Birth of the Persian Empire: The Idea of Iran, Volume I (Hardcover)

by Vesta Sarkhosh Curtis (Editor), Sarah Stewart (Editor), John Curtis (Contributor), Pierre Briant (Contributor), Albert de Jong (Contributor), Frantz Grenet (Contributor), Daniel Potts (Contributor), Shapur Shabazi (Contributor) "The fact that a lecture series on the "Idea of Iran" commences with the Elamite contribution to Iranian identity is, to say the least, anomalous..." (more)
Key Phrases: grey ware, ordered cosmos, Ahura Mazda, Old Persian, Nush-i Jan (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
'Eminent scholars give a critical approach to some of the traditional interpretations and discuss topics which help the reader towards a better understanding of the formation of the Persian Empire.'The Middle East, December 2005.

Product Description

This book explores the formation of the first Persian Empire under the Achaemenid Persians. It brings together a multi-disciplinary view of ancient Iran in the first millennium BC and concentrates on the art, archaeology, history and religion of a vast geographical area far beyond the present borders of modern Iran in the period beginning just before the formation of the Persian empire in the middle of the 6th century up to its collapse following conquest by Alexander the Great in the late 4th century BC. Eminent scholars offer a critical approach to some of the traditional interpretations and guide the reader towards a better understanding of the formation of the Persian empire. This is the first volume in the four-volume Idea of Iran series. Charting over 1000 years of history, The Idea of Iran series offers a significant new appraisal of one the most fascinating, but also (at least in the West) relatively little known, of the great civilizations of antiquity. Comprising four substantial volumes, which have emerged from a series of seminars held under the joint auspices of the London Middle East Institute and the British Museum, and supported by the Soudavar Memorial Foundation, the series explores the empires which have shaped the culture of Iran. Beginning with the Achaemenid dynasty of Cyrus the Great, which founded Persian imperial rule in the middle of the sixth century BCE, the series goes on to examine, amongst other key topics, the society, religion, and government of ancient Iran under the Parthians, Sasanians and the Arab rulers of the early Islamic period. The Idea of Iran will be mandatory reading for all serious scholars and students of ancient and early medieval Iranian history.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: I. B. Tauris (November 10, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1845110625
• ISBN-13: 978-1845110628
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #691,090 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Birth of the Persian Empire, March 28, 2007

By	babak khany "babak khany" (England) - See all my reviews

The book contains six chapters, written by different scholars .Chapter 5(The history of the idea of Iran) is the most interesting part and it is written by Mr S.Shahbazi and he argues
that the idea of Iran originated in the Avestan period and he bases his argument on 1.text from Avesta 2. Achaemenian inscriptions 3.Greek sources, very convincing and rich text.
Contrary to chapter five, chapter one contains some strange and baseless information about Cyrus the Great.
D.T.Potts bases his discussion on Ur text and Nabonidus text there, Cyrus the Great is called king of Anshan and he believes that all other prominent scholars were wrong to call Cyrus the Great a Persian and Achaemenian and he claims ` Babylonian sources only refer to Anshan, never qualifying it as a Persian domain' and ` the Anshan which Cyrus Cylinder says was ruled by the ancestors of Cyrus the Great , an Anshan that was culturally Elamite, not Persian. But his statement is misleading , Nabonidus chronicle ninths year calls Cyrus the Great `Cyrus king of Persia' and this is absurd to draw conclusions from only parts of chronicle and to ignore rest of the information and Greek sources also confirm that Cyrus was a Persian(Herodotus and Xenophon).
In another strange claim in his paper , he argues `Darius' seizure of power was a Persian coup d'etat which replaced the Anshanite, Teispid family of Cyurs!!!But Bistun inscription shows that his claims are unacceptable:
(1.26-35)Darius the King says: This is what was done by me after I became king. A son of Cyrus, Cambyses by name, of our family -- he was king here of that Cambyses there was a brother, Smerdis by name, having the same mother and the same father as Cambyses
(1.3-6.) Darius the King says: My father was Hystaspes; Hystaspes' father was Arsames; Arsames' father was Ariaramnes; Ariaramnes' father was Teispes; Teispes' father was Achaemenes.
It is sad to see a group of people who are trying to disregard historical documents and base their arguments on guess and fiction.