Peroz: Sasanian warrior-king

Discussion in 'Ancient Coins' started by Parthicus, Dec 10, 2017.

  1. Parthicus

    Parthicus Well-Known Member

    A Frank Robinson auction win:
    Peroz.jpg
    Sasanian Empire. AR drachm. Peroz (457-484 AD). Obverse: Bust right in crown. Reverse: Fire-altar with two attendants, star and moon above; mintmark AYL (uncertain city in central Iraq or northeastern Iran), date gibberish.

    In 457, the Sasanian king Yazdegard III died. His oldest son, Peroz, would by custom be the successor, but Peroz was stationed as governor of Sistan province in central Asia, far from the capitol of Ctesiphon on the Tigris. In Peroz' absence, his younger brother seized the throne and began to reign as Hormazd III. Peroz was able to obtain help from the Hephthalites to wage civil war, and by 459 seized Ctesiphon and captured Hormazd, ending the civil war. Accounts differ on whether Peroz executed his brother or pardoned him; regardless, much of his reign would be spent in war. He first subdued a rebellious feudatory in the Caucasus. Next, he attempted peace with the Kidarites who had invaded parts of Transoxiana by offering his sister in marriage to the Kidarite king. However, Peroz tried to cheat and instead sent a low-status woman in her place. When the Kidarites found out, they moved to open warfare, but the Sasanians were successful and forced the Kidarites out of Transoxiana. A seven-year drought and famine struck from 464 to 471, and Peroz is credited with limiting the amount of death and suffering by careful management and sending relief supplies to the affected areas. Despite their earlier aid in bringing him to the throne, he fought three wars with the Hephthalites. Twice he was captured and had to pay huge ransoms for his release; the third time, in 484, he was killed in battle. On this coin portrait, the shape of the crown and the king's beard look (to me) like a helmet with chin-strap, an appropriate image of a warrior king.

    Drachms of Peroz are fairly common. The reverse has a mintmark, a feature of Sasanian drachms that had started during the reign of Varahran IV (388-399). Peroz added the regnal year to the reverse design, however on many specimens like this one, the "year" is so badly blundered as to be gibberish. On this coin, all I can see is several dots and the letter N. I don't know why the dates are often poorly executed while the mint marks remain clear. This coin was $45 in Frank Robinson's auction. Post your Sasanians, Kushans, or Kidarites here.
     
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  3. Youngcoin

    Youngcoin Everything Collector

    Wow great win!


    Thanks,
    Jacob
     
  4. Severus Alexander

    Severus Alexander find me at NumisForums

    Great writeup! (One typo: his dad was Yazdegard II.) And a nice coin, too.

    Peroz, from Susa (AY):
    Screen Shot 2017-12-10 at 10.49.25 PM.png
     
  5. Jovian363

    Jovian363 Well-Known Member

    Great and very attractive coins. Here is my Peroz drachm, very strongly struck, perhaps too strongly! PerozDrachm.jpg
     
  6. pfitzner

    pfitzner Member

    Only Peroz second crown type is dated (sometimes), with regnal years 2-7. His third type, which you have, is not and in place of a date has either the Pahlavi letter mim (M) or in this case his name, pylwc′. Sasanian coins won't be dated again until the second reign of Kavad I, starting with year 11.
    The name is usually blundered, but on your coin, pretty clear.
    Peroz_name.jpg
     
  7. dougsmit

    dougsmit Member

    Peroz in in the middle of the Sasanian group. His coins may not be as spectacular as some of the early ones but they have a good feel compared to the super thin ones of the later period. I keep telling myself it is time to get more.
    oa0720bb2714.jpg oa0730bb2551.jpg
     
  8. Parthicus

    Parthicus Well-Known Member

    Wow, thanks for the additional info. Somehow I read Gobl, and remembered about the different crowns, but the part about Peroz' name substituting for the date did not penetrate my skull. I blame the terrible, terrible, barely-usable Pahlavi script, and I hope that whoever invented Pahlavi script had their soul taken by Ahriman.
     
    Severus Alexander likes this.
  9. pfitzner

    pfitzner Member

    Actually, the Pahlavi on coins isn't all that bad. The legends are repetitive and formulaic, with a limited vocabulary. There are some late special issues with unique legends which cause problems, but for the most part, you won't find them on VCoins!
    This is Inscriptional Pahlavi. Save your ire for Book Pahlavi, which is cursive and has fewer letter forms (13 vs. 19).
    What blows my mind is that Nicholas Sims-Williams reads Bactrian, which looks like Spaghetti-Os.
     
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