Iranian Studies
Year:2020 | Volume:10 | Issue:1|Papers Count:13

The weaver of Qashqai horse costumes, in addition to trying to make the costume durable and high quality, pays special attention to the aesthetic dimension (motifs and colors). Therefore, the two visual elements of motif and color in Qashqai horse costume have turned it to a native and nomadic work of art — the use of horse costume has become obsolete due to lifestyle changes — that today adorns the world’ s famous collections and museums. The purpose of this article is to examine peacock motifs on Qashqai horse costumes from an aesthetic perspective. Therefore, 30 horse costumes were collected and studied. The research concludes that the motifs in the selected samples are divided into four categories: animals and birds, humans, plants, and geometric shapes. Animal and especially peacock motifs in various forms have the most frequency in the field of polishes both as single motifs and as patterns in the form of horizontal stripes. Also, the number of colors used in these weaves is between 8 and 12.

Throughout history, Fars province has always had a dramatic impact on Iran’ s political and diplomatic structure, and when it has gone through a change, other Iranian states have been affected by it. During the reign of Nader Shah, the state saw a change in the structure of its bureaucracy which later affected other states. The main questions are why Nadir Shah brought about these changes, what positions were important during this period and what their function was, and why these changes did not make Fars stable. To answer these questions the article adopts an analytical method based on less well-known documents. It argues that Nader Shah’ s goal, like other political actors, was exercising power in the best manner possible on the community. He tried to increase the political and economic influence of his government in Fars by restoring and reforming his office. Many of these reforms failed because of regional competition and the presence of influential local political activists.

Coins are the most convincing documents used in the definitive chronology and measurement of political, economic and cultural transformations of past eras. Coins of each period represents the political sovereignty, script, language, art, religion, civilization, socio-economic status, trade relations of the nation and the countries of their past. Numismatics is an interdisciplinary knowledge that provides unique information to archaeologists, historians, sociologists and social scientists, political scientists, economics, linguistics, art and symbolism, etc. This is precisely why reflection in this group of archaeological evidence is important for scholars, historians, and archaeologists. The Bavand dynasty/Bavandian (651-1349 AD) were one of the Shiite families that for centuries, especially during the Abbasid caliphate, ruled and minted coins in the northern regions of the Alborz Mountains. Although the Bavandian were often independent rulers, but were sometimes subjugated by their contemporary caliphs and sultans. Now, the question arises that with which characteristics of the Bavandian coins can be used to distinguish from other coins of the Islamic era? The aim is to find out how the Bavandian differentiated their coins from the coins of the Abbasid caliphs and, and precisely, depending on which of the local and regional governments they minted their coins. The results of the present study show that the Bavandian struck coins to prove their sovereignty, consolidate their power and their relative independence. Although due to politicalsecurity reasons, they had to temporize with the Abbasid caliphs, but by tapping the phrase "Ali Wali Allah" on the back of the coins, they have managed to establish themselves as a Shiite government independent of the caliphs.

A famous saying is cited in many classic Persian works of prose and is attributed to Sa’ di (because of close similarity between it and a couplet by the poet). Yet, another version of it can be found in Tarike-s Wassaf. First of all, the article searches the exact words of the saying in Sa’ di’ s works, then it examines the manuscripts of Wassaf’ s work, and finally reviews other ancient works of Persian prose that contain one of these two versions of the saying. For instance, Fereidoon Sepahsalar’ s biography of Rumi (before or contemporary with Tarikh-e Wassaf), quotes the version that is found in Wassaf. The article concludes that Sa’ di and Wassaf have quoted an ancient Arabic maxim which was so popular between the learned Iranian.

The Ossets live in the center of the Greater Caucasus Mountains on either side of the Darial Gorge. Some are Muslims and some are Christians. The Scientific Research on the Ossets indicates their kinship with Iranians and traces their lineage to the Scythians, the Sarmatians, the Alans, and the Asii, and eventually to the Osii. The Alans and the Asii, who date back to the last centuries BC, are the most recent ancestors of the Ossets, people whose presence in northern Iran made them important to Iranians. The present article studies a part of the Ossets’ ancestry, i. e. the Alans, the Assi, and the Osii. It scrutinizes the changes these names went through in the inscriptions and published Iranian works, including historical texts, prose, travelogues, and poetry written up to the Qajar era. The findings of this study indicate that the turning points of the lives of the ancestors of the Ossets and the changes in their names in Iranian sources show compliance with the results of historical research and archaeological and linguistic findings.

Kharg Island is one of the most important islands in the Persian Gulf. Throughout history, it has received attention because of being located on maritime trade routes and thus has numerous historical monuments. There are two important tombs in Kharg Island which are attributed to Palmyrene merchants. Evidence suggests that the island was inhabited during the Parthian and Sassanid eras and was an important trading and religious center. This research seeks to find out what relation the name Kharg bears to the state of Characene and to whom the graves belong. The article argues that the name Kharg is derived from the word Charax. It also demonstrates that the two large rock-cut tombs of Kharg Island, contrary to popular opinion, do not belong to Palmyrene merchants, but to an Iranian local ruler in the Persian Gulf. The motifs, form and structure of the graves indicate that the Eastern tomb probably is belong to Ananias and Southern tomb is graved in the first half of the second century AD and probably belong to Mithradates, a Parthian prince and ruler of Characene. The name of Kharg Island is also taken from the great king of Characene.

Nizari is one of the famous Persian poets of the seventh and eighth centuries AH. Many of his works are still extant in various forms. His sonnets, quatrains, and masnavi poems have been published, but his other poems have not yet been published. In some of the manuscripts of Nizari’ s collection of works, there are verses that cannot be found in the printed versions. One of these manuscripts is kept in Churom Hasanpasa Library in Turkey. This article mentions some important differences between the aforesaid manuscript and the published works. It argues that the manuscript is more credible than the printed copies. It should be noted that among Nizari’ s works, what is studied in this article are his sonnets, Safarnama, Munazara-yi Shab wa Rū z, and his letters.

Cheetahs are of the endangered species of Iran. Not only are they a part of the natural history of this land, but they play a role in our culture and civilization. Therefore, the present study, using historical sources and references, intends to study the position of cheetahs in the history of Iran and to answer the fundamental question of what position and functions this animal has had in Iranian history. The findings of the study suggest that in Iran’ s history, the cheetah has been used as a hunting animal and in some cases was sent to the kings as a precious gift. Even during the Mongol era, a fixed tax was obtained from the provinces where cheetahs lived. In addition, our poetry and prose have been influenced by the cheetah so that many references to it can be found in our literature.

Zanjan, formerly known as Khamseh, has been known as the main settlement of the Afshar tribe since the middle Ages in Iran. From the Safavid era onwards, especially since the Qajar era, Afshar tribesmen played an important role in the socio-political events of Iran. The emergence of ruling families and influential political-military figures among Afshar tribes of Khamseh indicates the high level of their influence on the power structure of Iran. How the Afshars of Khamseh, as one of the most influential local powers in terms of relations with the central government, interacted with the Qajar dynasty is an issue that we intend to address in this article. The geographical and strategic conditions of Khamseh, the local and deep-rooted influence of the Afshars of Khamseh, along with some other influential factors such as economic and military capabilities of this land, played an important role in shaping political relations between Afshars and the central government of Iran. In this study, while examining the historical roots of the Afshars’ influence in Khamseh, we try to explain the relationship between this local family and the central government and its effects on the political developments of the Qajar era.

Forsat-od-Dowleh Shirazi, a historian, scholar, poet, painter, musician and modernist artist, wrote The Works of Ajam at the end of the Qajar dynasty. He employed so many of the principles of modern historiography in his book. This research concentrates on the method and insight of Forsat-od-Dowleh Shirazi in his historiography. The article demonstrates that he was familiar with the principles of the knowledge of modern historiography and observed them in his book. These principles include analysis of events, teamwork, knowledge of ancient scripts, and simplicity in writing style. The article argues that although the author followed some traditional principles of historiography, such as quoting Arabic and Persian poems, he provided a model for modernist historiography in Iran.

The Armenians of Isfahan played an active role in Iranian culture in the Safavid era. After migrating from Julfa and the Caucasus and settling in Isfahan during the reign of Shah Abbas I, they intended to preserve their culture and identity through their educational system. Features and dimensions of their education and their place in the educational system of that era are topics to which researchers have not paid much attention up to now. In this article, these topics are discussed based on the data collected from reliable books and documents. The results indicate that the Armenians of Julfa, in order to preserve their religion and beliefs, established their educational system with the support of the Safavid government of that time; meanwhile the churches and schools were running educational affairs, and some schools were built in the grounds of the churches. Thus, religion was the prominent subject in the Armenian educational system, yet some nonreligious sciences were taught too, especially commerce. Of course, the presence of different Catholic sects in Isfahan influenced the competition between them.

This paper seeks to provide a deconstructive account of a familiar term in Iranian terminology, i. e. “ ghereshmari” (non-recognition), in order to demonstrate that in the absence of a phenomenological revelation and subsequent emphasis on the implications of this concept in our current historical situation, surrendering to the Eurocentric notion of universalism seems inevitable. By appropriating Derrida’ s enigmatic notion of “ to come” in a wholly different context, this paper argues that nonrecognition is maintained by a logic of auto-immunization: similar to the selfdestructive process in which a body’ s immune system reacts against its own cells, nonrecognition, which is always threatened by its own internal logic, contains its own resources by which it can defend itself in the face of its peril and thereby maintain its status as that which is “ to come. ” My appropriation of the term “ to come, ” which succumbs neither to non-recognition nor to the claims of universalization from above, can be called “ universalization from below. ”

The constitutional revolution was one of the hallmarks of the Iranian modern history and led to a series of groundbreaking changes in the social and political structure of this country; even though, after many ups and downs, this movement eventually distanced itself from its main objectives. The importance of this period has caused many historians and researchers to participate in defining its complications, but among them, Fereydoun Adamiyat has been recognized as one of the first and best. In this paper, we review his works and thoughts with a critical approach and go through the circumstances in which the constitutional revolution formed and evolved according to his historiography. At the same time, his political views and way of thinking and his social background, upbringing, and education are taken into account in order to better understand his stance regarding the constitutional events and their participants. Adamiyat’ s works have more been praised for their comprehensive analysis, rather than criticized, so it seems necessary to write this paper with the aforesaid specific intention.