Vol. 15, No. 2 SIPA-Columbia University-New York Fall 2003

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CENTER FOR IRANIAN STUDIES

NEWSLETTER

The first and second fasciclesof Volume XII of the EncyclopædiaIranica were published in the Sum-mer and Fall of 2003. They fea-ture over 120 articles on various as-pects of Iranian culture and history, in-cluding four series of articles on spe-cific subjects: four entries on SadeqHedayat, four entries on Hazara groupsin Afghanistan, four entries on HelmandRiver, and eight entries on Herat.

SADEQ HEDAYATAND PERSIAN LITERATURE

Four articles discuss the life andwork of Sadeq Hedayat, the foremostmodern Persian fiction writer who hada vast influence on subsequent genera-tions of Persian writers: LIFE AND WORK

by H. Katouzian & EIr .; THEMES,PLOTS, AND TECHNIQUES by M. C.Hillmann ; TRANSLATION OF PAHLAVI

TEXTS by T. Daryaee; and SELECTED

BIBLIOGRAPHY by EIr . Hedayat’s contri-bution to Folklore Studies will betreated in the Supplement. DicussingHedayat’s work, Katouzian notes thathe displays an effortless skill in hischoice of metaphor and imagery, par-ticularly in his masterpiece The BlindOwl (Buf-e kur). He also discusses the

SADEQ HEDAYAT

Gala Benefit DinnerHouston, October 16th, 2004

Shirin Ebadi, lawyer and humanrights activist who contributed the en-try CHILDREN’S RIGHTS IN IRAN to theEncyclopædia Iranica and whose bookHistory and Documentation of HumanRights in Iran was published by theCenter for Iranian Studies in 2000, wasawarded the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize.

SHIRIN EBADI WINNER OF

2003 NOBEL PEACE PRIZE

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Annual gala benefit dinners orga-nized by Friends of the EncyclopædiaIranica are becoming a feature of ourfundraising activities. The recent se-ries of such galas began in New Yorkin 1999, followed successively by onein Washington D.C. in 2001, Los An-geles in 2002, and Miami in 2003. Thenext gala benefit dinner will take placein Houston, Texas on October 16, 2004.

A committe chaired by Mrs. LilyLajevardian-Kooros and Mr. AliSaberioon with the participation of anumber of socially active Iranian-Americans of Houstan, Texas, has beenformed to organize a benefit dinner forthe Encyclopædia Iranica on Saturday,16th of October at elegant River OakCountry Club.

The program includes honoring anumber of prominent individuals fortheir distinguished achievements, aswell as live and silent auctions. There

will also be live music.It is hoped that as many support-

ers of the Encyclopædia Iranica as pos-sible wil attend the Gala. For furtherinformation please refer to our websiteat www.iranica.com.

BALLET OF ZAL & RUDABE

Following the efforts of Mrs.Houri Mostowfi-Moqaddam and Ms.Nazli Mohajer , the ballet Zal andRudabeh a love story from the IranianBook of Kings (the Shahnameh), cho-reographed by Robert de Warren, isscheduled to be shown in January of2005 in San Francisco for the benefitof the Encyclopædia Iranica. Mr. War-ren, presently Artistic Director & CEOof Sarasota Ballet of Florida, led theNational Ballet of Iran from 1965-76and has choreographed Zal andRudabeh as “an amalgam of Persiandance movements and contemporaryclassical ballet.”

ENCYCLOPÆDIA IRANICAFascicles 1 and 2 of Volume XII Published; Fascicle 3 in Press

way in which Hedayat’s satire per-meates many of his short stories.Hillmann reviews plots and themesof Hedayat’s fiction, some fifty ormore works written from the mid-

1920s through the mid-1940s, and citesfeatures of Hedayat’s distinctive waysof narration which advanced the capa-bilities of the language in Persian lit-erature and served as an indigenousmodel for later Iranian short story writ-ers and novelists.

Persian literature is also treated inthe following eight articles: HASAN

GHAZNAVI , poet at the court ofBahramshah Ghaznavi, by J. S.Meisami; HATEF ESFAHANI, influentialpoet of 18th century, by the late Z. Safa

CIS Newsletter 2

and EIr ; ABD-ALLAH HATEFI, Persianpoet of 15th-16th century, by M.Bernardini .

HAZIN LAHIJI, Persian poet andscholar of 18th century, is discussed byJ. Perry. The author concludes thatHazin was an open-minded, tolerant,cultivated and cosmopolitan Shi’itescribe of the late Safavid and post-Safavid Persia who fled a politicallydangerous and economically depressedmilieu for the courts of Muslim India,where he contributed to thePersianization of the ruling elite.

REZAQOLI KHAN HEDAYAT, literaryhistorian, administrator, and poet of theQajar period, is treated by P. Losensky.The entry presents in detail Hedayat’sliterary and educational contributionsand notes that serving as the deputy di-rector of the newly established Dar al-Fonun in the mid 19th century, he wasinstrumental in designing its curricu-lum. During this time, he also begancomposing the two massive proseworks for which he is perhaps bestknown, Rawzat al-safa-ye naseri andMajma al-fosaha. Although much ofHedayat’s voluminous output in poetryand religious lore exists only in manu-script, many of his most importantworks on lexicography, rhetoric, andliterary and political history have beenpublished in both lithograph and printeditions.

MOHAMMAD HEJAZI, novelist andplaywright, is discussed by M.Ghanoonparvar. Examining Hejazi’swork, the entry discusses Ziba, his bestnovel, in some detail. Ziba is the storyof an attractive and ambitious courte-san who manipulates his lover, a young,

equally ambitious cleric within a cor-rupt bureaucratic environment of thelate Qajar era to reach a high rank inthe government.

Also presented are two Tajik poets andessayists: MOHAMMED-SEDDIQ HAYRAT,Tajik poet from Bukhara of late 19thcentury; and RAHIM HASHEM, essayist,critic, and translator of 20th century,both by H. Borjian .

HAZARAJAT

HAZARA, the third largest ethnicgroup of Afghanistan after the Pashtunsand the Tajiks, represents nearly a fifthof the total population. Their name mostprobably derives from the Persian wordhazar, which means “thousand,” atribal-military unit of 1000 soldiers. TheHazaras speak a Persian dialect withmany Turkish and some Mongolianwords. Most Hazaras are TwelverShi’ites, a factor which has contributedto their political and socio-economicmarginalization. The history of theHazaras is marked by several wars andforced displacements. Driven by pov-erty, the Hazaras have migratedthroughout the 20th century. Four ar-ticles treat various aspects of Hazara,HISTORICAL GEOGRAPHY by A. Khazeni;HISTORY; and ETHNOGRAPHY AND SOCIAL

ORGANIZATION, both by A. Monsutti ;Hazaragi Dialect by J. Kieffer.

HELMAND RIVER

Helmand River, on the border ofIran and Afghanistan, is significant forboth its place in Zoroastrian mythologyand for being the main source of thewater supply of Sistan province and as

such the source of constant dispute be-tween Persia and Afghanistan since themid-19th century. This subject is treatedin four articles: GEOGRAPHY by M. J.Hanifi , and EIr .; IN ZOROASTRIAN TRA-DITION by G. Gnoli; MEDIEVAL PERIOD

by C. E. Bosworth; LATTER PART OF THE

19TH CENTURY AND IN THE 20TH CENTURY

by A. Khazeni.

Discussing the great role theHelmand River and its region played inthe entire Zoroastrian tradition, Gnolinotes that numerous indications lead tothe assumption that “in an unspecificbut archaic period, probably during thecourse of the 6th century B.C.E., aprocess occurred in which the Helmandand other localities of its region wereidentified with elements of traditionalcosmography and mythical geography.”It was considered not only as the centerof mythical Kayanid dynasty’s powerand its divine farr but also the lake inwhich the seed of the prophet Zoroasteris cared for and protected by the 99,999fravashis (souls of the departed heros)from which will be born the three greatsaviors in Zoroastrian tradition.

Beginning with a description of theeconomic outlook and dependency ofSistan on the flow of Helmand Riverand a century and a half of dispute overthe division of water resources, the en-try on Helmand in the latter part of the19th century and the 20th century con-cludes that numerous rounds of nego-tiations between Iran and Afghanistanhave occurred, resulting in agreementsin 1926, 1928, 1939, and 1972. Thesefailed to create a resolution. During thedrought that began in the late 1990s, the

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RAHIM HASHEM

MOHAMMAD HEJAZI

Old Quarters of HERAT,Timurid Period

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Taliban dammed the Helmand in cen-tral Afghanistan, completely drying theHamun lake and causing the abandon-ment of villages in Persian Sistan.

HERAT

Occupying an important place inmedieval as well as modern history ofPersia, the city of Herat, in northwesternAfghanistan, is the subject of sevenarticles: GEOGRAPHY by A. Khazeni andEIr .; PRE-ISLAMIC HISTORY by W. J.Vogelsang; MEDIEVAL HISTORY andMEDIEVAL URBANISM AND TOPOGRAPHY,both by M. Szuppe; LOCAL HISTORIES

OF HERAT by J. Paul; HERAT QUESTION

by A. Amanat; and HERAT FRONTIER INLATTER HALF OF 19-20TH CENTURIEs byA. Khazeni. HERAT FROM SOVIET

OCCUPATION TO POST-TALIBAN PERIOD

will be treated in the Supplement.

In her treatment of the medievalhistory of Herat, Szuppe notes thatwhen the Arab armies appeared inKhorasan in the 650s, Herat wascounted among the twelve capital townsof the Sasanian Empire and in themedieval period, it was one of the fourmain urban centres of Eastern Iranianworld. Under the Timurids in the 15th

century, Herat assumed the role of themain capital of an empire that extendedin the West as far as Central Persia. Thenew prosperity of Herat began with thenomination of Shahrokh, the youngestson of Timur, as governor of Herat in1397 and culminated under SultanHosayn Bayqara, whose reign is viewedas the golden age of the city in moderntimes, not only because of the relativestability of political and economic life,but also for cultural and scientific

achievements associated with his court.

In his treatment of HERAT QUESTION

Amanat provides us with a detailed nar-rative of the controversy over Heratfrom the middle of the 18th century,when following Nader Shah’s assassi-nation in 1747 the city became the fo-cus of a century-long power struggleand regional rivalry that came to an endonly with Persia renouncing its sover-eignty over the city under the Britishpressure in 1857. Defeat in the 1838 and1856 Anglo-Persian wars over Heratconvinced the Qajar state never to en-gage militarily against Persia’s imperialneighbors. In the longer historical span,Amanat notes that the humiliation oflosing Herat invoked in Persianmemory, especially during the Pahlaviera, the image of Qajar infirmity andineptitude, and a painful national losssecond only to that of the Caucasianprovinces to Russia three decades ear-lier.

PRE-ISLAMIC HISTORY ANDCULTURE

Pre-Islamic history and culture isthe subject of 23 entries. The entryWALTER BRUNO HENNING by W.Sundermann guides the reader throughthe entire range of Henning’s writings.Henning’s discoveries were many andfundamental. He was the scholar whomade sense of Paikuli inscription anddemonstrated that it was a monumentby the Sasanian Narseh to celebrate hisvictory against his rival. He also clari-fied the sense of Shapur I’s very impor-tant inscriptions in Ka’ba-ye Zardoshtin three languages: Pahlavi, Parthianand Greek, in which he records an ac-count of his campaigns in RomanMesopotamia and Syria, and recordsinformation about his court and court-

iers and the endowments he had madefor the happiness of their souls. On thecontroversial question of the date ofZoroaster, he argued for the validity ofthe Zoroastrian tradition of placing theProphet 258 years before Alexander,therefore in the 7th-6th century BCE.Among those who studied with himwere Ilya Gershevitch, Mary Boyce,Richard Frye, Jacques Duchesne-Guillemin , Ehsan Yarshater, FirouzKotwal , Mahyar Navvabi, AhmadTafazzoli, Mehrdad Bahar,Badrozzaman Gharib , and HamidMahamedi.

The entry HELLENISM, referring topartial or complete adoption of Greeklanguage, manners, and lifestyle in theancient Near East by non-Greeks, istreated by L. Martinez-Sève. From thetime that Cyrus expanded Achaemenidpower to the shore of the Aegean Seawith the capture of Sardis in 546 BCE,Iranians and Greeks began to learn fromand adapt to each other in many areas—religion, art, technology, fashion, andmore. After Alexander the Great’s con-quest of the Persian Empire in 331 BCE,the cultural interaction shifted to newgrounds. This foreign cultural presencewas both a challenge and a contribu-tion to be absorbed and integrated intoIran’s historical development.

The entry, HEGEL ON PERSIA, pre-sented by M. Azadpour, deals with theviews of the noted western philosopheron the role of Persian civilization inworld history.

Hegel, in his influential work, ThePhilosophy of History, develops the ideathat the historical process of self-con-

HERACLES

HASANLU PIC?

Horse breastplate bronzefrom HASANLU TEPPE

WALTER BRUNO HENNING

CIS Newsletter 4

sciousness of freedom, as driving forceof history, begins with the Persians, andthat the history of ZoroastrianAchaemenid Persia “constitutes strictlythe beginning of world history.” Hegelengages in an extensive treatment of theZoroastrian Iranian civilization, focus-ing on Achaemenid Persia. The signifi-cance of Achaemenid Persians as the“first Historical People” is expressed inthe Zoroastrian religious system. TheMazdean light enables the individualhuman beings to achieve freedom to actin as many ways as their natural pro-pensities allow. Hegel traces a replica-tion of the Zoroastrian space, openedup by the antithesis between light anddarkness in the political organization ofthe Persian empire: “We find the Per-sian empire consisting of a number ofstates, which are indeed dependent, butwhich have retained their own individu-ality, their manners, and laws. As Lightilluminates everything – imparting toeach object its peculiar vitality–so thePersian Empire extends over a multi-tude of nations, and leaves to each oneits particular character.”

Other articles on pre-Islamic his-tory and religion include: the conceptof HELL IN ZOROASTRIANISM, by P.

Gignoux; HERACLES or Hercules, one ofthe most popular Greek gods in theHellenistic East and by far the best-at-tested Greek god in the Iranian world,by F. de Jong; HEPHTHALITES, secondwave of Hunnic tribal invaders in 4thcentury, by A. D. H. Bivar; HELIOCLES

I, last Greek king in Bactria in 2nd cen-tury BCE, by O. Bopearachchi;HERACLEITUS OF EPHESUS, Greek philoso-pher, writer on the magi of 6th centuryBCE; HERACLEIDES OF CYME, Greek au-thor of Persian history of 4th centuryBCE; and HECTAEUS OF MILETUS, Greekauthor from Miletus, 6th-5th centuryBCE, all by J. Wiesehöfer; HELMET INPRE-ISLAMIC PERIOD by B. A. LITVINSKY .

HARHAR, land and city at westernborder of Media, and HARZIANU, city anddistrict in Media, both discussed by I.Medevedskaya; WILLY HARTNER, Ger-man historian of science who contrib-uted to the study of Persian calendar,by A. Panaino; HASANLU TEPPE, ar-chaeological site in Western Azarbaijan,by R. H. Dyson; HASHTPAY, name of agame from Sasanian era, by A.Panaino; HATRA, strongly fortified an-cient city in Upper Mesopotamia, andHAUMAVARGA , term distinguishing oneof the three groups of Saka tribes, bothby R. Schmitt; MARTIN HAUG, Germanscholar and one of the founders of Ira-nian studies in the 19th century, by A.Hintze; HAZARBED, title of high stateofficial in Sasanian Iran, by R.Shayegan; HARPAGOS, Median magnateof 6th century BCE, by M.Dandamayev; HARUT AND MARUT,fallen angels who taught mankind

magic in Babylon, by S. Shahbazi.

HISTORY,MEDIEVAL TO MODERN

Seven entries treat Iran’s historyfrom medieval to modern times:HENDUSHAH B. SANJAR, 14th century au-thor of the Persian book Tajareb al-salaf; HARUN B. ALTUNTAS, a governorof Khwarazm in Ghaznavid period;HARUN-AL -RASHID, fifth caliph ofAbbasid dynasty; and HARRAN, Ancienttown of Upper Mesopotamia, all by C.E. Bosworth; HAYDAR MIRZA, Safavidprince, by M. Mazzaoui; HASAN BEG

RUMLU , author and cavalryman ofSafavid period, by Sh. Quinn; HASAN-ALI BEG BESTAMI, associate and advisorof Nader Shah, by E. Tucker; HAYDAR

KHAN AMUOGLI, revolutionary activist ofearly 20th century, by A. R.Sheikholeslami.

MARTIN HAUG

Golden Cup from HASANLU TEPPE

HELMET IN PRE-ISLAMIC PERIOD

5 CIS Newsletter

PRE-MODERN SOCIALRELATIONS

Three articles treat aspects of so-cial relations in pre-modern times:HASAB O NASAB, Arabic term used toexpress complementary aspects of no-bility, by L. Marlow . Hasab, properlyrefers to the store of inherited as wellas acquired merit while nasab wasstrictly defined by heredity. HAYDARI

AND NEMATI , mutually hostile urbanmoieties, known from Safavid to Qajarperiods, by J. Perry. From the late fif-teenth century until recent decades, anumber of cities and towns of Persiawere perceived as being divided intotwo groupings of adjacent wards(mahalla), one known as the Haydari-khana and the other as the Ne’mati-khana, the respective male inhabitantsof which would profess mutual con-tempt and antagonism, and would peri-odically clash in massive public fights.HAREM in the Qajar period by A.Vanzan treats the important rolewomen played in the life of the twoQajar monarchs, Fath-Ali Shah andNaser-al-Din Shah, who kept a largeharem.

PAHLAVI PERIOD

The following ten articles are de-voted to Persian statesmen and otherfigures of the Pahlavi period: MOKHBER

AL-SALTANA HEDAYAT, statesman, authorand musicologist is the subject of twoarticles: LIFE AND WORK by M. Kasheff;and AS MUSICIAN by A. Youssefzadeh.The highlights of Hedayat’s politicalcareer, include the active role he playedin the Constitutional Movement as in-termediary between the Shah and lead-ers of the movement and in drafting the

election law, his tenures as governorgeneral of Fars and of Azerbaijan dur-ing the critical years of World War I andits aftermath, and finally hispremiership for six years under RezaShah.

ALI-ASGHAR HEKMAT, man of let-ters, cabinet minister, and the chief ar-chitect of the modernization of the edu-cational system under Reza Shah, bestremembered as a progressive and effi-cient Minister of Education, is by A.Milani and EIr . Hekmat played a piv-otal role in the foundation of the Uni-versity of Tehran, modern schools, theArcheological Museum (Muze-ye Iran-e Bastan), the National Library, etc.Following a discussion of Hekmat’s lit-erary work and his character traits thearticle concludes: “One could say thatHekmat, like Mohammad Ali Foruqiand Mehdiqoli Hedayat (both primeministers), was among the statesmenwho continued the old tradition oflearned and capable viziers.”

HARRIMAN MISSION, mission ofAmerican diplomat W. A. Harriman toPersia in 1951 to mediate Anglo-Iranianoil dispute between the British govern-ment and prime minister MohammadMosaddeq; and ABD-AL -HOSAYN

HAZHIR, minister, prime Minister, andcourt minister under Mohammad RezaShah, both by F. Azimi; KAZEM HASIBI,a National Front leader and the oil ad-visor to Mosaddeq, by B. Agheli andEIr . SARDAR FAKHER HEKMAT, influen-tial politician and speaker of the Houseof Representatives (Majles), by A.Milani; and SHAMSI MORADPUR HEKMAT,educator and philanthropist of latter halfof 20th century, by H. Sarshar.

SHI ’ ISM

Shi’ism and Ismailism are treatedin twelve entries: HASAN B. ALI B. ABI-TALEB, eldest surviving grandson of theProphet Mohammad through his daugh-ter Fatema, and second Imam of theShites after his father Ali. He wasbrought up in the Prophet’s householduntil the age of seven when his grand-father died. Imam Hasan is known as aman of toleration and according toShi’ite sources was killed by poisoning,instigated by Moawiya; and EBRAHIM

HASANI, Zaydi scholar from Amol of 9thcentury, both by W. Madelung; HAYYA

ALA KHAYR AL-AMAL , religious formulaincluded in call to prayer (azan), by M.Bar-Asher; HASAN BASRI, Muslimpreacher, theologian, jurist of 7th-8thcentury, by C. Melchert; NAJM-AL-DIN

HELLI, a leading jurist of Twelver Shi’iteschool of law of 13th century, by E.Kohlberg ; HASAN B. YUSOF HELLI ,prominent Imami theologian and juristof 13th-14th century, by S. Schmidtke;HELYAT AL-MOTTAQIN, popular Shi’itetraditionist book on Shi’ite customs andnorms written by influential scholarMohammad Taqi Majlesi in late Safavidperiod; and HASAN SHIRAZI, influentialShi’ite source of emulation who playeda leading role in the Tobacco Boycottof 1891, both by H. Algar ; HEJLA, bridalchamber which is also used in religiousfestivals, by J. Calmard.

Also treated are three Ismaili fig-ures: HASAN SABBAH, Ismaili da’i andfounder of Nezari Ismaili state in 11th-12th century in Alamut; and HASAN II,Nezari-Ismaili Imam and fourth ruler ofAlamut in 12th century, both by F.Daftary ; and HASAN BHARUCHI HENDI,

ALI-ASGHAR HEKMAT

KAZEM HASIBI

SHAMSI MORADPUR HEKMAT

CIS Newsletter 6

Mostali Tayyebi Ismaili savant and au-thor of 16th century, by I. Poonawala.

KURDS AND LORS

Kurds and Lors are treated in sevenarticles: HARKI, Kurdish tribe of west-ern Azarbaijan, eastern Anatolia andnortheastern Iraq, by P. Oberling;HAZARASPIDS, Local dynasty of Kurdishorigin in Zagros mountains, by C. E.Bosworth; HAZHAR, pen name ofKurdish poet, philologist and transla-tor, by K. Hitchins ; RAFIQ HELMI ,Kurdish historian, poet, and politicalactivist of 20th century; and HEMIN

MOKRIANI, pen name of Kurdish poetand journalist, both by J. Blau.HASANVAND, Lor tribe of Pishkuh regionof Lorestan, and HAYAT-DAWUDI, seden-tary Lor tribe in Hayat-Dawud district,stretching from the Persian Gulf tonorthwest of Bushehr, both by P.Oberling.

MEDICINE AND SCIENCE

Four entries discuss the history ofmedicine in Persia: AL-HAWI, title of aninfluential work by Zakaria Razi onmedicine, by L. Richter-Bernburg ;HEALTH IN PERSIA, IN PRE-ISLAMIC PE-RIOD, by P. Gignoux; IN QAJAR PERIOD,by A. Afkhami ; HEDAYAT AL-MOTA’ ALLEMIN FI’ L-TEBB, a 10th centurytreatise on medicine in Persian writtenby Akhawayni, by J. Matini ; and HEFZ

AL-SEHHA, first Persian medical journal,by N. Parvin.

Three entries deal with astronomyand mathematics: HARUN MONAJJEM, As-tronomer and astrologer of 10th century,and HASAN B. ALI QOMMI, astrologer oflate 10th century, both by D. Pingree;and MOHSEN HASHTRUDI, Iranian math-

ematician and lecturer of 20th century,by Sh. Tahvildar-Zadeh & F. Majidi .

PERSIAN MUSIC

Persian Music is treated in fourentries: History of HARP in Persia fromancient times is treated by B.Lawergren. The entry discusses in de-tail the string instrument which flour-ished in Persia in many forms from itsintroduction, about 3000 BCE, until the17th century. The original type was thearched harp as seen at Chogha Mish andon later third millennium seals. Around1900 BCE they were replaced by angu-lar harps with vertical or horizontalsound boxes. By the start of the Com-mon Era, “robust, vertical, angularharps”, which had become predominantin the Hellenistic world, were cherishedin the Sasanian court. In the last cen-tury of the Sasanian period, angularharps were redesigned to make them aslight as possible (“light, vertical, angu-lar harps,” see illustration above) as theybecame more elegant they lost theirstructural rigidity. At the height of thePersian tradition of illustrated book pro-duction (1300 to 1600) such light harpswere still frequently depicted, althoughtheir use as musical instruments wasreaching its end.

Other articles on Persian music areHAZIN and HEJAZ, two small musicalmodal types in Persian classical radif,both by J. During; and HAYEDA, stagename of popular Persian singer, by E.Nakjavani..

MOHSEN HASHTRUDI

OTHER ARTICLES

Also published in these fasciclesare nine articles on other subjects:HATEM TAI , epitome of generosityinArabic and Persian anecdote tradi-tions, by M. Omidsalar; HENNA, dyeobtained from the leaves of henna plantand its use; and HAZELNUT, both by H.A’lam ; HEKMAt, Persian-language news-paper published in Egypt from1892-1911, by N. Parvin; HARIRA, Persianlight, diluted dish made of wheat flour;and HARISA, Persian dish made of grainsand meat, both by E. Elahi; HASHTRUD,sub-province in south of Azerbaijan, byZ. Sadrolashrafi; HEDGEHOG, by S. C.Anderson; and ALI HATAMI , noted Per-sian scriptwriter and film director, byJ. Akrami .

ALI HATAMI

Light, vertical, angular HARPS

7 CIS Newsletter

SUPPORT FOR

ENCYCLOPÆDIA IRANICA

The Encyclopædia Iranica is aproject of Columbia University car-ried out by its Center for IranianStudies, partially supported by theNational Endowment for the Hu-manities. The execution of the projectis being made possible also by dona-tions from institutions and individu-als who value a comprehensive, me-ticulous and reliable record of Per-sian culture and history.

We appeal to all such institutionsand individuals to assist the projectby their donations. We acknowledgewith thanks the donations by the fol-lowing for the period of April 15–October 15, 2003.

BenefactorsDr. Akbar GhaharyIran Heritage FoundationMrs. Sedigheh Rastegar (YadiranFoundation)Azima FoundationMr. & Mrs. Patrick Mimran

SponsorsMrs. Simin & Mr. Herbert Allison,Dubai Friends of IranicaMs. Fereshteh BekhradMs. Shahnaz Batmanghelidj-KlotzIranian American Society, NY

1000 ClubMrs. Farideh & Mr. Farhad AhiMr. Ahmad Ashraf (Akmi Corp.)Dr. Parviz MinaDr. & Mrs. Morteza NadjafiNour FoundationDr. & Mrs. Alimorad SalartashDr. Abbas SassanfarDr. Farrokh ShafaieMme. Ghodsi Zanganeh,

SupportersDr. Hooshang AnvarMr. Ahmad LadjevardiDr. Farah Feri SadeghianDr. Jafar Samimi & Mr. AbdiGhazinouriDr. Houman SarsharMrs. Ezat SoleimaniDr. and Mrs. Ali ZarbalianMr. Rostam Zartoshty

FriendsDr. Sadegh AzimiDarya Lin Memorial FundEdison InternationalMs. Farzaneh KeshaniMomeni, Inc.Mr. and Mrs. Seif MozayeniAmb. Kazem Niamir,Dr. and Mrs. Mohammad Pourfar,Mr. Ali M. ShapurianUNITED Way of Tucson &Southern AZ

ROSHAN CULTURAL

HERITAGE INSTITUTE

The Roshan Cultural HeritageInstitute was founded in 2000 by Dr.Elahé Mir-Djalali Omidyar, a phi-lanthropist and linguist committedto the support of Persian culture.The Roshan Institute is dedicated tothe active preservation, instructionand transmission of Persian culturalheritage through partnerships withacademic institutions, individuals,and other not-for-profit organiza-tions. The Institute has already es-tablished named fellowships at threemajor US universities. The RoshanInstitute is also among the main sup-porters of volume XII of theEncyclopædia Iranica which is inpress.

The Roshan Institute’s work isfocused, according to its statutes, onfour major areas: 1) Funding Per-

sian studies departments or pro-grams at major U.S. universities. 2)Assisting existing U.S. not-for-profit organizations that share theInstitute’s vision/mission. 3) Estab-lishing the Roshan Institute Gradu-ate Fellowship for Excellence inPersian Studies. 4) Establishing anumber of annual Roshan InstitutePrizes for Outstanding Achieve-ments by Iranians in the fields ofscience, humanities and the arts.

Dr. Mir-Djalali Omidyar holdsa Ph.D. in linguistics from theSorbonne, Université de Paris, aswell as two Masters degrees, onefrom the Sorbonne and the otherfrom Georgetown University inWashington, D.C. Her doctoral dis-sertation “Transformational Struc-ture of the Verb in Persian – theSimple Verb” was awarded honor-able mention. Dr. Mir-DjalaliOmidyar’s post-doctoral work hasbeen in cross-cultural research andin the fields of language teachingmethodology and Persian studies.She taught linguistics at UC Berke-

Dr. Mir-Djalali Omidyar

ley between 1992 and 2000. Herinterest in Persian mystical poetryand prose has resulted in a numberof translations from Persian intoFrench and English.

PatronMr. Mahmoud Khayami

CIS Newsletter 8

PERSEPOLIS SEALS

On April 8, 2003 Professor ShapurA. Shahbazi of East Oregon State Uni-versity and Visiting Scholar at our Cen-ter led a discussion on “Observationson Persepolis Seals.”

Dr. Shahbazi began his observa-tions by stating that in 1933-34, ErnestHerzfeld discovered, in two chambersof the NE Persepolis fortification, a partof Persepolis archive comprising over30,000 small clay tablets, mostly writ-ten in Elamite. These “Persepolis For-tification Tablets” were not chroniclesor “historical” records but documentsrelated to the economic administrationcentered at Persepolis, consisting of reg-isters of rations given to workers, her-alds, junior and senior officials andpriests of various cults. They have en-riched our Elamite vocabulary and shedmuch light on the history of theAchaemenid period by attesting a largenumber of Old Iranian names andwords, documented the economic ad-ministration of the Persian Empire, andprovided a picture of every day life inthe late sixth and early fifth centuryPersepolis.

Prof. Shahbazi noted that a furtherdocumentary value of the archives isprovided by their impression of the sealsor seals used by the officials responsiblefor the transaction recorded in the texts.In this way a huge collection of the sealsused by Achaemenid agencies have be-come known to us. These seal impres-

sions have been meticulously studied,catalogued and now partially publishedin the monumental works of the twooutstanding scholars, Mark Garrisonand Margaret Cool Root (see M. B. Gar-rison and M. C. Root, Persepolis SealStudies = Achaemenid History IX,Lieden 1996; M. B. Garrison and M.C. Root, Seals on the Persepolis Forti-fication Tablets. I: Images of Heroic En-counter, Parts 1. Text, Part 2. Plates, TheUniversity of Chicago Oriental InstitutePublications 117, Chicago 2001). Theyhave two more volumes in preparation:Vol. II. Images of Human Activity andVol. III: Animal, Creatures, Plants, andGeometric Devices). These publicationshave significantly contributed to our un-derstanding of Achaemenid art, itssources of inspiration, its stylistic de-velopment and its diversity. We seeseals of Cyrus I, grandfather of Cyrusthe Great, having been used atPersepolis four generations later. Wesee Assyrian, Elamite, Egyptian andBabylonian designs used directly or inmodified forms by Persepolitan officialswhose Iranian identity cannot bedoubted: Artystuna, the wife of Dariusthe Great, Darius himself, Xerxes, andPharnaces, the uncle of Darius.

It is interesting to note that onsome early seals the so-called Greco-Persian “mature style” of renderingphysical features as well as drapery isalready employed, evidently as indig-enous to Western Asiatic nations. Mostimportantly, we can compare the imagesof the “Royal hero” slaying monsters,and the seals represent similar scene;the motif of the Lion goring the Bullalso appear in both places, as do the fig-ures of the man with four wings, bestknow from Pasargadae, and the imageof the winged man or winged disk, tra-ditionally but erroneously called thesymbol of Ahuramazda. The compari-son with Persepolitan relief also shedslight on the function of the sculpturedfigures: evidently they were guardiansymbols, protecting entrances to theinner chambers. Also, the seals repre-senting ritual scenes re-emphasize thediversity of the religions at the time andthe tolerant policy of the Achaemenidadministrators towards the cults of thesubject people.

IRANIAN PRESENCE IN PRE-TANG CHINA

On May 20, 2003, Dr. JudithLerner concluded last year’s IranianStudies Seminar series with a lectureentitled “Iranians in 6th-century China:Tomb Furnishings of a Foreign Com-munity.”

Dr. Lerner began by noting that al-though the presence of Iranians is welldocumented in China during the TangDynasty (618-906), much less is knownabout Iranians in China in the preced-ing Six Dynasties period, the time be-tween the end of the Han Dynasty (220CE) and the beginning of the Tang. Itwas during this period that theSogdians, an Eastern Iranian people liv-ing in the region of present-dayUzbekistan and Tajikistan, establishedthemselves as the masters of the SilkRoad, the network of routes that linkedthe West with China.

She stated that a group of stonefunerary furniture—four couches andone sarcophagus—dating to the 6th cen-tury and carved with scenes of CentralAsians, mainly Sogdians, engaged in arange of secular and religious activities,offer insight into the lives of thesepeople who founded colonies in the cit-ies along the Silk Road. Many weretraders or representatives of merchantsback in Samarkand and Bukhara, butothers were craftsmen, horse-trainers,translators and officials appointed bythe Chinese government to administerto the local Iranian communities.

COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY SEMINARON IRANIAN STUDIES

Dr. Judith Lerner

Prof.. Shapur Shahbazi at Persepolis

9 CIS Newsletter

Among the lively scenes depictedon the couches and sarcophagus are thetraditional Iranian themes of the huntand banquet, the latter with feastingcouples and entertainers, typically witha male dancer performing the “Sogdianwhirl.” Allusions to Zoroastrian orSogdian practices and beliefs also oc-cur: banqueters drinking from a hornrhyton, possibly the Sagdid ceremonyin which the gaze of a dog is believedto drive away the spirit of dead matter,and the image of the goddess Nana,bearing the sun and the moon in two ofher four arms.

The couches and sarcophagus hadbeen carved for Sogdian émigrés. Theywere placed in underground tombs,which marks a departure from Zoroas-trian funeral practices and reveals theadaptation and assimilation of these Ira-nian foreigners into another land.

THE STATE OF

ARCHÆOLOGICAL RE-SEARCH IN IRAN

On Tuesday April 22, 2003, Pro-fessor Holly Pittman of the Universityof Pennsylvania gave a talk entitled“Observations on the State of Archaeo-logical Research in Iran” at the IranianStudies Seminar.

Professor Pittman described herobservations of the state of archaeologi-cal research in Iran based on two visitsto the country, the first in the spring of2001 and a second, longer visit, duringthe fall of 2002. She began both tripsby leading a tour of archaeological sitesin the Zagros Mountains, Khuzestan,Fars and Kerman provinces. Sites thatwere visited were Hamadan, Godin,Nushi Jan, Sar-e Pol, Susa, Tchogha

Zanbil, Haft Tepe, Izeh, Maliyan,Shahdad, Persepolis, Pasargade,Bisotun, Taq-e Bostan, Naqsh-eRostam, Kurungun, among others. Allof the sites were in good condition.Work was being done at some, whileothers were conserved and protected.There was no evidence at those sites oflooting or other disturbing activity, ex-cept at the site of Godin, which had beenmined on one side for mud brick. Fol-lowing the tour, she participated inmeetings and met with colleagues inorder to discover what was happeningin Iran with regard to archaeological andmuseological work. The first visitended with her participation in a con-ference in Zahedan. This was the firstinternational conference concerning thearchaeology of southeastern Iran. It wasattended by a small number of foreignnationals and a very larger number ofIranian professionals and students ofarchaeology. The enthusiasm for thesubject was palpable and the commit-ment on the part of the professionalswas impressive. The conference endedwith a tour of sites such as Shar-eSokhta and Kuh-e Kwaja. Work wasproceeding at Shar-e Sokhta and a won-derful exhibition of materials from thelocal museum and the National Mu-seum was mounted by the Iranian Cul-tural Heritage Organization (ICHO).

Following the tour during the sec-ond visit, Pittman stayed for five weeksin Tehran in order to investigate the pos-sibility of working in the future in Iran.She established contacts with the Na-tional Museum, which has set up a Cen-ter for Elamite Studies, a Center forAchaemenid Studies, and a Center forPaleolithic Studies. There she was ableto photograph tablets from Persepolisand Haft Tepe, in order to make imagesavailable for drawing by Iranian schol-ars. The other center of activity thatshe engaged with was the Archaeologi-cal Research Center of the ICHO. Shemet frequently with MassoudAzarnoush who arranged for her to givefour lectures on the Bronze Age in Iran.She hopes that these will be translatedand published in Persian in the near fu-ture. In addition, Pittman visited sev-eral very interesting sites includingGhabrestan, and Ozbeki, an importantMedian period site now in its fifth sea-son of excavation under the directionof Youssef Majidzadeh.

Pittman ended her presentationwith illustrations of the looted materi-

THE ITALIAN TRAVELERS TO

QAJAR IRAN

On September 16, 2003, ProfessorAnna Vanzan of University IULM,Milan-Feltre, Italy, launched the 2003-2004 Iranian Studies Seminar serieswith her lecture entitled “The Italiantravelers to Qajar Iran.”

She began her lecture stating thatthere is ample evidence of an Italianpresence in Iran throughout the Qajarperiod, when many Italians went towork in Iran as physicians, military ad-visors or merchants. They left little writ-ten testimony of their Persian experi-ence until the second half of the 19thcentury, when the number of Italianswho went to Iran increased and thus thebulk of recorded data comes from thisperiod. The most salient aspect of theaccounts written by the Italians wholived in Iran between 1850 and the turnof the century is that almost all of theseauthors had an official assignment tofulfill. In fact, most of the Italian mate-rial published are the reports of mili-tary officials who were in Iran to in-struct the Persian army, of natural sci-entists researching the zoological spe-cies, or of financial advisors to the Per-sian government. These men were ableto describe crucial aspects of Persiangovernment and society, including thearmy, the world of business and trade,and the Qajar court and its politics. Theywere not treasure seekers or hunters ofProf. Holly Pittman

als that have recently been recoveredin the region of Jiroft. This materialwhich comes from third millenniumgraves is remarkable and shows the fullextent of the richness and independenceof the Bronze Age culture of south cen-tral Iran. She hopes to join the scien-tific excavations currently underway atJiroft during their second season to beheld during the winter of 2004.

Prof. Anna Vanzan

CIS Newsletter 10

SHIRIN EBADI WINS

NOBEL PEACE PRIZE A graduate of the University of

Tehran, Shirin Ebadi was the first fe-male judge in Iran, serving as presidentof the Tehran city court from 1975 un-til the 1979 revolution, when she wasforced to resign. She went on to estab-lish a law practice and launched apeaceful campaign for the promotion ofhuman rights in Iran, with particularemphasis on the rights of women andchildren. Both in her research and as anactivist she is best known for promot-ing peaceful, democratic solutions tosocial and political problems. She playsan active role in the discourse on hu-man rights and is well-known and ad-mired for her defense of the victims ofhuman rights violations in court, a

the exotic, but were experts in their fieldand keen observers of the world aroundthem. Furthermore, they were amongthe first official agents sent abroad bythe newborn Kingdom of Italy (consti-tuted in 1861), and thus fulfilled theadditional endeavor of enabling thisnew country to present itself on the in-ternational scene in order to win pres-tige and respect. The paper examinedsome records which constitute the mainsource of information about Qajar Iranthat was available to the 19th centuryItalian readers. She continued by de-marcating the different groups of Ital-ians who were present in Iran at thetime.

The Scientists: a group of Italiandocuments portrays Iran from an un-usual perspective: that of her natural re-sources. The Persian natural world be-gan to attract Italian scientists after thevisit made by Gaetano Osculati, who,in 1841, went from Tehran to Shiraz tostudy Iran’s natural resources. He left atravel book in which, together with aninteresting list of insects he had the oc-casion to examine, he left an accountof his impressions on the way Persiansreceived foreigners. Much more sig-nificant was the scientific mission of1862: two members of the mission,Filippo de Filippi and Michele Lessonamade the greatest contribution not onlyin terms of scientific articles, but alsobecause they provided general informa-tion about the places they visited.Filippo de Filippi was the author of oneof the most interesting travel books onIran in the 19th century, while MicheleLessona wrote a book on the Bahais.Another important contribution to theunderstanding of Qajar Iran was offeredby the photographs taken by themission’s official photographer, LuigiMontalbone.

The Military: in the 19th century,the Persian government employed Ital-ian officers both as teachers at the Darol-Fonun Polytechnic in Tehran, and asadvisors within the ranks of the mili-tary. Such was the case of EnricoAndreini who spent most of his life inTehran. From 1871 to 1886, when therewas no Italian consul in Iran, Andreiniprovided the Italian government withregular accounts of the most importantevents of those crucial years. He notonly sent detailed information aboutpolitical matters, commercial agree-ments between Iran and European pow-ers, the installation of new foreign am-

bassadors, the outburst of epidemics,the frontier problems with Kurds andTurkomans with detailed descriptionsof the Persian infantry with a list of alltroops, the internal organization andtheir maneuvers, but he also often re-ported on the background of theseevents in order to compensate for hisreaders’ insufficient knowledge aboutthis part of the world. The 437 accountshe left are an important diplomaticsource regarding the Qajar era, comingfrom a single author who lived in Iranfor about 40 years in important posi-tions in the Qajar establishment.

The Financial Experts: in 1897, theItalian government sent Eteocle Lorini,professor of Financial Sciences at theUniversity of Pavia, on a mission toIran. After his sojourn (1897-1898)Lorini wrote an extensive monographcovering a variety of topics rangingfrom religious to political institutions,from the world of art and business tothat of art and literature. The books con-tains many provocative assertions onIranian women and on Muslim womenin general.

PARIS LECTURES PUBLISHED

Le Monde est un Jardin: Aspectsde l’histoire culturelle de l’IranMédiéval is the title the book contain-ing the text of five inaugural Ehsan andLatifeh Yarshater Distinguished Lec-tures on Iranian Studies, delivered atParis in 2001 by Prof. Maria E.Subtelny. The book is published asCahier 28 of Studia Iranica by Associa-tion pour l’Avancement des ÉtudesIraniennes, Paris, 2002. Dr. Subtelny isAssociate Professor in the Departmentof Near and Middle Eastern Civiliza-tions at the University of Toronto,Canada, specializing in the history, lit-erature, and culture of medieval Persia,particularly of the Timurid period in the15th century. The thematic thread thatruns through the theme of the book isthat of “Iranian agriculture, its charac-teristics and its role in socio-economicand political organization, and its cul-tural resonance.”

The subjects treated include the bu-reaucratic administration of a societybased on irrigation agriculture, the im-pact of an agrarian economy on the for-mulation of concepts of rulership andjustice, the role of the garden in theeconomy of Iranian culture, both in thehistory of Persian landscape architec-ture as well as in the poetic landscapeof Persian mysticism. “This unique per-spective, informed by the study of awide range of medieval Persian textualsources, sheds new light on certain fun-damental themes in the socio-economic,political and cultural history of medi-eval Iran, all of which converge on thegarden as the microcosm of medievalPersian culture.”

SHIRIN NESHAT DISCUSSES

THE THEME OF DUALITY

On October 21, 2003, the celebrated,internationally acclaimed photo, film,and video artist Shirin Neshat led a dis-cussion on the development of her workand particularly her upcoming film. Intracing the chronology of her works, shenoted that duality seemed to always be atheme in her work, whether in the formof man or woman, East and West, or Is-lamic and Persian. A summary of hertalk will be given in the next issue of theNewsletter.

Ms. Shirin Neshat

Cont inued f rom page 1Cont inued f rom page 1Cont inued f rom page 1Cont inued f rom page 1Cont inued f rom page 1

11 CIS Newsletter

The fifth general European confer-ence of the Societa IranologicaEuropaea (SIE) was convened, October6-11, 2003, in Ravenna which houses abranch of the University of Bologna.The earlier conferences had taken placein Turin, Bamberg, Cambridge (UK),and Paris. The opening session was at-tended by the Iranian ambassador toItaly, the Rector of the University ofBologna, and the dignitaries of the prov-ince and the city of Ravenna. It wasopened by Prof. Antonio Panaino, thecurrent president of SIE and the deanof the Faculty of Preservation of theCultural Heritage, who gave the intro-ductory address, and Prof. GherardoGnoli, President of the IsIAO and astrong pillar of the Society and IranianStudies in Italy, who traced the historyof the SIE since its inception to thepresent.

A large number of scholars attendedthe conference. The number of partici-pants from each country was as follows:Italy, 66; Iran, 46; United States, 21;Germany, 19; Russia, 18; France, 13;United Kingdom, 12; Austria, 9; Israel,7; Poland, 7; Japan, 4; Netherlands, 4;Denmark, 3; Belgium, Georgia, Hun-gary, India, Spain, Sweden, Uzbekistan,2 each; Australia, Bulgaria, Canada,Malaysia, Romania, Switzerland, 1each. Unfortunately no one had beenable to come from Tajikistan or Af-ghanistan because of lack of funds. Asover 250 papers were to be read, simul-taneous sessions were organized for dif-ferent topical areas, namely, Old Ira-nian, Middle Iranian, Classical PersianStudies, and Contemporary IranianStudies. English, Italian, French, andGerman were used by the speakers, butthe great majority of the papers weredelivered in English.

SIE conferences, which meet everyfour years, are the largest gatherings ofscholars and researchers in Iranian stud-ies. Its proceedings are published andprovide an indication of the ongoingresearch and latest advances in Iranianstudies.

EUROPEAN CONFERENCE

FOR IRANIAN STUDIES

The American Numismatic Societyof New York City hosted the Confer-ence on “The Heritage of Sasanian Iran:Dinars, Dirhams and Coppers of theLate Sasanian and Early Muslim Peri-ods” at the Society’s premises at 155thand S. Broadway Ave. on June 19th and20th. A wide range of papers were pre-sented at the conference on the coin-ages of greater Iran from the 5th to 8thcenturies CE in addition to a workshopon the reading of the coins’ Pahlavi leg-ends. The event was co-sponsored byThe Society for Iranian Studies, TheCenter for Iranian Studies at ColumbiaUniversity and Middle East Medieval-ists. More than twenty people attendedfrom as far away as Japan, Georgia,Egypt and Poland.

Michael Alram , Vice-Director ofthe Coin Cabinet at theKunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna,presented the plenary lecture entitled“Ardashir and the Power of Images.”

His lecture discussed the typologi-

The second panel discussed mon-etary circulation of drahms in Iberia,eastern Europe and the Baltic. Dr.Totselia and Georges Depeyrot(CNRS, France) presented talks on coinhoards recovered in Georgia. MartaCzerwieniec (University of Poznan,Poland) outlined the known record ofSasanian coin finds in the Baltic Seaarea. Delia Moisil (National Museumof the History of Romania, Romania),commented on the role of silver in thesupply of the late Roman and Byzan-tine wars against the Sasanian empirewith reference to finds of Byzantinehexagrams.

The third panel considered the in-scription of monetary authority on earlyMuslims dirhams by both political lead-ers and the mint. Stuart D. Sears(ACLS/SSRC/NEH International and

THE SASANIAN HERITAGE

CONFERENCE

stance that has led to her receiving jailsentences and a professional ban againstpracticing law.

Her Nobel Peace Prize came twoyears after she received a human rightsaward in Norway. In its statement, theNobel award committee noted that itchose Ebadi because of her dedicationto promoting human rights and democ-racy in her country. “As a lawyer, judge,lecturer, writer and activist, she has spo-ken out clearly and strongly in her coun-try, Iran, and far beyond,” the presidentof Nobel committee said. The Commit-tee also paid tribute to her courage, not-ing that she had “never heeded the threatto her own safety”.

Michael Alram

Michael L. Bates

cal evolution of Ardashir I’s coins. Thisanalysis gave insight into the chrono-logical sequence of the different cointypes and the organization of early Sasa-nian mints.

Michael L. Bates, Curator of Is-lamic Coins at the ANS, gave a generalintroductory lecture, entitled “TheCoinages of Iran and Its Neighbors inthe Seventh Century.” The lecturetraced the development of the late Sasa-nian coin type and its imitation in nu-merous succeeding coinages in Iran andadjacent regions.

Three panel discussions followedthis lecture, focusing on recent numis-matic finds, monetary circulation, andthe inscription of monetary authority.In the first panel, Medea Tsotselia ofThe Janashia Georgian State Museumin Tbilisi, discussed a seal and dirhamsof Varhran VI in the museum’s collec-tion.

Area Studies Fellow) outlined the riseof Islamist absolutism in the Arabic leg-ends on early Muslim drahms. KameyaManabu (Hokkaido University, Japan)discussed the more than a half dozenmint legends of Darabgird identifyingdifferent sub-mints among them.

CIS Newsletter 12

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13 CIS Newsletter