Bishapur ( Middle Persian: ''Bay-Šāpūr''; fa, بیشاپور}, ''Bishâpûr'') was an ancient city in Sasanid Persia ( Iran) on the ancient road between Persis and

Elam Elam (; Linear Elamite: ''hatamti''; Cuneiform Elamite: ; Sumerian: ; Akkadian: ; he, עֵילָם ''ʿēlām''; peo, 𐎢𐎺𐎩 ''hūja'') was an ancient civilization centered in the far west and southwest of modern-day Iran, stretc ...

. The road linked the Sassanid capitals Estakhr (very close to Persepolis) and

Ctesiphon Ctesiphon ( ; Middle Persian: 𐭲𐭩𐭮𐭯𐭥𐭭 ''tyspwn'' or ''tysfwn''; fa, تیسفون; grc-gre, Κτησιφῶν, ; syr, ܩܛܝܣܦܘܢThomas A. Carlson et al., “Ctesiphon — ܩܛܝܣܦܘܢ ” in The Syriac Gazetteer last modi ...

. It is located south of modern Faliyan in the Kazerun County of Pars Province, Iran. Bishapur was built near a river crossing and at the same site there is also a fort with rock-cut reservoirs and a river valley with six Sassanid rock reliefs.

History

The name ''Bishapur'' derives from ''Bay-Šāpūr'', which means ''Lord Shapur''. According to an inscription, the city itself was founded in 266 AD by Shapur I (241-272), who was the second Sassanid king and inflicted a triple defeat on the Romans, having killed

Gordian III Gordian III ( la, Marcus Antonius Gordianus; 20 January 225 – February 244) was Roman emperor from 238 to 244. At the age of 13, he became the youngest sole emperor up to that point (until Valentinian II in 375). Gordian was the son of Anton ...

, captured Valerian and forced Philip the Arab to surrender. The city was not a completely new settlement: archaeologists have found remains from the

Parthian Parthian may be: Historical * A demonym "of Parthia", a region of north-eastern of Greater Iran * Parthian Empire (247 BC – 224 AD) * Parthian language, a now-extinct Middle Iranian language * Parthian shot, an archery skill famously employed by ...

and Elamite ages. The city remained important until the Arab conquest of Persia the rise of Islam in the second quarter of the 7th century AD. The city has a rectangular plan with a grid pattern of regular intra urban streets, resembling Roman city design. This design was never repeated in the

architecture of Iran Iranian architecture or Persian architecture (Persian: معمارى ایرانی, ''Memāri e Irāni'') is the architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia, the Caucasus and Central Asia. Its history dates back to at least 5,000 BC w ...

Excavations and research

The site was cleared by the Russian-French archaeologist Roman Ghirshman in the 1930s. The British archaeologist

Georgina Herrmann Georgina Herrmann, (born 20 October 1937) is a British retired archaeologist and academic, specialising in Near Eastern archaeology. Having worked as a civil servant, she later studied archaeology and spent the rest of her career as an active f ...

has also written a book about the Sasanian rock reliefs in Bishapur which was published in 1980.

Decoration

The main part of the excavations took place in the royal sector, in the east of the city. A water temple, interpreted as an

Anahita temple The Anahita Temple ( fa, پرستشگاه‌ آناهیتا) is the name of one of two archaeological sites in Iran popularly thought to have been attributed to the ancient Iranian deity Anahita. The larger and more widely known of the two is loca ...

, was erected near the palace. The floor was paved with black marble slabs, with a mosaic border. At the top of each alcove there was a picture of women naked under their transparent veils: courtesans, musicians, dancers, women twisting garlands, together with a few richly attired noble ladies. File:Mosaic01.jpg, alt=, Persian-Roman floor mosaic detail from the palace of Shapur I at Bishapur. Presently housed in the National Museum of Iran File:Bishapur zan, AO 26169.jpg, alt=, Sasanian era floor pavement marble mosaic excavated by Roman Ghirshman, c. 1939–1941. Presently housed in the Louvre File:Bishapour jarres.jpg, alt=, Jars discovered in Bishapur

References

External links

Bishapur
Photos * ''Bishapur'', Photos from Iran

.
City of Bishapur
(Video) {{Fars Province Buildings and structures completed in the 3rd century Architecture in Iran Roman Empire art Sasanian cities Buildings and structures in Fars province Former populated places in Iran Kazerun County Geography of Fars province Tourist attractions in Fars province Stone buildings Shapur I

History

Excavations and research

Decoration

See also

References

External links