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Near Eastern Art :
Sassanid Art : Sassanid Agate Seal with a Royal Portrait
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Sassanid Agate Seal with a Royal Portrait - FJ.4235
Origin: Central Asia
Circa: 200
AD
to 600
AD
Dimensions:
.875" (2.2cm) high
x .875" (2.2cm) wide
x .625" (1.6cm) depth
Collection: Near Eastern
Medium: Agate
$3,600.00
Location: United States
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| Description |
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In 244 A.D., Ardeshir I founded the Sassanid
Dynasty, the last native Persian Kingdom to rule
Ancient Iran before the Islamic conquest. The
Sassanid era was a golden age of Persian culture
that witnessed the revival of Zoroastrianism, an
ancient mystical religion native to these lands,
and a literary Renaissance spurred by the
translation of many Old Persian epics recorded in
cuneiform into the Middle Persian language of
Pahlavi written in an alphabet derived from
Aramaic. By introducing heightened international
trade and commerce they created a legacy of
political and economic diplomacy. They
sponsored trade with the Romans (later on the
Byzantines), their archenemy, to the west and the
Chinese to the east. Excavations in China have
unearthed gold and silver Sassanid coins
covering a span of many centuries until the
demise of the Empire during the reign of
Khosrow II. However, the fall of the Empire had
already started with a series of wars waged
under the rule of Khosrow I, the father of
Khosrow II. Challenged by the intensification of
the same international commerce that had bore
such wealth, struggles for national power and
international prestige had escalated to an
ungovernable degree. In the face of threats to his
royal house, Khosrow II embarked upon military
campaigns that would prove unsuccessful. By
the close of his reign, the once mighty Sassanid
Empire came to an end, paving the way for the
rise of Islam in the Middle East.
In the east, the mighty Sassanid empire rivaled
Rome in size and splendor, heirs to the earlier
Persian Empire, the Sassanid were kings in the
oriental manner, surrounded by riches and ritual.
The Sassanid nobility were also bold warriors,
whose armies frequently triumphed over the
legions of Rome. This superb seal depicts a
Sassanid king with flowing hair, arrayed in robes
of state. Such an object may have been a symbol
of royal authority, used to seal official
documents, or perhaps a gift from the king to a
favored courtier. As we press it into clay or wax
today, admiring its image of serene kingship, we
cannot help but reflect on vanished glory, the
inevitable course of history.
- (FJ.4235)
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