Domain: Humanities and Social Sciences — Archaeology
Target concept: Sassanian drachm

Video generation prompt: The camera circulates around the display case, capturing images of ancient coins: Sasanian drachms.

Evaluation guide:
Target concept: Visual identification of Sasanian Empire silver drachms (not Achaemenid Persian darics) via diagnostic numismatic features observable during a single roughly 10-second circumferential camera orbit around a display case. Minimum mechanistic assumptions: (1) Sasanian drachms are silver, broad, and thin, unlike the small, thick, irregular Achaemenid daric; (2) the obverse bust is right-facing in profile - this is the standard Sasanian convention, never a full-face portrait - wearing a ruler-specific crown built from a mural band, wings, or crescent, topped by a korymbos (globe finial); (3) a curving legend band frames the obverse margin; (4) the reverse shows a raised fire altar with ribbons flanked by two standing attendant figures, not a blank incuse square. Phased storyline: (Phase 1) the camera begins at a frontal view of the case, revealing the right-facing royal profile and crown; (Phase 2) at roughly a quarter-turn, the crown silhouette and curving legend band become visible from an angle; (Phase 3) at roughly a half-turn, the reverse fire altar with its two flanking attendants comes into view; (Phase 4) at roughly three-quarters turn, the coin edge confirms a thin, broad flan with no incuse punch and no bow-holding figure; (Phase 5) the camera returns near its starting angle and the same features remain recognizable. Visibility constraints: the fire altar and attendants must read as a raised design, not a blank depression; the crown must be resolvable as ruler-specific ornamentation rather than a plain circle; lighting should be even enough that the profile silhouette and legend are not lost to glare or shadow.

Manual:
Sasanian Drachm vs. Persian Daric Visual Discrimination Demonstration Instructions
I. Basic Demonstration Information
Demonstration Title: Sasanian Drachm Identification via Circumferential Imaging (Distinguishing from Achaemenid Persian Darics)
Subject: Humanities and Social Sciences - Archaeology - Ancient Near Eastern Numismatics
Demonstration Purpose: To enable visual discrimination of authentic Sasanian Empire silver drachms (3rd-7th c. CE) from earlier Achaemenid Persian darics (6th-4th c. BCE) by observing diagnostic features during a controlled 360-degree camera orbit around a display case; emphasizes the right-facing royal profile, ruler-specific crown, marginal legend band, and the raised fire-altar reverse flanked by two attendants.
II. Demonstration Carrier/Equipment
Core Carrier: Authentic replica Sasanian silver drachms (silver, approx. 3.6-4.3g, 26-33mm diameter, broad thin flan, raised fire-altar reverse) - not Achaemenid darics.
Auxiliary Equipment: Museum-grade glass display case (60x40x40cm, anti-reflective coating), dark fabric lining, calibrated ring-light system (5600K, CRI>95), motorized gimbal camera rig (programmed for a smooth 10s 360-degree orbit at 1.2m radius).
III. Demonstration Content Description
Layout: Place 4 drachms in a loose cluster at the center of the lining, spaced at least 3cm apart, all oriented with the obverse upward and the royal bust facing the same radial direction (right-facing profile, consistent across all coins).
State Control: Maintain ambient humidity below 40% and temperature 20-22C to prevent condensation on the glass; disable flash and rely on continuous LED illumination for consistent tonal rendering.
Comparison Baseline: Explicitly exclude Achaemenid darics: no bow-holding archer figure, no crenellated battlement crown, no incuse blank-square reverse, no hand-struck irregular thick flan.
IV. Observation of Core Phenomena
Obverse Feature: Continuous right-facing profile of the Sasanian king - never full-face - wearing a crown built from a mural band, wings, or crescent ornament topped by a korymbos (globe); a curving legend band frames the margin; facial features are schematic but distinct.
Reverse Feature: A raised fire altar with ribbons at its base, flanked by two standing attendant figures facing the flames; a crescent-and-star or similar celestial motif often appears above the flames; a marginal legend band runs around the edge.
Material & Craft: Silver-gray surface; flan is broad and thin compared with the small, thick, irregular Achaemenid daric; edges are comparatively regular, consistent with the more mechanically uniform Sasanian minting process.
Stability During Orbit: All features remain recognizable across viewing angles - the crown does not turn into an Achaemenid crenellated crown, and the reverse altar does not resolve into a blank incuse square.
V. Summary of Key Knowledge Points
Core Concept: The Sasanian drachm is the standard silver coinage of the Sasanian Empire (from 224 CE onward), defined by a right-facing royal profile obverse with a ruler-specific crown and marginal legend, paired with a raised fire-altar-and-attendants reverse; Achaemenid Persian darics (from c. 515 BCE) are a much earlier, unrelated gold coinage showing a bow-holding king on the obverse and a blank incuse punch on the reverse.
Archaeological Significance: Conflating 'Persian coinage' across eras is a common but inaccurate simplification - darics ceased minting after Alexander's conquest (330 BCE), roughly 550 years before the first Sasanian drachms were struck; the two coinages differ in metal, obverse iconography, reverse design, and minting technique.
VI. Demonstration Precautions
- Strictly prohibit inclusion of Achaemenid darics, even as comparative examples: the prompt specifies only Sasanian drachms.
- Avoid zoom or focus shifts: a fixed focal length (50mm equivalent) keeps scale consistent.
- Lighting must avoid glare on the reverse altar device; use a diffused ring-light so the raised design stays legible without washing out in highlights.
- Duration capped at 10s: the orbit completes one full revolution, sufficient to verify multi-angle feature stability.

Prompt Grounding rubric:
level_1: No display case, no ancient coins, no camera motion; the image is unrelated to ancient coins or archaeology (e.g., modern objects, a blank screen, or unrelated artifacts).
level_2: A static display case or generic coin-like disks appear, but the camera does not circulate, and the coins show no drachm-defining features at all (no royal profile bust, no altar-like reverse device); the presentation resembles a flat photograph more than a display case scene.
level_3: A display case is present and the camera rotates, but the rotation is only partial or unsteady, and the coin faces are indistinct or show mismatched traits (e.g., a blank reverse with no altar device, or a coin that looks stamped flat rather than struck in relief); only one or two drachm-typical elements are legible.
level_4: Camera circulates smoothly around a glass display case containing several silver coins; the coins show a profile royal bust with a distinct crown shape on one face and a raised altar-like device with two flanking figures on the other; the flan is thin and broad; however, a minor flaw remains - e.g., the bust faces the wrong way, the crown looks like a plain band rather than ornamented, or the marginal legend band is missing.
level_5: Camera executes a smooth, continuous orbit around a museum-style vitrine; several coins (roughly 3-5) rest on a padded lining, each showing a right-facing crowned royal profile bounded by a curving legend band on one face, and a raised fire altar flanked by two standing attendant figures on the other; coins are silver-toned, broad, and thin, with visible surface toning and comparatively regular, evenly struck edges consistent with Sasanian minting; no Achaemenid-style incuse blank square, bow-holding figure, or crenellated Achaemenid crown appears anywhere in the display.

Scientific and Causal Correctness rubric:
level_1: Coin imagery contradicts the historical record for Sasanian drachms outright - e.g., the reverse is a blank incuse depression rather than a fire altar, or the obverse figure holds a bow and arrow (an Achaemenid, not Sasanian, motif); there is no legible basis for identifying the coins as Sasanian drachms at all.
level_2: Coins are legible as ancient silver pieces, but a defining Sasanian trait is inverted: for example, the reverse shows a raised altar shape but no flanking attendant figures, or the obverse bust faces left rather than right, or the crown is a plain band with no ruler-specific ornamentation.
level_3: Coins show the basic Sasanian layout - a profile bust on one face, an altar-type device on the other - but a secondary detail is anachronistic or wrong, such as a bust rendered nearly frontal instead of in clear right-facing profile, an altar with only one attendant instead of two, or a legend band that reads as generic ornament rather than script-like marginal text.
level_4: Obverse consistently shows a right-facing royal profile wearing a distinctive multi-part crown (band, raised ornament, and top finial) with a curving marginal legend; reverse consistently shows a raised fire altar flanked by two attendant figures with a crescent-and-star or similar motif above the flames; silver tone and flan proportions match known drachm specimens; a minor inconsistency remains, e.g., the two reverse attendants are mirror-identical rather than subtly varied, or the legend band is present but not fully continuous around the margin.
level_5: Every coin face is scientifically consistent with excavated Sasanian drachms: the obverse shows a right-facing crowned bust with a silhouette unique to the ruler depicted, correctly proportioned within a beaded border and marginal legend; the reverse shows a raised fire altar with ribbons, flanked by two standing attendant figures and a crescent-and-star device, with no incuse blank area anywhere; no Achaemenid traits appear (no bow-holding figure, no crenellated Achaemenid crown, no incuse punch reverse), confirming strict typological fidelity to Sasanian silver drachms.

Spatiotemporal Consistency rubric:
level_1: Severe spatiotemporal breakdown: the camera path is erratic or reverses direction without cause, coins appear to float free of any supporting surface, the light source direction changes randomly between shots, and coins change size or orientation in abrupt jumps rather than continuous motion; there is no stable case or background to anchor the scene.
level_2: The camera path is roughly circular but moves at clearly uneven speed or jerks between angles; coins wobble or rotate independently of the camera's motion around them; the viewing height changes abruptly (e.g., jumping from a top-down angle to eye level); reflections on the case glass distort the coins inconsistently from one moment to the next.
level_3: The orbit is recognizably circular but has mild stutter or speed variation; coins stay roughly in the same position relative to the case, though small drifts in scale or position occur; the light source stays in a generally consistent direction, but specular highlights on the coin surfaces are uneven; the case's glass and edges are implied but not fully resolved.
level_4: The camera moves in a smooth, steady orbit around the case; coins keep a consistent spatial relationship to the case interior and to each other; the light source keeps a consistent direction and softness across the orbit, and glass reflections shift plausibly as the viewing angle changes; the case shows visible edges and a consistent shadow line at its base; a minor imperfection remains, e.g., one coin appears tilted more than its neighbors, or a reflection briefly obscures part of the reverse design.
level_5: The camera follows a smooth, near-constant-speed circular path with no visible jump cuts or direction reversals; coins show convincing parallax as the camera moves - nearer coin edges shift against the lining behind them more than farther ones; glass reflections change continuously and plausibly with the viewing angle while the coins stay legible; the light source keeps one consistent direction and softness throughout, casting matching shadows from each coin onto the lining; the glass, metal case frame, and fabric lining all look and reflect light the way their real materials would, with no material behaving inconsistently across the sequence.