Istakhr

From 2011 until 2016, SAMira studied the territory and site of Istakhr (Fārs) in collaboration with Iranian institutions achieving remarkable results in various disciplinary sectors. The intensive research activities on one of the most significant urban centres of late ancient and medieval Iran resulted in the volume Istakhr, 2011-2016. Historical and Archaeological Essays (edited by M. V. Fontana), published in 2018 and presented during a roundtable day held at Sapienza University of Rome.

The site of Istakhr was the cradle of the Sassanid dynasty, standing not far from the impressive archaeological sites of Persepolis and Naqš-e Rostam, and later became one of the first and most relevant Islamic settlements on the Iranian plateau. Thus, the investigations focused on the historical-cultural transition between the Sasanian and Islamic periods.

Great importance has been given to the building currently identified as the ‘Istakhr Mosque’, one of the most significant structures of this site. Here, archaeological and topographical analyses focused on the mosque’s different construction phases, extent, and relationship to the early Islamic period settlement.

Of equal importance is the study of ceramics from the early Islamic period, which is still in progress. The study applies innovative methods that include archaeometric analysis and comparisons with the material that was brought to the Oriental Institute Museum in Chicago following the American missions in the 1930s.

Lastly, a series of surveys and a multidisciplinary study of the area and its archaeological evidence allowed a fine-tuning of previous studies, particularly of the work carried out by the renowned German archaeologist Ernst Herzfeld.