Customer Reviews

Sasanian Society: Warriors, Scribes, Dehqans (Ehsan Yarshater Distinguished Lectures in Iranian Studies)

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There are not many books available in English that cover the Sasanian culture, making this is an invaluable resource. This is a short book, less than 60 pages and can be read in a relatively short period of time. It is heavily referenced making it easy for the reader to pursue further studies. As others point out, it also has a strong language bias. You really need to know Persian, at least in its modern form in order to fully benefit from this book. I recommend it to all interested in Persian culture, particularly those who have a working knowledge of Persian.

Heavy linguistic bias and no pictures, but invaluable information about Sasanian society. Particularly fascinating are the details around the role of the Dehqan which appears to have emerged in the 6th century AD as an independent land owning and mounted military class of lower nobility deriving from village government and tax collecting families. These landed gentry appear to have had a huge influence on post-Sasanian administration and culture and how Islam viewed pre-Islamic Iran.