Iranian Studies

Research Paper

The Role of Salaries and Religious Donations in Consolidating Achaemenid Political Power: A Documentary Analysis of the Persepolis Tablets

Mahshid Khoddami; Hossein Badamchi

Volume 16, Issue 1 , May 2026, Pages 1-18

https://doi.org/10.22059/jis.2026.408992.1392

Abstract

The present study examines the multifaceted role of wages and religious offerings in consolidating and reinforcing political authority within the Achaemenid Empire, with particular ... Read More The present study examines the multifaceted role of wages and religious offerings in consolidating and reinforcing political authority within the Achaemenid Empire, with particular emphasis on the ancient documentary evidence preserved in the Persepolis Fortification Tablets. The primary objective of this research is to provide a comprehensive analysis of the mechanisms through which ritual and economic resources were distributed among social, administrative, and religious groups, and to evaluate the impact of these practices on the legitimacy, stability, and durability of the imperial power structure. The research data consist of the extensive corpus of Persepolis Fortification Tablets, which have been meticulously examined and systematically coded using a rigorous documentary analysis methodology. The findings reveal that the system of payments, rations, and ritual allocations functioned not merely as an economic mechanism but also as a strategic instrument for strengthening the loyalty, cooperation, and compliance of court officials, priests, and local elites throughout the empire. Furthermore, a detailed geographical and structural analysis of these documents demonstrates a deliberate and clear correlation between the central authority in Persepolis and the distribution of wages in subordinate regions, reflecting a sophisticated approach to administrative control and political governance. The results highlight the critical role of religious offerings and state-administered wages as essential tools employed by the Achaemenids to legitimize their rule, stabilize social hierarchies, and maintain imperial cohesion. By providing new insights into the interplay between economic, ritual, and political dimensions, this study contributes to a deeper understanding of the organizational and ideological foundations of Achaemenid imperial power and offers a valuable perspective for reevaluating the empire’s economic and religious–political structures

Research Paper

Manichaeism and Its Zurvanian Roots: From Conceptual Interaction to Cosmological Opposition

ّFarshad Farshbaf Abrishami; Majidreza Rajabi; Mehrnaz Behroozi

Volume 16, Issue 1 , May 2026, Pages 19-46

https://doi.org/10.22059/jis.2026.411642.1405

Abstract

As one of the most significant Gnostic movements of late antiquity, Manichaeism emerged from the cultural and religious context of Iran. One of the most debated issues in Manichaean ... Read More

Research Paper

Iconographical Analysis and Iconological Interpretation of the Snake and Eagle Motif in the Jiroft Civilization (3rd Millennium BC)

Esmaeil Sangari; Shaghayegh Taheri Bakhtiarvand

Volume 16, Issue 1 , May 2026, Pages 47-68

https://doi.org/10.22059/jis.2025.393018.1341

Abstract

In January 2001, a common surge within the southeastern area of Kerman, Iran, uncovered an obscure culture in Jiroft. The surge revealed artifacts that each uncover a covered up corner ... Read More

Research Paper

Proposal for Determining the Function and Chronology of Qaleh Dokhtar (Maiden's Fortress) of Sāveh

Ismail Sharahi; Mohammad Ebrahim Zarei; Hamide Choubak

Volume 16, Issue 1 , May 2026, Pages 69-97

https://doi.org/10.22059/jis.2024.365574.1231

Abstract

The structure of Qaleh Dokhtar (also known as Qiz Qal'eh or Qiz Qal'eh) is a mountain fortress situated 25 kilometers southwest of Sāveh, atop a solitary mountain in the Hendeš ... Read More

Research Paper

From Syncretism to Rationalism: Examining the Threefold Approaches to Iranian Mythology in the Historiography of the Seljuk Period (Based on Tarikh-e Sistan, Farsnameh, and Mujmal al-Tawarikh wa’l-Qisas)

hasan shahryari

Volume 16, Issue 1 , May 2026, Pages 99-122

https://doi.org/10.22059/jis.2026.405097.1380

Abstract

Iranian myths are among the most fundamental components of national identity, which have undergone continuous reinterpretation in connection with political and religious transformations. ... Read More

Research Paper

A Structural and Content Analysis of the Taṣdīq-nāmeh of a Siyurghal Decree Issued by Tīmūr Gurkānī in Favor of Mīr Ikhtiār al-Dīn Ḥasan al-Ṭabāṭabāʾī al-Bihbahānī from the Late Zand Period

Seyyed Mohammad Mansour; Alireza Khazaei

Volume 16, Issue 1 , May 2026, Pages 123-149

https://doi.org/10.22059/jis.2026.402271.1369

Abstract

The present article examines the structural and content-based aspects of a certification document related to a siyurghal decree issued by Tīmūr Gurkānī in favor of Mīr Ikhtiār ... Read More

Research Paper

A Comparative Study of the Form and Content of Composite Creatures in the Lithographic Edition of Qazvini’s Ajāib al-Makhlūqāt and the Images of Mesopotamian Cylinder Seals

Ahang Mirmongereh; Shohreh Javadi

Volume 16, Issue 1 , May 2026, Pages 151-176

https://doi.org/10.22059/jis.2026.411990.1409

Abstract

The techniques employed in the engraving of images on Mesopotamian cylinder seals possess novel and unprecedented characteristics. These seals contain valuable information about the ... Read More The techniques employed in the engraving of images on Mesopotamian cylinder seals possess novel and unprecedented characteristics. These seals contain valuable information about the rituals, beliefs, and intellectual structures of the societies of that period. With the appearance of images of composite creatures from the third millennium BCE, a fundamental transformation occurred in the depiction of these beings particularly in the form of gods, goddesses, and supernatural entities in Mesopotamian civilization. It appears that the origins of many composite creatures in various later mythological, historical, and geographical narratives are rooted in these early images. The aim of this research is a comparative study of the engraved images on Mesopotamian cylinder seals and the shared visual elements, in terms of form and content, found in the depictions of composite creatures in the lithographic edition of Zakariya Qazvini’s Ajāib al-Makhlūqāt. The research question asks what formal and content-related relationship exists between the depictions of composite creatures in Qazvini’s book and the images on Mesopotamian cylinder seals. Using a descriptive–analytical approach and focusing on identifying the origins and visual roots of these depictions, the present study examines the formal and content-related similarities between these two sets of images through comparative analysis. Based on the visual findings of this study, the imagery on cylinder seals of the Mesopotamian civilization gradually persisted in subsequent civilizations within the same geographical region, as well as in neighboring ones. This cultural continuity is observed during the Qajar era in the form of legends and myths in the lithographed book Ajāib al-Makhlūqāt. By comparing these images in terms of both form and content, it appears that the depictions of composite creatures in this book have their roots in the motifs found on Mesopotamian cylinder seals

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Volume & Issue: Volume 16, Issue 1, May 2026, Pages 1-186

The Role of Salaries and Religious Donations in Consolidating Achaemenid Political Power: A Documentary Analysis of the Persepolis Tablets

Abstract

Manichaeism and Its Zurvanian Roots: From Conceptual Interaction to Cosmological Opposition

Abstract

Iconographical Analysis and Iconological Interpretation of the Snake and Eagle Motif in the Jiroft Civilization (3rd Millennium BC)

Abstract

Proposal for Determining the Function and Chronology of Qaleh Dokhtar (Maiden's Fortress) of Sāveh

Abstract

From Syncretism to Rationalism: Examining the Threefold Approaches to Iranian Mythology in the Historiography of the Seljuk Period (Based on Tarikh-e Sistan, Farsnameh, and Mujmal al-Tawarikh wa’l-Qisas)

Abstract

A Structural and Content Analysis of the Taṣdīq-nāmeh of a Siyurghal Decree Issued by Tīmūr Gurkānī in Favor of Mīr Ikhtiār al-Dīn Ḥasan al-Ṭabāṭabāʾī al-Bihbahānī from the Late Zand Period

Abstract

A Comparative Study of the Form and Content of Composite Creatures in the Lithographic Edition of Qazvini’s Ajāib al-Makhlūqāt and the Images of Mesopotamian Cylinder Seals

Abstract