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The archaeology of Sasanian politics

  • Richard Payne EMAIL logo
Published/Copyright: November 8, 2014
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Abstract

This introduction to the special issue offers an overview of the articles and their implications for current research on Sasanian history and archaeology, with an emphasis on direct and indirect intersections between textual and archaeological evidence. It suggests that settlement patterns, irrigation systems, coins, ceramics, and landscapes can provide more productive starting points for analyzing certain aspects of Sasanian political culture – such as the comparative robustness of the imperial apparatus – than texts, especially when placed in dialogue with literary and documentary sources. In particular, the still poorly understood political economy of the Iranian Empire begins to yield its outlines in the contributions to this special issue.

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Published Online: 2014-11-8
Published in Print: 2014-11-1

© 2014 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

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