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Tiny Sasanian Bird Carving Discovered Beside a Pahlavi Inscription in Iran
A tiny Sasanian bird carving discovered beside a Pahlavi inscription in southern Iran may offer a rare glimpse into religious ideas during the empire’s final centuries. The carving was documented in the Marvdasht plain of Fars Province, close to a Pahlavi inscription associated with the salvation and fate of the soul. At only 3 by…
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Ancient Helmets and Jewelry Reveal a Forgotten Sasanian Experiment with Brass
A golden shimmer on a hairpin. A thin metal strip on a helmet. A small rivet hidden inside an old museum object. At first glance, these details may seem minor. But new scientific research suggests they preserve a neglected chapter in the technological history of the Sasanian Empire. A study of copper-alloy finds from Merv…
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4,000-Year-Old Bronze Age Swords Seized in the U.S.: Suspected Looted Artifacts Traced to Iran
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers in Philadelphia recently intercepted a shipment of 4,000-year-old Bronze Age swords that had been falsely declared as ordinary “metal decorative articles.” Inside, however, were 36 copper-alloy short swords and 50 copper-alloy arrowheads—authentic Bronze Age weapons dating back nearly 4,000 years. The artifacts, believed to originate from northwestern Iran, were…
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5,000-Year-Old Clay Figurine from Iran May Be the World’s Oldest Depiction of a Tiger
Archaeologists have redefined the origins of tiger imagery in Iranian art. A newly analyzed 5,000-year-old ceramic figurine from Yarim Tepe in northern Iran may represent the earliest known depiction of a tiger anywhere outside the Indian subcontinent — predating all previous examples by nearly three millennia. The small reddish-brown figurine, measuring just over eight centimeters,…