SASSANID ARMOR: BACKGROUND, DEVELOPMENT AND TECHNOLOGY
Moshtagh Khorasani, M., Dwyer, B., Farrokh, K. (2020). SASSANID ARMOR: BACKGROUND, DEVELOPMENT AND TECHNOLOGY. EKB Journal Management System, 7(7), 145-183. doi: 10.21608/shedet.2021.41731.1038
Manouchehr Moshtagh Khorasani; Bede Dwyer; Kaveh Farrokh. "SASSANID ARMOR: BACKGROUND, DEVELOPMENT AND TECHNOLOGY". EKB Journal Management System, 7, 7, 2020, 145-183. doi: 10.21608/shedet.2021.41731.1038
Moshtagh Khorasani, M., Dwyer, B., Farrokh, K. (2020). 'SASSANID ARMOR: BACKGROUND, DEVELOPMENT AND TECHNOLOGY', EKB Journal Management System, 7(7), pp. 145-183. doi: 10.21608/shedet.2021.41731.1038
Moshtagh Khorasani, M., Dwyer, B., Farrokh, K. SASSANID ARMOR: BACKGROUND, DEVELOPMENT AND TECHNOLOGY. EKB Journal Management System, 2020; 7(7): 145-183. doi: 10.21608/shedet.2021.41731.1038

SASSANID ARMOR: BACKGROUND, DEVELOPMENT AND TECHNOLOGY

Shedet
Article 9, Volume 7, Issue 7, 2020, Page 145-183  XML PDF (6.32 MB)
Document Type: research articles
DOI: 10.21608/shedet.2021.41731.1038
View on SCiNiTO View on SCiNiTO
Authors
Manouchehr Moshtagh Khorasani email orcid 1; Bede Dwyerorcid 2; Kaveh Farrokhorcid 3
1Frankfurt School of Finance and Management; ISM (International School of Management) Frankfurt, Germany, Leadership Studies
2Independent researcher
3Langara College
Abstract
The aim of this article is to study the Sassanid armor types and their construction methods based on Sassanid rock reliefs, surviving fragments, armor depicted on Sassanid dishes and stone statues in Iran. The article explains the construction methods of different armor types used by the Sassanids during their rule and how Sassanids influenced the development of armor technology and were influenced by other cultures. Different types of armor used by Sassanids such as mail armor, scale armor, laminated armor (vambraces and greaves), and lamellar armor and their origins are discussed in the article. Hand, arm and leg protection as well as different helmet types used by Sassanids are also analyzed. These include simple bandhelm type, four-part bandhelm type, spangenhelm (strap helmets) type and lamellar helmet type. Different types of shields used by Sassanids are also discussed in the article. Next to archaeological finds, stone and rock reliefs as well as Sassanid iconography are analyzed to describe different types of armor used by Sassanids.
Keywords
Sassanids armor; mail armor; scale armor; lamellar armor; helmet
References
REFERENCES

  1. Agathias, Agathiae Myrinaei Historiarum libri quinque / Rec. R. Keydell. Berolini, 1967.
  2. Alföldi, A., Eine spätrömische Helmform, Acta Archeologica , vol.5, 1934.
  3. Allan, J., “Armor,” Encyclopædia Iranica, Vol. II (1986), Fasc. 5, pp. 483-489.
  4. Al-Tabari, B.C.E. The History of al-Tabarı (Ta’rıkh al-rusul wa’l-mulük, Vol.V, The Sāsānids, the Byzantines, the Lakhmids, and Yemen, B. C. E, Trans, Albany, 1999.
  5. Bivar, A. D., Cavalry Equipment and Tactics on the Euphrates Frontier. Dumbarton Oaks Papers, 1972.
  6. Blockley, R. C.Ammianus Marcellinus on the Persian Invasion of A. D. 359. Phoenix, vol.42, 1988.
  7. Burgarski, I., “A Contribution to the Study of Lamellar Armours”, Старинар, 2005.
  8. Corcoran, S.,“Observations on the Sasanian Law-Book”, in A. Rio (Ed.), Law, Custom, and Justice in Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages. Proceedings of the 2008 Byzantine Colloquium. London: Centre for Hellenic Studies Occasional Publications; King's College London, 2011, 77-113.
  9. Coşkun, A., Deconstructing a Myth of Seleucid History: The so-called “Elephant Victory” Revisited, Phoenix , Vol. 66, No. 1/2 (Spring-Summer, 66(1/2 Spring Summer), 2012, 57-73.
  10. Curtis, J., An Examination of Late Assyrian Metalwork with special reference to Nineveh, Oxford, 2013.
  11. Dennis, G. T., Maurice's Strategikon: Handbook of Byzantine Military Strategy, (The Middle Ages Series), Philadelphia, 2001.
  12. Dezsö, T. & Curtis, J., Assyrian Iron Helmets from Nimrud Now in the British Museum. Iraq, 53, (1991), 105-126.
  13. Dmitriev A.V., “K voprosu ob “Ahemenidskih traditsijah” v voennom dele Sasanidskogo Irana” (The Problem of the ― Achaemenid Traditions‖ in Warfare of Sasanian Iran Revisited)/ Pskovskij istoritcheskij vesnik. №1. (2015), 34-41. http://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/k-voprosu-ob-ahemenidskih-traditsiyah-v-voennom-dele-sasanidskogo-irana
  14. Dmitriev, A. V., “The Problem of the ― Achaemenid Tradition in Warfare of Sasanian Iran Revisited”. Pskovskij istoritcheskij vesnik, (2008), 34-41. Retrieved from . http://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/k-voprosu-ob-ahemenidskih-traditsiyah-v-voennom-dele-sasanidskogo-irana
  15. Dmitriev, A.V., Дмитриев В. А., Всадники в сверкающей броне: Военное дело сасанидского Ирана и история римско-персидских войн [Horsemen in Shining Armor: Military Affairs of Sassanian Iran and the History of the Roman-Persian Wars], Saint Petersburg, 2008
  16. Farrokh, K. “Examination of Parthian and Sasanian Military Helmets”, In K. &. Maksymiuk (Ed.), Crowns, Hats, Turbans and Helmets The Headgear in Iranian History, Siedlce-Tehran, 2017.
  17. Farrokh, Kaveh & Manouchehr Moshtagh Khorasni, Die sassanidische Infantrie. Pallasch: Zeitschrift für Militärgeschichte. Organ der österreichischen Gesellschaft für Heerskunde, 2020.
  18. Farrokh, Kaveh, Sassanid Elite Cavalry AD 224-642, Oxford 2005..
  19. Fluck, C., & Vogelsang-Eastwood, G. (Eds.), Riding Costume in Egypt: Origin and Appearance (Studies in Textile and Costume History, (Vol. 3), Leiden; Boston 2004.
  20. Ghirshman, R., Iran Parthians and Sassanids, (G. Stuart, & J. Emmons, Trans.), Paris 1962.
  21. Gibbon, E., Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Bury, J.B. (ed.). New York 1995.
  22. Gorelik, M. V., Warriors from Eurasia from the VIII Century BC to XII Century AD, Stockport 1995.
  23. Grancsay, S. V., “A Sasanian Chieftain's Helmet”, The Metropolitan Museum of Art BULLETIN, XXI(5), 1963.
  24. Grancsay, S.V., “A Barbarian Chieftain's Helmet”, The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, vol.7, (1948-1949).
  25. Greenewalt, J. C., “A Helmet of the Sixth Century B. C. from Sardis”, Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, vol.285, 1992.
  26. Harper, P. O., The Royal Hunter. Art of the Sasanian Empire, New York 1978.
  27. Heliodorus, Héliodore. Les Éthiopiques (Théagène et Chariclée. T. III/Texte étab. par R. M. Rattenbury, T. W. Lumb et trad. par J. Maillon. Paris, 1943.
  28. Heliodorus, Héliodore. Les Éthiopiques (Théagène et Charicléem. J. Maillon, Trans, Paris., 1945.
  29. Hermann, G., The Iranian Revival (The Making of the past, London - New York, 1977.
  30. Herodotus, The History, n.d.
  31. Hong, Y., Weapons in Ancient China, Beijing and New York 1992.
  32. Hulit, T. D., “Late Bronze Age scale armour in the Near East : an experimental
  33. Investigation”, 2003. Retrieved from Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/1006/
  34. James, S., “Evidence from Dura Europos for the Origin of Late Roman Helmets”, Syria, vol.63 (1/2),1986.
  35. James, S., The Arms and Armour and other Military Equipment (Excavations at Dura-Europos 1928-1937 Final Report VII, London 2004.
  36. Jebrael Nokandeh, E. W., “Linear Barriers of Northern Iran: The Great Wall of Gorgan and the Wall of Tammishe”. Iran, vol.44, 2006.
  37. Jouttijärvi, A., “The Manufacture of Chain-mail”, in Early Iron, Netværk for tidlig jernteknologi 1, 1996.
  38. Kaegi, W. E., “The Contribution of Archery to the Turkish Conquest of Anatolia”, Speculum, vol.39.(1), 1964.
  39. Kagan, K., The Eye of Command. Ann Arbor 2009.
  40. Kainov, S. Y., “The Helmet from Krasnodar Territory”, in Crowns, Hats, Turbans and Helmets: The Headgear in Iranian History, Siedlce-Tehran 2017.
  41. Kapp, Leop, Kapp, Hiroko, Yoshihara, Y., The Craft of the Japanese Sword, Tokyo 2012.
  42. Karamian,G., Farrokh, K., & al., e. “Graves, Crypts and Parthian Weapons excavated from the Gravesites of Vestimin”, HISTORIA I ŚWIAT, vol.7,2018.
  43. Karimova, R.,“Restoration of Murals of the National Museum of Antiquities of Tajikistan. Retrieved from SHS Web of Conferences”, 2018.
  44. Khazanov, A. M., “Избранные научные труды. Очерки военного дела Сарматов” “Essays on the Art of Warfare of the Sarmatians”, СПб, 2008.
  45. Khazanov, A. M., “Катафрактарии и их роль в истории военного искусства”,“Cataphracts and their Role in the History of the Military Art”, 1968.
  46. Khorasani, M., Arms and Armor from Iran: The Bronze Age to the End of the Qajar Period, Tübingen, 2006.
  47. Khorasani, M., Lexicon of Arms and Armor from Iran: A Study of Symbols and Terminology, Tübingen, 2010.
  48. Kiani, M. Y., Excavations on the Defensive Wall of the Gurgān Plain: A Preliminary Report, Iran, vol.20,1982.
  49. Kubik, A., “Sasanian Lamellar Helmets”, in Crowns, Hats, Turbans and Helmets The Headgear in Iranian History, Siedlce-Tehran 2017..
  50. LaRocca, D., Warriors of the Himalayas: Rediscovering the Arms and Armor of Tibet, New York, 2006.
  51. Libanius, Libanii Opera, Ed. R. Foerster. Vol. II: Orationes XII—XXV. Lipsiae, 1904.
  52. Litvinsky, B. A., “The Helmet in Pre-Islamic Iran”, Iranica, 2012.
  53. Liu, X., Migration and Settlement of the Yuezhi-Kushan: Interaction and Interdependence of Nomadic and Sedentary Societies, Journal of World History, vol.12,2001.
  54. Maenchen-Helfen, O. J., The World of the Huns: Studies in Their History and Culture, Oakland 1973.
  55. Marcellinus, A, Ammiani Marcellini Rerum gestarum libri qui supersunt, ed. W. Seyfarth. Vol. I-II, Leipzig, 1978.
  56. Melikian-Chirvani, A. S., “The Iranian Sun Shield”, Bulletin of the Asia Institute, vol.6, 1992.
  57. Nefjodkin, A. K., “Traditsii voennogo dela epohi Ahemenidov v Sasanidskom Irane”, in MNEMON. Investigations and Publications on the History of Ancient World, vol.14, 2014.
  58. Nicolle, D., Sassanid Armies: The Iranian Empire Early 3rd to Mid-7th Centuries AD. Stockport, 1996.
  59. Nikonorov V.P. K voprosu o parfjanskom nasledii v sasanidskom Irane. On the Parthian Legacy in Sasanian Iran: the Case of Warfare/Central Asia from the Achaemenids to the Timurids. Archaeology, History, Ethnology, Culture. Materials of an International Scientific Conference dedicated to the Centenary of Aleksandr Markovich Belenitsky. St. Petersburg, November 2—5, 2004.
  60. Nikonorov, V. P., “Central Asia from the Achaemenids to the Timurids”, Archaeology, History, Ethnology, Culture. Materials of an International Scientific Conference dedicated to the Centenary of Aleksandr Markovich Belenitsky,2004.
  61. Nikonorov, V.P. “К вопросу о парфянском наследии в Сасанидском Иране: военное дело // Центральная Азия от ахеменидов до тимуридов”, археология, история, этнология, культура. Материалы международной научной конференции, посвященной 100-летию со дня рождения Александра Марковича   Беленицкого Санкт-Петербург, 2—5 (2005), 141-182, [Valery P. Nikonorov, V.P., “The question of Parthian Heritage in Sasanian Iran: Warfare, Central Asia from the Achaemenids to the Timurids”, Archaeology, history, ethnology, culture. Materials of an International Scientific Conference, November 2–5, 2005.
  62. Olbrycht, M. . “Arsacid Iran and the Nomads of Central Asia – Ways of Cultural Transfer Some Preliminaries, In M. S. J. Bemmann (Ed.), Complexity of Interaction along the Eurasian Steppe Zone in the First Millennium CE, Bonn 2015.
  63. Overlaet, B. J., “Contribution to Sasanian Armament in Connection with a Decorated Helmet,” Iranica Antiqua, vol.17, 1982.
  64. Peck, E. H., “The Representation of Costumes in the Reliefs of Taq-i-Bustan”, Artibus Asiae, vol.31, 1969.
  65. Potts, D., “Cataphractus and kamāndār: Some Thoughts on the Dynamic Evolution of Heavy Cavalry and Mounted Archers in Iran and Central Asia”, Bulletin of the Asia Institute (New Series), vol.21, 2007.
  66. Procopius, Procopii De bellis libri I—VIII // Procopii Caesariensis Opera omnia, vol. I-II /Rec. J.Haury, Lipsiae, 1962-1963.
  67. Pugachenkova, G. A., “The Body Armour of Parthian and Bactrian Warriors”, VDI, 96(2), 1966.
  68. Rekavandi, H. O., Sauer, E. W., Wilkinson, T., Tamak, E. S., Ainslie, R., Mahmoudi, M., Hoffmann, B., “An Imperial Frontier of the Sasanian Empire: Further Fieldwork at the Great Wall of Gorgan”, Iran, vol.45, 2007.
  69. Rezakhani, K., ReOrienting the Sasanians East Iran in Late Antiquity. Edinburgh, 2017-2018.
  70. Russell Robinson, H., Oriental Armour. London, 1974.
  71. Russell Robinson, H., The Armour of Imperial Rome, London, 1976.
  72. Schmidt, E. F., Persepolis I: Structures, Reliefs, Inscriptions”, Oriental Institute Publications, 1965.
  73. Simocattus, T., Theophylacti Simocattae Historiae, Leipzig, 1887.
  74. Symonenko, A. V., Sarmatskie vsadniki Severnogo Prichernomor'īa [Alexander Symonenko. Sarmatian Riders of North Pontic Region], Sankt Petersburg, 2009.
  75. Tamás, D., & Curtis, J., “Assyrian Iron Helmets from Nimrud Now in the British Museum”, Iraq, vol.53, 1991.
  76. Tarn, W. W., “The First Syrian War”, The Journal of Hellenic Studies, vol.46,1926.
  77. Thordeman, B., The Armour from the Battle of Wisby 1361, Uppsala, 1939.
  78. Tilke, M., Costume Patterns and Designs, New York, 1990.
  79. Vdovin, V. Y., & Nikanorov, V. P., “Фрагменты панцирного доспеха позднесасанидского времени из Тоголок – депе”, Известия Академии Наук Туркменской ССР, 4, 1991.
  80. Vizcaíno Sánchez, J., “Early Byzantine Lamellar Armour from Carthago Spartaria (Cartagena, Spain)”, Gladius, XXVIII, 2008.
  81. Von Gall, H., Das Reiterkampfbild in der iranischen und iranisch-beeinflussten Kunst parthischer und sasanidischer Zeit,Teheranischer Forschungen, Bd. VI, Berlin 1990.
  82. Werner, J., „Zur Herkunft der frühmittelalterlichen Spangenhelme“. Praehistorische Zeitschrift,  vol.34-35, 1949/1950.
  83. Whitcomb, D. S., Before the Roses and Nightingales. Excavations at Qasr-i Abu Nasr, Old Shiraz, New York, 1985.
  84. Wilcox, P., Rome's Enemies: Parthians and Sassanid Persians, Oxford, 1986.
  85. Wójcikowski, R. S., “The Graffito from Dura Europos: Hyrbrid Armor in Parthian-Sasanian Iran”, Anabasis Studia Classica et Orientalia, vol4, 2013.
Statistics
Article View: 2,166
PDF Download: 1,752