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INTRODUCTION TO SASANIKA
One of the most remarkable empires of the first millennium CE was that of the Sasanian Persian Empire. Emanating from southern Iran’s Persis region in the third century AD, the Sasanian domain eventually encompassed not only modern day Iran and Iraq, but also the greater part of Central Asia and the Near East, including at times the regions corresponding to present-day Israel, Turkey, and Egypt.
This geographically diverse empire brought together a striking array of ethnicities and religious practices. Arameans, Arabs, Armenians, Persians, Romans, and Goths, as well as a host of other peoples, all lived and labored under Sasanian rule. The Sasanians established a relatively tolerant imperial system, creating a vibrant communal life among their Zoroastrian, Jewish, and Christian citizens.
This arrangement which allowed religious officials to take charge of their own communities was a model for the Ottoman millet system. During the Sasanian period, the Nestorian Church was established, and Zoroastrianism’s Holy Scripture, the Avesta, was codified. The Gnostic Prophet Mani popularized his vision in the Sasanian period, news of which spread from China to the Roman world. Finally, Mazdak was recognized as the first socialist reformer who preached communal ownership while living under Sasanian rule.
- Integrate the Sasanian Empire into the fields of late antiquity and world history.
- Create a website dedicated to Sasanian civilization (sasanika.com/sasnika.org).
- Establish panels dedicated to Sasanian studies.
- Publish Sasanian material culture in partnership with the National Museum of Iran.
- Rediscover and re-attribute artifacts that are wrongly attributed to other periods and dynasties.
SASANIKA ADVISORY BOARD
Michael Alram – Österreichische Akademie der Wisseschaften
Alberto Cantera – University of Salamanca
Carlo G. Cereti – University of Rome
Vesta Sarkhosh Curtis – The British Museum
Touraj Daryaee – University of California, Irvine
Richard N. Frye – Harvard University
Rika Gyselen – CNRS- Mondes iranien et indien
Philip Huyse – CNRS – Mondes iranien et indien
Erich Kettenhofen – University of Trier
Judith Lerner – New York University
Maria Macuch – Freie Universität Berlin
Michael G. Morony – University of California, Los Angeles
Antonio Panaino – University of Bologna
Rahim Shayegan – University of California, Los Angeles
P. Oktor Skjærvø – Harvard University
Evangelos Venetis – University of Leiden
Joel T. Walker – University of Washington
Dontald Whitcomb – University of Chicago