Hossein Tofighian; Fariba Sharifian; Katayon Fekripour
Abstract
AbstractDuring the Sassanid period, due to the prosperity of Zoroastrian religion, religious buildings were built in the form of four-story fire temples. These fire temples included ...
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AbstractDuring the Sassanid period, due to the prosperity of Zoroastrian religion, religious buildings were built in the form of four-story fire temples. These fire temples included four-room domed spaces and sometimes had a surrounding portico, which had a fireplace base built into the middle part of the building. The fires of these fire temples were based on their rank and importance including Bahram fire, Adran fire, court fire and then household and personal fires. Despite extensive studies in other parts of Iran, few studies have been conducted regarding the manifestations of Zoroastrian religion, including the structure of fire temples and fire pits on the shores of the Persian Gulf and the determination of the type and importance of the fires burning in them. On the northern shores of the Persian Gulf, which is considered the southern part of Fars study area, only two fire temples of Mohammad Abad, Brazjan and Kanari fire temple have been identified and introduced, Also, a number of fire pit foundations have been introduced in Tell Shahid, Barazjan Castle, Amamzadeh Shah Nooruddin, Keshto and more in Bardestan. Despite the identification of these works, there is not much information about the position and rank of the burning fire in these religious centers. In this article, while briefly referring to fire temples and the base of exposed fire pits on the northern shores of the Persian Gulf (Bushehr province), the Sassanid period seal from Bardestan that shows the burning fire in state fire temples at the level of Azar fire temple. Farnbagh is studied in this area. The abundance of fire pit foundations, the remains of several fire temples and the identification of this seal with inscriptions all around and the Sassanid government mark in the middle part of the seal indicate the centrality of Bardestan in the Zoroastrianism of the northern coasts of the Persian Gulf during the Sassanid period. The present research was formed by using the information obtained from archaeological investigations and accidental discoveries in the northern coasts of the Persian Gulf and was completed with the benefit of library studies.Keywords: Fireplace, The Base of the Fireplace, Pahlavi Inscription, Sassanid Period, Persian Gulf. 1. IntroductionThe rank and importance of Sassanid fires were not the same and there were three groups of fires related to rituals, including Bahram fire, Adaran fire (local fire) and Court fire (family fire) (Moule, 1994: 71). The most sacred of them was the fire of Bahram (state fire), which is called the fire of the victorious king. In these fire temples, such as Azar Ghashensab, Azar Farnbagh and Azar Mehr Barzin, it should burn continuously through any condition. The Adran fire was not burning all the time, and its consecration and purification ceremony was simpler than Bahram’s fire. Court fires are the third rank of Sasanian temples, which was easily prepared and purified from only one fire. The dimensions and glory of the fire temple and the shape and size of the fire pit determine the position of a fire temple. The big and important fire temples had larg and magnificent fire pits and the humble fire pits were related to local fire temples or personal fire temples and low people of Sassanid society (Tofighian, 2017: 196). The manifestations of Zoroastrianism in the study area of the Persian Gulf include several fire pit bases made of limestone, which have been identified because of construction projects (Tofighian, 2017: 195-210). The possible remains of several fire temples have also been identified in archaeological investigations, including Mohammad Abad Borazjan (Yaghmaei, 2009) and Kanari fire temple (Tofighian, 2024). Despite the distribution of fire temples and the foundations of fire pits on the northern shores of the Persian Gulf, the determination of the type and location of the burning fire in these fire temples is not clear. By identifying a short inscription on a Sassanid seal made of agate, we provide valuable information about the rank and rank of some fire temples in the Persian Gulf, such as Bahram fire, which was burning in a fire temple at the rank of Azar Farnbagh fire temple. Of course, what is certain is that not all fire temples in this area have the rank of Bahram fire and they could often belong to local and family fires. 2. Materials and MethodsThe research method in this article is an archaeological survey of the Persian Gulf coast and historical research, and the method of collecting information is a library study and an archaeological survey of the city of Bandar Dayer. As a result of archaeological surveys on the coast of the Gulf of Fez in Bushehr province, many fire pit foundations have been identified. A smaller number of fire temples have also been identified, but thus far not much information has been provided about the type and importance of the burning fire in the fire temples on the coast of the Persian Gulf. In this study, by introducing a seal and its inscription, the worship of the fire of Bahram as the most important ever-burning fire of the Sassanid period in a fire temple at the level of the Azar Farnbagh fire temple is discussed. 3. DataNot much information is available about the fire temples on the coast of the Persian Gulf. In archaeological surveys of the historical ports of the Persian Gulf, the remains of a fire temple were identified and introduced in the vicinity of the village of Kenari in the city of Bandar Dayer. It should be noted that the identification of numerous fire temple bases made of stone or plaster in the shape of two inverted cones and with vertical spoon patterns on them indicates the abundance of Sasanian fire temples on the coast of the Persian Gulf in Bushehr province. The distribution of Sasanian fire temples and hearth bases on the northern coast of the Persian Gulf indicates the spread of Zoroastrianism in these regions. Certainly, in many of these fire temples, local and family fires were burning, but it is conceivable that some of these fire temples had a national status and a higher rank. archaeological studies of the newly discovered port of Bardestan (Bordo), a seal fragment made of red agate has been identified, which bears a short inscription in the Pahlavi-Sassanian language. The study of this inscription provides valuable information about the worship of Zoroastrianism and the determination of the position and rank of the blazing fire in some of the fire temples on the northern coast of the Persian Gulf, which the authors will discuss in more detail in another article.This seal, with the Sassanid government symbol in the middle of the seal and the Sassanid Pahlavi inscription around the seal, indicates that it belongs to a Zoroastrian deity who is the guardian of the blazing fire of Bahram in a fire temple on the same level as the Azar Farnbagh fire temple. Considering the reference of the inscription from Bardestan to the Farnbagh fire, it can be assumed that in the Bardestan region, which has a large scattering of hearth bases and the remains of several fire temples, there was probably a large and first-class fire temple, and the guardian of the fire of this fire temple had a government seal. 4. DiscussionDuring the Sassanid period, the two institutions of government and religion were intertwined, and Zoroastrianism was considered a state religion. The symbol of this connection was manifested in the four-arched structure of fire temples and the blazing fire in the fire pits. Fire temples were a symbol of national unity, and throughout the Sassanid Empire, they had a single model in the construction of buildings and rituals of worshiping Ahura Mazda. The northern coast of the Persian Gulf, as the southern part of the Fars province, was the seat of the Sassanid Empire and was of great importance. In this area, numerous fire temples and stone hearths with vertical spoon patterns had a special place. The role and status of fire temples in the religion and economy of the Sassanid kingdom was so high that the back of the coins of this period was dedicated to the image of the hearth as an economic and financial symbol. The large number of fire temples and stone hearth bases on the northern coast of the Persian Gulf, especially in the Bardastan region, indicates the special position of this region in terms of rule and the prosperity of Zoroastrianism. The fires of the Sassanid temples, in order of importance, included the Bahram Fire, the Adaran Fire, the Court Fire, and then the domestic and personal fires. The fire of Bahram, as the most important ever-burning fire, was worshipped in large fire temples such as Azar Goshnesb, Azar Faranbagh, and Azar Mehr Barzin. The study of the fire pits on the coasts of the Persian Gulf, which are mainly in the form of two symmetrical cones and two trays at the top and bottom, made of stone and sometimes lime, and have a vertical spoon pattern, belonged to high-class and provincial fire temples. 5. ConclosionFew fire temple remains have been identified along the northern coast of the Persian Gulf, with the exception of the Mohammad Abad Fire Temple in Borazjan and the Kenari Fire Temple in Deir County. However, the nature and construction quality of the discovered hearths suggest the significant religious and administrative importance of these Zoroastrian temples during the Sasanian period. Fire pit foundations have been recorded at several sites, including Tell Shahid, Qal‘eh Borazjan, Keshto, and particularly in Bardestan. In addition to these architectural remains, the discovery of an agate seal inscribed with Sasanian Pahlavi script around its border and bearing governmental emblems in its center underscores the elevated status of Zoroastrianism in this region. The seal further suggests that some of the fire temples here may have held official, possibly provincial, rank within the Sasanian religious-political hierarchy. The inscription’s reference to the Farnbagh fire a fire of high rank within the Zoroastrian tradition strengthens the hypothesis that the Bardestan area, with its concentration of hearth foundations and fire temple remains, once housed fire temples of first-order status, potentially functioning at a governmental or provincial level. While the specific fire temple associated with the seal has yet to be identified, it is plausible that it was a state-level temple where the exalted Bahram fire was maintained. Locating this temple with precision will require further archaeological investigation and systematic excavation in the area where the seal was discovered.
