Iran’s cultural heritage reflects the grandeur and beauty of the golden age of the Persian Empire. In the 6th century BC, Iran was home to the first world empire. Iran is considered as one of the cradles of civilisation. Due to its dominant geo-political position and rich history in the world, Iran has had a significant impact on the world through art, architecture, poetry, science and has heavily influenced cultures and peoples as far away as Italy, Macedonia, and Greece to the West, Russia and Eastern Europe to the North, the Arabian Peninsula to the South, and the Indian subcontinent and East Asia. The Persian Empire, a powerhouse in ancient times left an indelible mark on culture, philosophy and governance.
The Achaemenids ruled a multicultural superpower that stretched to Egypt and Asia Minor in the west and India and Pakistan in the east. They were the power by which all other ancient empires measured themselves. Their cultural homeland was in the Fars province of modern Iran. The word Persian is the name for the Iranian people based on the home region of the Achaemenids – Pars.
The Achaemenid Persian empire was the largest that the ancient world had seen, extending from Anatolia and Egypt across western Asia to Northern India and Central Asia. Its formation began in 550 B.C., when King Astyages of Media, who dominated much of Iran and Eastern Anatolia (Turkey), was defeated by his southern neighbor Cyrus II, king of Persia. Much of our evidence for Persian history is dependent on contemporary Greek sources and classical writers, whose main focus is the relations between Persia and the Greek states, as well as tales of Persian Court intrigues, moral decadence and unrestrained luxury.
The archaeological legacy left by the civilizations of ancient and medieval Iran extend from the Mediterranean Sea to India and ranges across four millennia from the Bronze age (3rd millennium BC) to the glorious age of classical Islam and the magnificent medieval cities of Isfahan and Shiraz that thrived in the 9th-12th centuries AD, and beyond.
Some of the richest and most beautiful of the archaeological and historical heritage in Iran remains there. This includes Parsgardae, the first Achaemenids dynastic capital where King Cyrus laid down the foundations of law and the first declaration of universal rights while ruling over a vast array of cultures.The great city of Seleucia-on-Tigris, south of Baghdad on the Tigris river in modern Iraq, became the western capital and center for learning, culture and power for a thousand years.
When the Achaemenids fell to the armies of Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC, what followed was one of the most extraordinary moments in human history. The mixing of Persian and eastern Mediterranean cultures created the Hellenistic Age. The Macedonian King Seleucus (died 281BC) ruled a hybrid kingdom that mixed Greek, Persian, Jewish, Armenian and Aramaean cultures and religions. With new cities, religions and cultures, this melting pot encouraged the rise of a thriving connectivity that linked urban centres in Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan and Syria.
The last great ancient kingdom of the Iranians was the Sasanian Empire based around a dynasty that rose out of the final years of the Arsacid rule in the 3rd century AD. The Sasanians ruled a massive geopolitical entity. They were builders of cities and frontiers across the empire including the enormous Gorgan wall. This frontier wall stretched 195km from the Caspian Sea to the mountains in Turkmenistan and was built in the 5th century AD to protect the Iranian agricultural heartland from northern invaders like the Huns.The Sasanians were the final pre-Islamic dynasty of Iran. In the 7th century AD the armies of the Rashidun caliphs conquered the Sasanian empire, bringing with them Islam and absorbing much of the culture and ideas of the ancient Iranian world.
Mosque of Isfahan
This fusion led to a flowering of early medieval Islam and, of the 22 cultural heritage sites in Iran that are recognised by UNESCO, the 9th century Masjed-e Jamé in Isfahan is one of the most stunningly beautiful and stylistically influential mosques ever built.Surrounded by the old city, with alleys that once led straight from bazaars into tranquil courtyards, the Great Mosque of Isfahan has melded religion with daily life for more than a millennium. Masjed-e Jamé is an iconic mosque that highlights the distinct historic periods of its evolution.Constantly remodeled with each sovereign trying to upstage the last, the mosque has transformed into a grandiose display of power. Growing bigger and more intricate over the years, the site became a sanctuary for its community.This was a thriving period of scientific, artistic and literary output. Ancient Iran was rich with poetry that told of the ancient Iranian past in medieval courts, where bards sang of great deeds.
Oriental carpets
Handmade Persian rugs have long captivated the world with their intricate designs, vibrant colours, and exceptional craftsmanship. These rugs are not only functional items but also artistic masterpieces that reflect the rich history, culture, and traditions of the regions where they were created.
As the Islamic world expanded and absorbed diverse artistic influences, rug-makers experimented with new materials, weaving methods and dyeing techniques, leading to the production of sophisticated rugs.Often regarded as the zenith of Persian rug-making, the Safavid Dynasty (1501-1736) witnessed a spectacular renaissance in the art of weaving. The Safavid rulers, particularly Shah Abbas I, were passionate patrons of the arts and took a keen interest in promoting rug-making. Shah Abbas transformed the craft into a prestigious industry, establishing royal workshops and attracting the finest artisans from across the empire.
Persian medicine
The practice and study of medicine in Persia has a long and prolific history. The ancient Iranian medicine was combined by different medical traditions from Mesopotamia, Egypt, India, China and Greece for more than 4000 years and merged to form what became the nucleus and foundation of medical practice in the European countries in the 13th century.
The Iranian academic centers like Jundishapur University (3rd century AD) were vital for the union among great scientists from different civilisations. Iranian physicians during the glorious Islamic civilisation had a tremendous share in the progress of medical sciences.The library of the University known as the “City of Hippocrates” consisted of eight floors and 259 halls including an estimated 400,000 books. Jundishapur medical students practiced on patients under the supervision of renowned medical scholars & physicians.
The great scholars such as the philosopher Heraclitus of Ephesus, the Babylonian astronomer Kidinnu and even the historian Herodotus were Persian subjects. Muslim historians refer to the Sasanian Imperial library as the House of Knowledge (Bayt al Hikmat). The library functioned as both a place where accounts of Iranian history and literature were transcribed and preserved. At the same time it was a place where qualified hired translators, bookbinders and others worked to preserve, purchase, copy, illustrate, write and translate books. It was such texts that made their way into the Islamic period. Many books in sciences and philosophy were translated by the Persians.
The celebrated Iranian physician and philosopher, Abu Ali Sina wrote 100 books in many subjects- including his most famous compendium, Canon of Medicine. His magnum opus is one of the classics of medicine ever written. He extensivelystudied herbal medicine from China, India and Persia. Some of the earliest practices of ancient Iranian medicine have been documented in the Avesta and other Zoroastrian religious texts.Iranian Magi -who were renowned for their wisdom and Mobeds – Zoroastrian clergy of a particular rank- were unsurpassed in their knowledge of medicine, philosophy, and plants. Avesta texts also tell of consultation among Surgeons,Herbalists, and Psychiatrists which indicates a form of medical association at the time. This is the golden legacy of ancient Iran.
Dishan Joseph