Researchers found a petroglyph in Marvdasht, Fars, which shows one of the horse riders of the Sassanid period. ILNA writes: Carved figures on rocks and stones from ancient times, have always been unique memorable signs of glorious moments that depicted the thoughts and beliefs of people of that period and have linked them to eternity. Like a picture in an old album, these scenes are so valuable that they should be recorded in (the album of) history. This was the reason kings and rulers exhibited scenes of coronation ceremonies, war, hunting, and capture of enemies, on rocks and cliffs.
In this regard, Abulhasan Atabaki (archaeology and history researcher) announced the discovery of a new petroglyph of a Sassanid horse rider, in the northern heights of the city of Estakhr, in Marvdasht, Fars province, which was identified during a mountain climbing expedition o Mehdi Ahmadi and Rasul Ahmadi.
He said: “This needle carving engravement is located 4 m above the ground, on a mountain rock, which depicts a Sassanid horse rider with a curvy ribbon and galloping horse.”
Atabaki believes that, though this carving does not have the fineness, complexity and embellishment of the needle carvings of the early Sassanid period (the Papak and his son Shahpur in the palaces of Takht Jamshid), since there are very few reliefs left from the late Sassanid period, the discovery of this petroglyph has tremendous importance and research value.
He added: “From a technical point of view, this relief is carved with skill, natural mobility, and freedom of movement, and balanced composition, which shows the characteristics of Sassanid reliefs.”
About history, Najmeh Ebrahimi, a senior expert in history, wrote: “This petroglyph is located next to a ledge stodan from the Sassanid period, whose sculptural history matches with the stodan of the end of the Sassanid period, and perhaps it is the image of one of the “horse riders” of the end of the Sassanid period, whose bones, after death, were buried in the stodan next to it.”
She added: “Aswaran” or “Azadegan” were a group of horse riders from the Sassanid period that formed the core of the Sassanid cavalry. Amen Marcellin, the famous Roman historian, called the Sassanid horsemen “rock of iron” because of being covered fully in metals, using all kinds of weapons, and sitting backwards on their horses, which caused terrible fear and panic in the hearts of the enemies and shook them. When they were not in battle, the did farming on their land. Today, some historians compare medieval knights with them.
