Curator’s Choice: Rise of a world power in Persia: the Sasanian Empire (224–651)
1800 years ago, a new world power emerged in present-day Iran: the Sasanian Empire. Its founder, Ardashir I (r. 224–240), was the local ruler of Persis in the south of the country. On 28 April 224, Ardashir defeated the last Parthian king Ardawan/Artabanus IV (r. 216–224) at the decisive Battle of Hormozdgan.
From 22 October, the Coin Cabinet’s exhibition series Curator's Choice will be dedicating a showcase to the coins of the Sasanian rulers. They show a bust of the respective king with an individual crown on the obverse. In the Middle Persian legend on the obverse of his coins, Ardashir I is titled ‘The Mazda-worshipping Lord, Ardashir, King of Kings of the Iranians, whose lineage/image is from the Gods’. The reverse always shows a Zoroastrian fire altar surrounded by the legend ‘Fire of Ardashir’. This signifies the sacred fire each Sasanian king lit at the beginning of his reign.
The Sasanians ruled for more than four centuries over a vast territory from Transoxiana in the east to Mesopotamia in the west; they called this territory Ērānšahr, literally ‘the realm of the Iranians’. They rose to become a world power and were the mightiest opponent of the Roman Empire.
The reign of Ardashir’s son and successor, Shapur I (r. 240–272), is characterized by military conflicts with the Roman Empire. The young emperor of Rome, Gordian III (r. 238–244), who invaded the Sasanian Empire in 243/44, suffered a crushing defeat at the Battle of Mesiche (today western Iraq) and lost his life. Consequently, his successor, Philip the Arab (r. 244–249), concluded a peace treaty with Shapur by paying the sum of 500,000 denarii. This peace was also reflected in Philip’s coinage: in Antioch, he issued coins bearing the legend PAX FVNDATA CVM PERSIS (‘Peace [is] established with the Persians’). However, the peace did not last for long. A new series of Roman-Persian wars began in the 250s under emperor Valerian (r. 253–260). At the Battle of Edessa in 260, the Romans suffered another humiliating defeat. Valerian was taken prisoner by Shapur and spent the rest of his life in Persian captivity.
The Sasanians established a robust, unified monetary system, which differed considerably from that of their Parthian predecessors. At the same time, Rome was going through a severe economic crisis. Around the middle of the third century, the Sasanian silver drachm reached the fineness of about 94 per cent, while the Roman antoninianus contained less than 45 per cent silver and became a copper coin in the 260s. This clearly shows the value and power of the new Sasanian currency, something the Romans could only dream of.
The coins thus not only reflect the history of a former world empire and its rulers, but also offer an insight into the economic history of the ancient world.
The exhibition showcase will be on display from 22 October 2024!
Image: Sasanian Empire, drachm of Ardashir I (r. 224–240) with crenelated crown
