Boyce (1977), pp. 7-8. 25 This is particularly the case in the village of Cham, Mazrac Kalintar, C•Alibid,and Khalilibad. 26 E.g. Amighi (1990; p. 277). Several of the construction dates given in the following section were kindly supplied to me by Professor MaryBoyce. 27 The word ddr-i mehr,designating a place of worship, is the normal phrase used to denote a fire-temple. Generally, it would not be used to refer to a temple containing a sacred fire of the highest grades.

28

29 30

31

32

33

34

35 36

37

38 39

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A tdldris a hall, or a building containing such a hall, which is used for such community gatherings as wedding celebrations or other community events of a social or quasi-religious nature. There is almost alwaysan adjoining kitchen, and the larger tildrs, such as that in Mariibad, contain many more rooms besides. This certainly provides an example of the kinds of pressures and discriminations described by Boyce (see note 21). Even this, however, seemed to be about to undergo restoration. Unfortunately, no-one seemed able to tell me for what reason. The period of time spent training for the priesthood is variable, but both full mobeds and mobed-iydrsmust sit exams at the Central Anjoman in Tehran before being allowed to practice. Priests also carry out ceremonies in private houses as well as in the temples. In a relatively new practice in Yazd, originating in the early 1990s, informal prayer and discussion meetings take place at the Yazd Ateshkade under the guidance of a mobed. During the 1930s there were two hundred mobeds in Yazd. This number has shrunk to fewer than ten by 1964 (Boyce, 1977; p. 14). These figures, however, refer only to full mobeds and not to the number of mobed-iydrswho make up most of the numbers of those in training today in Yazd. Although I was told this explicitly on a number of occasions, it does seem more likely that, in view of their small populations, some of the smaller villages still hold collective anjomans, such as those of Shariffibfid-MazracKalintarHasanibid and Cham-Mobirake-Zainibid-Khalilibid described by Boyce. (1977), pp. 22 & 27. The communities in Qasimibid and Mariibid have excellent facilities for the young. These practices, however, stretch back well before the Revolution. The 1960s and 1970s saw an increase in the number of secular Zoroastrian groups and societies for both youths and adults. By 1975 there were eleven Zoroastrian clubs and organizations in Tehran alone. Amighi (1990), p. 215. That is, with the activities in certain former village schools described above. According to Mary Boyce (private correspondence), however, there have been Muslim pupils at the school ever since its foundation. Bekhradnia (1991; p. 128), however, claims that the Zoroastrian schools were deliberately taken over by the Islamic Republic after 1979. If this was the case, it adds a new perspective to the experience of schools in and around Yazd, particularly those which closed in the early 1980s. Yet Amighi (1990; p. 236) recounts that the Zoroastrian schools in Tehran were in decline anywayfrom the 1950s to the 1970s, with Zoroastrian parents preferring to send their children to secular state schools and the old Zoroastrian institutions catering mainly for the children of poorer families. It should further be noted that Zoroastrian children are exempted from attendance in Arabic and Qur'an classes at state schools on the understanding that they take classes in their own religion. See Bekhradnia (1991), p. 128. I was told there that the other pupils were mainly Christiansand that approximately two-thirds of the staff were Zoroastrians. Amighi (1990; p. 283-84) concludes from data governing the years between 1960-74 that the vast majority of Tehrani Zoroastrian marriages were chosen from within the extended family. She later notes that Michael Fischer found that kin marriage in Yazd represented 33 per cent of Zoroastrian marriages from his sample (p. 324). Cousin-marriages are still popular in Yazd and marriages with Muslims have become especially unacceptable both to families and the community due to the laws requiring conversion. During the general election in March 1996, there were six Zoroastrian candidates whose posters were displayed in

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many of the Zoroastrian districts. The winner was Mr. Parviz Ravani. The sixth Zoroastrian World Congress was held from the 20 to the 23 June 1996 in Tehran. In an address to the conference, Ayatollah Seyid Ali Khamenei is reported to have described Iran as "a land of religious tolerance and amity" titling Zoroastrians world-wide the "fellow-countrymen"of all Iranians (Ettela'at International, 24June 1996). Whilst at the Central Anjoman in Tehran I witnessed one public relations exercise, when, a Muslim television crew made a film of a Zoroastrian ceremony for state and foreign television, demonstrating their freedom of worship. Fischer (1973), p. 163. Amighi (1990; p. 362-63) suggests that there has been a revival of the concepts of najesin postRevolutionary Iran. A number of 'official' mujtahids have apparently ruled that contact with Zoroastrians and other ahli Kitaibis, in fact 'polluting' for Muslims. For Zoroastrian men, of course, such issues are not a problem. For the women, however, clothing can have a tremendous effect on their lives, ranging from their treatment while shopping in the bazaar to their chances of finding employment. It does seem quite reasonable to speculate that the traditional clothes would have been a rare sight among urban Zoroastrians regardless of the social changes in Iran since 1979. By 1991, emigration by Zoroastrians from Iran had been estimated at 10,000 since the Revolution (Bekradnia, 1991; p.126), a process that is still to some extent continuing.

Bibliography Amighi, J. K. 1990. The Zoroastriansof Iran: Conversion,Assimilation orPersistence,New York. Boyce, M. 1969. "Manekji Limji Hataria in Iran", in K.R. Cama OrientalInstitute GoldenJubilee Volume,ed. N. D. ManochehrHomji and M. F. Kanga, Bombay. 1971. "The Zoroastrian Houses of Yazd",in Iran and Islam: in Memoryof the Late VladimirMinorsky,ed. C. E. Bosworth, Edinburgh. Oxford. A PersianStrongholdof Zoroastrianism, S1977. Fischer, M. M. J. 1973. ZoroastrianIran : BetweenMyth and Praxis, unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, University of Chicago. 1980. Iran : FromReligiousDisputeto Revolution,Cambridge Mass. Kreyenbroek, G. 1987. "The Zoroastrian Priesthood After the Fall of the Sassanian Empire", in Transition Periods in Iranian History,Studia Iranica5, Paris. Malcolm, N. 1905. Five Yearsin a Persian Town,London. Nigosian, S. A. 1993. The ZoroastrianFaith Tradition and Modern Research,Montreal. Tirmidhi, R. M. 1950. "Zoroastrians and their Fire-Temples in Iran and Adjoining Countries from the 9th to the 14th Centuries as Gleaned from the Arabic Geographical Works", in IslamicCulture,XXIV, pp. 271-84. Zoroastrians.An UnstructuredNation, Writer, R. 1994. Contemporary Lanham, Md.

ISLAMICMODERNITYAND THE DESIRING SELF: MUHAMMAD IQBAL AND THE POETICS OF NARCISSISM' ByYaseen Noorani Universityof Edinburgh

The Indian Muslim poet and religious thinker Muhammad Iqbal (c. 1876-1938) provides the most extensive and fully realised vision of an alternative, Islamic version of modernity that has yet appeared. His critique of Enlightenment rationality, and particularly his cogent linkage of it with Imperialism, anticipates an important line of post-War thinking. Above all, his apparent success in casting modern European civilisation as a dead-end offshoot of the authentic modernity engendered by Islam has earned him great admiration throughout the Muslim world, leaving aside the Indian subcontinent, where he has become an institution of Muslim culture. Iqbal's achievement goes beyond the mere dressing of a pre-existing conception of modernity in Islamic garb. In the manner of European Romantic and Modernist writers, he was able to generate a critique of Europe's rationalist and capitalist social order out of a distinctive figuration of the human condition. Like his European counterparts, from whom he learned a great deal, Iqbal founded his alternative version of modernity on the poetic representation of an ideal modern self characterised by its fundamentally aesthetic or creative mode of being rather than by any capacity for "ratiocination." He derived this representation, however, not from the Romantic artist or hero of European literary traditions, but from the desiring self of the classical Persian ghazal. In order to do this, Iqbal had to turn what I will characterise as the "Dionysian" self of the classical ghazal into a modern form of subjectivity radically distinguished from nature and inscribed with a historical trajectory. By changing the polarity of the classical representation of the desiring subject, Iqbal produced a "narcissistic" self which served as the basis of the doctrine of selfhood (khudi) that he propounded in his masnavi poems and his book, The Reconstructionof Religious Thought in Islam.2 The transformation that Iqbal worked to create in the narrow compass of the ghazal is therefore the key to his hegemonic vision of an authentic, Islamic modernity destined to transform the world. In recasting the ghazal for political purposes, Iqbal's challenge was to turn a lyrical genre centred on passionate love and the subversion of social

norms into a blueprint for communal self-realisation, a tool for the moral reform of the Muslim nation. The political potential of the classical ghazal, however, comes not out of any vision of a communal ideal, but out of a fundamental alienation from the world of everyday time that governs social existence. We can see this impulse in the way that the ghazal represents the escape from everyday existence.3 biya tdgul bar-afshanim o may dar sdghar anddzim

o tarhinawdar-anddzim falak-rasaqfbishkdfim Come, let us scatter roses and throw wine in the glassLet us pierce the heavenlyceiling and throwdown a new law. ( no. 367) .Hafiz, biyd ki qa'ida-yi dsiman bigardanim qazd bi-gardish-i ratl-i girdn bigarddnim

Come,let us overturnthe rule of the heavens; Let us turn back fate's decree by sending round a heavydraught.(Ghalib, no. 265) The drinking-song motif expresses the poet's wish to reorder the universe according to his own desire in the feeling of intoxicated euphoria. Freedom from the tyranny of fate takes the form of a condition condemned by society and religious law. The association of freedom with a position outside society is characteristic of the ghazal, enabling the poet to denounce those with moral or political authority and their institutions. For moral and political reform, however, the ghazal is a problematic genre. Unlike the qasida, to which it is closely related, the ghazal depicts fulfillment primarily in individual and temporary images. Instead of tracing a linear progress from personal desire to communal fulfillment, the ghazal takes the fixed existential condition of the desiring self and explores its modulations. In other words, the ghazal rejects what I have previously called the mechanism of poetic sublimation constitutive of the qasida.4 The movement of the qasida diverts desire from the language of love to the language of social virtue, from the erotic to the heroic. The ghazal, however, absolutises the language of love, turning it into a symbolic language capable of representing the human condi-

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tion in its entirety. The erotic and individual subsume the heroic and communal. The language of the ghazal lends itself to "sublimated" interpretation, but remains the language of love. This results not only in moral ambiguity but in the absence of any representation of a communal ideal. In the context of colonial domination and the rationalist order which it ostensibly inaugurated, the ghazal came to be viewed increasingly as a national liability. It appeared more as a manifestation of national decadence than as a potential means of national rehabilitation. The ghazal's moral and political deficiencies were of particular importance in India, where it remained the dominant genre of Persian and Urdu poetry through the nineteenth century. The most influential statement of the case was made by Altaf HIusayn Halli (1837-1914), the founder of modern Urdu literary criticism, in his Muqaddima-yi shicr o shdciri ("Introduction to Poetry"). Hall, a close associate of the celebrated Muslim reformer Sir Sayyid Ahmad Khan, extends Khan's conception of "Nature" (nechar), adopted from British Enlightenment thought, to the examination of the nature and purpose of poetry. Taking up the psychological doctrine of the influence of poetry on the moral sensibilities through the emotions, he elaborates the view that the function of poetry is the moral refinement and political inspiration of nations.5 Natural poetry elevates nations, while artificial poetry corrupts them. He attaches this argument to the narrative of Muslim greatness and decline, seeking to show that the present degenerate state of the Indian Muslim community finds both cause and symptom in the sort of literature that Indian Muslims presently value. Halli takes issue with the ghazal for its artificiality and preoccupation with lust. It is artificial because it is imitative and detached from reality, both external and emotional. Its preoccupation with lust is the morally damaging consequence of this artificiality. Since the ghazal is so popular, it cannot be eliminated, but it can perhaps be morally improved or at least rendered innocuous. Hali calls upon poets to desexualise the ghazal by taking up non-sexual forms of love for their theme. He is concerned that they make the beloved as abstract as possible by eliminating all reference to the beloved's sex and body. Wine imagery should be given up unless obviously metaphorical. Denigration of religious authority should also be cast aside. In general, the ghazal should give up erotic motifs ('ishqiyyamadzamin)and turn to moral (akhldqi) ones, because this is what the present day requires. In the past, Muslims may have had the luxury to find their entertainment in voluptuous images and precious language. In the present they

are struggling for their communal existence.6 Hall's attempt to clean up the ghazal by trading eros for agape and erotic images for moralistic sententiaemerely sidesteps the problem of sublimation by obscuring the animating impulse of the desiring self without altering or eliminating it. His programme, if followed through, results in a poetic form that is to the ghazal what muzak is to the symphony. Iqbal, who took up the mantle of literary reformer from Hall and that of Islamic reformer from Ahmad Khan, rejected the Enlightenment solution of repression in favour of the more Romantic solution of narcissism. Iqbal does not seek to desex the ghazalbecause it is precisely in the tropes of the ghazals language of desire that he conducts his attack upon Enlightenment Reason. Nor does he wish to leave it in the traditional form found by Hall to be so politically devastating. Instead, Iqbal attempts to harness the full heat of the ghazars passion for the sake of an ideal community by making its symbols signify the self, the individual ego. Rather than give up the primacy of eros, he seeks to inscribe sublimation into its essence. Political orientation, which is to say, an unseverable bond with communal identity, is to lie at the core of the desiring self. Iqbal's ghazal works to overdetermine the meaning of eros so that it signifies love of this ideal communal self intrinsically. As in the traditional ghazal, the language of love and the condition of the lover are absolute. Iqbal's ghazal, however, seeks to eliminate the problem of sublimation by changing the object of the lover's desire and thus the nature of desire itself. Iqbal took as his criterion for the value of poetry not its conformity to Nature but its enhancement of "Life," which is to say, its strengthening and consolidation of the ego. This is precisely what he found lacking in the classical ghazal.We can clarify Iqbal's project by first considering his objections to the classical ghazal and then examining his attempt to refashion it. In the first edition of his first Persian masnavi, Asrar-i khudi ("Secrets of the Self'),7 published

in

1915, Iqbal boldly attacked the doyen of IndoPersian ghazal poetry, .Htafiz: hushydraz hdfiz-isahbagusar jdmash az zahr-iajal sar-maya-ddr

rahn-isdqi khirqa-yiparhiz-iu may 'ildj-ihawl-irastdkhiz-iu.. anfaqih-i millat-imay-khwaragan an imam-imillat-ibi-charagan naghma-yichangashdalil-i inhitdt hatif-iujibrayfl-iinhitat mar-igulzari ki ddradzahr-indb

ISLAMIC MODERNITY AND THE DESIRING SELF

sayd-rdavval hami arad bi-khwab8

Bewareof Ifiz the wine-drinker, Forhis cup's supplyis the poison of death; He pawnedhis hair shirtto the cup-bearer-Wine is the cure for the heat of his fervor... He is the cleric of the wine-drinkers'nation; He is the priestof the religion of the hapless. His harp'smelodyis the proof of decadence; His muse is the Gabrielof decadence. A rose-bedsnakeendowedwith pure poison, Proceedsby firstlulling its preyto sleep...

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do with Hafiz's "private personality" or "beliefs."o10 The point of the criticism is merely to elaborate the literary principle that beauty alone cannot be the purpose of art. "If the basis of literature is that beauty is beauty, be its consequences beneficial or injurious, then Khwaja [IHafiz] is of the world's greatest poets."'l Iqbal then expresses his dissatisfaction concerning the comparison between 'Urfi and Hatfiz,all but admitting that it is based upon a single verse of 'Urfi's: giriftaman ki bihishtamdahand bi ta'at qabulkardan-isadqa na shart-iinsaf ast

It seems thatI shallbe givenparadisewithouthaving been righteousThe passage continues to find in the sixteenth Acceptanceof charityis not of the conditionsof faircentury poet 'Urfi a life-affirming antithesis to the ness. decadent Hafiz:9 In another letter, written to the poet Akbar in su -yi mulk-ikhudi markabjihand Ilahtbatdi, Iqbal comments upon the nature of the an kinar-idb-irukndbddmand objectionable wine of IHafiz's poetry: "The wine in qatil-ihimmat-imardana-yi intended in those verses [of Asrar-i khudi] is not what people drink in restaurants, but that state of an zi ramz-izindagi bi-gana-yi intoxication which suffuses Hafiz's poetry."'2 This one prodded his mount towardthe realm of The "state of intoxication" that Iqbal finds so selfhood; is precisely the Dionysian character of objectionable That one stayedbehind by the streamof Ruknabaid; the classical ghazal, its tendency to represent eros Thisone is immersedin manlyambition; through the dissolution of the ego rather than in its enhancement. We saw in the drinking-song verses Thatone is a strangerto the secretof life. of HaIfiz and Ghalib quoted above the manner in Here Iqbal reveals an important "secret of the which intoxication signifies the state of euphoria to self." "Manly ambition" (himmat) is the direct prod- which the lover aspires. It is immediately obvious to uct of the sublimation of eros. In the traditional any reader of Hafiz, or of any post-HIafizghazal poet, that drunkenness is the exemplary condition of the qasida the poet transforms his desire for his beloved into desire for martial glory. This is what Iqbal lover, whether it is produced by wine or by eros. claims here to find in 'Urfi and find lacking in Indeed, it is produced by both in the verses quoted, "come" is addressed to the Hfafiz. Though both poets are from Shiraz, 'Urfi for the command the beloved (wasl) and intoxiwith beloved-union aspires toward higher states of being, while Hatfizis content to remain in (and sing of) the gardens of cation are more or less equated. Otherwise, the lathis hometown. 'Urfi is a poet of the aspiring self, ter serves as the best substitute for the former, as we divan: learn in the very first verse of while IHafizis a poet calling for self-extinction. Hatfiz's These verses were so controversial that even a li ya ayyuha 'l-saqiadir ka'san wa nawil-ha Iqbal's close friends demanded explanations from ki 'ishqasan namiid avval vali uftad mushkilha him. For this reason, Iqbal retracted them, and they Send the chalice on its round, O cupbearer,and do not appear in any subsequent edition of Asrar-i hand it over: khudi; he replaced them with a general indictment For love seemed easy at first, and then the problems of decadent poetry for its role in the downfall of the came. (Hafiz1,1) Muslim community. These deleted passages, as well as Iqbal's epistolary defences of them, are imporIn TheBirth of Tragedy,Nietzsche introduces what he calls the "Dionysian" principle of art, "which is tant because they reveal explicitly what the general indictments interspersed throughout Iqbal's works brought home to us most intimately by the analogy only intimate-that the sort of ghazal held in the of intoxication."'3 This principle arises from the highest esteem by Iqbal's contemporaries is pre- experience of "an intoxicated reality, which...does cisely the sort responsible for their present moral not heed the single unit, but even seeks to destroy the individual and redeem him by a mystic feeling degeneracy. Iqbal explains in one of his letters that his criti- of oneness."'14Nietzsche describes this experience cism of IHafizis "purely literary"and has nothing to as one of complete absorption in the "ground of

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being," the life-force of nature underlying all that lives and dies while itself remaining constant. According to Nietzsche, this is the basis for the art of music, the most Dionysian of arts, for it is the art which imitates the primordial life-force most directly. In any case, the Dionysian impulse produces the only sort of art which can truthfully present the horror of life-suffering, destruction, and death-and at the same time redeem it with the more profound truth that "life is at the bottom of things, despite all the changes of appearances, indestructibly powerful and pleasurable."15 Nietzsche describes the process in the following manner: [The] raptureof the Dionysianstatewith its annihilation of the ordinaryboundsand limitsof existence element in which contains, while it lasts, a hypnotic all personal experiences of the past become immersed. This chasm of oblivion separates the worlds of everydayrealityand of Dionysianreality. But as soon as this everydayreality re-entersconsciousness,it is experiencedas such, withnausea:an ascetic, will-negatingmood is the fruit of these states.16 It is this nausea, this negation of the will, which is cured by the magic of Dionysian art, which "...alone knows how to turn these nauseous thoughts about the horror or absurdity of existence into notions with which one can live..."'17 In calling the ghazal Dionysian, my claim is not that it arisesfrom the Dionysian experience of selfabnegation in the underlying unity of being that Nietzsche holds to be the basis of this sort of art, but that it depicts the Dionysian situation that Nietzsche describes. It depicts the quest to extinguish self-consciousness in eros ('ishq), figured in union with the beloved, and laments the inability to consistently achieve this condition, which it calls "fate" (dahr, rizgar, qaza, etc.). As we saw in the

verses of Haifiz and Ghalib cited above, the feeling of intoxication is one which allows the poet to climb on top of the heavens, as it were, and alter the world to suit his own liking. For this intoxication is above and beyond the fate which makes of everyday life a cycle of suffering and death; it is of eternity and not of this world: bi-hichdawrnakhwahandydft hushydrash chunin ki hidfiz-i md mast-ibada-yiazal ast

At no time shall theyfind him conscious, For our IIafiz is drunk of the wine of eternity. 46) (IHrIafiz The word used for "time," dawr, means literally "turn," and intimates the fatal turn of the wheel of time. The opposite of this is the stationary azal, "eternity." The pun on time points up the contrast between the quotidian nature of consciousness and

the timeless, universal condition experienced in its extinction. What is the "wine of eternity" if not some cosmic principle underlying all that exists? This principle is eros ('ishq), or at least that is what it is called in the ghazal. The ghazal, however, speaks much more of sorrow (ghamm) than of euphoria. This is because the usual lot of man is not the euphoric, intoxicated state of union with the beloved but rather the misery of everyday life, the realm of fate, the wheel of heaven which grinds us all to dust: zi dawr-ibddabi-janrahati rasan saqz ki ranj-ikhatiramazjawr-i dawr-igarduinast

Giveme some comfortby sending the wine around, O cupbearer, For my mind is vexed by the oppressiverevolvingof heaven. ( 55) .Hafiz in the quotation of the first verse of As we saw Haifiz's dvdan above, the poet calls this condition separation from the beloved. It is the state of consciousness of the self, which consists in powerful sensations of pain, weakness, and mortality. The whole world cannot redeem even an instant of this condition: dami bd gham bi-sar burdanjahan yak-sar namiarzad bi-maybifrutshdalq-imd k-az-inbihtarnamiarzad

The whole world is not worth a moment spent in painTradefor wine our cloakof abstinence, for it willfetch no betterthan this. ( 147) .Hafiz This condition can be redeemed only by the intoxication of love, which annihilates it. Since, however, the suffering of this world is our normal fate, it is necessary to evoke the feeling of intoxication by means of the beautiful objects of this world. In other words, it is necessary to transform the world into a landscape of beautiful forms, a garden or a house of idols, by means of the impulse of eros: ruzgaristki sawda-yibutdndin-i man ast ghamm-iin kdrnishat-i dil-ighamgin-iman ast

For an age infatuationwith idols has been my religion; Preoccupationwith this taskis thejoy of my sorrowful heart. (HaIfiz53) This verse, though it speaks of joy, is suffused with melancholy. The word rizgarz, which here means "an age," evokes fate (rizgdr). The word for "infatuation" (sawdd), meant originally "melancholy." The expression translated as "preoccupation" is an idiom which rendered literally, would be "sorrow (ghamm) for something,"

i.e. "care." The

upshot of this is that it is only sorrow for "idols"

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which can transform existential sorrow into joy through preoccupation with beauty, just as sorrow (ghamm) is linguistically turned into preoccupation by its attachment to an object. Preoccupation with beauty becomes joy because it arises from the desire for the primordial state of love-intoxication, and is indeed a version of that state. The ghazal, which is the most exemplary preoccupation with beauty, arises from this desire as well, and for this reason, is able to "turn those nauseous thoughts about the horror or absurdity of existence into notions with which one can live"-or perhaps it is better to say into symbolswith which one can live. In other words, the ghazal can break the spell of time: hadis az mutribo mayguio rdz-idahrkamtarjui ki kas nagshuido nagshayad bi-hikmatin mu'amma-rd

Speak of the singer and wine, and leave aside the secretof timeFor no one has solved or shall ever solve this riddle withwisdom.(Ha5fiz 3) The verse reads literally, "make talk of the singer and wine" (hadis... gu), and this "talk"is of course ghazal poetry, which has made of these topics its vocation. The wise Oedipus did not solve the riddle of time; he merely recognised it, thus initiating his own destruction. Only the "talk of singer and wine," the ghazal, can escape it, not through wisdom, but by evoking the state of mystical union and freedom from the self. The ghazal springs from that divine music which governs all of being, including the heavens to which we are subject: dardsimanchi 'ajabgarzi gufta-yi hdfiz samd'-izuhrabi-raqsavarad masihd-rad

Whatwonder if in the heavens,becauseof the lyrics of Ha-fiz, The song of Venusmakesthe Messiahdance. (.H~tfiz 4) The ghazal makes everyone dance, because through the luminous symbols of its language which transfigure the world of everyday life it evokes the primordial state of selflessness to which all aspire. Now we may move from selflessness to selfhood and the problem of political action. We have seen that Iqbal objected to the "state of intoxication which suffuses poetry." This is precisely the H.Lfiz's situation that this poetry depicts, the evoDionysian cation of selflessness. Yet Iqbal did not propose to abandon the ghazal;he was in fact an accomplished practitioner of the genre. This is because Iqbal did not want to give up the desiring self as it expresses itself in the ghazal. In reality, the only objection that Iqbal has to the speaker of the ghazal is the manner

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in which this speaker expresses his desire, his propensity to find its adequation in the world of appearance: zawq-ihuzuirdarjahan rasm-isanamgarfnihad 'ishqfaribmidahadjadn-iumidvar-rd

Pleasurein presenceset in the worldthe practiceof idolatry; Lovedeceivesthe desiroussoul.18 Pleasure in presence,self-immersion in the beautiful forms of the world of appearance, is the idolatry that Iqbal would banish from the ghazal, for this is the opium that in his view leads to inaction and negation of the will. In other words, the ghazal poet's desire to evoke the experience of unity and selflessness by means of preoccupation with beautiful forms is seen as a dangerous enterprise which has succeeding in enticing the ghazals admirers from the true, absent (gha'ib) object of desire. The warning against ephemeral beauty has its place in the ghazal tradition. Yet in the classical ghazal, the poet is able to see the divine beauty in ephemeral appearance, because he looks with the eye of selflessness; his vision issues not from the self-serving exterior eye, but from an internal eye which is one with the life-force of eros: didan-i rui-yitura dida-yijdn mibdyad v-znkuja martaba-yichashm-ijahan-bin-iman ast

Seeing yourface requiresthe eye of the soulHow could my world-seeingeye attain this rank? (IHafiz53)

For Iqbal, however, this mixing of sacred and profane problematises sublimation, thereby making social action irrelevant to those who are so bewitched by the ghazal that they try to live it by making preoccupation with the beauty of the world of appearances their personal vocation. He included in this class all educated Indian Muslims. Therefore, he inserts an intermediary between the present world of appearance and the absent beloved. This intermediary is selfhood, which has and communal. For two dimensions-individual, the the divine beloved, goal of every mortal Iqbal, reached without be cannot traversing this being, intermediary. The result is that Iqbal creates a subjective structure similar to that of the traditional qasida in that, in order to attain a state of ultimate fulfillment, the self must pass in a dialectical movement through an intermediate stage of opposition to the external world resulting in social virtue and action. This is not, however, a progressive movement from an initial state to a final all-inclusive one but a perpetual state of self-love expressing itself in the world. The paradigm of the classical ghazal, as we have seen,

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does not work in this fashion at all. The ghazal deals with the existential situation of human beings in this world. There is no exit from this situation. In it the self experiences two extremes, similar to those of the qasida; these are the sense of selfhood, which consists in sensations of pain and mortality, and the euphoric sense of self-immersion in the universal force from which all of existence arises. The self is caught in a liminal state between these two extremes, which unlike the liminality of the qasida, is not a passage from one to the other, but a simultaneous or alternating experience of each one. In the terms of the ghazal, the same beloved is responsible for both. The ghazal is liminal because the sensations of both extremes are extremely powerful. It is always on the threshold, never settled into a stable mode of being. Unlike the qasida, the ghazal can be no Bildungsroman;it is a tale that has no beginning or end, and therefore no provision for integration into a stable, social existence. Therefore Iqbal composed his own versions of the Bildungsroman, his masnavi works, and made his

ghazals the expression of the desiring self that is elaborated in them: zi shi'r-idil-kash-iiqbdlmitavdn darydft ki dars-ifalsafamidddo 'shiqf varzid

It may be understood from the alluring poetry of Iqbal That he taughtphilosophyand practicedlove.19 The principle of selfhood that is taught in these works is a principle of individuation, which is to say an Apollonian principle in opposition to the Dionysian states evoked in the classical ghazal. It is in fact from the "selflessness" (bikhudi) of the classical ghazal that Iqbal's "selfhood" (khudi) is derived, for the term khudi in its normal sense means "selfishness" or "egotism." Iqbal's term, however, means the opposite of bikhudi,which is a lack of consciousness of the self, resulting in senselessness. It is precisely the mind-numbed narcotic state that Nietzsche speaks of as the effect of Dionysian experience: mastamkun an chundn ki naddnamzi bikhudi dar 'arsa-yikhayalki amad kuddmraft

Makeme so drunkthatfrom senselessness I knownot Who came into the mind's realm and who left. 84) (IH~afiz The opposite of this is awareness of the self, the preservation of its proper boundaries, even in the extreme states of desire: bd chunin zur-ijunin pds-i girfban ddshtam darjuniin az khudnaraftankdr-ihar divana nist

Despite such overpoweringmadness,I did not rend my shirt--

It is not everymadman'spracticenot to be beside himselfin his madness.(ZA1, 20) The madman is the lover, whose habit is to rend his clothes in ecstasy, signifying the destruction of the boundaries of self, both social and psychological; Iqbal shows here how his own practice of love is to be different from that of his precursors. "To be beside one's self," i.e. to lose one's senses, is a common expression which Iqbal has simply negated, drawing attention to the new duty of "remaining within the self." This corresponds to his negation of the word bikhudi. The new lover shall experience the same madness, but he shall vigilantly "guard his collar," which means that he will not allow his boundary of self to be violated. This does not mean, however, that Iqbal will entirely renounce the language of "selflessness;" it means that this language will have to be kept in its correct perspective. The state that the ghazal poets speak of can only be an end that is constantly striven towards throughthe self, through individuation. The effect of this is that the polarity of the classical ghazal is changed from emphasis on the power of the beloved to an emphasis on the agency of the lover. We see this in the following two verses, the first from Hatfizand the second from Iqbal: bulbulazfayi-i gul amfikhtsukhan var-nanabud in hama qawlo ghazal ta'biyadar minqdrash

The nightingale learned to speak from the rose's over-abundance, Else all of this poetry were not laden in his beak. (Hafiz272) ghamin mashawhiijahan rdz-ikhudbiruinnadahad ki anchi gul natavanast murgh-indldn guft

Grieve not that the world does not give forth its secret, For what the rose could not tell the lamentingbird told. (ZA 2,6)

In both verses, the rose is the beloved and the bird the poet. In the verse of Ha-fiz,the emphasis is on the fact that the poet learned to speak from the beloved, that it is the overflow or grace of the beloved that fills the poet with speech. In Iqbal's verse, the idea is that the beloved cannot speak, and it is the task of the poet to speak for him. It makes the poet's own ability to speak a purposive vocation, the telling of secrets of the universe that the universe itself cannot tell. In other words, one can seek these secrets only in the self; attention to the external world will not yield them. In this there is simply a change in polarity, yet its result is that Iqbal introduces an essentially modern conception of the relationship between man and nature into the ghazal.20

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The effect of this change in polarity is that the self becomes a narcissistic lover who can love the world only by transforming it into his own image. Whereas the lover of the classical ghazal immerses himself in worldly beauty by seeing the divine beauty in it, the new lover immerses the world in himself by transforming it. The principle of individuation that Iqbal introduces to mediate between the world of appearance and the divine force behind it requires that the self love only itself so profoundly that it should become itself the divine force. For the self is a model of the universe-its interior is divine force and its exterior worldly appearance. The divine force can only be reached, therefore, through the self: dar khakdan-imdguhar-izindagi gum ast in gawhari ki gum shuda ma-zmyd ki u-st

In our dust-pitthe pearlof life is lost; This pearlthatis lost-is it we or He? (ZA2, 29) The dust-pit, normally the appellation of the world, names here the body. To reach this pearl of life requires a narcissistic love of self, so that all we perceive as outside of the self becomes comprised in it. In order to see the divine in the world, we must make the world divine by remaking it according to our own divine desire: bi-khudnigargilah-hd-yijahanchi miguyiz agar nigdh-i tu digarshavadjahan digarast

Look to yourselfand complain not of the worldWhen your glance changes the world has changed. (ZA2, 28) The principle of individuation requires that we change our glance, and thereby change the world, by working through our "self."Instead of the oscillation between states of union (wasl) and separation (firaq) of the traditional ghazal, Iqbal calls in this way for a perpetual, or well-nigh perpetual, state of separation. This separation, however, is to be a passage, a creative journey of transforming the world into a mirror of the self. The journey of separation is in fact the means by which Iqbal attempts to bring about the sublimation that is so elusive in the classical ghazal.

The sublimation of Iqbal's ghazal may be understood as a poetic inversion of Freud's theory of narcissism in the ego. For Freud, there is a primary narcissism, in which the ego begins desiring only itself ("an original libidinal cathexis of the ego,"21), and a secondary one, of which he says the following: At the verybeginning, all the libido is accumulated in the id, while the ego is still in the processof formation, or is still feeble. The id sends part of this libido out into erotic object-cathexes,whereupon the ego, now grownstronger,triesto get hold of this

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object-libidoand to force itself on the id as a loveobject.The narcissismof the ego is thus a secondary one, whichhas been withdrawnfrom objects.22 In other words, the ego tries to divert its desire from objects which are unattainable or forbidden back to itself as self-love. The ego accomplishes this by making itself resemble the loved object so that in attaching its desire to this resemblance it compensates for the lost object. By taking on the attributes of the desired object, the ego is able to give up that object and obtain some satisfaction from self-love: ...the ego deals with the first object-cathexes of the

id (and certainlywith later ones too) by takingover the libido from them into itselfand binding it to the

alterationof the ego producedby means of identification.

This transformation [of erotic libido] into egolibido of course involvesan abandonmentof sexual aims,a desexualisation.23 This "absorption" of the desired object into the ego, resulting in abandonment of the object and transference of desire to the self, is thus seen by Freud as a primary means of the sublimation of sexual energy for the sake of non-sexual ends. Furthermore, it is precisely out of this accumulation of traits from beloved objects that "personality" arises, or as Freud puts it, "...this kind of substitution has a great share in determining the form taken by the ego and...makes an essential contribution towards building up what is called its 'character"'.24 In Freud's view then, sublimation and egobuilding are both results of the process which he calls "secondary narcissism." The process of narcissism that Iqbal elaborates has these results as well, bringing them about as an inversion of Freud's account. In both accounts, the problem is the same: how can we cope with the fact that we cannot obtain full satisfaction from the people and objects that we love in the world? For Freud, the gap between desire and reality can be bridged only by means of a self-deception which allows us to love ourselves instead of what we originally loved. For Iqbal, however, such an attachment to external objects of desire in the first place is precisely the error. By loving the forms of the world of appearance, we fall into the fatal trap of everyday time, the cycle of frustration, repression, and anguish. The escape from this trap is self-love, a love for which there is no "external" world because it transforms all into the self. Instead of altering itself so as to resemble beloved objects, the self remakes the world in its own image. In other words, self-love produces creative action upon the world. This is the basis for the sublimation of the ghazal's language of love which shall redirect its desire to social and political activity.25 Therefore, Iqbal and Freud agree that the most satisfying love that the ego can enjoy is self-love,

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which is a mental and not a physical love. Iqbal's conception of the relationship between man and nature, however, which is radically different from both Freud's and the classical ghazals, determines the difference in the consequences of self-love. For Freud, nature is opposed to the unlimited desire of its creatures and imposes on them the fate of the "Reality Principle," by which they repress, controvert, and deceive their desire in order to get along in this world. For Iqbal, however, man's desire is the truth of nature: 'ishqandaz-itapidanaz dil-imdadmkht sharar-imd-stki barjastbi-parvana rasid Lovelearnedhow to throbfrom our heart: It is our sparkwhich leaped forth into the moth. (ZA2,26) The moth which immolates itself in the candle is usually the lover's model, but Iqbal makes it act in this way because of theexistence of man. Again, the emphasis of the classical ghazal is changed; eros is no longer simply the divine force which underlies all of nature, including man. Now man is responsible for the presence of this divine force in nature; without man, nature would be little more than dead matter. In the classical ghazal as well as in Freud, the human ego does not affect the working of the universe. For the former, the ego lends moral significance to the human condition by creating the tragic/heroic struggle of desire and consciousness, thus lifting man above other beings. In Freud's view, the ego increases misery by creating the capacity for knowledge without providing anything more than delusory means of changing the universe to fit desire. For Iqbal, however, the universe can only be what it is, and can only become what it must become, because of the activity of the human ego: guftyazdan ki chunin ast o digarhich magit guft adam ki chunin ast o chundn mibayast

God said,"Itis thus,sayno more aboutit." Man said, "It is thus, but it must be otherwise." (ZA2,69) Therefore, man comes in control of fate, not by attaining a euphoric state of selflessness but by means of the developmentof his self. We saw above that in the state of madness, the new lover shall yet refrain from rending his clothes. This preservation of the boundaries of the self causes the madness to be directed outwards, onto the world, creatively transforming it so that it fits into the boundaries of the self. This is a new euphoria, not of seeing divine beauty by throwing off the veil of the self, but of creating the divine in the world by means of creative action, which is the only measure of virtue: zijawhari ki nihan ast dar tabi'at-imd

khudim ki md 'iydr-i mapurssayrafiyan-rd Of thejewel thatis concealedin our nature Ask not thejewellers,for we are the standardof our selves.(ZA2, 53) The result is that our relation to the potential objects of desire in the world is an automatic sublimation; instead of desiring the world as it is, letting it determine us, we transform the world into our self, as the means of expression of our own narcissistic desire. Freud theorises that the organism's aggressive impulse may be tied to its erotic impulse for the sake of enacting the latter. Here, an aggressive impulse is employed for the sake of enacting the sublimationof an erotic impulse. Iqbal's attitude towards nature (fitrat, tabl'at) is an aggressive one, and this is the true consequence of the difference between his verse about the bird and the flower and the verse of Hafiz. In the verse of HaIfiz, man is a part of nature, but for his ego which alienates him by making him less privy to the "rose's overabundance" than the nightingale is. For Iqbal, man's ego is the meaning of nature. Nature can only participate in the divine force, or more accurately, become an expression of the divine force, by being subdued by the divine agent, man. Therefore the relation between the self and the outside world is confrontational. jahan-i rang o bPpaydd tu miguyiki raz ast in yaki khud-rdbi-tarashzan ki tu miirdbo sdz ast in

Youperceiveonlythe worldof fragranceand colour, and you saythatthisis a riddleJust strikeyourselfagainstits strings, for you are the plectrumand this is the guitar. (ZA2, 63) The exploration of the rich possibilities contained in the relation between the eternal life-force of being and the ephemeral, kaleidoscopic world of appearance, which had been the "riddle" with which the ghazal had occupied itself for a few centuries, is here consigned by Iqbal to the forgotten shelves of scholasticism. Disgusted by the pale cast of thought engendered by the contemplation of this riddle, Iqbal eliminates it by separating subject from object, resulting in a demand for the "conquest of nature" (taskhir-ifitrat). The fact that this separation of the human ego from nature is destined for reconciliation does not diminish the violence of its immediate consequences: du dasta tighamo gardfn birihnasdkhtmard fisan kashido bi-ri-yizamdnaakht mard man anjahdn-i khaydlamkifitrat-i azalz jahan-i bulbulo gul-rdshikasto sdkhtmard I am a two-edged sword and heaven unsheathed me;

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It sharpenedme and drewme upon the face of time. I am that world of imagination, which eternal nature, Havingshatteredthe worldof nightingaleand rose, made me. (ZA2, 54) Here, eternal nature is opposed to the nature that we see, which belongs to time and mutability, and to which the classical ghazal, in Iqbal's view, too much directs its attention. "The world of nightingale and rose" is in fact the classical ghazal itself, which is the natural world that the self, in league with "eternal nature," must shatter in order to make from the shards its own world beyond the contingencies of space and time. Narcissistic love finds in the world an obstacle to its autotelic quest. It can pursue this quest only by transforming the world into the object of its desire, namely, itself. This aggressive transformation of the world is the form that sublimation takes for the self of the new lover. The realm of separation (firdq)from the beloved becomes therefore the true realm of human activity and freedom, instead of the realm of fate as it was in the classical ghazal. For Iqbal, the beloved only comes into existence as the outcomeof this activity of self-love: gushaypardazi taqdir-iddam-ikhdki ki mdbi-rahguzar-i tu darintizdr-i khudim Liftthe veil from the destinyof earthenman, For we are, in the path to you, awaitingourselves. (ZA1, 53) Earthen man is the divine in nature. Self-love is the process of the divine working itself out of the naturalness (the "clay body") of nature by making the whole of it divine. In other words, man is actually the divine beloved separated from itself, yearning to achieve self-realisation: md az khuddgum shuda-yfmu-bi-justujui-st

ogiriftdr-i chunmdniydzmand andrz-st We havebecome lost from God, He is in search; Like us He is in need and prisoner to desire. (ZA2, 29) Only man can free the Divine Prisoner. God comes truly into being through man's traversal of the gulf of separation. This is the meaning of the creative transformation of the world, and it is for this reason that by doing so the self escapes natural time, or fate, becoming the "sword that is drawn upon the face of time:" bi-harnafas ki bardrijahdn digargin kun

darinribdt-ikuhansirat-izamanaguzar Everybreathyou drawin, transformthe world. Passlike time through this old hospice. (ZA 2, 32)

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Respiration is the clock of fate that comes with the body, but by transforming the world every moment the divine self in us takes over the work of everyday time. Everyday time alters the world every moment according to the senseless law of fate. By taking over this activity ourselves, we impose divine law on all of existence, including ourselves in so far as we are part of nature: tu az shumar-inafas zinda-yinamidani ki zindagi bi-shikast-itilasm-iayydmast

You liveby countingbreaths:do you not know That life requires breaking the spell of everyday time? (ZA2, 5) The word ayyam ("days") signifies fate, the inexorable succession of one day after another, leading to death. Only by breaking its spell can we achieve true life. Not only do we escape nature in this fashion, but all of nature escapes itself. The mission of man is to free the god that is trapped in himself and in the world. To transcend the narrow bounds of the natural world in this fashion, therefore, is the primary directive of Iqbal's poetry of the new self: birun qadamnih az dawr-idfdq tu pish az ini tu bish az inz

Set yourfoot outsidethe horizons'circle: You are prior to this, you are higher than this. (ZA2, 48) This is the high station of man spoken of in the Quran, where the angels are made to bow to him. It is realised by means of the narcissistic process of sublimation that we have examined. The Dionysian intoxicated state of union celebrated in the classical ghazal short-circuits this process. It turns the self over to nature instead of making nature come into the self. It surrenders the "divine trust" (amana) that God granted only to man so as to make him His "vicegerent" (khalifa) on earth. It views the day on which this happened (ruiz-i alast), the day on which God said to all the creatures, "Am I not your lord?" as a day of calamity (bala), for it was the day that sealed the fate of separation. For Iqbal, this was a blessed day, for it was the first day of the life of the universe. Therefore Iqbal lays the blame for arresting this process on the Dionysian wine of the poets and Sufis: tu an na-y2ki musalldzi kahkashanmzikard sharab-isdfiJo sha 'irturdzi khwfshrubiud

You are no longer the one who made of the galaxies his prayermat: The wine of the Sufi and the poet has stolen you fromyourself.(ZA2, 50)

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The man in possession of himself makes of the Milky Way (kahkashdn: "straw-puller") his straw prayer mat, for prayer is the authentic self-preserving frenzy of love in which no shirts are rent. The poet and Sufi, whom Iqbal usually equates so as to demean the former, encourage the exchange of one's prayer mat for a flask of wine.26 This exchange is precisely the self-surrender that Iqbal so despises. By following the advice of the poet and Sufi, we have allowed them to steal us from ourselves, thus forfeiting our divine command of the universe. The ideal poet has quite another role in the vision of Iqbal. He is to be at the vanguard of the self-aware, revealing the secrets of selfhood to the uninitiated:

beauty which distracts from the self is too great to allow the poet's music to transgress the limits imposed on it by this task: naghmakuja o man kuja sdz-isukhan bihana-yist su-yiqitar mikashamndqa-yibi-zimam-rd

Whathave melodies to do withme, the musicof my wordsis a means: Toward the caravanI lure the unbridled camel. (ZA1, 52) The capacity of camels to be led by means of a type of singing (an ancient Arab practice termed huda'), and the effect that music has on animals in general, has traditionally been understood in at least two ways. Some have attributed it to the celestial harmony underlying all of being. Others have payam-ishawqki man bf-hijdbmiguyam seen it as affecting animal nature specifically, i.e. bi-ldlaqatra-ishabnamrasid o pinhan guft the lower soul of human beings, for which a camel serves as a good token. Iqbal gestures toward the The messageof desirethatI speakunveiled, second view in this verse in order to emphasise the The dew drop, having reached the tulip, tells secondary, lower function of artistic beauty in secretly.(ZA2, 6) poetry. Once the camel is re-bridled, it is no longer Earlier we saw that the poet is the "lamenting necessary. For the new poet of life and selfhood, the bird" that reveals the secret which the rose is unable message is to be primary. to utter. In this verse, however, the sense is taken in Despite Iqbal's sustained attack upon the classia somewhat different direction. Iqbal is fond of the cal ghazal, his own version effects an idiosyncratic image of the "fertilising drop," often using the redefinition of its symbols which depends on the phrase, "the April rain drop" (qatra-yinisan). He is preservation of the form. The changes in polarity also fond of the tulip, which in his poetry usually and emphasis are often so subtly effected that they signifies the self, as opposed to the rose which signi- are easily missed or pinned down only with diffifies the beloved of the classical ghazal and of which culty. It is often the case that verses of classical Iqbal is not as fond. The dew drop fertilises the poetry are entirely "Iqbalian"in the sense that they tulip, enabling it to grow and "realise itself." The seem to advocate Iqbal's conception of selfhood. It poet performs this action upon his audience. His is on this basis that Iqbal initially sought in the poet Yet in the 'Urfi a polemical antithesis of message of selfhood stirs those who listen to become self-aware and to transform the world as he poetry of Hatfizhimself there are perhaps Ha.fiz. thousands does in his poetry: of verses, including whole ghazals, to which Iqbal could have no objection. This is not because these pas az man shi'r-i man khwanand o dar ydband o verses actually conform to Iqbal's repesentation of miguyand but because his representation is an the self, jahani-rd digargin kardyak mard-ikhud-dgdhif to rewrite the ghazal form, retroactively attempt Once I am gone my poetryshall be read and underimposing itself upon the entire tradition. It is clear stood and it shallbe said therefore that IHafizis merely an icon to clash with That a self-awareman transformeda whole world. in Iqbal's neoclassical strategy of reform. The (ZA2, 34) authority of classicism is crucial to Iqbal's project. This fertilising action of the poet links him to For what he demands is a retrenchment within the prophethood. Of a piece with this is the emphasis self, not simply the individual self, but the commuupon the poet's message (paydm), reducing his nal self. It is this authentic, communal self that keeps melody to a mere expedient. In the verse of HIIafiz quoted above, the poet's music comes from the Iqbal's version of narcissism from having radical, celestial music underlying existence, so that it can ultra-romantic implications. A world-absorbing ego cause Venus to sing and the Messiah to dance. It is a that loves only itself to the point of self-deification Dionysian music which enables freedom from the would not assimilate well into society. Iqbal, however, does not leave it to each individual to deterself. Iqbal, rejecting this form of intoxication, demands of the poet that he be a Pied Piper whose mine or discover his true self. The paradigm of fully realised "selfhood" has found human form in the music leads to the self. The danger of a poetic

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person of the Prophet of Islam, who has provided the means of replicating his achievement in the religion that he founded. The Islamic past, therefore, contains the ideal to which we all aspire, whether we know it or not, and which thereby animates our otherwise lifeless forms. halqagird-iman zanid aypaykaran-idb o gil dtishi dar sina daramaz niydkdn-ishumd

Form a circle around me, O forms of water and clay-I bear a flame in my breastfrom your grandfathers. (ZA2, 57) In Freud's theory, the pursuit of cultural ideals, be they spiritual, moral or communal, is narcississtic; the ego forms an attachment to these ideals because it has identified with them and sees in them itself. In this way narcissism functions as the primary mechanism for the sublimation of sexuality. It does not matter what the content of these ideals is so long as they have been internalised by the ego in some early stage of development. Iqbal's ghazal, however, represents the ideal community as the truth of the self. In the verse quoted above, the "forms of water and clay" are the members of the poet's community, and they are to form a circle around him, thus reconstituting the community, because he has inherited and preserved the fire of the illustrious forebears which originally animated the community. For Iqbal, the primary identification of the (Muslim) self, its "ego ideal," is the Muslim community itself, embodied in the person of its prophet. This ideal is internal to the self, there from the beginning. It is to this ideal, therefore, that all of the self's narcissistic love is directed, and in which the entirety of the self's transformation of the world finds its end. In other words, Iqbal uses the logic of selfhood worked out in his remodelled version of the ghazal to depict Islam, its Prophet as well as its civilisation, as the historical instantiation of fully realised selflove. In this scenario, fully elaborated in Iqbal's masnavi works, modernity is nothing more than the authentic selfhood embodied by Islam, the means for transforming the earth into heaven and humanity into divinity. The modernity of the West is a historical wrong turn, an inauthentic form of relating to the world akin to the decadence of the classical ghazal. The empiricist, calculative approach of Enlightenment rationality is an attempt to possess and accumulate the objects of the world rather than to transform them into the self. It is therefore yet another form of enslavement to the world of everyday time. It leads not to the utopian political order promised by Islam but to the exploitation and tyranny of capitalism and colonialism. Similarly, the political legacy of the classical ghazal and its absorp-

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tion in the beauty of the external world is the voluntary enslavement to the false and transient pleasures of Western domination. Just as the ghazal poet gleefully succumbs to the tyranny of the beloved, so do modern Muslims happily deliver themselves to European rule. Both are embodiments of fate. On this basis Iqbal depicts the colonial situation not simply as a struggle between Islam and Western Imperialism but as a moral and historical drama of the self. The outcome must be with Islam, however, if History is to have its expected culmination in man's ultimate control over fate.27 Iqbal lays the basis for all of this by rejecting the desiring self of the classical ghazal, which is trapped in an oscillation between heaven and hell, euphoria and misery, and replacing it with the narcissistic self, which occupies itself with the heavenly task of transforming hell into heaven. In the final analysis, the transformation of the world is nothing more than good old-fashioned bourgeois work. This is precisely the work that, according to the classical ghazal, we were doomed to on the fateful "Day of 'am I not'," the day on which man separated himself from the divinity of God. As Haifiztells us, maqam-i'ayshmuyassarnamishavadbf ranj balf bi-hukm-ibald basta-and'ahd-ialast

The post of good living cannot be attainedwithout hardship: Indeed, the pact of "amI not"was sealed with misfortune. (Haifiz20) The pun here, a favourite one, is on the word bald, which means both "yes,"the answer that only man made to God's question, "Am I not your Lord," and "misfortune," which was the result of that answer. This misfortune is the bondage to the world of everyday necessity, the world in which we must suffer everyday to satisfy the needs of our bodies. Iqbal, of course, does not look at things this way, and is not tolerant of those who do: zarbat-iriuzgaragar ndla chu nay dahad turd bada-yiman zi kaf binih charazi mfimiydtalab

If the blows of daily necessitymake you cry like a reed, Put awaymywine and seek aid fromembalmingwax. (ZA2, 47) Iqbal's wine is not for drowning sorrow, but is rather for those who are impervious to the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune. For Iqbal, work that is directed by self-love, which is to say, undertaken for the sake of the community, is outside of fate. It is not at all the work of toil and misery that HItfiz and other pre-modern poets find to be the intolerable fact of existence. This is but the attitude of effeminacy and decadence. "Manly ambition"

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(himmat), the sublimated form of erotic desire, finds fulfillment in the daily labour required by the community in its quest for glory. This creative labour of self-love is the euphoria that Iqbal's wine induces. Does Iqbal succeed then in making the ghazal useful? At what cost does he turn it into the exemplary expression of an aestheticised work ethic, a non-alienated, utopian form of labour? In order to change the polarity of the classical desiring self, Iqbal must impose a personal conception of authenticity upon the entire ghazal tradition. By casting the true form of 'ishqas self-love, Iqbal's ghazal presents itself as recapturing the primordial impulse underlying the language of love of past poets. Iqbal's ghazal projects its own narcissistic interpretation of the euphoric experience of intoxication upon the tradition, which becomes a criterion by which to validate or reject different modes of representing this experience. In fact, the Dionysian depiction of selfdissolution is indistinguishable from the narcissistic portrayal of the self absorbing the world around it. Both are characterised by sensations of control over fate and unity with the underlying force that drives existence. The difference is that Iqbal's ghazal confines its representations of this sought-after euphoria to images which conform to a theory of its true nature, while the traditional ghazal plays with the aesthetically productive ambiguity of outward appearances and potential inner meanings. In order to assert the opposition of the self to nature, to portray the self in search of itself, rather than anything external to it, Iqbal's ghazal avoids the interpretive dangers of beauty and concentrates on images of power. His songs celebrate the human ego's inexhaustible reservoir of desire, from which proceeds its capacity to control and transform its surroundings. Its sorrow and yearning arise not from a sense of weakness and confinement, but from its insatiable desire for more power. Iqbal seems to have regarded this emphasis in representation as therapeutic in an age of decadence and voluntary enslavement to the other. Despite the ever-present danger of pathological "self'-aggrandisement, Iqbal's ghazal generates excitement and wonder in its sense of rediscovery of the self and its confrontational engagement of the ghazal tradition, not to mention its unique way of turning ghazal vocabulary into a philosophical terminology. One man, however, cannot take ultimate control over a poetic genre. Iqbal seeks to make a pre-modern form of poetry into the basis of a modern vision by confining it to a specific regime of representation. His project is constituted by a creative repression, which produces a personal poetic idiom rather than a more authentic version of the ghazal. Perhaps what he teaches us, then, has to do not so much

with the true nature of the self as with the nature of modern representations of the self. 1.

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I am grateful for valuable comments on versions of this paper to Salah Hassan, Rachana Kamtekar, Heshmat Moayyad, Michael Murrin andJaroslav Stetkevych. An inordinate amount has been written on Iqbal in Urdu and English. For a short biography as well as a general exposition of Iqbal's thought, and an exhaustive bibliography, see Schimmel 1989. For an exposition of Iqbal's philosophical ideas, see Dar 1944. For a sharp philosophical critique of see Raschid 1986. Iqbal's Reconstruction, For transcribing Persian verses I have used a standard transliteration scheme which does not reflect the actual pronunciation of nineteenth-twentieth century India or fourteenth century Shiraz. For an analysis of this mechanism, see Noorani 1997b. Hali 1993, pp. 94-105, 158-67, 178-226. For a much fuller discussion of Hall's critical views see Pritchett 1994. For R.A. Nicholson's translation of this work into English, see Iqbal 1978. These lines are quoted in Khan 1976, pp. 12-13. This book, devoted to the relationship between HaIfizand Iqbal, quotes the verses from the first edition of Asrar-ikhudi concerning Hafiiz,which Iqbal dropped from the work for later editions due to the controversy they aroused. The book also quotes passages from letters in which Iqbal discusses these verses and attempts to justify them to his friends. The author argues that Iqbal was unable to maintain the dichotomy he set up between the beauty of poetry (exemplified by Hafiz) and its service of "life." He attempts both to show the influence of Hafiz's style on Iqbal and to defend Hafiz's poetry from Iqbal's charge that it is an opiate. Khan 1976, p. 14. The letter is to Mawlana Aslam Jirajpuiri and is quoted in Khan 1976, p. 14. Iqbal had written of Hafiz in 1910, perhaps before his objections to HI-fizhad reached maturity, "In words like cut jewels put the sweet unconscious spirtuality of the nightin.Hafiz See his published journal entitled Stray Reflections gale." (Iqbal 1961a), no. 77. Khan 1976, p. 15. Nietzsche 1968, p. 36. Ibid,p. 38. Ibid,p. 59. Ibid,pp. 59-60. I have altered the translation of the word that Nietzsche emphasises, "lethargisches," from Kaufmann's "lethargic" to "hypnotic." The sense here is clearly the narcotic, oblivion-inducing effect associated with the river Lethe, as in Keats's "Lethe wards."See Nietzsche 1967, vol. 1, p. 56. Nietzsche 1968, p. 60. Iqbal 1985, part 1, ghazal no. 48. Henceforth cited as ZA. This work has been rendered into English verse by A.J. Arberry (Iqbal 1961b). Iqbal 1923, p. 154. In StrayReflectionswe find no. 77 entitled, "The poet and the world spirit." It reads, "The world-spirit conceals the various phases of her inner life in symbols. The universe is nothing but a great symbol. But she never takes the trouble to interpret these symbols for us. It is the duty of the poet to interpret them and to reveal their meaning to humanity. It would, therefore, appear that the poet and the world-spirit are opposedto each other, since the former reveals what the latter conceals." (Emphasis added). Freud 1914, p. 75. Freud 1923, p. 36. Ibid, pp. 35-36; my emphasis, bracketed phrase from the editor.

ISLAMIC MODERNITY AND THE DESIRING SELF

24 Ibid,p. 18. 25 Herbert Marcuse, in his analysis of Freud, takes the theory of narcissism in a utopian direction similar to Iqbal's by venturing that "narcissism may contain the germ of a different reality principle: the libidinal cathexis of the ego (one's own body) may become the source and reservoir for a new libidinal cathexis of the objective world-transforming this world into a new mode of being" (Marcuse 1955 pp. 153-54). 26 For example, in his retracted verses about Hafiz in Asrar, Iqbal denigrates Hfafizby troping on verses in which Ha-fiz ridicules the hypocritical Sufi, thus identifying Ha-fiz with this character. See Khan 1976, p. 13. By exchanging the prayer mat (or mendicant's habit) for a flask of wine, a poet like Haifiz means that mindless, hypocritical orthodoxy should be given up so that true, divine love may be adopted. 27 For a much fuller discussion of the political vision elaborated in Iqbal's masnavi poems, see Noorani 1997a, pp. 216-48.

Bibliography Dar, B.A. 1944. A Studyin Iqbal'sPhilosophy,Lahore. Freud, Sigmund 1914. "On Narcissism: An Introduction" in Freud 1957, vol. 14. 1923. TheEgo and theId, in Freud 195.7,vol. 19. 1957. TheStandardEdition of the CompletePsychologicalWorks of SigmundFreud,ed. James Strachey, 23 vols., London. ed. Sayyid Wazir Ghalib, Asadullah Khan 1969. Ghazaliyyat-ifatrsi, al-Hasan 'Abidi, Lahore.

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Hafiz, Shams al-Din Muhammad 1980. Divan-i KhwdjaShams aled. Parviz N-ttil Khanlari, Tehran. Din Muhammad H.dfiz,Muqaddima-yishi'r o shd'irf,ed. Wahid Hali, Altaf IHusayn 1993. Qurayshi, Aligarh. Iqbal, Muhammad 1915. Asrdr-ikhudi, in Iqbal 1985. 1923. Payam-imashriq,in Iqbal 1985. 1927. Zabfir-i'ajam,in Iqbal 1985. 1934. Reconstructionof Religious Thoughtin Islam, Oxford. 1961a. StrayReflections,ed.Javid Iqbal, Lahore. 1961b. PersianPsalms,tr. A.J. Arberry, Lahore. 1978. The Secretsof the Self A PhilosophicalPoem, tr. R.A. Nicholson, New Delhi. 1985. Kulliyydt-iIqbal.Fdrsi,ed. Javid Iqbal, Lahore. Khan, Yfisuf Husayn 1976. IHdfizaur Iqbal,New Delhi. Marcuse, Herbert 1955. Erosand Civilization,New York. Nietzsche, Friedrich 1967 [-1977]. Sdmtliche Werke. Kritische Studienausgabe,eds. Giorgio Colli and Mazzino Montinari, 15 vols, Berlin. 1968. TheBirth of Tragedyin TheBasic Writingsof Nietzsche, tr. Walter Kaufmann, New York. Noorani, Yaseen 1997a. VisionaryPolitics: Self Communityand Colonialism in Arabic and Persian Neoclassical Poetry, diss., University of Chicago. 1997b. "A Nation Born in Mourning: The Neoclassical Funeral Elegy in Egypt,"Journal of Arabic Literature28, pp. 38-67. Pritchett, Frances W. 1994. Nets of Awareness:Urdu Poetryand its Critics,Berkeley, etc. Raschid, M.S. 1986. Iqbal'sConceptof God,London. Schimmel, Annemarie 1989. Gabriel's Wing: A Study into the ReligiousIdeasof Sir MuhammadIqbal,Lahore.

NEW PERSPECTIVESON THE CHRONOLOGICALAND FUNCTIONAL HORIZONS OF KUH-E KHWAJAIN SISTAN1 By Soroor Ghanimati Universityof Cailforniaat Berkeley

Setting The ruined, imposing buildings at Kuh-e Khwaja are situated on an extraordinary rock outcrop in the Hamun Lake, near the modern city of Zabol, in Sistan, in southeast Iran (Fig. 1). Despite the magnet J KHORASAN of the size and situation of the ruins, the precise chronological limits of the site and the possible functions of the Core Area, still remain to be clearly SISTAN defined.2 The present paper seeks to explore the '6 HELMUNDD history of the site and its still extant architectural * AFGHANISTAN remains. Throughout this exercise, use has been made of what is known of the history of 10 13 Zoroastrianism and that of ancient Iranian religious NIMRUZ .*2a architecture. In addition, problems of function are 'I HELMA" RUD 5 discussed in detail and, following three recent 1\, seasons of archaeological fieldwork at Kuh-e Khwaja BALUCHESTAN in 1995, 1997 and 1998, new estimates for the chronology of the site are advanced. One cannot travel in Sistan and not notice the PAKISTAN ZAHDAN unique landscape with the juxtaposition of yellow desert, orange and lilac mountains, blue rivers and lakes, green fields of wheat, and the occasional * Ancient Sites: 16. Qal'eh Ramrud 8. Takht-e Rostam 1. Qal'eh Rostam/ appearance of palm groves encircling adobe villages. 17. Tarakun 9. Shand-e M'sumkhan Qal'eh Mochi This once flourishing area was never able to recover 18. Tepe Ramrud 10. Nad Ali 2. Shahr-e Sukhteh Ghund-e Rud-e Biyaban 19. Chehel 11. 3. Rostam Borj Qal'eh from the devastation of the Mongol invasion in 20. Sarai-e Rud-e Biyaban 12. Palangi 4. Seh Kuheh 21. Borj-e Rud-e Biyaban the early thirteenth century. All that survives from 5. Dahaneh-ve Gholaman 13. Jui-e Nau 14. Dasht-e Rud-e Biyaban 22. Tepe Rud-e Biyaban 6. Khomak a prosperous past are the numerous mudbrick 15. Qal'at-e Gerdi 7. Tepe Kharak remains from various periods which indicate that the architectural traditions of the area have undergone Fig. 1. Map of Sistan, showingthecentrallocationof very little change with the passage of time. Kuh-eKhwajain theHelmandbasin. Perhaps the most remarkable landmark of Sistan is the black basalt mountain of Kuh-e Khwajawhich rises out of what were once the waters but are now populated by fishermen and reed cutters/matthe marshes of the Hamun Lake in southeast Iran, makers, the basins of the Farah, Khwash, and 30 kilometers south of Zabol. The site is situated in Helmand rivers were once well cultivated and poputhe delta of the Helmand River where it flows into lous. The Hamun Lake supported fishing villages the Hamun Lake (Fig. 1). The tall table-topped along its shores, and ample crops of wheat, barley, mountain dominates the deserted landscape of the dates, as well as animal fodder were produced with Helmand Basin and is visible from all points of the the aid of canal systems. The Chinese historian Hsuan-Tsang also records the growing of turmeric compass. Immediately to the east one passes through miles and miles of plains known as the Dasht-e and asafetida in Sistan.3 The Southern Highway, Kabi-taranor Doves' Plain, which in late October which was the main line of communication between becomes home to thousands of migratory doves. Persia proper (the modern province of Fars) and the Although the province of Sistan (now divided politi- western marches of India, traversed the province. cally between Iran and Afghanistan) is generally From the second century B.C. onwards, Indian seen as a land of wind and sand that is only sparsely goods such as precious stones, perfumes, opium,

I

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eunuch slaves, and spices reached the Iranian plateau via this highway; and in return, goods made in Iran such as carpets, finished silk, woolen fabrics, garments of felt and skin, leather, boots, mail-armor, pearls, turquoise, wine, pistachio, and turmeric were carried to India.4 Another important trade route ran north from Sistan towards Tus,5 where it joined the more northerly east-west Khorasan Highway. The abundant archaeological remains that are scattered throughout Sistan, both in Iranian and Afghan territory, bear witness to the ancient prominence of the region (Fig. 1). The importance of Sistan and the Hamun Lake is also well attested in the mythological and religious traditions of Iran.6 The territory on the eastern side of the Hamun Lake and the adjacent Helmand delta has been identified as that of ancient Drangiana or Zarangiana. The Old Persian name of the country, Zranka, is known from the Bisitun inscription of Darius I, while in Greek sources it appears as Zarangiane. Although the etymology of the name is far from clear, whether it meant the "sea land", or the "mountain peak" (identified as Kuh-e Khwaja),7 the ancient name Zranka lived on in the toponym-Zarang-given to the medieval capital of Sistan. The town of Zarang was situated to the east of the Zabol area, and has been identified with the extensive ruins of the site of Nad Ali, near the modern city of Zaranj, the capital of Nimruz province, in southeastern Afghanistan (Fig. 1, 10).8 In Sasanian and later times it constituted an important trading centre. It was home to a Sasanian mint9 and, most probably, the marzbanor "frontier warden" of Sistan was also stationed there.10 Long ago the Hamun Lake came to be regarded by Zoroastrians as guarding in its depths the divinely-preserved seed of the Prophet, from which the Saoshyantor the World Savior would one day be born.11 Once the eschatological legend had developed, Kuh-e Khwajamust have became a place of pilgrimage for Zoroastrians and have continued as such into Parthian and Sasanian times.12 Furthermore, the mountain is in all probability mentioned in the birth legend of Christ, as the "Victorious Mountain', Mons Victorialis."13It is also agreed among scholars that Kuh-e Khwaja or "the Mountain of the Lord" is the Mount Ushidam of the Young Avesta. Moreover, in a late Zoroastrian text the mountain is called Kuh-e Khodat, a toponym that also translates as "the Mountain of the Lord."14 Aside from these past religious connections, the many pilgrims who still flock to the mountain at No Rtiz (at the time of the Spring equinox when the Iranian New Year is celebrated) or on other locally observed holidays, attest to its continued sanctity.

STUDIES

ArchitecturalRemains The mountain of Kuh-e Khwaja resembles a very flat frustum or truncated cone, and its summit encompasses an area of approximately two square kilometers, with an average elevation of c. 150 metres.15 It is a dramatic place which overwhelms the visitor, whether its stark grandeur is experienced on the island itself or only seen from afar. Although the present marshes of the Hamun Lake are marked by relatively shallow waters, seasonal rains can make it necessary to be ferried to the island. The southeastern side of the mountain is distinguished by the extensive mudbrick ruins of a walled Citadel (Figs. 2, A, 3) known locally as Qal'a-ye Kaifaran(the Fort of the Infidels); the ruins include a religious precinct, fortification walls, and towers. Other ancient remains on the top of the mountain include a rectangular building that goes under the name of Kok-e Zal, and a square fortified area called Chehel Dokhtaran (Fig. 2C). A twelfth century Muslim tomb, said to be that of the "Khwaja,"is located on the summit to the north of Kok-e Zal.16

A. B. C. D. E. F. G.

Ghagha Shahr and the "Temple Complex" or Core Area. Kok-eZal. Chehel Dokhtaran. Watch Towers. Ruined Wall. Stone Dams. Tomb of Khwaja,after Stein, 1915.

Map of Kuh-eKhwaja. Fig. 2. Topographical The weathered mudbrick constructions on the southeastern slope of the mountain form a sprawling labyrinth of cells, chambers, and courts. The only way to reach the religious precinct or the "Core Area" at the uppermost part of the ruined Citadel (or to proceed from there the top of the plateau) is through a veritable maze of buildings and by means of a still recognisable pathway. The lowest slopes of this extensive ruin-field are occupied by the remains

NEW PERSPECTIVES

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of a substantial town which was known, early in the twentieth century, as Ghagha Shahr (Fig. 3).17 The remains of the Core Area are not easily accessible because of the steep, rocky nature of the mountain. The narrow path which winds through them begins at the southeast corner of a long incline, zigzags through the ruins of Ghagha Shahr, and eventually reaches the base of a high wall supporting a rectangular Entry Terrace directly below the religious precinct. The south entrance to the Core Area, which Herzfeld dubbed the South Gate, is on the north side of this Terrace (Fig. 3, P1.XXIVa ). The Core Area has an axial plan, with its buildings disposed on a split-level elevation that ascends the slope from south to north,18 following the natural configuration of the mountain (Fig. 3). On the lower level, one finds the just-mentioned South Gate,19 consisting of a vestibule and a domed inner chamber which provides access to a once arcaded Central Courtyard (Pls. XXIVb,c, XXVa,b). This Courtyard is surrounded by the remains of other buildings that once included what has been called the Painted Gallery, and two lateral, off-center ayvdns,20each of which ended in a T-shaped room. It seems that, in fact, the whole Central Courtyard was subject to major remodeling which resulted in the addition of the arcades on all four sides as well as the introduction of the two off-center ayvans (Fig. 3). The narrow NorthGate&Tower

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Painted Gallery extends across the north side of the Central Courtyard, with windows that originally opened into the Courtyard (Fig. 3, P1. XXVc).21 Presumably, the north wall in its original setting had a series of engaged colonettes with their bases and capitals made of baked brick, an adaptation of a Greek model.22 Later on, however, the Gallery was blocked off and covered with a two-story high arcade. The vaulted chambers within this arcade were connected by doorways, situated in the middle of the partition walls. The Painted Gallery supported an Inner Terrace on the upper level which was reached by way of a Central Staircase in the north wall (Fig. 3, P1.XXVa).23 The Entrance to the Fire Sanctuary was located on the north side of the Inner Terrace. This was the actual room where the fire was displayed on a stone altar in the center of the room (P1.XXVIa). Thus, on the upper level, one finds the remains of the Fire Sanctuary surrounded by Ambulatory Corridors, which were in turn connected to a domed-room on the western side of the Terrace (P1. XXVIb,c). In addition, this Terrace gave entry to what seems to have been a smaller Inner Courtyard to the east of the Sanctuary. Various rooms opened off this latter Courtyard which also provided access to a large vaulted chamber (on the east) and the North Gate. The entire upper level was placed within a thick protective wall strengthened by towers. The Fire Sanctuary consisted of a chahdrtdq,that is to say a square chamber roofed by a round dome which rested on squinches springing from the corner piers (P1. XXVIa,c). The entrance to this sanctum was originally framed by a pair of buttresses decorated with niches which were then further elaborated with reliefs.24 In sum, it seems that the principal architectural unit on the upper level was the Sanctuary, a structure which also served as the focal point for the whole Core Area. Perhaps the most appealing architectural analysis of the monument is that of Trudy Kawami,who states that the plan of the Complex has a rhythmic progression which is alternately forward and upward, from open spaces to enclosed transitional zones (Fig. 3).25 All the chambers in the lower and upper levels, including the Fire Sanctuary itself, were constructed above elaborate vaults and/or domes, parts of which are still preserved (PI. XXVIIa,b). Some of the vaults were constructed through a series of prefabricated arches. Each arch consisted of two or three curved pieces of molded mud and reeds, which were made separately on the site and later attached to the receiving walls.26This method, which requires precise calculation and engineering techniques, is apparently drawn from older Iranian building techniques known from such sites as Tepe Nush-iJan and Shahr-i Qumis.27 This is a technique which may have

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had its origin in the Median period, but which also continues to the present.28 Many of the walls in this part of the site were once extensively decorated with reliefs and paintings, even if most of them had been already been removed by 1929.29 Most of the extant paintings, have been discovered within the vicinity of the South Gate, in the Painted Gallery, and in the North Gate. At the same time, however, reliefs in plaster and mud-stucco were found on the north wall of the Central Courtyard, placed on each side of the Central Staircase,30 and on the south facade of the Fire Sanctuary.31 In addition, the Core Area once had a wealth of architectural ornamentation in the form of stucco panels that are now lost.32 PriorInterpretations Ever since its initial examination early in this century, the date and the possible functions of the ruins at Kuh-e Khwaja have been a subject of lively debate. Most scholars agree that the buildings belong to at least two different periods.33 To the earlier phase belong' the South Gate, the Central Courtyard, and the Inner Terrace, the Fire Sanctuary, and the North Gate.34 The paintings in the Painted Gallery and in the South Gate, as well as the applied ornamentation and reliefs that are found on the north wall of the Central Courtyard, each also belong to this primary phase. On the other hand the arcades and the ayvans with the T-shaped rooms in the Central Courtyard, the alterations on the north wall, and the remodeling in the South Gate can each be ascribed to the later phase.35 This phase also includes additions within the upper level, including those in the Fire Sanctuary, where equestrian reliefs were added to the exterior, and, presumably, the paintings in the North Gate area, as recently proposed by Kawami.36However, it should be noted that the unified plan of the visible elements in the Core Area strongly suggests that the main features were introduced in the first phase of construction and that modifications in a second phase were mainly structural and decorative additions. It is perhaps safe to conclude, moreover, that the architecture and the decoration of the Core Area at Kuh-e Khwaja are in a mixed style which draws from both Iranian and Greek architectural vocabularies.37 Although Kuh-e Khwaja was visited by a number of travellers in the course of the nineteenth century, many of its characteristic details were first made known through the early twentieth-century studies of G. P. Tate.38 His 1910 survey was followed by reports on the site provided by two celebrated archaeologists, Aurel Stein and Ernst Herzfeld. Stein was the first archaeologist to present a thorough description of the site.39 He mapped the remains and identified the ruins as having coterminously

STUDIES

diverse functions: viz., those variously associated with a shrine, two forts, and the fortified walls and towers of the Citadel. Stein also encountered extensive wall paintings in the Core Area, including twelve panels which were transferred to the National Museum in New Delhi.40 Even though he identified the mountain as the Zoroastrian Mount Ushidam, Stein still allowed himself to speculate in print that the "monument" had served as a Buddhist monastery.41 The next archaeologist to examine the site was Herzfeld,42 who concerned himself only with the Core Area. He defined this as a Palace with a Fire Temple,43 due in part to the fact that he discovered a stone Fire Altar in the ruins.44 In addition, he found a few stucco panels, and a number of wall paintings.45 Herzfeld followed Stein in identifying Kuh-e Khwajawith Mount Ushidam,and suggested that the Core Area had been in the possession of Gondophares (c. A.D. 19-46), an Indo-Parthian prince of the Parthian noble house of Suren.46 He further suggested that Gondophares and Rustam were one and the same.47 It should be noted that most of Herzfeld's characterisations of the art of Kuh-e Khwaja have been modified by later scholars.48Schlumberger in particular observed that, "in architecture the generalized usage of the arch and the transverse vaults united with a Hellenized decoration is a characteristic of the new times," that is to say, of Sasanian times.49 In 1961 the site was examined by an Italian expedition led by Giorgio Gullini who claimed to recognise six levels, ranging from Achaemenid to Islamic times.50 These conclusions, which were essentially based on brick measurements and on ceramics, have been strongly contested by Giuseppe Tucci and Klaus Schippmann. Since Gullini was not familiar with other architectural monuments in Iran, especially those of Sistan, Tucci dismissed his attempts at an architectural analysis as invalid. On the ground of discrepancies evidenced in the study, he also dismissed Gullini's analysis of the pottery from the site and noted that, above all, Gullini's proposed Achaemenid phase was too early to be acceptable.51 With a variety of brick sizes known from the Achaemenid period alone in Sistan, Schippmann also notes that datings based on local brick sizes are far from reliable and concludes that only Gullini's Sasanian dating may be safe.52 Two decades later, Domenico Faccenna reported the discovery of a further painting in the Core Area. He speculates that the new painting reflects actual activities that took place in this part of the site,53 and dates the painting to the late Parthian period.54 A year later, in 1982, Jens Kroger published a comprehensive work on Sasanian stucco decoration, in which he commented on the decorative ornaments of the Core Area at Kuh-e Khwaja. Kroger provides a reconstruction of

NEW PERSPECTIVES ON THE CHRONOLOGICAL AND FUNCTIONAL HORIZONS OF KUH-E KHWAJA 141

the stucco panels, and concludes that they can be dated to an early Sasanian phase.55 It should be noted that Herzfeld did not publish all his documentation in his 1941 report. His unpublished records, which are housed in the Freer Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution, served as the basis for the valuable new overview presented by Kawami.The latter notes parallels for the architecture of Kuh-e Khwaja in the Sasanian era, and in buildings from Central Asia, particularly in northern Bactria. Furthermore, she concludes that Classical influences in Iranian architecture were not limited to the Parthian period but continued well into Sasanian times. On these grounds, and in view of the nature of various elements of the paintings and the reliefs of Kuh-e Khwaja, she advances a thesis that the initial period of construction belongs to the early Sasanian period, i.e. to the third and fourth centuries as opposed to the late Parthian period, and assigns the second phase of construction to the early Islamic period.5 Other studies that have contributed significantly to the understanding of this enigmatic site include those by Mary Boyce, Jacques DuchesneGuillemin, Gherardo Gnoli, Klaus Schippmann, and Daniel Schlumberger. The Iranian Cultural Heritage Organisation has sponsored several seasons of fieldwork at Kuh-e Khwajasince 1995, expeditions in which the present writer had the privilege of participating as an architectural historian. These expeditions were led, successively, by Seyyed Mahmud Mousavi and Seyyed Mansur Sajjadi.57 Among other discoveries, the Iranian team uncovered part of a stone staircase which lay on the east side of the Painted Gallery and which appears to have predated that structure (Fig. 3).58 In other words the two generally recognised construction phases may have been preceded by an earlier phase of which we still know very little. In addition, two new wall paintings were recovered in the immediate vicinity of the North Gate.59 Even these latest researches are not likely to suffice, however, to solve the many remaining puzzles of a site that represents a unique repository of ancient East Iranian art and architecture. Thanks to erosion caused by the "120-days'wind" in this southeasterly region of Iran,60as well as the destructive properties of not negligible seasonal rainfall, the very survivalof the site is in doubt. Restoration and conservation is now a major priority and current efforts to register Kuh-e Khwajaas an endangered site of world importance offer at least one source of encouragement. Noteson Function As we have seen, Herzfeld identified the buildings in the Core Area of Kuh-e Khwaja as a "Palacethat had belonged to Temple" complex

Gondophares. Although scholars have generally rejected the association of the structures of the Core Area with Gondophares they have basically agreed with Herzfeld's view that this focal area housed a "Palace-Temple". But the latter claim is also problematic; and Schippmann has strongly opposed the possibility of the existence of a "Palace-Chapel."61 The "Palace"attribution may stem from the fact that, at first glance, the Core Area resembles a fortified precinct and that its principal structures were lavishly decorated. However, it is difficult to suppose that a leading Parthian or Sasanian prince would choose such a site as Kuh-e Khwajafor his residence; for, although the site's very remoteness might appear to commend its selection as an ultimate refuge, all that was needed to subdue the isolated island was to cut it off from outside assistance. The outer walls of the core settlement or the Citadel are no more "defensive" in character than those of most caravanserais, and they certainly lack the usual characteristics of strictly military architecture.62 At the same time the layout of the Core Area appears on present evidence to lack the practical appointments that might have made it a fit residence for a Parthian or Sasanian prince and his entourage.63 Most importantly, there has still not been a systematic exploration of the nature of the buildings within the Core Area, let alone the nature of those which also occur on other parts of the island. The above mentioned earlier studies have generally used the style of the murals and the style of the architectural decoration in the Core Area as a basis for dating the site. These factors, however, are not by themselves adequate to justify definitive conclusions. The architecture of the Core Area remains enigmatic because of the coexistence of different architectural styles. In the study of architecture one has to bear in mind the very important point that architecture is primarily a specific response to a specific function, and that form follows function. Thus it is safe to assume that, here as elsewhere, architectural forms have evolved in response to practical needs or to specific purposes; and that, when appropriate, the architects borrowed from earlier traditions. Accordingly, the final architectural composition may or may not be in a single style, but the overall function of the site probably remained the same over an extended period, as will be explained below. A ContinuousReligiousCentre Perhaps the most pervasive feature of Kuh-e Khwajaand the Hamun Lake in Sistan is its enduring sanctity.64 This element has a powerful resonance for the present inhabitants of the area who continue to cherish stories of the various saints and heroes that have been associated with Kuh-e Khwaja over

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the centuries. Despite the fact that most of these stories refer to events in Islamic times, they often also contain pre-Islamic features. One of these stories pertains to a sacrificial stone at the summit of the mountain, situated next to the Islamic tomb of "Khwaja."65The tomb is located to the north of the Kok-e Zal and at a walking distance of thirty minutes from it. It is a simple structure of mudbricks and mortar with a single entrance on the south facade. A block of stone, one meter in height, stands a short distance from the entrance. It is set in the centre of a paved square platform c. 15 cm. in height (P1. XXIXd). This stone, which is currently regarded as part of the Islamic tomb, is honored by today's pilgrims who regularly offer live sacrifices at its base,66 and who believe that the stone has always been standing there. It appears that Zoroastrian rites of animal sacrifice had their roots in the older so-called "pagan" religion, i.e. when it was believed that animal sacrifices gave life to the world. The act was subsequently carried out by priests, who often performed it on mountain tops or on high places. It was performed with great simplicity, for, in the absence of any permanent fixtures, all that was needed was a ritually sanctified location.67 This consisted of a clean flat piece of ground which was covered by grass strew, called baresman.68To judge from later practices at the time of such sacrifices the victim was customarily carried on the shoulders, and the participants in the ceremony ascended the mountain in ajoyful procession.69 Then, at the summit, the procession would circle such an object as a living rock, against the direction of the sun, seven times. Shortly thereafter the animal would be led aside in order to be killed. Animal sacrifices at such open air sanctuaries have continued down to modern times, that is, long after Zoroastrians started to build temples.70 It is thus probable that, with the settlement of Iranians in the area, who were then Zoroastrians, and who were accustomed to perform rituals and worship on mountain tops, the summit of Kuh-e Khwaja began to serve as a Zoroastrian sanctuary.71Perhaps the initial settlement on the mountain consisted of only a small fishing village, which was situated on the southeastern slopes possibly where Ghagha Shahr later developed, with rituals performed at the summit. It would appear, moreover, that the Saoshydntlegend was not alwaysattached to the Hamun Lake and that there were originally other rival, local traditions.72 But once the eschatological legend pertaining to the Lake Hamun and the Saoshydnthad been widely accepted, Kuh-e Khwajabegan to assume its extreme aura of sanctity, and became holy for all Zoroastrians.73 From that time onwards, Kuh-e Khwaja would have become a place of pilgrimage, attracting worshipers from distant areas,"4and have

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continued as such through the Parthian and Sasanian periods.75 Eventually, Zoroastrian devotional life involved sacred fires and sacred buildings that, in turn, inspired a fire sanctuary on the mountain, all of which took several centuries to materialise. Noteson Erbedestan During the interval in which the Zoroastrian faith was taking hold throughout the Iranian heartlands and beyond,76 its priests were singularly active. If royalty held the highest and most important place in Iranian society, the priesthood held a special status which emanated from its power to sanctify and to provide a base for spiritual purification. In accord with their special role, priests became the most powerful and learned class in Iranian society.77Zoroaster himself was a priest by profession,78 and priestly education required many years of training, especially since all devotional texts were memorised.79 All religious works were handed down orally, and it was not until the fifth century A.D. that some part of the sacred canon acquired a written form. While the Avesta refers to the existence of various categories of priests and their missionary endeavors in the early days of the faith,80 little is known for sure of the precise details of the nature of priestly education. However, a legend mentioned in Yasht 13 records that Saena, son of Ahum-stut, was the first to have 100 pupils. From this passage it can be inferred that there were priestly schools from early times. Later there were many such schools,81 founded at various widely diffused locations, and no doubt each was accorded careful attention. Further insight is provided by an ancient Avestawhich is conPahlavi text, known as the "Erbedestdn", sidered to be a part of the Husparam Nask of the Avesta.82The text is accompanied by its Pahlavi Zand itself has been or "Commentary".The term erbedestdn to refer It has been understood translated. variably to a course of priestly studies, to priestly duties, to a priestly college, to a theological seminary, to a priestly school, or to a house of learning, or to a house of religious studies.83 One may never know exactly how such schools originated or how their buildings came to be given one or another particular architectural form. However, one may safely assume that like other religious and architectural developments, such an organisation went through an evolutionary process before the institution of the Temple itself. Also, it would have been only natural for the Zoroastrian priesthood to establish such schools at sites that were either strategically or religiously important. Presumably, institutions of this kind came into existence throughout the land for the instruction of the

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pious. They also appear to have been far from shortlived. This emerges from the accounts of early Islamic historians and geographers who chose to refer to such institutions as dayr, an Arabic term which could evidently be applied to both Zoroastrian and Christian priestly schools.84 More specifically, however, each Zoroastrian priestly school was identified as a dayr-emoqanor Seminary of the Magians. Actual archaeological remains suggest that the architectural details of such sites varied greatly and that, equally, most of them came to be abandoned or destroyed following the introduction of Islam.85 Thus, Kuh-e Khwaja, perhaps the holiest Zoroastrian site and a renowned place of pilgrimage, would surely have attracted many students of theology. Presumably, before any major construction took place at Kuh-e Khwaja, the priests who were living there were involved in ministering to pilgrims, keeping watch, and praying for the coming of the Saoshyant.86For ministering to the needs of pilgrims, notably in exchange for prayers, these priests were paid in various ways, sometimes in the form of land donated by the pious.87 Consequently, one would expect the high priest at Kuh-e Khwajato have enjoyed a considerable estate.88 Ordinary inhabitants of Ghagha Shahr no doubt sustained themselves by providing services for pilgrims, serving as ferrymen, innkeepers, and sellers of food, drink, and perhaps mementos of pilgrimage.89 As the number of pilgrims grew, however, and as the boundaries of the original village continued to expand in order to accommodate the needs of the faithful, the notion of building a formal religious and/or temple precinct must have come into being. This may have also emanated from the need for prayers and rituals to be performed in an absolutely clean and sanctified place where they often had to be carried out by priests alone.90 In any case, the mountain offered a perfect setting for such a Zoroastrian establishment where the elements of creation could be seen and venerated.91 Before proceeding with an architectural analysis of the Core Area, it should be noted that there is yet another religious ceremonial development which seems to have influenced the architectural design. It is concerned with the enthronement of the fire. According to a tradition recorded in postSasanian times,92 a sacred fire was created from embers taken from various fires, which were then purified over and over again before being consecrated. The sacred fire was then carried in procession for installation in its sanctuary. The priests who escorted the fire carried swords and maces, and after the ceremony some of these weapons were hung on the sanctuary walls, to symbolise the warrior nature of the fire, and its ceaseless battle against all that

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opposed asha "truth."Allusion to the enthronement of this "Victorious"fire is first attested in the Avestan Vendidad,a composite work, the final redaction of which is dated to the first or second century A.D.93 It is not clear whether this exact form of ceremonial procession was practised prior to this date. However, considering the fact that rituals and ceremonies occupied a large part of Zoroastrian devotional life, it is probable that an antecedent ritual already existed. That processions constituted a large and important part in the ceremonies that took place at Kuh-e Khwajais clearly evidenced in the architecture of the site which was particularly created for processional purposes.94 The architectural planning of the site is such that one can still imagine the pilgrims climbing the lower path, entering the Core Area through the South Gate, performing their ritual duties in the Central Courtyard, before proceeding towards the Fire Sanctuary, or passing through the North Gate on the final ascent to the summit of the rock plateau (Figs. 2,3). In any event, Faccenna's study of the new painting, found in the South Gate, would seem to support this assumption. Faccenna sees the figures in the scene as participants in a procession,95a theme that he supposes continued on all sides of the room. Finally, Faccenna concludes that, "without a doubt the paintings represented the ceremonies that were actually held in that place, thus perpetuating their memory or stating in pictures what the purpose of a room was."96 In more detail, the first phase of major construction at Kuh-e Khwajawas probably marked by a lower township, directly below an upper religious precinct.97 It was an arrangement that required pilgrims to pass through the residential area before they entered the religious precinct. Pilgrims then recited their prayers in the central courtyard and continued on, in a procession, to the summit of the mountain for the final rituals and sacrifices. Presumably this situation continued until after the cult of the fire temple was established,98 when it became necessary for the priests of Kuh-e Khwaja to add a formal fire sanctuary in the uppermost portion of the Core Area. ArchitecturalAnalysis The design of Kuh-e Khwaja,like that of any other major architectural entity, was formed in order to respond to specific functions. Such a place of pilgrimage, therefore, had to offer a combination of open and covered spaces. The main open area, in the form of a central courtyard, would have served those rituals that involved both priests and laymen, whereas it can be assumed that the covered spaces were largely reserved for use by the priests. Pending further more detailed field studies, it seems possible

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that the covered portions of the Core Area contained cells and apartments for liturgies, service rooms, and perhaps, inter alia, quarters reserved for the training of the priesthood. Ideally, the Core Area would have accommodated pilgrims and processions on the one hand, and the more specific needs of priests and their liturgies on the other. This end was in fact perfectly achieved by the architect who introduced a dominant north-south longitudinal axis (Fig. 3). Also essential to such a design was the central courtyard, placed on the long axis, which functioned as a vital hub of communication. It is this type of planning which accounts for the rhythmic progression of the monument.99 This arrangement also allowed for expansions and additions near the edge of the Core Area, which at the same time always left the processional way intact. The addition of the ayvansand the T-shaped rooms may have accommodated intended patterns of movementand circulation, while the two major Gates at the opposed lower and upper limits of the Core Area clearly controlled access to the site. This kind of planning seems to have existed in fact in many similar institutional buildings in Central Asia, Iran, and the West, possibly because of its practical benefits.100 Indeed the identification of various architectural units within the Core Area at Kuh-e Khwaja requires a broad reexamination of the evolution and the probable function of the different components that are to be found within other ancient Zoroastrian religious settings. Although no set architectural standards for the construction of fire temples would appear to have existed in Parthian and Sasanian times, certain common architectural features exist in most of the known temples.101 The most characteristic architectural element of Sasanian temples is the so-called chdhdrtdqa freestanding square structure with, as the name implies, "four arches". In effect, the term chdhdrtdqdescribes an equilateral architectural unit consisting of four arches, or short barrel vaults between four corner piers, roofed by a dome on squinches over a central square. This square, together with the lateral bays under the arches, or barrel vaults, provides a room of cruciform ground plan.102 It was, moreover, beneath the gombad, or "dome" that the sacred fire was enthroned.103 The were also usually surrounded by a roofed chdhdrtdqs ambulatory that protected the inner chamber. Various theories exist in regard to the exact character of an ambulatory, but perhaps the most logical one is that proposed by D. Stronach who states that, "such a passage was presumably intended for circumambulation but, even if this were not the case, it undoubtedly served to underline the separate, sacred character of the space enclosed."104 Both of these claims may be further substantiated by the fact

that, in view of the Zoroastrian purity laws which demand that every religious building be kept both actually and ritually clean, a second layering in the form of an ambulatorywas the only way of securing such conditions. In addition to a chdhdrtdq,a Sasanian fire temple also included other smaller rooms for storing firewood, incense and utensils, as well as a yazishn-gdh,or "place of worship,"where the priests would celebrate the rituals. Apparently, such rituals were never performed within the gombadwhere only the veneration of the fire was permitted. Other architectural units, as evidenced in the remains of many temples, include a Central Courtyard, and perhaps a The latter is a large hall that is used gdhdmbar-khdneh. presumably for congressional purposes, and the celebration of gdhdmbarsand other relevant feasts. It is clear that the Core Area at Kuh-e Khwajaalso documents the presence of other structures, including secondary courtyards, domed chambers, passageways, and porticos.105 The original function of such features may never be vouchsafed in full, but their incorporation in the surviving plan may one day permit a reasonably full architectural analysis of the requirements for a major Temple Complex. One other area of inquiry which has not been addressed, and which is essential for this study, pertains to the construction techniques found at Kuh-e Khwaja. ConstructionPhases The standing remains on Kuh-e Khwaja can be seen to very largely accord with Sasanian construction techniques,106 whether in Ghaghai Shahr, in the Core Area, in Kok-e Zal, or in Chehel Dokhtarain (Pls. XXVIIc, XXVIIIa). The foundations are built of stone and gypsum mortar, but the stones, quarried from the mountain, are sized or shaped as opposed to consisting of mere rubble. Above the foundations, the walls are constructed of gypsum mortar and sundried bricks; and the latter exhibit a wide variety of shapes and sizes. Based on the very varied topology of the mountain, these techniques were modified and tailored to meet specific requirements. This is especially evident in the wall constructions of Ghagha Shahr and the Core Area. The walls are built in the above manner, but are then layered, at the lower parts near the foundation, with a band of stone (Pls. XXVIIIb,c, XXIXa), and at the higher parts near the roof, with bands of reed, cow dung, or a mixture of the two, and of course lines of mortar (P1.XXIXa-c). The layering in the lower parts of the walls served to enhance the strength of the foundation, whereas the layering near the tops of the walls was presumably intended to lighten the overall weight of construction. The use of these distinctive

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banding techniques is not known from other Sasanian buildings and it appears to have been a building technique that was imported from the West, where it is well documented in both Roman and Byzantine buildings.107 In such buildings the walls, often of concrete faced with small limestone blocks, were reinforced at varying intervals by brick bands, which usually consisted of five courses of thin bricks, with mortar beds of equal thickness.108 It is possible to presume, therefore, that building techniques of this kind were brought to Sistan by "Roman" prisoners of war, whose skills were also exhibited elsewhere in Iran.109 At the same time, however, the lightweight top layering appears to have been a local adaptation of the Roman banding technique, which may have been especially well suited to the requirements of vaulted mudbrick architecture.110 For the foregoing reasons, as well as on the basis of arguments adduced in Kawami's detailed study of Kuh-e Khwaja,where she specifically refers to parallels from the reign of the Sasanian king Shapur, 11 we may assume that the construction of the standing walls of the site took place sometime during the reign of Shapur I (A.D. 240-272).112 It is also conceivable, of course, that Shapur inherited a building project which had already been launched, at least in a preliminary way, by his father Ardashir I (A.D. 224-240), who had his own considerable reputation as a builder of note.113 In his studies of Kuh-e Khwaja, Schippmann casts doubt on Gullini's Parthian date,114stating that only a Sasanian date may be considered safe.115 The fact that the visible standing remains at the site do not reflect Parthian construction techniques may have contributed to his Sasanian dating. A stucco figure from the South Gate and other decorative elements have also been viewed as In any event the Core early-Sasanian, by Kr6ger.11"6 Area structures underwent later, extensive remodeling, not only in the South Gate, but also in the Central Courtyard, the Painted Gallery, and the Fire Sanctuary. And in each case the architectural details in these remodelled areas point, I believe, to a date late in the Sasanian period. Although Kawamiappears to agree with this finding in terms of a date which she assigns to a painting from the North Gate117 she rather unexpectedly attributes this latest phase of construction as a whole to the early Islamic era.118 Given the fact that any such remodelling would then have fallen at a time between 651 and 750 when many of the fire temples of Iran were destroyed,"9 and the fact that Sistan was an important frontier area, which already had an Arab governor in place from 663 onwards,120it is hard to see how this dating can be said to accord with the political realities of the time. At least at this stage in this period of revived interest in the site, I can see no compelling architectural

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reason to follow Kawami in dating the domed portion of the South Gate or the ayvans ending in Tshaped rooms (within the Core Area) to the early Islamic era.121 Each of these elements, i.e. domed entrance suites and ayvans,122represent known preIslamic forms, even if various applied decorations at Kuh-e Khwaja could always postdate the walls on which they stand. Resultsof Carbon14 Tests During two successive visits to Kuh-e Khwaja the writer was able to collect samples for C14 determinations from two separate areas of the Core Area. The first set of samples was taken from mortar and other structural materials used in the rough ceiling of the Painted Gallery, whereas the second sample came from tamarisk pegs that were used in the construction of the reliefs on the south facade of the Fire Sanctuary. These samples were tested at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory of the University of California, at Berkeley, and have revealed two sets of dates for what would appear to be two separate phases of construction. The first sample provided a reading of A.D. 80-240 ? 50 (late Parthian to early Sasanian), and the second provided a reading of A.D. 540-650 ? 50 (late Sasanian). On this evidence, and based on the above structural study, it may be suggested that the Core Area at Kuhe Khwaja corresponds, in its free stranding parts, to two different periods that may be placed within the Sasanian period. The early Sasanian phase most probably also reflects then, a major construction phase that covered and incorporated a still little documented earlier phase. In this connection part of the Entry Terrace in front of the South Gate collapsed in the course of a violent rainstorm in the early spring of 1998. As a consequence it was discovered that the Terrace had been erected, in part, over a mudbrick chamber with a flat roof constructed of mud, timber, and reeds. In other words, Stein's supposition that the Entry Terrace rested on a contemporary vaulted substructure can no longer apply to the whole Terrace and there now appears to be evidence for the existence of an older building period that very possibly reflects local architectural traditions. In short, the Core Area of Kuh-e Khwaja may have had at least three phases of construction, including an early, perhaps late Parthian, building level which has only now chanced to come to light. For the moment, however, this latter claim remains to be substantiated by more extensive local investigations. The late Sasanian phase on the other hand represents a less comprehensive construction phase that included the addition of the reliefs to the Fire Sanctuary as well as a series of other alterations and repairs.

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Conclusion The site of Kuh-e Khwaja served as a continuous Zoroastrian religious centre, and its Core Area functioned as a place of pilgrimage, with at least three phases of construction. The phases correspond, most probably, with the late Parthian, early Sasanian, and late Sasanian periods. In the late Parthian phase, pilgrim services were performed in the open air, and worship and prayer were presumably largely carried out on the summit of the mountain. The Core Area at the same time consisted of an open Central Courtyard flanked by various chambers. In all probability, the high priest lived in the precinct, perhaps on the upper level, separated by a smaller courtyard from the lower level of the public area where certain services were performed.123 With the growth in the numbers of pilgrims early in the Sasanian era, perhaps during the reign of Shapur I (A.D. 240-272), it became necessary to enlarge and enhance the religious precinct. Thus, the early Sasanian phase can be presumed to reflect a moment of nmajorarchitectural expansion and remodeling. In particular, the early Sasanian phase also included the addition of the Fire Sanctuary. As Kawami has indicated, the paintings belong to both the early and the late Sasanian periods. The same is also true of the reliefs. The combined series of the murals and reliefs from earlier excavations and those recently uncovered in a chamber in the vicinity of the North Gate suggest that at one time all the walls in the public areas of the Core Area were covered with luxurious decorations. Intended for the eyes of pilgrims in the course of their progress, these decorations served to accentuate the sense of rhythmic progression that has already been noted. Considering the importance of the site, it is also possible that the whole of the Core Area was originally decorated with murals and reliefs. The extensive use of vaults and domes, united with Hellenised decoration in the form of stucco to mask walls with a "sculpted tapestry" in the second and third phases, is seen here to be characteristic of Sasanian architecture.124 Fundamental to Zoroastrianism is the association of the priesthood with the cult of fire. The evolution of centrality, prominence, and architectural detail in connection with the maintenance of the fire cult at Kuh-e Khwaja indicates the degree of religious distinction which obtained at this exceptional site. And although further studies are still required, a beginning seems to have been made in understanding the role of Kuh-e Khwaja as a significant erbedestdn of Sasanian date.125

Notes 1 I am particularly grateful to my dissertation advisors, Professors Guitty Azarpay, Mary Boyce, Ray Lifchez, and David Stronach for their advice and guidance. In carrying out my field researches I have also greatly benefited from the generous assistance of the Cultural Heritage Organisation of Iran. This research was also made possible in parts by grants from the Mellon Foundation (Centre for Middle Eastern Studies), the Stahl Endowment, and the Humanities and Social Sciences Research Grant of the U.C. Berkeley, and the Ancient Persia Fund of The British Museum. 2 E. Herzfeld took the core of the site to include a Palace with a Fire Temple. Subsequent scholars have sometimes referred to a "Palace-Temple" (see below) and, as will emerge in the course of this exploration, it may be most accurate to speak of a "Temple Complex." In much of this article, however, the less loaded term "Core Area"will be employed. 3 Hsuan-Tsang, born 603 A.D., travelled in the area between 629-45 A.D. See also, C. Brunner 1983, pp. 747 ff., p. 775. 4 V. G. Lukonin 1983, pp. 738 ff. 5 The ancient city of Tus, destroyed by the Mongols, was situated to the north of Mashhad. 6 In Ferdowsi's tenth century Shdh-Ndma,for example, Sistan is counted as the birthplace of the legendary hero, Rustam. See conveniently, Levy 1996, pp. 35 ff.; Bosworth 1968, p. 2. 7 For the etymology and further comments on the name see Schmitt 1996, pp. 535 ff. 8 Ibid., p. 536. Another important city centre of the early Islamic era was Tar5kun, which now lies in Afghan territory (see Fig. 1, 17). 9 Frye 1975, pp. 14, 30; Mochiri 1982, pp. 135 ff.; Gyselen 1988, pp. 191 ff.; eadem.1989, pp. 16, 62, 86. 10 Frye 1975, p. 14. 11 The Saoshydntlegend was not attached to the Hamun Lake from its origin; cf. Boyce 1992, pp. 4 ff., n. 35; Gnoli 1980, p. 135. The name of the lake, "Hamun" means "Dasht"in New Persian, and translates into English as "Plain";cf. Gnoli 1980, pp. 133 n. 46, 134 n. 50. The lake is mentioned in Yasht19, as Lake Kasaoya, and as part of the Avestan geography; cf. Duchesne-Guillemin 1973, pp. 149 ff.; Boyce 1975, pp. 274 ff., 282 ff.; Gnoli 1980, pp. 129 ff. The area was frequently linked with the Kayanian dynasty, Yarshater 1983, pp. 359 ff.; Bivar 1983, pp. 181 ff. On the ancient importance of Sistan, see Utas 1983, pp. 259 ff. 12 Boyce 1982, pp. 278 ff.; Boyce and F. Grenet 1991, pp. 147 ff.; cf. Boyce 1992, pp. 8 ff., 182. 13 For detailed accounts of this legend, see Duchesne-Guillemin 1973, pp. 17, 167-8, 229 ff.; Boyce and Grenet 1991, pp. 447 ff., 451 ff. 14 Boyce and Grenet 1991, pp. 151 n. 139, 451 ff. 15 This figure that corresponds to the figure of 400 feet, given by Stein 1928, p. 909. Mousavi 1996,p. 71, gives an average height of 90 metres, while Sajjadi 1995, p.201, provides an average height of 609 metres. 16 The tomb is discussed further below. Another sacred building, the shrine of "Pir-e Gandom-e Berian", is also located on the summit of Kuh-e Khwaja,and during the first week of No Ritzpilgrims make their way there and offer roasted wheat at the shrine. 17 Stein 1928, p. 909. The name is not in use at present. 18 For the sake of simplicity this account follows Herzfeld in treating the long SE to NW axis through Ghagh~ Shahr as a north-south line. See Herzfeld 1941, pl. XCVII. This convention is also found in the present architectural plans of Ghagha Shahr showing a circular "north symbol". Wherever true North is indicated, it is represented by a full-length arrow. 19 The entry to this Gate House included a monumental arch, which only collapsed in 1997.

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24 25 26 27 28 29

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An ayvan is a room, usually vaulted, that is open on one side, and closed on three sides. T. Kawami 1987, p. 18. The colonettes had Doric capitals, and the slightly projecting entablature above them was decorated with a Greek scroll. See Herzfeld 1941, p. 292. In various plans of the Core Area this Central Staircase has been shown as having a single flight, however, as T. Kawami has noted, Herzfeld sketched this staircase as originally having separate east and west flights, which he dated to the Parthian period. See Kawami 1987, p. 18 n. 36; also Mousavi 1999, pp. 81-4. Kawami 1987, p. 19 n. 49. Ibid.,p. 20. Huff 1990, pp. 150 ff. Roaf, and Stronach 1973, pp. 130 ff.; Hansman and Stronach 1974, pp. 11 ff. see n.27.; Huff 1990, pp. 145 ff. For a complete description of paintings and reliefs see Kawami 1987, pp. 18, 25 ff.; also Schlumberger 1969, pp. 53 ff. This was a male figure in stucco which is no longer extant. See Herzfeld 1941, p. 292, pl. xcvi bottom; Kr6ger 1982, pl. 104; Kawami 1987, p. 18. The remnants of these reliefs, consisting of an equestrian scene in "mud-stucco,"are still traceable. Stucco panels with geometric designs were found in both the South Gate and the Painted Gallery. See further, Stein 1928, pp. 912 ff.; Herzfeld 1941, pp. 293 ff. pl. xcix; Schlumberger 1969, pp. 53 ff.; Kr6ger 1982, pp. 257 ff., pl. 103; Kawami 1987, p. 24. The sole exception to-date has been Gullini who assigned six levels to the site, and recognized three Fire Temples within the given dates. See Gullini 1964, pp. 105 ff., 224 ff. Cf. also Kawami 1987, pp. 22, 24. Ibid., loc. cit. Ibid., p. 50. Schlumberger 1969, pp. 53 ff. Tate was in the service of the British Boundary Commission charged with drawing up the line of the Indo-Persian border. Stein published his discoveries in 1916, but his complete documentation came twelve years later with his monumental work, InnermostAsia. Apparently, only two panels now survive. See Faccenna 1981, pp. 87 ff. n. 6. Kawami 1987, p. 15 n. 12; Stein 1928, pp. 918 ff., 924 ff. Stein also speculated, in his correspondence, that the site was Parthian. Later he changed his mind and dated the site to both the Parthian and Sasanian periods, see Mirsky 1977, pp. 390 ff. The possibility of the existence of a Buddhist monastery at Kuh-e Khwaja is rejected by Professor Boyce (pers. comm., London, April 1995). See further, Bulliet 1976, pp. 140 ff. In 1925 and 1929 the site was inspected by Herzfeld, who, like Stein, published his findings twice. See Herzfeld 1931-32, pp. 1 ff.; Idem. 1941, pp. 291 ff. Following Herzfeld's identification, the site has generally been referred to as a "Palace-Temple"Complex. Herzfeld 1941, p. 301, pl. xcix. The altar is now lost, see Mousavi 1999, pp. 81 ff. These paintings were taken to Berlin for restoration. The fate of the paintings is unknown; they are assumed to have been destroyed during World War II. Only two fragments appear to have survived and these were later acquired by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. On Gondophares see further, Bivar 1983, pp. 197 f. This identification has been generally rejected. See Bailey 1937, pp. 1154 ff. Duchesne-Guillemin 1973, p. 167 ff.; Boyce and Grenet 1991, pp. 451 ff., n. 447. Like Stein, Herzfeld

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68 69

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modified his opinion on the construction phases; in 1932 he dated the earlier phase to the Sasanian period and the later phase to the early Islamic period, but in 1941 he reassigned the relative phases to Parthian and Sasanian times. Most notably by Trudy Kawami and Daniel Schlumberger. Schlumberger 1969, p. 55. Gullini 1964, pp. 105 ff., 224 ff. Tucci 1966, pp. 143 ff. Cf. also Boucharlat 1984, pp. 129 ff., where Gullini's Achaemenid layer is also disputed; for other layers see Schippmann 1971, pp. 57 ff. See also Besenval 1984, pp. 137 ff. This painting, a cityscape which depicts people in procession, is housed in the Muzeh Melli, Tehran. Faccenna's study of the architecture, however, is completely based on Herzfeld's "Palace-Temple"theory and on Gullini's study, see next note. In his description, Faccenna identified the vestibule or entry chamber of the South Gate as an ayvdn. See Faccenna 1981, p. 84. The plan and the physical shape of the Gatehouse, however, do not reflect the characteristics of an ayvdn. Faccenna's date is mainly based on Gullini's layers; ibid., pp. 92 ff., n. 18. Kr6ger 1982, pp. 35 ff., 74, 133, 185, 226, 247 ff., 267 ff. Kawami 1987, pp. 19, 24, 50. Mousavi speculates that the Core Area reflects two periods of construction: a late Parthian and a Sasanian period, see Mousavi 1999, p. 84. Seyyed Mahmud Mousavi, pers. comm. Reports on these field seasons will be published shortly in Miras-efarhangi,the Journal of the Iranian Cultural Heritage Organisation. W.B. Fisher 1968, pp. 76 ff. Schippmann 1971, p. 67. See further, Kleiss 1992, pp. 65 ff.; Kiani and Kleiss 1990, pp. 798 ff.; Shokoohy 1983, pp. 445 ff.; Idem.1996, pp. 170 ff. There is yet another problem with the "Palace-Temple"identification, for it suggests that the ordinary residents of the Citadel had to pass through the royal court in order to reach the summit of the mountain for their religious rituals. Doubts over a possible palace identification have also been expressed by Professor Boyce recalling that "the Parthians were skilled horsemen and practically lived in the saddle," and that in "ancient times the Hamun Lake was much more extensive and had deeper waters than now," She goes on to observe that "one could not imagine that a Parthian prince would choose to live there, where he and his retinue every day had to be ferried by boat to where they could mount." Boyce, in a letter to the writer, dated 4June 1998. On the religious significance of the site, see Scarcia 1973, pp. 755 ff.; Boyce 1975, pp. 145, 274, 282 ff.; Gnoli 1980, pp. 129 ff., 149 ff.; Sajjadi 1995, p. 243. For other religious association (viz. God Zun) see Marquart and De Groot 1915, pp. 248 ff.; Bosworth 1968, pp. 34 ff., 91 ff.; Frye 1975, pp. 45 ff.; Gnoli 1980, pp. 70 ff. The tomb, which has no readily datable feature, presumably dates to the twelfth century, on the basis of a passage in the Anonymous Tdrikh-eSistan. In fact, animal sacrifice is an age-old practice for both Muslims and Zoroastrians. Cf. Duchesne-Guillemin 1973, pp. 76ff. In early Zoroastrianism divine beings were offered worship without the aid of temples, altars or statues, and all that was needed in order to perform the high rituals was a clean, flat piece of ground, marked off by a ritually-drawnfurrow. The offerings were consecrated there, and made not only to the invisible deities, but also to fire and water. Boyce 1975, pp. 166 ff. Ibid., loc. cit. Ibid., loc. cit.

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Boyce 1982, pp. 180 ff.

71 On the settlement of early Iranians in this area see Boyce

1975, pp. 249 ff. and Gnoli 1980, pp. 68 ff., 129 ff.

72 Boyce 1992, pp. 4 ff., n. 35.

73 Boyce 1975, pp. 274 ff.; eadem.1992, pp. 4 ff.; Gnoli 1980, pp. 129 ff. 74 Another Zoroastrian place of pilgrimage was Raga, identified with the present locality of Ray near Tehran, Boyce 1982, pp. 278 ff.; eadem.1992, pp. 4 ff. 75 Boyce and Grenet 1991, pp. 147 ff.; cf. Boyce 1992, pp. 8 ff., 182. 76 Boyce 1992, pp. 101 ff. 77 Cf. Skjaervo 1992, pp. 650 ff.; Briant 1992, pp. 651 ff.; Shaki 1992, pp. 652 ff. 78 Boyce 1975, Vol. I, pp. 183 ff. 79 Until well into the Sasanian period Iranians regarded writing as a tool fit for secular purposes only. 80 Boyce 1975, Vol. I, pp. 250 ff. 81 Ibid., pp. 266, 273; Duchesne-Guillemin 1973, pp. 147 ff.; Gnoli 1980, pp. 138 ff.;J. K. Choksy 1997, pp. 96-103. 82 Humbach, and Elfenbein 1990, p. 7; Kotwal, Kreyenbroek, and Russell 1992, p. 15. 83 see n. 82; and Choksy 1997, pp. 96-103. 84 It is believed that most dayrswere situated in rural areas, in deserts, or on mountain tops and, therefore, certain provisions were made for defense, as well as for the safety of travelers. See Aryan 1996, pp. 169 ff. 85 Choksy 1997: pp. 96-103. In his Fotfth al-Boldan, which recounts the history of Iranian Conquest in the seventh, eighth and ninth centuries, the ninth century writer, Baladhuri, provides textual corroboration. He recounts a harrowing tale connected with the seizure of Armenia. He relates that the newly established Arab governor of Armenia appointed his agent, cAla' b. Ahmad, to subdue a dayr"seminary"in Sijistan.This was a locality in Armenia, not connected in any way with Sistan. See further, Kramers 1935-37, pp. 613-19.) Baladhuri notes that this was a dayrthat was "also" revered by Christians, who offered it many gifts. Apparently the mission was brutally sacked and destroyed. Baladhuri, trans. M. Tavakol 1988, pp. 279 ff., 303. 86 This latter act, performed with great zeal, eventually found a place in the birth legend of Christ. Duchesne-Guillemin 1973, pp. 17, 167 ff.; Boyce and Grenet 1991, pp. 447 ff. 87 In fact this was the means by which Zoroastrian priests, some of whom acquired much wealth, were able to sustain themselves throughout the centuries. 88 On the wealth of a similar high priests, cf. Boyce and Grenet 1991, Temple of Zela in Cappadocia, pp. 263 ff., 270 ff., 288 ff. 89 Boyce, letter to writer, 4June 1998. 90 For references to inner and outer liturgical ceremonies see Modi 1937, pp. 246 ff.; Duchesne-Guillemin 1973, pp. 56 ff 91 Boyce 1975, "Temple Cult," pp. 461 ff. 92 Duchesne-Guillemin 1973, pp. 62 ff.; Boyce 1975, "Temple Cult," p. 455; eadem.1989, p. 2. 93 See n. 92. 94 For architectural comparanda see the writer's forthcoming doctoral dissertation entitled Kuh-e Khwaja: A Major ZoroastrianTempleComplexIn Sistan, U.C. Berkeley. 95 Faccenna 1981, p. 86. 96 Ibid., pp. 86 ff. Faccenna also observes that "The connection between the content of the scenes and the place where they are painted is a concept that must have guided the arrangement of the paintings with which the walls of the building were sumptuously decorated at the various stages of its existence." In addition, Faccenna notes that the headgear of the figures in the new painting includes a "side-flap"from which a white cheekpiece reached down under the chin. This side-flap and other similar devices have generally been identified as a

padam. It is a mouth piece or a mask which is primarilyworn by Zoroastrian priests in their various rituals, in order not to pollute the objects in use, and sometimes by royal attendants. Another identification of the padamis put forward by Kawami who recognised one of the figures, in the paintings of the North Gate, previously identified by Herzfeld as "flute-player", as a man wearing a padam.Kawami 1987, pp. 48 ff. 97 Such a setting is familiar from many elevated citadels in Iran, where the general population occupied the lower half of the town, while the house of the governor stood in the upper half, see Keall 1976, pp. 161 ff.; Gaube 1979, pp. 20 ff.; Kleiss 1992, pp. 65 ff. 98 Classical testimony suggests that a Zoroastrian temple cult of fire was first instituted in the later Achaemenid period (during the reign of Artaxerxes III, 358-338B.C.). See Boyce 1982, pp. 221 ff.; Boyce and Grenet 1991, p. 270. 99 As Kawamiwas the first to stress. 100 It is more than likely that these common architectural characteristics contributed to Stein's attribution of the Complex to a Buddhist monastery. 101 Furthermore, it is clear that various structural components evolved from the still older architectural vocabulary of the Iranian plateau, as well as from local traditions in each area. 102 According to Huff it was because of its structural and aesthetic properties that this feature became the most prominent element in traditional Iranian architecture after the ayvan,see Huff 1990, "chahartaq,"pp. 634 ff. 103 Boyce 1975, "Temple Cult," pp. 464 ff. It should be noted that "although modern usage shows that embers from a sacred fire might be taken into such a hall to make a fire for congregational worship, there is no evidence, literary, archaeological or traditional, to suggest that the sacred fire itself, once established, was ever moved," that is, for devotional purposes. 104 Stronach 1985, pp. 618 ff. 105 See n.94. 106 Cf. Huff 1987, pp. 329 ff.; Kleiss 1993, pp. 217 ff. 107 R. Krautheimer 1965, p. 49. I am indebted to Professor Ray Lifchez for this citation. 108 Ibid., loc. cit. Tate also reported on the existence of a series of cisterns (now no longer extant), that were located on the mountain, built in every watercourse descending down the slopes to catch the rain water. These cisterns, too, appear to be a Roman innovation. Tate 1910, p. 266. 109 Cf. Frye 1983, pp. 296 ff.; idem.1983, " Political History ," pp. 126 ff.; Bosworth 1968, p. 2. 110 For the characteristic vaults and domes of Sasanian architecture, see Huff 1987, pp. 329 ff. In other instances the tallest mudbrick structures in Iran were often lightened by reductions in thickness. Cf. Roaf and Stronach 1973, pp. 129 ff. 111 Kawami 1987, pp. 38, 40. 112 The popularity and importance of Shapur in this area is also attested in the name given to one of the permanent pockets of the Hamun Lake to the north of Kuh-e Khwaja, called Hamun-e Sabor (Arabic corruption of Shapur ). The AraboPersian historical accounts record that, at the time of the Arab conquest, the chief Erbed of Sistan who was stationed in Zarang, was also called Shapur. Tdrikh-eSfistan, pp. 80 ff., 92 ff. See also, Bosworth 1968, pp. 5 ff., 24 ff.; Boyce 1992, pp. 150 ff., n. 9. 113 Boyce, trans. TheLetterof Tansar,1968, pp. 17, 21, 67. Cf. Frye 1983, pp. 296 ff.; Idem. 1983, "Political History," pp. 116 ff. Siamak Adhami; DenkardIV; Islamic sources. 114 Schippmann 1971, p. 67. 115 Cf. Duchesne-Guillemin 1973, p. 67. "116 Kroger 1982, pp. 257 ff. Boucharlat also assigns a Sasanian date to the Complex, see Boucharlat and LeComte 1987, pp. 51 ff. 117 Where she identifies a male figure with a padam; Kawami 1987, pp. 47 ff.; cf. also Faccenna 1981, p. 93 n. 18.

NEW PERSPECTIVES ON THE CHRONOLOGICAL AND FUNCTIONAL HORIZONS OF KUH-E KHWAJA

118

Kawami 1987, p. 24.

119 On the history of Zoroastrianism after the coming of Islam

see Bosworth 1968, pp. 5 ff., 24 ff.; Frye 1975, pp. 66 ff.; Boyce 1992, pp. 149 ff., 182. See also Anonymous Tdrikh-eSistan, pp. 80 ff., 92 ff. 120 Frye 1975, pp. 77 ff., 115 ff. 121 Kawami states that "domed entrance suites appear primarily in Islamic architecture, the only Sasanian example being the very late structure at Qasr-e Shirin." She also assigns the hooded squinches of the South Gate to the Islamic era, and suggests that the dome was a replacement, and that the tripartite vaults of the side chambers of the South Gate were earlier. Kawami 1987, p. 22. 122 For which see Keall 1989, pp. 155 ff. 123 Cf. Boyce and Grenet 1991, pp. 149 ff. 124 On this specific aspect of Sasanian architecture, see especially Schlumberger 1969, pp. 53 ff. 125 It is of interest to speculate on the extent to which the Islamic institution of the madrasamay have been inspired, at least in part, by the prior presence of Zoroastrian priestly colleges. As I hope to demonstrate in a future essay, the now practical task is that of seeking to define the physical properties of an erbedestdn.

Bibliography Anonymous, Tdrikh-eSistan, (ed. M. T. Bahar), Tehran. 1313/ 1935. Aryan, Q., "Dayr,"EIrVII,1996, pp. 169-70. Bailey, H. W., Review of E. Herzfeld, ArchaeologicalHistoryof Iran, in BSOASVIII/4, 1937, pp. 1154-5. Baladhuri,Futuhal-Buldan,(Trans. M. Tavakol) Tehran, 1367/1988. Besenval, R., "Technologie de la vofite dans l'Orient ancien," I,II, EditionsRecherche sur les Civilisations,Paris, 1984. Bivar, A.D.H., "The History of Eastern Iran," C H Ir III/1, 1983, pp. 181-231. Bosworth, C. E., Sistan UndertheArabs,FromTheIslamic Conquestto theRiseof TheSaffarids,Rome, 1968. Boucharlat, R., "Monuments religieux de la perse achemenide: 6tat des questions," Templeset sanctuaires, Paris, 1984, pp. 119-33. Boucharlat, R. and LeComte, O., "Fouilles de Tureng Tepe, les p6riodes sassanides et islamiques," Editions recherchesur les civilisations,74, Paris, 1987. Boyce, M. (trans.), TheLetterof Tansar,Rome 1968. A History of Zoroastrianism, I, "The Early Period," Leiden/NewYork, 1975. "On the Zoroastrian Temple Cult of Fire," JAOS 95/3 (July-Sept.), 1975, pp. 454-65; -A Historyof Zoroastrianism,II, "Under the Achaemenians," Leiden/New York 1982; "Atash,"EIrIII, 1989, pp. 1-5; Zoroastrianism,itsAntiquityand ConstantVigour,Costa Mesa, California,1992. Boyce, M. and Grenet, F., A Historyof Zoroastrianism,III, "Under Macedonian and Roman Rule," Leiden/New York 1992. Briant, P., "Class System ii, in the Median and Achaemenid Periods," E IrV, 1992, pp. 651-2. Brunner, C., "Geographical and Administrative Divisions: Settlements and Economy," CHIr III/2, 1983, pp. 747-91. Bulliet, R., "Naw Bahar and the Survival of Iranian Buddhism," Iran XIV, 1976, pp. 140-145. Choksy, J. K., Conflict and Cooperation:ZoroastrianSubalternsand MuslimElitesin MedievalIranian Society,New York 1997. Duchesne-Guillemin,J., TheReligionof AncientIran, Bombay,1973. Faccenna, D., "A New Fragment of Wall Painting from Ghaga Sahr (Kuh-i Hvaga-Sistan, Iran)," EW XXXI, 1981, pp. 83-97.

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Fisher, W.B., "PhysicalGeography," CHIrI, pp. 3-111. Frye, R., The Golden Age of Persia, The Arabs in the East, New York,1975. TheHistoryofAncientIran, Munich, 1983. S"The Political History of Iran under The Sasanians," CHIr III/1, 1983, pp. 116-181; S"Commerce. iii, in the Parthian and Sasanian Periods," EIr VI, 1993, pp. 61-4. Gaube, H., Iranian Cities,New York,1979. Gnoli, G., Zoroaster'sTimeand Homeland,Naples,1980. Gullini, G., ArchitetturaIranica degliachemenidiai sasanidi: il palazzo di Kuh-iKwagia,Turin,1964. Gyselen, R., "Les donnees de geographie administrative dans le Shahrestainiha-iEran, St IrXVII/ 2, 1988, pp. 191-206; "La geographie administrative de l'empire sassanide, les temoignages sigillographiques," Res OientalesI, Paris, 1989. Hansman, J. and Stronach, D., "Excavations at Shahr-i Qumis, 1971,"JRAS,74, pp. 8-22. Herzfeld, E., "Sakastan,"AMIIV/1,2, 1931-32, pp. 1-116.; Iran in theAncientEast, New York, 1941 (repr. 1988). Huff, D., "Architecture iii, Sasanian,"EIrII,1987, pp. 329-34; "Chahartaq i, in pre-Islamic Iran," E Ir IV, (Ed. E. Yarshater), 1990, pp. 634-638; "Fertigteile im Iranischen Gew6lbebau," AMI N.S. XXIII, 1990, pp. 145-160. Humbach, H., and Elfenbein, J. Erbedestan,an Avesta-PahlaviText, Munich, 1990. Kawami, T., "Kuh-e Khwaja, Iran, and its Wall Paintings: The Records of Ernst Herzfeld," MMJXXII, 1987, pp. 13-52. Keall, E.J., "Qal'eh-iYazdigird,"Iran XIV,1976, pp. 161-164; - "Ayvan,"EIr III, 1989, pp. 155-159. Kiani, M. Y. and Kleiss, W., "Caravansary,"EIr IV, 1990, pp. 798-802. Kleiss, W., "Castles,"E IrV, 1992, pp. 65-70. "Construction Materials and Techniques in Persian architecture," EIrVI, 1993, pp. 217-19. Kotwal, F. M., Kreyenbroek, Ph. G., and Russell,J.R., "The Herbdestain and Nerangestan, I: Herbedestan," St Ir X, 1992, pp. 1-108. Kramers, J.H., "The Military Colonization of the Caucasus and Armenia under the Sassanids,"B SO S VIII, London,1935-37, pp. 613-19. Krautheimer, R., EarlyChristianand ByzantineArchitecture, London, 1965. Kr6ger, J., SasanidischerStuckreliefdekor, Baghdader Forschungen V, Mainz,1982. Levy, R., trans., TheEpic of theKings:Shdh-Ndma,theNational Epic of Persia,byFerdowsi,Costa Mesa/New York, 2nd. ed.,1996. Lukonin, V.G., "Political, Social and Administrative Institutions: Taxes and Trade," CHIr III/2 Historyof Iran Vol. 3(2), 1983, pp. 681-747. Marquart,J. and De Groot, J. J. M., "Das Reich Zatbul und der Gott Zun vom 6.-9. Jahrhundert," FestschriftEduard Sachau, Berlin,1915, pp. 248-92. Mirsky,J., Sir Aurel Stein,Archaeological Explorer,Chicago/London, 1977. Mochiri, I. M., Etudesde numismatiqueiraniennesous les Sassanideset rev.ed., Leiden,1982. Arab-Sassanides, Modi, J.J., The ReligiousCeremoniesand Customsof TheParsees,2nd ed., Bombay 1937. Mousavi, S. M., "Kuh-e Khadjeh un complexe religieux de l'est iranien," Dossiersd'Archeologie 243, May 1999, pp. 81-4. -'Yadman-e Kheshti-e Kfsh-eKhwaja-yeZabol," Tarkth-eMeC mari va sahr-sdzi-yeIran IV, Sazman-e miras-e farhangi-e kesvar, Tehran 1996, pp. 68-98. Roaf, M. and Stronach, D., "Tepe Nush-Jan 1970: Second Interim Report, Iran XI, 1973, pp. 129-40. Sajjadi, S. M. S., Bdstan senasz va Tdrikh-eBaluchestan, Sazman Miras-e Farhangi Keshvar, Tehran A.H. 1374/A.D. 1995.

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Scarcia, G., "Kfuh-eKhwage: forme attuali del mahdismo iranico," Annali delIstitutoper l'Oriente,LIII/9, Rome, 1973, pp. 755-64. Berlin/New York, Schippmann, K., Die IranischenFeuerheiligtiimer, 1971. Schlumberger, D., L'orienthellenisi,Baden-Baden, 1969. Schmitt, R., "Drangiana,"E IrVII, 1996, pp. 535-7. Shaki, M., "ClassSystem iii, in the Parthian and Sasanian Periods," EIrV, 1992, pp. 652-8. Shokoohy, M., "The Sasanian Carvanserai of Dayr-iGachin, South of Ray, Iran," B SOASXLVI, 3, 1983, pp. 445-61. "Dayr-eGachin," EIrII, 1996, pp. 170-2. Skjaervo, P.O., "ClassSystem i, In the Avesta," E Ir V, pp. 650-1. Stein, M. A., InnermostAsia: DetailedReportofExplorationsin Central Asia, Kan-Su, and EasternIran, CarriedOut and DescribedUnder the Ordersof H.M. Indian Government,4 vols., Oxford,1928.

Stronach, D., "On the Evolution of the Early-Iranian Fire Temple," Papers in Honour of Professor Mary Boyce, AIr 25/11, 1985, pp. 605-27. Tate, G.P., Seistan,A Memoiron the History,Topography,Ruins, and Peopleof the Country,Quetta,1910. Tucci, G., "Gullini, G., Architettura Iranica dagli achemenidi ai sasanidi: II palazzo di Kuh-i Kwagia, Seistan," EWXVI, 1966, pp. 143-7. Utas, B., "The Pahlavi Treatise Avdeh u Sahikeh I Sakistan or 'Wonders and Magnificence of Sistan," Acta Antiqua HungaricaeXXVIII, 1983, pp. 259-67. Yarshater, E., "IranianNational History," C HIran III/1, 1983, pp. 359-477.

ARCHAEOLOGICALNEWS FROM IRAN AND CENTRALASIA: THIRD REPORT GERMI The archaeologist S.O. Kambakhsh Fard began his investigations in Azarbaijan in 1965 (1344) on behalf of the Iranian Centre of Archaeology. The aim was to locate the source of a series of distinctive ceramic zoomorphic rhyta that were circulating on the art market (Fig. 1). Following information gathered in Ardabil it was decided to focus on Germi, one of the centres of the Dasht-e Moghan in the Meshkin Shahr district located 132 km. north of Ardabil at a height of 1200 m. above sea-level (Fig. 2). The area chosen for investigation was east of Germi along the banks of the river Balharud that formed the present border between Azarbaijan and the former Soviet Union (Fig. 3). Two large and heavily pitted tells were found to the north and south of the village of Sheikhlar in the Omastan-e Sofla area, namely Tappeh Ayri Zamin and Tappeh

Kan Yeri. Further mounds that were examined in this area included Hemat Salaleh, Kharman Salaleh, Hatam Piyeh Daragh, Agh Tor Pagh and Tappeh Gishtaq Ovesti Van. In addition four large sites along the banks of the Balharud were mapped, namely Tappeh Kharman Omastan-e 'Olya, Tappeh Sheikhlar, Tappeh Uch Aghach and Tappeh Van. Short descriptions of the results of the three-month season have been published by the excavator (S. A. Kambakhsh Fard, Gur-khomrehha-ye ashkani,Majallehye bastanshenasi va tarikh 1, Tehran 1377/1998) and others (S. A. Matheson, Persia:An Archaeological Guide,London 1979, p. 75; E. Haerinck, La ciramique en Iran pendant la periode Parthe, Gent 1983, pp. 124-48). The excavations have now been fully published, allowing the principal results to be outlined in greater detail below.

potteryvesselsfrom the Germiregion. Fig. 1. Unprovenanced 151

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\

3,,/ A'.

iN MESHKINSHAHR .4 * ARDABIL

TALESH

0 RASHTR

Fig. 2. Map of the Germiregionshowingmajorarchaeological sites. 1. TappehKharman-eOmastan 'Olya The mound rises to a height of between 12 and 40 m. and is located at an approximate height of 1100 m. above sea-level. Flexed burials were found within 1.50 m. long pithoi, each orientated east/ west. Pots were found as grave-goods and a silver drachm of Vologases III (A.D. 105-147) was found beneath the skull in one pithos, suggesting a date in the second half of the second century A.D. Earlier illicit excavations revealed traces of buildings and graves on the southern side of the mound. [Some of the coin finds from the Germi sites are illustrated by the author on p. 20 = fig. 15, p. 83 = pl. 78; for similar coin types, cf. D. Sellwood, An Introduction to the Coinageof Parthia, 2nd edition, London 1981, types

43 (?), 54.7, 56.6, 84.127].

2. TappehKan Yeri(Fig. 4) A trench was excavated near the summit of this heavily plundered site, the surface of which was covered with redwares. Several plain jars and a 50 cm. diameter lid were discovered at a depth of 0.50 m.; two disturbed pithos burials, orientated east/west with the openings facing east, were discovered next to one another. The larger of these jars measured 1.45 m. with a body diameter of 1.10 m. and rim diameter of 0.50 m. whereas the small pithos measured 0.90 m. in length, 0.30 m. across at the mouth and 0.65 m. across the body. Two redware jugs were

Fig. 3. Map of northeastIran, insetshowingthe Germiregion.

found placed nearby and an ibex-spouted jar was placed between the pithoi. Faceted agate, coloured glass and frit beads were found inside the larger pithos. A silver drachm of Vologases III (A.D. 105-147) was found below the neck of the smaller pithos. Close to the foot of the mound, a third broken pithos was found containing disturbed skeletal remains, some pins, two bronze earrings and animalspouted pottery. 3. TappehAyri Zamin (Figs.5-6) Also known as Ayri Zamin Sheikhlar or Tappeh Nokhod, this site is located east of Germi on the bank of the Balharud river. A row of eight pithos burials were discovered in two adjacent trenches on the east-facing crest of a hill measuring 100 m. across (Fig. 5). These jars usually contained a flexed individual although onejar contained two skeletons with their hands placed near their mouth; the mouths of the jars were orientated to the east but were blocked by large stones, the tops of which were between 0.35-0.40 m. below the surface. Grave-goods were placed close to the blocked mouths of the pithoi. These included a 13 cm. long iron shafted axe-head in pithos 2 (Fig. 6: 1), pipe-spouted pottery lamps, a flat-based pitcher, a small spouted vessel with a single handle, a handled bowl and flask (Fig. 6). In one case a lamp with a burnt wick was placed on top of a pithos in Trench A, suggesting to the excavator that

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Fig. 4. TappehKan Yeri:viewsof theexcavatedpithosburials(1-2) and associatedjugs (3-4). it had been lit at the time of burial. Some of this pottery was plain but others were painted. Bronze and silver finger rings, a bronze bracelet with twisted terminals, a pair of bronze bracelets with plain terminals, and bronze earrings were found inside the pithoi; a single necklace of carnelian and gold-glass beads was found interred with one burial. Iron knives and arrowheads were also recovered. On the basis of drachms of Vologases I (A.D. 51-78) and Vologases III (105-147), the cemetery is dated to the end of the second century A.D.

4. TappehPiyehDaragh Three trenches were excavated at this site that had again been heavily looted in the past. Pottery, ash and animal-bones were found. 5. TappehHatam PiyehDaragh (Fig. 7) Four trenches were excavated here. Two dark grey spiral-fluted and burnished pots (Fig. 7: 8-9)including a pitcher-were found inside two of the jars. Among the other finds were a large 15 cm. long socketed iron spearheads (Fig. 7: 6), silver and

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Fig. 5. TappehAyriZamin:generalplan of thesite, with detailsof thetwoexcavatedtrenchesand section.

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Fig. 6. TappehAyriZamin:iron axehead(1), finger ring (2), potteryvessels(3-9). bronze earrings, two bronze finger rings, a ring with plain on the eastern side but up to 45 m. on the a bezel depicting a profiled head of a man facing opposite side. Nearby lay a small sandy mound right wearing a soft headgear with earflaps and chin- extending as far as the river, the loose deposits of guard, several bronze bracelets with plain terminals which appear to have been deliberately favoured as a (Fig. 7: 1-2), a plain sheet-bronze bracelet (Fig. 7: 4), place of burial during the Parthian period. Six a pair of small bell-shaped bronze earrings with sus- pithos burials were excavated in three adjacent pension loops at the top (Fig. 7: 5), a necklace of lead trenches (Fig. 8: 1). These were very similar to those beads, lug-footed pitchers with spouts terminating in found at Kan Yeri, Ayri Zamin, Hatam Piyeh Daragh horned animals' heads and a trough-spouted bowl and Cho Jeiran but were found at the greater depth with a handle and supported on three feet (Fig. 7: of 3 m. These pithoi measured 1.20-1.60 m. in 10-11). A circular bronze mirror, 6 cm. across, with a length and were covered with lime plaster whereas stone and mortar constructions were placed around suspension loop on the decorated reverse (Fig. 7: 7) is similar to one excavated by M. Azarnoush at Sang- the outside. These exceptional burial conditions e Shir at Hamadan [cf. M. Azarnoush, 1354-1975/6, contributed towards good state of preservation of "Kavushha-yegurestan-e muhavvateh-ye sang-e shir", the skeletal remains, their hair and associated in Gozareshha-ye sevvominmajma'-esalaneh-ekavoshhava organic objects. These included a basket with hanbastanshenasi dar Iran, Tehran,Markaz- dle, a cylindrical turned wooden box with lid (Fig. 8: pazhuheshha-ye e bastanshenasi-ye Iran]. The excavator dates this site 9), and a wooden stem-footed goblet. [The survival to the mid-first to late-second centuries A.D. based on of these containers made of organic materials is typological comparisons. exceptional yet a small pedestal-footed wooden goblet was also recovered from a Parthian context at 6. TappehHematSalaleh(Figs. 8-9) another site in northern Iran; cf. p. 55, fig. 13: 9 in: This mound, also known as Kharman Salaleh, J. Hansman and D. Stronach, 'Excavations at Shahr-i rose to a height of 25 m. above the surrounding Qumis, 1967', JRAS 1970, pp. 29-62, pls. I-IX].

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Fig. 7. TappehHatam PiyehDaragh:bronzebracelets(1-4), bronzebells(5), socketedironspearhead(6), reverseview of a bronzemirror(7), decorated jug (8), flutedflask (9), footedbowlwith handle (10), animal-headedspoutedflask (11).

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Fig. 8. TappehHematSalaleh:generalplan of thesite showingexcavatedtrenches(1), finger rings (2-5), spindles (12). (10-11), bronzeincense-burner (6-8), woodenboxwith lid (9), potterycuboidincense-burners

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Fig. 9. TappehHematSalaleh:twin-spoutedamphora(1) andflasks (2-5). Several wooden and clay buttons were found covered with traces of cloth. In addition three hemispherical ceramic spindle-whorls were found mounted on decayed wooden spindles and terminating in a bronze hook at one end (Fig. 8: 6-8), the purpose of the hook being to secure one end of the thread during suspension spinning. [Hooked bronze and iron spindles mounted with glass or bone whorls were found in Parthian graves in Dailaman; e.g. cf. pls. XIX: 20, L: 2 in: N. Egami, S. Fukai and S. Masuda, Dailaman II: The Excavations at Noruzmahale and Khoramrud 1960, Tokyo 1966]. A short length of dark red, white and yellow woollen textile was also found: measuring 25 cm. long and 12 cm. across, this was decorated with an alternating swastika and chequer design with a "Greek key" border. Two pieces of circular woven matting were also found in these graves, as were a bronze bezel ring 2.5 cm. across, a gold nose-ring, a ring with decorated terminals, two bronze dress-pins with forked heads and a bronze incense-burner, 26 cm. in length, with a long handle decorated with three birds along the top (Fig. 8: 12). Cuboid pottery incense-burners with excised or incised decoration around the exterior (Fig. 8: 10-11) and several squat flat-based pitchers were also found (Fig. 9: 2-5). Two coins of Gotarzes [II] (A.D. 40-51) and Vologases I (A.D. 51-78) were recovered beneath the skulls in two pithoi, indicating an earlier date than the burials found at Kan Yeri, Ayri Zamin and Hatam Piyeh Daragh. A coin of Vonones I (A.D. 8-12) was also found at this site.

7. TappehChoJeiran(Fig. 10) Several trenches were excavated at this site. The burials and grave-goodsclosely resembled those found at KanYeri,Ayri Zamin and Hatam Piyeh Daragh. The pottery included a squat flask with perforated lug handles (Fig. 10: 4), a bridge-spouted pitcher (Fig. 10: 5), a twin-spouted amphora decorated with small applied pellets on the body and handle (Fig. 10: 6) [cf. E. Haerinck, 1983: pp. 133, fig. 22], and flat-based pitchers (Fig. 10: 7-10). A large number of chalcedony, semi-precious stone, frit and coloured (white, blue, yellow) glass beads, six oxidised silver horseshoeshaped earrings, and six spindle-whorls were found. 8. TappehGishtaqOvesti(Van) (Fig. 11) Four trenches were opened at this site in fields close to the Balharud river. In the first two trenches [A, B], two rectangular cist-graves were discovered (Fig. 11: 1-2). These were orientated east/west, constructed of river stones and sealed with large capstones which lay at a depth of 1-1.50 m. below the surface. Each of these graves contained a single flexed skeleton and a number of finds. These included silver earrings (Fig. 11: 7), silver bracelets with schematic "snake head" terminals (Fig. 11: 12-13), a pair of bronze bracelets with lightly ribbed terminals (Fig. 11: 11), a bracelet with plain terminals (Fig. 11: 10), two bronze finger-rings with plain incised terminals (Fig. 11: 9), a finger ring with a bronze hoop and glass bezel with an engraved human figure in classical style was found (Fig. 11: 6) and a short length of bronze chain (Fig. 11: 5), two corroded bronze earrings, four spindle-whorls, squat pitchers (Fig. 11: 16) [similar to

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Fig. 10. TappehChoJeiran:potterygrave-goods.

those found at Tappeh Hemat Salaleh] and pilgrimflasks (Fig. 11: 14). A large number of gadrooned and spotted eye beads, a cruciform bead, assorted yellow, white and blue glass, frit and agate beads were also recovered (Fig. 11: 3). They included coloured frit amulets in the form of bunches of grapes or male genitalia: these types are usually regarded as Egyptian imports that were valued for prophylactic purposes [examples have been found in first century B.C.-second century A.D. contexts from northern Syriato the Persian Gulf [cf. P. Lombard et al., Bahrein.La civilisation desdeuxmersdeDilmouna Tylos,Paris 1999, p. 200, nos. 327-32]. A silver drachm was found beneath the skull of each of these burials. These were identified as

belonging to Phraates IV (38-2 B.C.) [grave 1, trench A] and Orodes [II] (57-38 B.C.) [grave 2, trench B]. Two silver drachms of Orodes [II] (57-38 B.C.) and Phrataaces (2 B.C.-A.D. 4) were found in the third and fourth trenches [trenches D, J] but no graves were located here. Source: S.O. Kambakhsh Fard, Gurkhomrehha-ye ashkani/Parthian Pithos Burials at Germi,Azarbaijan, Majaleh-ye bastanshenasi va tarikh (Tehran, 1377)/Journal of Archaeology and History, Fasc. 1 (1998), with short English summary. Vesta Sarkhosh Curtis and StJohn Simpson The British Museum

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Fig. 11. TappehGishtaqOvesti:excavatedcist-graves(1-2), beadsand pendants3), bellearring(4), bronzechain (5), bronzefinger ring withglass bezel(6), silverearrings(7), bronzefinger rings (8-9), bronzeand silverbraceletsand earrings(10-13), pilgrim-flask(14) and otherpotteryvessels(15-16).

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THE APADANA GATEWAYAT SHUSH The Apadana at Susa was constructed on top of a high platform rising about 18 m. above plain level. In order to build this platform thick walls were erected around the four sides of the earlier Elamite settlement; all of the earth which was removed for constructing the foundations was redeposited behind these walls, thus creating the impressive platform. The information about this comes as a result of 150 years of archaeological activities beginning with W.K. Loftus in 1853 and continuing in the 1970s under the directorship ofJean Perrot. Without exception all archaeologists in charge of archaeological missions at Susa-Loftus, Dieulafoy, de Morgan, de Mecquenem, Ghirshman and Perrot-excavated Achaemenid remains at this site. Each made plans of the palace and the platform, and there were several attempts to find the means of access to the top of the platform and any possible staircases. Dieulafoy was the first to turn his attention to this problem. In his detailed plan, he has a two-sided stairwayto the south of the apadana, similar to that at Persepolis. In addition, he indicates a gateway in the centre of the western side of the platform. This prompted Ghirshman to excavate here in the 1950s, beginning with the apadana and continuing to the top of the foundations of the platform walls. However his trench, which measured 50 m. x 25 m., did not reveal any further evidence. Discovering the access to the stairways was an important goal in Perrot's subsequent investigations and the meticulous approach which he adopted in his excavations enabled him to produce a correct and detailed plan of the apadana and the other Achaemenid royal buildings at Susa. Perrot was also keen to find a gateway in the eastern part of the apadana, at the eastern edge of the platform and overlooking the Royal City and the Hadish Palace. The question of the stairway remained unanswered despite the discovery of a statue of Darius to the left of the gate, that is on the eastern side facing the apadana and the other palaces. This was due to the position of the gateway, which similar to all the other buildings, was constructed on top of the platform. Perrot's excavations in the southern part came to a halt with the Islamic Revolution, as after 1979 foreign delegations were unable to excavate in Iran. The Iranian Cultural Heritage Organisation therefore appointed the author as the director of the Iranian delegation to recommence excavations at Susa beginning in 1994; the project has continued to this day. The principal aim of this delegation has been to reveal the architecture on the western side of the apadana, which is around 300 m. long (Fig. 12).

According to Dieulafoy's suggested plan, there was a large tall tower at the northwestern corner of the platform. This assumption was based on the condition of the mound, and recent investigations of the present delegation have confirmed this. Dieulafoy also assumed that there would be a straight wall after the tower and he suggested that there was a gateway in the middle of the wall. This idea was rejected by Ghirshman who did not succeed in finding the gate proposed by Dieulafoy; unfortunately no report was published about the excavations in this part of the mound. The present excavations have succeeded in revealing a gateway on the western side but further awayfrom the spot suggested by earlier missions. The Iranian delegation began its investigations in an expanded fashion over the entire area at the bottom of the platform. Excavations were conducted along the entire length of the wall and already three quarters of the wall has been exposed. The results have supported Dieulafoy's assumption of a tower in the northwestern part of the platform. At a distance of 22 m. south of the tower a brick construction (the bricks measuring 11 x 9 cm.) was discovered, proving that the straight wall was not continuous. The initial investigations have now revealed a gateway for the platform and although not all the architecture has been uncovered, we have learnt the following from our investigations:

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Fig. 12. Plan of theApadana at Susa

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The gateway is placed at the bottom of the platform. This is in contrast to the gate which was found by the French mission in the 1970s in the east and on the platform, where also the statue of Darius was discovered outside the gate building. We have to bear in mind that the floor of the apadana was originally about 18 m. higher than the floor of the gateway. As far as we can tell the gate follows a semicircular plan, a plan which is not known from other surviving Achaemenid architecture. Up to nearly a thousand fragments were found of large and small glazed bricks with floral and geometric designs and human figures, indicating that the gate was decorated with glazed bricks. The glazed bricks with human representations were divided into two groups: those of normal human size and those which were one third of the human size. If we compare the latter category with similar designs on the apadana at Persepolis, we could perhaps assume that these figures were placed on either side of the stairways. We have not revealed the ascending angle towards the top

5.

6.

of the platform as the earth has not yet been removed from behind the gateway but there are only two possibilities: either there was a ramp or there was a staircase and considering the above evidence there seems to have been a staircase. This gateway was destroyed and burnt during the attacks of Alexander and his Macedonian army. This is supported by the discovery of more than 80 fragments of sling stones, with a diameter of 12-25 cm., originally belonging to stone columns and their bases, probably deriving from nearby palaces which had been destroyed. In addition, almost 500 fragments Greek of arrowheads and spearheads-of rather than Iranian type--were discovered. The discovery of this gateway indicates that the main gateway providing access to the apadana was on the western side whereas the eastern gateway was used for exit. This also explains the reason why the statue of Darius was originally placed inside the apadana complex. Mir-Abedin Kaboli Iranian Cultural Heritage Organisation, Tehran

1999 ISLAMABAD The second season of archaeological research in the Islamabad Plain was carried out from 20 September to 23 November 1999 (for report on the first season, see Iran XXXVII, 1999: 34-44). In the second season we focused on two goals: surveying the Islamabad Plain and defining the regional sequence by means of stratigraphic cuts at Chogha Gavaneh, the site with the longest history of Holocene occupation on the Plain. We continued our survey from the town of Homeil in two directions: due north and northwest, where we explored the Tuveh Sorkh Valley and due south, we followed the Ravand River towards Tang-e Mansuri. Furthermore, we explored the Chogha Zard and Shiyan Plains, Souran Valley, and portions of the Islamabad Plain more intensively. This season we discovered and recorded 92 sites, bringing the total of recorded sites so far to 165. In the second season we had a major boost in our paleolithic sites, as we recorded several localities, including caves, rock-shelters, and open-air sites with a long sequence covering at least from Middle Paleolithic to Epipaleolithic periods. Of particular importance is a vast scatter of paleolithic artifacts in the northern extreme of Siyekhor Plain, close to a local source of chert.

We also recorded a mound-site with Aceramic and early Neolithic remains including the typical ceramic with the so-called "tadpole" design, and lithic assemblage characteristic of Early Neolithic period. There was a modest increase in the number of Chalcolithic sites, as we recorded several more tappehsand at least three cave-sites with Chalcolithic sherds. Our stratigraphic cut at Chogha Gavaneh helped us recognise the Bronze Age pottery of the Islamabad Plain. The pottery of this period seems to be a variant of the Godin III plain ware. But extremely rare in the Plain is the typical Godin III Black on Buff ware and so far we have had only a handful from our excavations at Chogha Gavaneh and one from surface pickup. The Iron Age on the Plain still poses a dilemma, as we have very little of the EarlyWestern Grey Ware and Late Western Grey Ware, but there are some sherds which resemble Late Western Buff Ware. At Chogha Gavaneh, one of our exploratory soundings (TTE1) yielded pottery which resembles Sialk Necropole A and B, but the sherds come from a refuse context and are therefore hard to interpret. The later historical and Islamic periods still claim the lion's share of the recorded sites. We discovered

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a huge site, perhaps up to 50 hectares, to the south of the town of Homeil, which seems to be an urban site of historical and Islamic periods. We recommenced our stratigraphic studies at Chogha Gavaneh by opening two new operations and continuing work at Operation W263, where we excavated last year. Work at Op. W263 made little progress, as we had to remove almost two metres of recent debris from the nearby blacksmith's workshop before we could actually reach target archaeological deposits. We continued our detailed sampling of archaeological material. This season produced several additional bags of bones and lithics and more flotation and radiocarbon samples. Analyses of last year's floral and faunal samples by Heather Trigg and Richard Redding of the Museum of Anthropology of the University of Michigan indicate that the Middle Chalcolithic people of Chogha Gavaneh had access to a variety of domesticated plants and animals including wheat, barley, sheep, goat, pig and cattle. Evidence for chickpeas and wild pistachios was quite interesting, as the former is still a major crop in the area and the latter still occur in countryside. By sampling lower deposits at Op.W263 we hope to gather evidence for earlier stages of subsistence economy at the major site on the Plain. The recovered pottery assemblage is still a mixed bag of Ubaid-type painted sherds and coarse utilitarian ware of the Zagros Chalcolithic. The amount of underlying deposits suggest that we will be working at Op. W263 for some time in the future. In our surface pickup at Chogha Gavaneh we discovered stray pieces of a beveled-rim bowl, a drooping spout, and most importantly, a fragmentary clay nail on the northern slopes of the mound. Hoping to find in situ evidence for Uruk occupation we opened up a step trench in this area. S(tep) T(rench) 1 ran through at least four levels of Bronze

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Age occupation (three upper domestic ones, and the lowest one perhaps the outer wall of a major fort), before hitting a dense deposit of discarded Uruk pottery, including beveled-rim bowls, trays, jars, and smaller quantities of painted and Grey Ware. Beneath this "Uruk" level, we found more Uruk-type sherds with Late Chalcolithic pottery before the cold weather forced us to close down the operation. We opened our last exploratory sounding to the east of the High Mound, in an open area between residential quarters. This small sounding, only 2 x Im., code named T(est) T(rench) E(ast) 1 crossed through a dense, but shallow layer of mixed Iron Age III through Parthian pottery, perhaps dumped there from elsewhere, before hitting deposits with Bronze Age pottery. As we went deeper our small sounding was reduced to a shaft, where there was hardly enough room for a workman. We stopped excavating at a depth of 6.50m below the surface. As part of our research in Islamabad Plain, we began an ethnographic survey of modem villages and data-collection on the demography of the Plain. The general area is home to various tribes of the Kurdish Kalhor confederacy, some nomadic and some sedentary. Preliminary observations suggest major changes in the settlement pattern and subsistence economy of these people in the last few decades. Although a side-project of our work at Islamabad, with our ethnographic studies, we hope to be able to explore changing lifeways in recent times, and perhaps shed some light on changes we surmise to have occurred on the Plain in the archaeological past. KamyarAbdi Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan

RECENT ARCHAEOLOGICALWORK IN KUVA, UZBEKISTAN Kuva in the Ferghana Valley, Uzbekistan, first attracted archaeological attention in the 1950s and during several seasons of excavation under the directorship of academician Gulyamov and others, the remains of a Buddhist temple and important finds including Buddhist sculptures, now displayed in Tashkent and Samarkand History museums, were discovered. Unfortunately further investigation of the site ceased in 1970 because of funding difficulties, but in 1996 the formation of the Kuva Public Archaeological Expedition allowed work to recommence. Limited finances permitted only a small area in the western section of this 16 ha. site to be excavated, but with support from the Association of

Cultural Exchange (Cambridge UK) from 1998, it has been possible to extend the work uncovering a number of domestic buildings and narrow alleys and, in particular, to reveal the south-eastern section of the defence wall and a gate of the shahristan;it had been thought in the 1950s that this inner wall had been totally destroyed. Our investigations show that this enclosing defence wall was at first only some 5m. thick and perhaps 5m. in height, constructed during the turbulent fifth-sixth centuries AD. It was later strengthened and again in the late seventh century just before the Arab conquests in Central Asia, when at least two solid towers were constructed to further

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defend this section of the wall, and a wide water moat dug. During the 1999 spring season, archaeological work in an adjacent sector of the site revealed that the moat was filled in the eighth century with debris to a level of 5m., suggesting the citadel itself was destroyed after the Arab conquest. However, the defence walls were retained and indeed further renewed in the eleventh-twelfth centuries, when at least one workshop of blacksmiths was incorporated near the gate. Two furnaces were uncovered in the workshop with a thick layer of ashes, and slag incorporating pieces of charcoal, as well as horse shoes and nails, presumably the main production. The eleventh-twelfth century date of the wall rebuilding, gate and smithy is supported by various coin and ceramic finds nearby. Elsewhere on the site the most recent season of work, again assisted by the Association in Cambridge, was rewarded by the find-

ing of five, almost undamaged bronze vessels with extensive incised decoration, and numerous bronze crosses suggests an active (Nestorian?) Christian community within the city. The site has proved to be rich in slip-painted Islamic pottery sherds, but there is also clear evidence of new (for the Kuva site) ceramic forms introduced during the ninth century. The finding of various patterned "stamp" moulds, kiln tripod separators etc. during the 1998-99 seasons strongly suggests local production in Kuvaitself during the medieval period. An exciting range of domestic and medical glass vessels, (colourless, coloured and a dense "black")was also excavated during these seasons, and one glassblowing workshop has been found on site. Gennadi Ivanov Kuva Public Archaeological Expedition, Ferghana

DAL'VERZINTEPE (UZBEKISTAN) The third season of excavations at Dal'verzin Tepe lasted from the 11 August to 25 September 1998. The work was sponsored by the Foundation for Cultural Heritage, Tokyo and the Silk Road Institute, Kamakura and conducted by the Japan-Uzbek Joint-Archaeological Mission, organised by the Ancient Orient Museum, Tokyo and the Fine Art Research Institute, Tashkent. The site is situated about 120 kilometres north of Termez, on the right bank of the Surkhan Darya. It is thought to be the most important and one of the largest sites in this region from the Greco-Bactrian to Early Medieval periods. Many parts of the lower town were excavated by Soviet and Uzbek scholars from the 1960s onwards yet only a few trial trenches have been excavated on the citadel. For this reason we selected the citadel as the target of our research. We commenced our excavations in two areas (DTC 4, 5) in 1996, the intermediate area (DTC 6) being excavated in 1997; published preliminary reports are listed below. During the third season our effort was concentrated in an enlarged excavation area in DTC 4 and on the necropolis (DTN) situated west of the citadel (Fig. 13). In Area DTC 4, excavations have revealed the remains of a relatively large house containing at least ten rooms and situated on the northern side of Street 1 (Fig. 14). At the entrance from the street is a broad room (Room 1) surrounded by earthen benches and decorated with wall paintings. The bad state of preservation of the painting prevents reconstruction of the original composition but many

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Fig. 13. fragments with geometric and floral designs were recovered. Rooms 3 and 4 were kitchens and contained bread ovens. Rooms 4 and 5 were destroyed by fire and many objects were discovered in situ while burnt beams and reed fretwork provide clear evidence for the type of roof. In Area DTC 6 we

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found an open space and the entrance to some kind of communal structure but the presumed major building must lie beyond the excavated area. In Area DTC 5 only two squares have been excavated, revealing kitchens and storerooms. 24

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turies A.D. Numerous earthenwares, terracotta objects, glassware and metal utensils were uncovered; the frequent discovery of carbonised rice remains, proven by DNA analysis to belong to the Japonica type, is particularly interesting. In a field lying west of the citadel we found numerous fragments of sarcophagi, hence our description of this area as the necropolis (DTN). During this season we excavated three tombs. Two of these were badly damaged by cultivation but Tomb 1 remained in fairly good condition. It contained a barrel-shaped sarcophagus measuring approximately two metres in length and 50 cm in diameter, with four short legs and a separate two-handled cover attached to the top. Burial goods consisted of two earthenware vessels and iron objects but the precise dating of these tombs awaits further research. K. Tanabe and A. Hori et al. 1996. "Excavationat Dalverzin Tepe, 1996", Bulletin of the Ancient OrientMuseumXVII, 101-22; K. Tanabe and A. Hori et al. 1997. "Excavationat Dalverzin Tepe, Uzbekistan, 1997", Bulletinof theAncient OrientMuseumXVIII, 157-208; B. A. Turgnov, ed. 1997. Materialypolevykhissledovanii iskusstvobedceskoi Yzbekistanskoi ekspedicii,no. 1, Tashkent; B. A. Turgnov, ed. 1998. MaterialypolevykhissledovaniiYzbekistanskoi iskusstvobedceskoi ekspedicii,no.2, Tashkent.

Tanabe Katsumi, University of Kanazawa Hori Akira, Ancient Orient Museum

MELEHEIRAM (TURKMENISTAN) Two seasons of excavations have been conducted at Mele Heiram since 1997. This Sasanian site is located c. fifteen kilometres east of the modern country town of Serakhs and the remains of the important ancient and Islamic site of Serakhs. The mound is approximately seven metres in height with a diameter of forty metres. Four trenches were excavated during the first season, exposing the uppermost parts of a mudbrick building of uncertain function. A small number of nevertheless very interesting Small Finds were discovered here, namely six hemispherical glass gaming pieces, a bronze pectoral, a fragmentary bone comb and a fragment of decorated bone. During the second season further excavations clarified the architectural plan which consists of a Sasanian fire temple with two rooms (P1. XXXa). Rooms 1 and 2 are both somewhat irregularly shaped, the former measuring at least 4.50 x 2.60 m. across and the latter up to 5.00 x 4.40 m. The two chambers are connected by a doorway approximately two metres across. The inner walls and the floor of each room are covered with a thick coat of

mud plaster, the walls also being covered with several layers of white plaster. In Room 1 the excavations revealed three niches, one in each of the walls other than the wall with the doorway. A mudbrick platform measuring 1.6 x 0.9 m. across and covered with gypsum plaster stood in front of the niche in the northern wall. Some bricks with traces of burning lay on the platform; a thin layer of gray ash was detected inside the niche and on the platform itself. Room 2 was entered by two doors. The first door was located in the eastern wall, measured one metre across and survived to a height of 2.35 m.; the second door was located in the north wall, again measured a metre across and was 1.7 m. high. In three corners of this room there were plinths or small platforms. In the centre of the room the remains of a slightly oval mud altar, c. 1.2 m. in diameter, was revealed. On the floor around the altar was a square flat mudbrick construction measuring 1.3 x 1.5 m. across and rising only a few centimetres above the level of the surrounding compacted clay floor. The intervening space between

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the altar and this installation was covered with the remains of the upper part of the altar and a large quantity of fine light gray ash. The pottery and other finds place this building within the Middle and Late Sasanian period.

The active life of this temple was later cut for some unknown reason as both rooms were carefully infilled with sand and the two doorways in Room 2 were blocked with a thick mudbrick wall. Barbara Kaim, University of Warsaw

SERAKHS(TURKMENISTAN) This is a huge site covering c. 120 hectares and situated near the country town of the same name, c. five kilometres east of the river Tedjen. The site consists of three parts, namely a qala or citadel standing more than 20 metres in height (P1. XXXb), a shahristan or city proper and the rabad or suburb. The site was previously excavated by A. Marushchenko (1953), 0. Orazov (1964-70), G. Khanmuradov and T. Khodjaniasov (1990-1994?). The first season of the Polish archaeological work commenced in 1995 and a stratigraphic sounding was excavated in 1996. Sterile deposits were reached at a depth of 8.50 m. below the surface. This sounding provides a ceramic chronology from the late Iron Age to the seventeenth century. It does not exclude the possibility of earlier occupation nor does it cover the Sasanian period which was revealed in the northern rabatin 1997. Two further soundings conducted on the citadel attest occupation here as late as the nineteenth century. The citadel was surrounded by a fortification wall. Access from the shahristanwas via a gate in the centre of the eastern wall. Only the outer face of part of the eastern and

southern walls was cleaned by T. Khodjaniasov and G. Khanmuradov but without any documentation and unfortunately reconstructed using cement. In order to study the military architecture of the Seljuks we selected for excavation the northeast corner of the citadel, exposing a horseshoe-shaped corner tower with an internal compartment and measuring 8 x 6 m. across. Ceramic sherds from the floor date the first phase of use to the fourteenth century. Unfortunately the tower is poorly preserved because of later robbing of the fired bricks. Excavation at the southern wall of the shahristan revealed the existence of a protruding semi-circular solid tower standing five metres in height and protruding 3.40 m. from the curtain which measured 2.40 m. wide. A second wall, 2.80 m. across, was later built against the outer face of this curtain. Ceramics collected during the excavation place the construction of the tower in the Early Islamic period; in addition, several fragmentary clay figurines were found in the deposit in front of the tower. Barbara Kaim, University of Warsaw

P1.Ia. Merv GyaurKala 5, red-slipped horsefigurine with bridle(SF 10242), ht. 7.6 cm.

P1.Id. MervGyaurKala 5, femaleriderfigurine holdinga mirror(SF 10282), ht. 6.1 cm.

P1.le. Merv GyaurKala 5, maleriderfigurine with high headdress(SF 10243), ht. 7.3 cm.

P1.lb. Merv GyaurKala 5, head offigurine with diadem (SF 4975), ht. 3.5 cm.

P1.Ic. Merv GyaurKala 5, female figurine with doubleknobheaddress and mirror(SF 10253), ht. 6.0 cm.

P1.If Merv GyaurKala 5, StructureC, westend of storeroom(Room606) containingjars set on lowplasteredbenches,lookingsouth.

P1.Ig. Merv GyaurKala 5, StructureC, view lookingeast of Room603 with plasteredfloor, benchand doorwayin the leftcornerconnectingRoom841. Onemetre scales.

Pl. IIa. Merv GyaurKala 6, viewfrom above,lookingnorth,of the upper wallwalkof theHellenisticwall, withpilasterson the leftand remainsof later brickinfilling on theright.

Pl. lid. MervGyaurKala 6, top of thevaultedarch of thePhase 1 wall with thepartlysectionedPhase 2 wall behind.

P1.HIb.Merv GyaurKala 6, view of the upperwallwalk,lookingsouth with pilasterson therightand Phase 2 brickinfilling in section.

P1.IIc. Merv GyaurKala 6, detail of Phase 2 brickblockingof thePhase 1 crenellation,20 cm. scale.

P1.lIe. Merv GyaurKala 6, partlysectionedvaulted roomwith secondwallwalkin foregroundand Phase scale. 2 wall beyondthe two-metre

P1.Ilia. Merv GyaurKala 6, a view of thePhase 1 wall vaultedarchbeforeunblockingwithPhase 2 brick infilling of thewallwalkin section.

P1.IIIc. Merv GyaurKala 6, view lookingsouth of the partlysectionedPhase 2 brickinfilling of the upper wallwalkson theHellenisticwall.

dummyslit P1.IIIb.Merv GyaurKala 6, arrow-shaped in thePhase3 wall.

P1. IIId. MerwGyaurKala 6, view lookingwestthrough thePhase3/4 slit enfiladingthePhase 3 proteichisma scaleplacedon the posternbeneath,with two-metre platformbeyondtheouterwalkway.

P1.IVa. Merv GyaurKala 6, a view lookingsouth-westof thePhase 3 wall, proteichismaand platformwith thePhase 5 vaultedgalleryat the top and the unexcavatedcornerbastionbehind.

P1.IVd. Merv GyaurKala 6, view of thePhase 3/4 slits and Phase5 blocking,partlyexcavated.

P1.IVb.Merv GyaurKala 6, view lookingsouth of thePhase 3/4 wall, sectionedPhase 4 bermrising to the levelof theuppergalleryand thePhase5 vaultedgalleryat the top.

Pl. IVc. Merv GyaurKala 6, view lookingnorthfrom thecornerbastionalong thePhase 3/4 slits and with thePhase 3 proteichismaand posternbeneath.

P1. IVe.Merv GyaurKala 6, Phase 5 vaulted gallerywith laterinfilling,partlyexcavated,with scale. one-metre

P1. Va. MervSultan Kala, MSK1, a view lookingnorthacrossthepartlyexcavated northiwan and roombeyond,with secondarybenchesand cross-wall.

P1. Vb.MervSultan Kala, MSK1, Northiwan, detail of stuccoornamentfrom thenorthwall.

P1. Vc.MervSultan Kala, MSK1, Northiwan, detailof stuccoornamentfrom theeast wall

P1. VIa.MervSultan Kala, MSK1, stuccoornamenton theeast-facingcourtyard wall betweenthe corridorentrance(VIb,right)and the unexcavatedwestiwan.

P1. VIb.MervSultan Kala, MSK1, view lookingeastfrom thecorridorentranceinto thepaved courtyard.

P1. VIc.MervSultan Kala, MSK1, stuccofragmentfound in thefill of AreaH east.

P1. VIIa.MervSultan Kala, MSK7,AreaB, exteriorof thenorthfortificationwall, generalview of thetrenches.

P1. VIIb.MervSultan Kala, MSK7,AreaA, interiorof the northfortificationwall, generalviewshowingfrom rightto left:staircase ST14, thecorridorof chamberT7, staircaseST13 and staircaseST12.

P1. VIIIa.MervSultan Kala, MSK7,AreaB, first towerT7, showingthebaseof thehollowtowerwith itsfake arrowslit.

P1. VIIIb.MervSultan Kala, MSK7,AreaB, curtain C6, baseof thefirst curtainand rebuiltupperpart.

P1. VIIIc.MervSultan Kala, MSK7,AreaB, outerplatformand levelling.

P1.IXa. MervSultan Kala, MSK7,Area B, new towerT7, showing theplatformbuilt of brokenfired brickson whichthe towerwas constructed.

P1.IXc. MervSultan Kala, KushmeihanGate. Interiorand exteriorof ringfootedbowlfrom Kashan.

P1.IXb. MervSultan Kala, MSK7,AreaB, new towerT7, showingthe filling of its chamberand accesscorridor. P1.IXd. MervSultan Kala, MSKIE.Ribbedexterior of celadonbowl, Yuan dynasty(1280-1368) from Longquanin Zheijiangprovince,China.

Pl. Xa. LesserKyzKala, excavationworkpriorto supportingthe undercutsouthfacade.

Pl. Xb. LesserKyzKala, thesouthfacade afterplasteringthesupportingbrickwork.

Pl. XIa. ThePavilion at Kurtly,therectangularsquinchwith lobeddecoration.

P1. XIb.Distant view of the caravanseraiat ShaimKala.

P1. XIc.A squinchfrom thecaravanseraiat ShaimKala.

P1. XIIa. Thenorthbuildingin ShahryarArkfrom the northwall.

P1. XlJb. Thenorthbuildingin ShahryarArkfrom theeast.

P1. XIIc. Thenorthbuildingin ShahryarArk, thebackwall with transversevaults and archedniche.

P1. XIII. Monnaiesarabo-sassanides.cUbaydalldhb. Ziyadl(1, 2, 6). cAbdallahb. Zubayr(3). Hakam b. Abi 'l-cAs(4). Muhallab b. Abi-Sufra(5). Diametrereeldes monnaies:environ30 mm.

P1. XIV.Monnaiesarabo-sassanides.CAbdal-Rahmanb. Zayd(7). cAbdalldhle Khdrijite(8). Ubaydalldhb. Ziydd(9). b. Zubayr(10). CAtiyab. Aswad (11-12). Diametrereeldes monnaies:environ30 mm. CAbddlldh

cAtiyab. Aswad (13, 17, 18). CAmrb. Laqit (14). cUbaydalldhb. Ziydd(15). P1. XV. Monnaiesarabo-sassanides. Musacabb. Zubayr(16). Diametreriel des monnaies:environ30 mm.

(21). cAtiyab. Aswad P1. XV7.Monnaiesarabo-sassanides.Yazidb. Muhallab (19). Hakam b. Abi 'l-As(20). cUbaydallahb. ZAyadl (22, 24). cAbdalldhb. Zubayr(23). Diametrerieldes monnaies:environ30 mm.

b. Zubayr(25-26). Ziyddb. Abut-Sufyan(27). cAtiyab. Aswad (28-29). Dirhamde P1. XVII.Monnaiesarabo-sassanides. CAbdallah KhusrawII gravi de bismill•h (30). Diametreriel des monnaies:environ30 mm.

P1. XVIII.Monnaiesarabo-sassanides.cAbdalldhb. Zubayr(31-33). 'Atiya b. Aswad (34-35). Hakam b. Abi 'l-As(36). Diametre reeldes monnaies:environ30 mm.

cAbdalldhb. Zubayr(37-38). cUbaydalldhb. Ziydd(39). Hdrithb. CAbdallh(40). Diametre P1. XIX. Monnaiesarabo-sassanides. reeldes monnaies:environ30 mm.

P1. XX a-e. Persepolissculpturesin theBritishMuseumfrom thecollectionof LordAberdeen. (a) BM.WA.118843, (b) BM.WA.118842, (c) BM.WA.118855, (d) BM.WA.118850, (e) BM.WA.11885 7.

P1. XXI a-d. Persepolis sculptures in the British Museum from the collection of Lord Aberdeen. (a) BM. WA.118864, (b) BM. WA.118845, (c) BM. WA.118865, (d) BM. WA.118844.

P1. XXIIa-b. Persepolissculpturesin theBritishMuseumfrom thecollectionof LordAberdeen. (a) BM.WA.118848, (b) BM.WA.118866.

Pl. XXIIc-e. Persepolissculpturesin theBritishMuseumfrom thecollectionof Sir GoreOuseley. (c) BM.WA.118838, (d) BM.WA.118837, (e) BM.WA.118839.

P1. XXIIIa. TheSalting Carpet(Survey, pl. 1162).

P1. XXIIIb.The GarlandFragment(

P1. XXIVa.Kuh-eKhwaja. The TempleComplex.TheArched Entranceof theSouth Gate,looking northwards.

P1. XXIVb.Kuh-eKhwaja.Central Courtyardof the TempleComplex, lookingtowardstheNorth Wall.

P1. XXIVc.Kuh-eKhwaja. CentralCourtyardof the Temple Complex,showinga portionof the Northand theEast Walls.

P1. XXVa.Kuh-eKhwaja.Central Courtyardof the TempleComplex. Detail of theNorth Wallof the Courtyardshowingtheremainsof the axial Staircasein theforeground. Note also theengagedDoric Columns at right.

P1. XX/Vb.Kuh-eKhwaja.A view of theNorth Wallof the Central Courtyardshowingtheremainsof StuccoOrnamentation(centreright).

P1. XXVc.Kuh-eKhwaja. The Temple Complex.ThePainted Gallery,looking westwards.

P1. XXVIa.Kuh-eKhwaja. TheFire Sanctuary,showingthefour corner Piers. The mud-plasterbase,which oncesupportedtheStoneFireAltar, stands at thecentreof theroom.

P1. XXVIb.Kuh-eKhwaja.Part of the AmbulatoryCorridorsurroundingthe FireSanctuary.

P1. XXVIc.Kuh-eKhwaja. The Temple Complex.The WesternChamberof the Inner Terrace,showingtheremainsof one of theSquinches.

P1. XXVIIa.Kuh-eKhwaja. The TempleComplex.Detail of a brick Vault.

P1. XXVIIb.Kuh-eKhwaja. The TempleComplex.Detail of a typical Vault.

P1. XXVIIc.Kuh-eKhwaja. Wall surfaceat 'A"in Fig. 3, p. 139.

P1. XXVIIIa.Kuh-eKhwaja, Wall and Foundationat "B"in Fig. 3, p. 139.

P1.XXVIIIc.Kuh-eKhwaja. String Coursesof Stonein a typicalWallFoundation.

SXXVIIIb.Kuh-eKhwaja. The arrowsindic of Stoneand/or brokenBricksin a ty

Pl. XXIXa. Kuh-e Khwaja. Detail of a typical Wall Foundation.

P1. XXIXc. Kuh-e Khwaja. Wall construction in the Temple Complex. Lightweight material seen above the intact arch.

P1. XXIXb. Kuh-e Khwaja. Wall construction in the material seen above the remains

P1. XXIXd. The Sacrificial Stone next to the Shrine of K the mountain.

PI. XXXa.MeleHeiram.ExcavatedSasanianfire temple:a view lookingfromRoomI towardRoom2.

P1.XXXb.Serakhs.Thecitadel:viewfrom thewest.

NOTES ON TRANSLITERATION

FOR CONTRIBUTORS

TO IRAN

OLDANDMIDDLE PERSIAN It is recognised that no rigid lines can be laid down here, but it is suggested that the Old Persian syllabary should be transliterated according to the table in Kent, Old Persian. Grammar,Texts,Lexicon, p. 12; that for Manichaean Middle Persian and Parthian, the transliteration system given in AndreasHenning, Mitteliranische Manichaica, vol. III, p. 66, should be used; whilst for Pahlavi, the table of alphabets given in Nyberg, A Manual of Pahlavi, new edition, p. 129, may be used as a reference for transcription. ANDMODERN II. ISLAMIC PERSIAN The system used for the CambridgeHistory of Islam should be used here as far as possible. Consonants I.

(a) Arabic .

zz

b t

th

J

q ik J3 1 " m Sn h

Ss

j /

sh s

Sd

i

t

Skh d dh

>

L (. gh ; r -f (b) Persian additional and variant forms. The variant forms should names and for Arabic words used in Persian. z "p - sc > 3 zh ch & 2 s (c) The Persian "silent h" should be transliterated a, e.g. nama. Vowels Arabic or Persian Short: a Long: I or t a u

i

J

w

y -a (in construct state: -at) generally be used for Iranian vg v

i

Doubled '- iyy (final form i) Dipthongs ", au ai NOTES 1. The idfa should be represented by -i, or after long vowels, by -yi, e.g. umard-yijdnki. 2. The Arabic definite article should be written as al- or 1-,even before the so-called "sun letters", e.g. 'Abd al-Malik, Abu 'l-Nasr. 3. The macrons of Abid and Dhfi (Zui) should be omitted before the definite article, e.g. Abu 'l-Abbas (but Abui 'Ubaida). It is obvious that for the rendering of linguistic and dialectical material, and possibly also for contemporary literary and spoken Persian, this rigorous system of transliteration is inappropriate; contributors should use their discretion here. III.

GENERALPOINTS

1. Names of persons should be rigorously transliterated. 2. Conventional English equivalents (without macrons or diacritics) should be used for the names of countries, provinces or large towns, e.g. Khurasan, Shiraz. Otherwise, all place-names should be rigorously transliterated. Archaeologists are asked to be especially careful in representing the names of little-known places at or near sites. 3. Modern Turkish names and words should be written in the current romanized Turkish orthography. 4. Where classical Greek and Latin renderings of Old and Middle Persian names exist, these familiar forms should be used for preference. 168

ABBREVIATIONS AARP AASOR AfO AIr AJ AJA AJSL AK AMI ANET AO Arch Anz ArO AS BA Besch BASOR Belleten BGA Bib Or BMMA BSA BSOAS CAH CDAFI CHIr CIA CII EI EI2 EIr EW IA IIJ IJMES ILN Isl JA JAOS JCS JFA JHS JNES JRAI JRAS JRCAS JSS KF LAAA MAOG MDAFA MDAI MDOG MDP MJ MMJ NC OIC OIP PZ RA REI SAA SAOC Sov Arkh SS St Ir Survey WdO WVDOG ZA ZDMG

Art and Archaeology Research Papers Annual of American Schools of Oriental Research Archiv fur Orientforschung Acta Iranica Antiquaries' Journal AmericanJournal of Archaeology American Journal of Semitic Languages and Literatures Antike Kunst Archaeologische Mitteilungen aus Iran Pritchard, Ancient Near Eastern Texts Ars Orientalis Archiologischer Anzeiger Archiv Orientailni Anatolian Studies Bulletin van de Vereeniging ... de Antieke Beschaving, The Hague Bulletin of American Schools of Oriental Research Tfirk Tarih Kurumu: Belleten Bibliotheca Geographorum Arabicorum Bibliotheca Orientalis Bulletin of the Metropolitan Museum of Art Annual of the British School at Athens Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies Cambridge Ancient History Cahiers de la Del6gation Archeologique FranCaiseen Iran Cambridge History of Iran Corpus Inscriptionum Arabicarum Corpus Inscriptionum Iranicarum Encyclopaedia of Islam, 1st Edition Encyclopaedia of Islam, 2nd Edition Encyclopaedia Iranica East and West, New Series Iranica Antiqua Indo-IranianJournal International Journal of Middle East Studies Illustrated London News Der Islam Journal Asiatique Journal of the American Oriental Society Journal of Cuneiform Studies Journal of Field Archaeology Journal of Hellenic Studies Journal of Near Eastern Studies Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society Journal of the Royal Central Asian Society Journal of Semitic Studies Kleinasiatische Forschungen Annals of Archaeology and Anthropology, Liverpool Mitteilungen der Altorientalischen Gesellschaft M6moires de la Delegation Archeologique Francaise en Afghanistan M6moires de la DelTgation Arch6ologique en Iran Mitteilungen der Deutschen Orientgesellschaft Memoires de la Mission Archeologique de Perse MuseumJournal, Philadelphia Metropolitan MuseumJournal Numismatic Chronicle Oriental Institute, Chicago, Communications Oriental Institute, Chicago, Publications Praehistorische Zeitschrift Revue d'Assyriologie Revue des Etudes Islamiques Soviet Anthropology and Archaeology Oriental Institute, Studies in Ancient Oriental Civilisation SovietskayaArkheologiya Schmidt, H., Heinrich Schliemanns Sammlung trojanischer Altertiumer Studia Iranica A Survey of Persian Art from Prehistoric Times to the Present, ed. A. U. Pope, Oxford, 1938 Die Welt des Orients Wissenschaftliche Veroffentlichungen der Deutschen Orientgesellschaft Zeitschrift fuirAssyriologie Zeitschrift der Deutschen Morgenl~indischen Gesellschaft

169

NOTES FOR THE CONTRIBUTORS Iran is a refereed journal with a board of editorial advisers. The editors are Professor C. E. Bosworth and Dr. Vesta Curtis and the editorial advisers are Dr. P. R. S. Moorey, ProfessorJ. M. Rogers and Professor David Stronach. In addition, articles are sent to other scholars as appropriate. Articles for Iran should be submitted on disk together with a hard copy. The hard copy should be on one side of A4 paper or the nearest North American equivalent size with double spacing and generous margins. Carbon copies or photocopies of typescript are not acceptable. Notes should be numbered consecutively and placed at the end of the article. Photographs for reproduction should be, as far as possible, in the form of bright and sharp glossy black and white prints, and should be original photographs. In case of reproductions, permission from the author or publisher must be obtained beforehand. Whenever possible, contributors should submit original line drawings rather than photographic or other reproductions. Authors of articles will receive 25 offprints free and may order additional ones, at reasonable prices, in multiples of 25. The Editors should be informed of any extra offprint orders when the first proofs of articles are returned. Authors of contributions in the ShorterNotices will receive 15 copies of the complete ShorterNoticessection.

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