page_title: Persian art
section_title: Sasanians
hierarchical_section_title: Persian art / Sasanians
caption_attribution_description: Iran sasanide, coppa ovale in argento con sogg. vegetali e geometrici, VII sec
context_page_description: Persian art or Iranian art has one of the richest art heritages in world history and has been strong in many media including architecture, painting, weaving, pottery, calligraphy, metalworking and sculpture. At different times, influences from the art of neighbouring civilizations have been very important, and latterly Persian art gave and received major influences as part of the wider styles of Islamic art. Rock art in Iran is its most ancient surviving art. Iranian architecture is covered at that article.
  From the Achaemenid Empire of 550 BC–330 BC for most of the time a large Iranian-speaking state has ruled over areas similar to the modern boundaries of Iran, and often much wider areas, sometimes called Greater Iran, where a process of cultural Persianization left enduring results even when rulership separated. The courts of successive dynasties have generally led the style of Persian art, and court-sponsored art has left many of the most impressive survivals.
  In ancient times the surviving monuments of Persian art are notable for a tradition concentrating on the human figure and animals.
context_section_description: Sasanian art, or Sasanian art, was produced under the Sasanian Empire which ruled from the 3rd to 7th centuries AD, before the Muslim conquest of Persia was completed around 651.  In 224 AD, the last Parthian king was defeated by Ardashir I. The resulting Sasanian dynasty would last for four hundred years, ruling modern Iran, Iraq, and much territory to the east and north of modern Iran. At times the Levant, much of Anatolia and parts of Egypt and Arabia were under its control. It began a new era in Iran and Mesopotamia, which in many ways was built on Achaemenid traditions, including the art of the period. Nevertheless, there were also other influences on art of the period that came from as far as China and the Mediterranean.
  The surviving art of the Sasanians is best seen in its architecture, reliefs and metalwork, and there are some surviving paintings from what was evidently a widespread production.  Stone reliefs were probably greatly outnumbered by interior ones in plaster, of which only fragments have survived.  Free standing sculptures faded out of popularity in this time as compared to the period under the Parthians, but the Colossal Statue of Shapur I (r. AD 240–272) is a major exception, carved from a stalagmite grown in a cave; there are literary mentions of other colossal statues of kings, now lost.  The important Sasanian rock reliefs are covered above, and the Parthian tradition of moulded stucco decoration to buildings continued, also including large figurative scenes.
  Surviving Sasanian art depicts courtly and chivalric scenes, with considerable grandeur of style, reflecting the lavish life and display of the Sasanian court as recorded by Byzantine ambassadors.  Images of rulers dominate many of the surviving works, though none are as large as the Colossal Statue of Shapur I. Hunting and battle scenes enjoyed a special popularity, and lightly-clothed dancing girls and entertainers.  Representations are often arranged like a coat of arms, which in turn may have had a strong influence on the production of art in Europe and East Asia. Although Parthian art preferred the front view, the narrative representations of the Sassanian art often features figures shown in the profile or a three-quarter view. Frontal views occur less frequently.
  One of the few sites where wall-paintings survived in quantity is Panjakent in modern Tajikistan, and ancient Sogdia, which was barely, if at all, under the control of the central Sasanian power.  The old city was abandoned in the decades after the Muslims eventually took the city in 722 and has been extensively excavated in modern times.  Large areas of wall paintings survived from the palace and private houses, which are mostly now in the Hermitage Museum or Tashkent.  They covered whole rooms and were accompanied by large quantities of reliefs in wood.  The subjects are similar to other Sasanian art, with enthroned kings, feasts, battles, and beautiful women, and there are illustrations of both Persian and Indian epics, as well as a complex mixture of deities.  They mostly date from the 7th and 8th centuries.  At Bishapur floor mosaics in a broadly Greco-Roman style have survived, and these were probably widespread in other elite settings, perhaps made by craftsmen from the Greek world.
  A number of Sasanid silver vessels have survived, especially rather large plates or bowls used to serve food.  These have high-quality engraved or embossed decoration from a courtly repertoire of mounted kings or heroes, and scenes of hunting, combat and feasting, often partially gilded.  Ewers, presumably for wine, may feature dancing girls in relief. These were exported to China, and also westwards.
  Sasanian glass continued and developed Roman glass technology. In simpler forms it seems to have been available to a wide range of the population, and was a popular luxury export to Byzantium and China, even appearing in elite burials from the period in Japan.  Technically, it is a silica-soda-lime glass production characterized by thick glass-blown vessels relatively sober in decoration, avoi
caption: Sasanian decoration on the underside of a silver vessel, 7th century
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