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Message:: [QUOTE="Curtisimo, post: 3138531, member: 83845"]For a while now I have been interested in dipping my toes into the coinage of the Ancient Sasanian and Parthian Empires.  Until now I had yet to buy my first example due to the (to me) intimidating nature of studying these issues and my general lack of knowledge of Iranian history compared to Greco-Roman history.  However, when I saw this budget Sassanid come up at a recent JA auction at a fair price I figured, what the heck, I can study it as well as I can and see if I get bit by the eastern coinage bug (plus its provenanced to a fellow CTer <img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie2" alt=";)" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" />). [ATTACH=full]801925[/ATTACH]Sasanian EmpireKhusro II (AD 590 – 628)AR Drachm, BBA mint (court mint), Regnal year 30, struck ca. AD 619 / 620Obv.: Pahlavi script at left and right. Khusro bust facing, head right, wearing winged crown with star and crescent, inside double dotted border, crescent and stars at 3, 6 and 9 o’clock.Rev.: Date (left) and mint mark (right).  Fire altar with two attendents, inside triple dotted border, crescent and stars at 3, 6 and 9 o’clock.Ref.: Göbl SN type IIEx Sallent Collection, Ex JAZ Numismatics, Ex Aegean Numismatics The Last Great Sasanian King of Kings The reign of Khusro II is fascinating because during his roughly 38 years on the throne (there are 39 RY in his coinage) he presided over a roller coaster of rising and falling fortunes for the Sasanian Empire.  He was first declared “King of Kings” at around the age of 20 by his maternal uncles after they had blinded and killed his father <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hormizd_IV" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hormizd_IV" rel="nofollow">Hormizd IV</a>.  The uncles had done this because Hormizd IV had foolishly insulted a popular general, Bahram Chobin, so severely that he was on his way to the capital to murder Hormizd himself.  This first portion of Khusro II reign lasted about as long as it took Bahram Chobin to march his army to Ctesiphon.  With his prospects in Persia looking bleak, Khusro II fled to the only person left who had a chance of helping him regain his throne: The Byzantine Emperor <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurice_(emperor)" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurice_(emperor)" rel="nofollow">Maurice Tiberius</a>.  Maurice did help Khusro II recover his throne and for over a decade the Byzantines and Sasanians were at peace. When Maurice was murdered on the orders of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phocas" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phocas" rel="nofollow">Phocas</a> after an army mutiny, Khusro II used the event as a pretext to invade Byzantine territory.  This kicked off the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byzantine%E2%80%93Sasanian_War_of_602%E2%80%93628" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byzantine%E2%80%93Sasanian_War_of_602%E2%80%93628" rel="nofollow">last great war</a> between the successors of Persia and Rome.  This war would last for more than a generation (ca. AD 602 to 628) and would prove devastating to both empires.  However, during the middle stages of the war Khusro II’s armies were astonishingly successful and for a time it looked like the Byzantine Empire would collapse and that Khusro would be able to push the boundaries of Persia further even than Darius the Great had done over a millennia previously. In 613 and 614 Syria and Judea fell to the Persian onslaught and in 618 even Egypt fell into Sasanian hands.  My new coin (dated RY 30 = AD 619/20) was struck during the height of Sasanian territorial expansion. [ATTACH=full]801926[/ATTACH]The Sasanian Empire ca. AD 620 (the year my new coin was minted)(Image courtesy of <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sassanian_Empire_621_A.D.jpg" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sassanian_Empire_621_A.D.jpg" rel="nofollow">Wikipedia</a>) Khusro II’s military fortunes would start to turn in AD 624 when the new Byzantine Emperor <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heraclius" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heraclius" rel="nofollow">Heraclius</a> launched a desperate counterattack that proved surprisingly successful and even led to the sacking of the sacred fire temple at Adur Gushnasp.  In AD 627 Heraclius defeated the Persians at the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Nineveh_(627)" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Nineveh_(627)" rel="nofollow">Battle of Nineveh</a> and forced Khusro II to flee his residence at Dastagird.  Shortly after Khusro II was deposed by his son Kavadh II, put on trial, and executed.  A hasty peace was then concluded between the Byzantines and the Sasanians and both combatants limped home from the war, completely unprepared to face the Arab onslaught that would start just a few years later. Epic Fire Altar The reverse on this coin had me interested in looking up more about fire altars in Sasanian Persia.  I will confess that there is a lot I don’t understand about Zoroastrianism during this period even after reading about it and trying to find more information.  It seems from what I have read that during the Parthian period there were two types of structures used for Zoroastrian worship: one was a place for fire and the other held icons dedicated to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yazata" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yazata" rel="nofollow">yazatas</a> (one “worthy of worship”).  With the rise of the Sassanids the veneration of icons was suppressed and the fire altars gained a preeminent place in the religion. The Sassanids had three royal fires that were part of the ceremonies used for the ascendance of a new king.  The reverses of Sassanid drachms (such as mine) show a fire temple and there is a sequence of iconography as the dynasty progresses that show various forms of worship / figures / attendants / kings / deities.  The significance of this and what it means is something that I will have to look further into for future write ups. Anyway… One of these royal fire temples (Adur Gushnasp) was sacked by Heraclius during his counterattack on Persia.  When researching this write up I was blown away by the majesty and history of the place. It’s now on my list of places I intend to visit someday. [ATTACH=full]801927[/ATTACH]Figure 2 – Adur Gushnasp (modified from <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Takht-e-soleiman-1.jpg" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Takht-e-soleiman-1.jpg" rel="nofollow">Wikipedia image</a>) [ATTACH=full]801928[/ATTACH]Figure 3 – Adur Gushnasp (<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%D8%AA%D8%AE%D8%AA_%D8%B3%D9%84%DB%8C%D9%85%D8%A7%D9%86_%D8%AE%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%A8%D9%87%E2%80%8C%D9%87%D8%A7%DB%8C_%D8%B4%D9%87%D8%B1.jpg" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%D8%AA%D8%AE%D8%AA_%D8%B3%D9%84%DB%8C%D9%85%D8%A7%D9%86_%D8%AE%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%A8%D9%87%E2%80%8C%D9%87%D8%A7%DB%8C_%D8%B4%D9%87%D8%B1.jpg" rel="nofollow">Wikipedia</a>) The lake is spring fed by calcium rich water that over time formed the flat hill you see in the above images.  This extraordinary site was occupied during Achaemenid times and may have housed a temple with icons dedicate to yazatas during the Parthian period.  The aftermath of the Arab conquests saw the temple all but abandoned and it would eventually be used by the Mongols as a palace / fortress.  Since both fire and water are essential in the rituals of purification in Zoroastrianism it is not hard to see why this location would be ideal to house one of the three royal fires.  The actual fire would have been housed in the square building north of the lake shown in Figure 2.  These buildings were generally square with 4 pillars and a dome.  A walkway would then extent around the structure.  The actual altar at Adur Gushnasp isn’t well preserved but it probably looked something like Figure 4. [ATTACH=full]801929[/ATTACH]Figure 4 – Niasar Fire Temple (<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Niasar_Fire_Temple.jpg" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Niasar_Fire_Temple.jpg" rel="nofollow">Wikipedia</a>) [ATTACH=full]801932[/ATTACH]Figure 5 - Zoroastrian Fire Altar (<a href="https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Zoroastrian_Fire_Temple,_Yazd_(2).jpg#mw-jump-to-license" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Zoroastrian_Fire_Temple,_Yazd_(2).jpg#mw-jump-to-license" rel="nofollow">Wikipedia</a>) Some Notes on this Coin Drachms of Khusro II are extremely common which indicates that his reign saw an enormous output of coinage.  During this time there may have been as many as 40 mints striking Sasanian coins throughout the empire.  Thanks to the “Beast Coins” and FORVM pages I was able to take some baby steps toward understanding how to read and attribute these. [ATTACH=full]801930[/ATTACH]Figure 6 – Reading Khurso II Drachm On the obverse at right is Khusro II’s name written in Pahlavi.  The reverse right shows the mint mark.  There are other marks and writing on the coin but it is not well preserved enough for me to effectively read it using the sources I have found.  The coin is attributable to the BBA mint which is thought to be the mint that traveled with the royal court.  This means that this coin was probably struck to serve the day-to-day needs of the court of Khusro II himself!  Just imagine how many important Sasanian figures may have handled this coin during the heyday of the Sasanian expansion. Final thoughts on my First Sasanian Coin I like it… References <a href="https://www.beastcoins.com/Sasanian/Sasanian.htm" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.beastcoins.com/Sasanian/Sasanian.htm" rel="nofollow">https://www.beastcoins.com/Sasanian/Sasanian.htm</a> <a href="http://www.forumancientcoins.com/numiswiki/view.asp?key=sasanian%20mints" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://www.forumancientcoins.com/numiswiki/view.asp?key=sasanian%20mints" rel="nofollow">http://www.forumancientcoins.com/numiswiki/view.asp?key=sasanian%20mints</a> <a href="http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/sasanian-coinage" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/sasanian-coinage" rel="nofollow">http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/sasanian-coinage</a> <a href="http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/adur-gusnasp-an-atas-bahram-see-atas-that-is-a-zoroastrian-sacred-fire-of-the-highest-grade-held-to-be-one-of-" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/adur-gusnasp-an-atas-bahram-see-atas-that-is-a-zoroastrian-sacred-fire-of-the-highest-grade-held-to-be-one-of-" rel="nofollow">http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/adur-gusnasp-an-atas-bahram-see-atas-that-is-a-zoroastrian-sacred-fire-of-the-highest-grade-held-to-be-one-of-</a> ........................................................ Please post your...<ul> <li>Coins that were your first in a new collecting area</li> <li>Anything with a fire on it</li> <li>Sasanian Coins</li> <li>Surprise me</li> </ul>[/QUOTE]

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