Hamidreza Peighambari; Leila Makvandi
Abstract
The Early history of the Persian Gulf is focused on the substantial political and economic role of Mesopotamia and its relations with Dilmun (Bahrain), Magan (Oman) and Meluhha (Indus valley). Therefore, the role of Elamites and the other people from Northern coasts of the Persian Gulf has remained obscure ...
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The Early history of the Persian Gulf is focused on the substantial political and economic role of Mesopotamia and its relations with Dilmun (Bahrain), Magan (Oman) and Meluhha (Indus valley). Therefore, the role of Elamites and the other people from Northern coasts of the Persian Gulf has remained obscure and unclear. One of the unanswered questions is about the maritime activities of these people. The present article is an attempt to answer this question, and in order to determine the role of the “Elamite Confederation” in Persian Gulf trade, it emphasizes on the necessity of revising the common understanding through the use of historical analysis and archaeological data. This research indicates that Mesopotamian sources reflect only a part of the history of “Lower Sea” (Persian Gulf), which mainly refers to their commerce with the southern coasts. But the scattered information about the eastern places in the same sources and the archaeological data based on the analysis of minerals and objects made of semi-precious stones such as lapis lazuli and Chlorite, indicate the importance of those lands. The waterway for exchange of these resources and commodities, which passed through Susa and the coasts of Fars (Anshan), especially Liyan (Bushehr), like the land routes, were influenced by the political rivalries and enmity of Elamites and Mesopotamians, but was very prosperous in periods. Those periods are historically consistent with the Sukkalmah and Shutrukid dynasties, in which Elamite relationship extended to Bahrain and Oman as well. Thus, in spite of strong political and economic relations between Mesopotamia and southern coasts of “Lower Sea”, power dynamics in the region frequently changed in favor of Elamites and with this knowledge, we can now say that the gainful Sea trade has not been in the hands of Mesopotamia, as Mesopotamian sources inculcate
Samin Espargham; Abu-al-Ghasem Ghavam; Samira Bameshki
Volume 8, Issue 2 , February 2019, , Pages 1-19
Abstract
In fairy tales, pregnancies and births, like other incidents and elements of this genre, have supernatural and transformed forms. This paper examines the diverse types of supernatural pregnancies and births in Iranian fairy tales. With the help of Claude Levi Strauss's structural mythology, these fairy ...
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In fairy tales, pregnancies and births, like other incidents and elements of this genre, have supernatural and transformed forms. This paper examines the diverse types of supernatural pregnancies and births in Iranian fairy tales. With the help of Claude Levi Strauss's structural mythology, these fairy tales are analyzed structurally, and they are compared with myths of Iran and the two neighboring lands, India and Mesopotamia, which have cultural and historical bonds with Iran. Thus, the structural similarities of pregnancy and birth in Iranian fairy tales with these myths are discussed. Finally, with respect to the common mythemes of these narratives, the structural model of them is determined, criticized and analyzed on the basis of the signs and symbols in the narratives. The comparative study of these stories and myths reveals that the unconventional forms of pregnancy and birth are in fact mythical forms, transformed over time and presented in various forms in fairy tales. These fairy tales represent infertility/fertility and natural world/supernatural world binary oppositions and the attempts to resolve them. In these narratives, the confrontation is often resolved with the help of supernatural mediators. Such supernatural pregnancies and births are peculiar to the heroes of fairy tales. They connect the heroes to the other worlds from the first moment of their creation, reveal their superhuman and hereditary features, and clarify the prerogative of them and their world.
Bahram Ajorloo; Asmaa Saeed
Abstract
Archaeologically, the hybrid and mythological motif of People-scorpion, as presented in both forms of Man-scorpion and Woman-scorpion, in the horizon of Bronze Age cultures in the plateau of Iran, merely, is reported from the archaeological sites of Jiroft in the Halil Rood basin, southwest Iran. In ...
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Archaeologically, the hybrid and mythological motif of People-scorpion, as presented in both forms of Man-scorpion and Woman-scorpion, in the horizon of Bronze Age cultures in the plateau of Iran, merely, is reported from the archaeological sites of Jiroft in the Halil Rood basin, southwest Iran. In Mesopotamia, the people-scorpion is presented as the guardian monster for the gates of dead people’s world, under the earth. Such a ritual concept and religious function had been adapted by the mythology of ancient Egypt as well. According to the results of recent archaeological excavations in Jiroft, however, the southwest of Iran is speculated as the geographical homeland of this motif. So, whether Iranian plateau or Mesopotamia, where is the cultural origin of such motif? In spite of the scorpion’s motif in the chalcolithic Age of Iran, The basic hypothesis proposed by the authors explains that the idea on the progression of a naturalist scorpion’s motif unto a hybrid- mythological people- scorpion one in the art of Bronze Age has not yet been provided enough archaeological evidences. By this essay, the authors have an art historical method oriented by archaeology. This method just studies motifs of both scorpion and people-scorpion in artifacts recovered from archaeological contexts in both prehistoric Iran and Mesopotamia. These artifacts are grouped into these regions. The essay concludes that people-scorpion’s motif in southeast Iran was originated in the native Bronze Age believes and culture of the Halil Rood basin in the dawn of urbanization. So, in addition to no causative relations between such motif and arid climates in Iran, there is no causation concerning the Chalcolithic Age motif of scorpion and the Bronze Age people-scorpion.
