Study on Achaemenid and Sasanian Inscriptions with Emphasis on the Motivation Make Royal Inscriptions and Their Historical Conditions

Authors

1 PhD student in history, Najafabad branch, Islamic Azad University, Najafabad, Iran.

2 Assistant Professor of History, Najafabad Branch, Islamic Azad University, Najafabad, Iran.

Abstract

Ever since prehistoric areas, even during the hunters-gathers communities and developments to maintain order and security in his society. Such communities had to obey some individual to preserve balance and interactions both at inter social level of their own communities as well as the international level with other societies over the world. Such rulers (to be obeyed) were usually selected based on some rules and methods. Moreover, the privilege to reign was transmitted to their sons or handed over to some other people. Along with formation of governments and considerable increase of the rulers’ powers, which played the same role as the former rulers of small communities, as well as extension of their geographical area with more population of different cultures under their reign, the situation became more complicated. Gradually, there was more ambition even among the people close to kings to gain the reign and rule on societies. It was of extra ordinary significance for the kings to keep on their rules and realms, because any disability in controlling the population or foreign threats even in regional events would cause some doubts in the king’s qualification and might result in his assassination or deposition. Thus, the leaders of societies, in the course of time, even before the formation of governments, would take some measures to make peoples not only obey their rules and orders, but to defend their reign and substitutes against the internal and external enemies too. The leaders of different eras and various regional societies were of different nature, such as a priest, a martial expert, a charismatic person or an intelligent professional one.
Keywords: Achaemenian, Sasanian, Legitimacy, History Course, Inscriptions Usage.
 
Introduction
These leaders occasionally restored to their fathers and ancestors, as they played a great role in the nation’s destination, to use their popularity and sociability in the way of their own followers and supporters extension. Such a set of variance in the governments’ natures and the development of social structures in the course of time caused a set of necessities to be absolute parts of a leader’s qualification. Such necessities for people to become rulers or governors are called legitimacy in politics. Although the term legitimacy is somehow modern, the ancient governments were unconsciously aware of such a method and continuously tried to gain the most possible legitimacy for themselves and make nations aware of their enemies as being exetainers. In fact, legitimacy was the spinal cord of a government and if it was lost for any reason, the ruler would be de positioned in a short time, much the worse he would be killed. Despite the significance of this issue, no comprehensive investigation was performed about the necessary qualities of reign in ancient Iran. Therefore, the authors have tried to investigate such qualities in this study. The authors believe that these inscriptions are of giving legitimacy to the king. They also study their utility in Iran’s ancient society. In this course, the inscriptional contents of these kingdoms as well as the association between the inscriptions and historical events in ancient Iran was investigated. Two of most important dynasties of Iran were Achaeminid and Sasanid. Persians had tribal social structure but Sasanian had a civilized structure and settled in big cities and was priest of temple. These dynasties have very different social background and different political situations when raised.  A number of royal inscriptions of Achaemenid and Sasanian eras have been left in different parts under their kingdom. These inscriptions have helped the researchers to learn about the language, history, culture and archaeology in learning about different aspects of sociopolitical situation of the time. The questions to be answered in this study are: the reason to make such inscriptions in a great cost of time and money, the necessity felt by Achaemenian and Sasanian kings to make them, have they been made to celebrate a victory? Either a way to show the power, or a tool for advertisement? Or making these inscriptions carry an important secret in them that has caused them to be made? This study has aimed to find out if these inscriptions were a means to gain and declare the king’s legitimacy and when their make have become obligatory? The authors have tried to study the inscriptions as well as their contents and also their historical time to be made to find the answer to the question. The authors have also studied the inscriptions of Achaeenian and Sasanian periods based on variabilities such as the frequency of the inscriptions of the kings as well as internal factors (such as uprisings against the king or the kings’ uprising against his former counterpart) or the occurrence of foreign conflicts with the level of their victories in addition to the contents mentioned in them, to make a possible guess of the aim behind making these historical inscriptions. To achieve this goal, the authors gathered both the kingdoms’ inscriptions. They managed to compare the contents translated of the inscriptions by different translators and picked up the best reliable text out of them. We extracted the significant contents of each inscription. These contents included the inscription construction and the terms as well as the sentences expressed by the king. However, the inscriptions demonstrating merely the name of the king mostly engraved on the margin of mobile tools were put aside by us. In several steps, those inscriptions which only demonstrated the name of the king with no helpful information or content in giving new clues to the authors, they were ignored due to their unimportance in being put aside from the research procedure. These briefly written inscriptions were of no significance in the process of the investigation analysis and statistics. After studying the inscriptions, the internal and external situation of the empires during their rule with emphasis on the kings with the most duration of reign as well as the longest inscriptions were investigated. Furthermore, the results in the forms of separate tables and comparing the events and their consequences were provided in order to facilitate the data as well as correlation among the variability, the investigation findings in short word is that a correlation exists among the kings with inscriptions and the kings without any inscriptions with internal and external event. The inscriptions frequency and the extension of problems (troubles occurred under the kingdom) proved to be correlated.
 
Conclusions
Thus, it can be claimed that (most probably but not absolutely) these inscriptions were made to declare their legitimacy in government and obliterate and doubt about their legal right to rule among the population and also make them to observe and obey their orders. In general, these inscriptions have been made to gain legitimacy and the king has felt the necessity to make them under three conditions, first, the direct relation between the founder and his next kings, which gives legitimacy to their rules. Second, the victorious kings of big conflicts of which we can name the first Sasanian Shapur. Third, the kings whose legitimacy had been somehow doubted, for example the Dariush the Great, Dariush II and Ardeshir II, in other words, the kings of such a condition have made the most inscriptions entitled in words, while the rest have either no inscription left or their names have much briefly been engraved on a tool.

Keywords

References

- ابوالقاسمی، محسن، 1381، راهنمای زبان‌های باستانی ایران. جلد 1، تهران: انتشارات سمت.
- ارانسکی، ای. م.، 1358، مقدمۀ فقه الغه ایرانی. ترجمۀ کریم کشاورز، تهران: انتشارات پیام.
- بروان، ادوارد جی گرامویل، 1335، تاریخ ادبی ایران: از قدیم‌ترین روزگاران تا زمان فردوسی. 4 جلد، جلد 1، ترجمۀ علی‌پاشا صالح، تهران: کتابخانۀ ابن‌سینا.
- بروسیوس، ماریا، 1387، تمدن درخشان ایرانیان: ناگفته‌هایی دربارۀ تاریخ ایران باستان براساس تحقیقات جدید و اسناد تازه دست‌یافته. ترجمۀ محمود طلوعی، تهران: انتشارات تهران.
- بریان، پی‌یر، 1377، تاریخ امپراتوری هخامنشیان از کوروش تا اسکندر. ترجمۀ دکتر مهدی سمسار، تهران: نشر زریاب.
- پیگولوسکایا، نینا، 1353، دوران جامعه مبتنی‌بر برده‌داری در ایران قدیم، در کتاب تاریخ ایران از دوران باستان تا پایان سده هیجدهم. ترجمۀ کریم کشاورز. تهران: پیام.
- تفضلی، احمد، 1370، یکی قطره باران. جشن‌نامۀ استاد دکتر عباس زریاب‌خوئی، تهران: چاپخانه مهارت.
- تفضلی، احمد، 1376، تاریخ ادبیات ایران پیش از اسلام. به‌کوشش: ژاله آموزگار، تهران: انتشارات سخن.
- خلیلی، علی، 1395، «تداوم نظریۀ مشروعیت الهی در نظام سیاسی ایران از دورۀ باستان تا انقلاب اسلامی». دوفصلنامه مطالعات انقلاب اسلامی و دفاع مقدس سال دوم، شمارۀ 1، صص: 81-104.
- داندامایف، محمد، 1381. تاریخ سیاسی هخامنشیان. ترجمۀ خشایار بهاری. تهران: نشر کارنگ.
- داندامایف، محمد، 1386، ایران در زمان نخستین پادشاهان هخامنشی. ترجمۀ روحی ارباب، تهران: انتشارات علمی فرهنگی.
- داندامایف، محمد، 1389، تاریخ سیاسی هخامنشی. ترجمۀ فرید جواهرکلام. تهران: نشر فروزان روز.
- دریایی، تورج، 1382، «یادداشتی دربارۀ نخستین القاب ساسانیان». در: تاریخ و فرهنگ ساسانی، ترجمۀ مهرداد قدرت دیزجی، تهران: نشر ققنوس.
- زرین‌کوب، عبدالحسین، 1364، تاریخ مردم ایران قبل از اسلام. چاپ اول، جلد اول، تهران: امیر کبیر.
- شاپورشهبازی، علیرضا، 1350، جهانداری داریوش بزرگ. تهران: انتشارات دانشگاه پهلوی.
- شاپورشهبازی، علیرضا، 1388، «سنگ‌نبشته داریوش بزرگ در بغستان». در: جغرافیای اداری ایران باستان، ترجمه و گردآوری: همایون صنعتی‌زاده، تهران: نشر بنیاد موقوفات دکتر محمود افشار، صص: 191-207.
- طبری، محمد ابن جریر، 1365، تاریخ طبری. جلد دوم، ترجمۀ ابوالقاسم پاینده، انتشارات بنیاد فرهنگ ایران.
- عبدالرحمن، عالم، 1390، بنیادهای علم سیاست. تهران: نی.
- فرشادمهر، ناهید، 1388، کوروش بنیان‌گذار ایران پهناور. تهران: نشر محمد.
- فروند، ژولین، 1383، جامعه‌شناسی ماکس وبر. ترجمۀ عبدالحسین نیک‌گهر، تهران: نشر رایزن.
- کتاک، کنراد فیلیپ، 1386، انسان شناسی: کشف تفاوت‌های انسانی. ترجمۀ محسن ثلاثی، تهران: انتشارات علمی.
- کخ، هایدماری، 1377، از زبان داریوش. ترجمۀ پرویز رجبی، تهران: نشر کارنگ.
- کسرایی، محمدسالار، 1389، «فرمانروایی توأمان، حکومت و مشروعیت در ایران باستان». فصلنامۀ سیاست، دورۀ 40، شمارۀ 2، صص: 189-208.
- کوامی، ترودی، 1392، هنر یادمانی ایران در دورۀ اشکانی. ترجمۀ یعقوب محمدی‌فر و علیرضا خونانی، همدان: دانشگاه بوعلی.
- کنت، رولاند، گ.، 1384، فارسی باستان، دستور زبان، متون و واژه‌نامه. ترجمۀ سعید عریان، تهران: نشر پژوهشکدۀ زبان و گویش با همکاری اداره کل امور فرهنگی.
- کوئن، بروس، 1370، درآمدی به جامعه شناسی. ترجمۀ محسن ثلاثی، تهران: انتشارات کیهان.
- گیرشمن، رومن، 1370، هنر ایران در دوران پارتی و ساسانی. ترجمۀ بهرام فره‌وشی، تهران: انتشارات علمی و فرهنگی
- گیرشمن، رومن، 1372، ایران از آغاز تا اسلام. ترجمۀ محمد معین، تهران: انتشارات علمی و فرهنگی.
- لوکوک، پی‌یر، 1382، کتیبه‌های هخامنشی. ترجمۀ نازیلا خلخالی، زیر نظر: ژاله آموزگار، تهران: نشر پژوهش فرزان‌روز.
- لوین، لوییس، 1381، «عصر آهن». در: باستان‌شناسی غرب ایران، زیرنظر: فرانک هول، ترجمۀ زهرا باستی، تهران: انتشارات سمت.
- مجیدزاده، یوسف، 1392، آغاز شهرنشینی در ایران. تهران: مرکز نشر دانشگاهی.
- مرادی غیاث‌آبادی، رضا، 1389، منشور کورش هخامنشی نخستین بیانیه جهانی حقوق بشر. تهران: نوید شیراز.
- معصومی، غلامرضا، 1383، تاریخچۀ علم باستان‌شناسی. تهران: انتشارات سمت.
- موسوی‌حاجی، سید رسول؛ و سرفراز، علی‌اکبر، 1396، نقش برجسته‌های ساسانی. تهران: انتشارات سمت.
- نورمن‌شارپ، رالف، 1380، ف‍رم‍ان‍‌ه‍ای‌ ش‍اه‍ن‍ش‍اه‍ان‌ ه‍خ‍ام‍ن‍ش‍ی‌ ک‍ه‌ ب‍زب‍ان‌ آری‍ای‍ی‌ (پ‍ارس‍ی‌ ب‍اس‍ت‍ان‌) ن‍وش‍ت‍ه‌ ش‍ده‌ اس‍ت‌. ت‍ه‍ران‌: ب‍ه‌دی‍د‏‫‏.
- واندنبرگ، لوئی، 1379، باستان‌شناسی ایران باستان. ترجمۀ عیسی بهنام، تهران: انتشارات دانشگاه تهران.
- ویسهوفر، یوزف، 1385، ایران باستان از 550 پیش‌از‌میلاد تا 650 میلادی. ترجمۀ مرتضی ثاقب‌فر، تهران: نشر ققنوس.
- هرمان، جورجینا، 1373، تجدید حیات هنر و تمدن در ایران باستان. ترجمۀ مهرداد وحدتی، تهران: مرکز نشر دانشگاهی.
- هنینگ، و، ب، 1329، «کتیبه‌های پهلوی». ترجمۀ محمد معین، مجۀ یغما، شمارۀ 6، صص: 8-24.
 
- Abol-Ghasemi, A., 2002, A manual of old Iranian Languages. Part 1. Samt publication, (In Persian).
- Abdolrahman, A., 2011, Foundations of Politic Science. Tehran, Nei publication, (In Persian).
- Atkinson, K. M. T., 1956, “The Legitimacy of Cambyses and Darius as Kings of Egypt”. lAOS, No. 76, Pp: 167-177.
- Berger, P. R., 1975, “Der Kyros-Zylinder mit dem Zusatzfragment BIN II Nr. 32 und die Akkadischen Personennamen im Danielbuch”. Zeitschrift fur Assyriolgie, No. 64, Pp: 192-234.
- Briant, P., 1998, From Cyrus to Alexander: a history of the Persian Empire. Translated by: Mehdi Semsar, Tehran: Nashr-e Zaryab (In Persian).
- Briant, P., 2010, Alexander the Great and His Empire: A Short Introduction. Translated by: A. Kuhrt. Princeton University Press.
- Browne, E. G., 1956, A Literary History of Persia. Vol, 1, Translated by: Ali Pasha Saleh, Tehran: Ketabkhaneh Ibn Sina (In Persian).
- Brosius, M., 2000, The Persian Empire from Cyrus II to Artaxerxes I (LACTOR 16). Cambridge.
- Brosius, M., 2008, The Persians. Translated by: Mahmoud Tolouie, Tehran: Tehran publication (In Persian).
- Childe, V. G., 1950, “The Urban Revolution”. The Town Planning Review, Vol. 21, No. 1, Pp: 3-17.
- Cohen, B. J., 1991, Introduction to sociology. Translated by: Mohsen Solasi, Tehran: Entesharat Tehran (In Persian).
- Dandamaev, M. A., 2002, A political history of the achaemenid empire. Translated by Khashayar Bahari, Tehran: Karang, (In Persian).
- Dandamaev, M. A., 2007, Iran, under the early Achaemenids. Translated by: Rohi Arbab, Tehran: Elmi Farhangi Publication, (In Persian).
- Dandamaev, M. A., 2010, A political history of the achaemenid empire. Translated by Farid Javaher Kalam, Tehran: Forozan Roz, (In Persian).
- Daryaee, T., 2003, A note about the first Sassanid titles. In Sasanian history and culture. Translated by: Mehrdad Ghodrat Dizeji, Tehran: Qoqnous publication, (In Persian).
- Daryaee. T., 2017, Šābuhr Sakānšāh Inscription at Persepolis (ŠPs-I). Sasanika.
- Farshadmehr, N., 2009, Koorosh Hakhamaneshi the founder of vast Iran. Tehran: Nashr-e Mohamad, (In Persian).
- Flannery, K. 1995, “The prehistoric social evolution”. In: Research frontiers in anthropology. Ed. Carol and Melvin Ember, Pp: 1-26, Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
- Fried, M., 1960, “On the Evolution of Social Stratification and the State”. In: Culture in history, ed. S. Diamond, New York: Columbia University Press, Pp: 713-731.
- Freund, J., 2004, Sociologie de Max Weber. Translated by: Abdolhussein NikGohar, Tehran: Nashr-e Raizan, (In Persian).
- Ghirshman, R., 1991, L’art de l’Iran parthes et sassanides. Translated by: Bahram Farahvashi, Tehran: Enteshrate Elmi Farhangi, (In Persian).
- Ghirshman, R., 1993, Iran Des origines A L’Islam. Translated by: Mohamad Moien, Tehran: Entesharate Elmi Farhangi, (In Persian).
- Henkelman, W., 2003, “Dit paleis dat ik in Susa bouwde: bouwinscriptie(s) van Koning Dareios 1”. In: R. J Demaree and K. R. Veenhof (eds.), Zij Schreven Geschiedenis: historische documenten out het oude Nabije Oosten (2500-100 v.Chr.), (Mededelingen en Verhandelingen van het Vooraziatisch-Egyptisch Genootschap 'Ex Oriente Lux' 33), Leiden and Leuven, Pp: 373-86
- Henning, W. B., 1952, “The monuments and inscriptions of Tangi-Sarvak”. Asia Major II, Pp: 151-78.
- Henning, W. B., 1939, “The great onscription of sapur I”. BSOS, No. 9, Pp: 823-849.
- Henning, W. B., 1950, “Pahlavi inscriptions”. Translated by: Mohamad Moien, Yaghma Journal, Vol. 6, Pp: 8-24., (In Persian).
- Herrmann, G., 1994, The Iranian revival. Translated by: Mehrdad Vahdati, Tehran: Markaze Nashre Daneshgahi, (In Persian).
- Herodotus, 1975, Historia, Books I-II. Translated by: Godley. Cambridge.
- Herzfeld, E., 1924, Paikuli. Berlin. 
- Humbach, H. & Skjærvø, P. O., 1978, The Sassanian Inscription of Paikuli. Part 1 & 2, Wiesbaden.
- Kasraie, M. S., 2010, “Simultaneous rulership: governance and legitimacy in ancient Iran”. Politic Quarterly, issue 40, Vol. 2, Pp: 189-208, (In Persian).
- Kawami, T., 2013, Monumental art of the Parthian Period in Iran. Translated by: Yaghoub Mohammadifar and Alireza Khounani, HamedanL Bu ali Sina University Publication, (In Persian).
- Khalili, A., 2016, “Continuation of the theory of divine legitimacy in the Iranian political system from ancient times to the Islamic revolution”.Journal of Islamic revolution and holy defence research, Vol. 2, No. 1, Pp: 81-104, (In Persian).
- Knapton, P., Sarraf, M. R. & Curtis, J., 2001, “Inscribed column bases from Hamadan”. Iran, No. 39, Pp: 99-118.
- Kottak, C. P., 2007, Anthropology, thee exploration of human diversity. Translated by Mohsen Solasi, Tehran: Entesharat Elmi, (In Persian).
- Koch, H., 1998, Es kundet Dareios dar Kong. Translatrd by: Parviz Rajabi, Tehran: Nashre Karang, (In Persian).
- Kuhrt, A., 2010, The Persian Empire. a corpus of sources from the achaeminid period.
- Locoq, P., 2003. Les inscriptions de la perse achemenide. Tanslated by: Nazila Khalkhali, Tehran: Nashre Pazhohesh Farzan Roz, (In Persian).
- Levine, L., 2002, “Iron Age”. In: The archaeology of western Iran: settlement and society from prehistory to the Islamic conquest, edited by Frank Hole, Pp: 448-489. Translated by: Zahra Basti, Tehran: SAMT publication, (In Persian).
- Majidzadeh, Y., 2013, Beginning of Urbanization in Iran. Tehran: Markaze Nashre Daneshgahi, (In Persian).
- Masoomi, Gh., 2004, History of the science of archaeology. Tehran: SAMT publication, (In Persian).
- Moradi Ghias Abadi, R., 2010, Cylinder of Cyrus the Achaemenid the First Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Teran: Navide Shiraz, (In Persian).
- Mousavi Haji, S. R. & Sarfaraz, A. A., 2017, Sassanian rock reliefs.  Tehran: Samt publication, (In Persian).
- Mousavi, A., 2012, Persepolis Discovery and afterlife of a world wonder. Walter de Gruyter.
- Nawotka, K., 2003, “Alexander the Great in Persepolis”. AA, Vol. 43, Nos. 1-2, November, Pp: 67-76.
- Norman Sharp, R., 2001, The inscriptions in old peresian cuneriform of the Achaemenian emperors. Tehran: Behdid, (In Persian).
- Pigulevskaya, N. V., 1964, The era of society based on slavery in ancient Iran. In: L’histoire de L’Tran depuis anciens temps jusqu’a La tin de xviii- e Siecle. Translated by Karim Keshavarz, Tehran: Payam, (In Persian).
- Schmitt, R., 1991, The Bisitun Inscriptions of Darius the Great Old Persian Tex. London: school of oriental and African studies.
- Service, E., 1975, Origin of the State and Civilization. New York.
- Shahbazi, A. Sh., 1971, Darius the great. Tehran: Pahlavi University Publication, (In Persian).
- Shahbazi, A. Sh., 2009, “Inscription of Darius the Great in Baghestan’. In: Administrative geography of ancient Persia, Collection and translation by Homayoun Sanatizadeh, Tehran: Nashre Bonyad-e Moghofat-e Dr. Mahmoud Afshar, Pp: 191-207, (In Persian).
- Skjærvo, O. P., 1983, The Sassanian inscription of Paikuli. Part 3. 1, 2, Wiesbaden.
- Springling, M., 1953, Third century Iran: Sapor and Kartir. Chicago.
- Stolper, M. W, 1989b, “Registration and taxation of slaves in Achaemenid Babylonia”. ZA, No. 79, Pp: 80-101.
- Tabari, M. J., 1986, Tabari History. Vol 2, Translated by: Abolghasem Payandeh, Tehran: Bonyade Farhang Iran publication, (In Persian).
- Tafazoli, A., 1991, A One drop of rain. Celebration of Professor Dr. Abbas Zaryab Khoie, Tehran: Maharat, (In Persian).
- Tafazoli, A., 1997, History of Iranian literate History Before Islam. By: Zhaleh Amozgar, Tehran: Sokhan Publication (In Persian).
- Vanden Berghe, 1959, Archaeologie de l’Iran ancient, Leiden.
- Vandenberghe, L., 2000. Archeologie de L’Iran ancient. Translated by Eisa Behnam, Tehran: University of Tehran Publication, (In Persian).
- Waters, T. & Waters, D., 2015, Weber's Rationalism and Modern Society. Palgrave Books.
- Wiesehofer, J., 1994, Die ‘dunklen’ Jahrhunderte der Persis. Munich: C. H. Beck's Verlags buchhandlung.
- Wittfogel, K. A., 1957, Oriental despotism: A comparative study of Tolal power. New Haven, Yale University Press.
- Wiesehofer, J., 2006, Ancient Persia. Translated by: Morteza Saghebfar, Tehran: Nashre qoqnous.
- Zarinkoub, A., 1985, History of the Iranian people before Islam. Tehran: Amir Kabir, (In Persian).
pazhoheshha-ye Bastan shenasi Iran
Volume 11, Issue 30 - Serial Number 30
December 2021
Pages 127-150

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics