The Sasanian Rock Relief of Bahram Ii at Guyum (Fars, Iran)

Iranica Antiqua, vol. XLIV, 2009 doi: 10.2143/IA.44.0.2034387

THE SASANIAN ROCK RELIEF OF BAHRAM II AT GUYUM (FARS, IRAN)

BY Ernie HAERINCK* & Bruno OVERLAET** 1 (*Ghent University; **Royal Museums of Art and History & Vesalius University College, Brussels)

Abstract: The rock carving at Guyum is known since the early 20th century but did not receive full attention yet. Situated to the north of Shiraz, it can be attributed to the reign of the Sasanian king Bahram II. The panel depicts the standing king Bahram II in full, in a venerating position with bent foreﬁ nger and holding a sword with his left hand. A detailed discussion is presented as well as several previously unpublished photographs.

Keywords: Guyum, Shiraz, Fars, Iran, Bahram II, Barm-i Dilak, Sasanian rock relief

The fi rst scholar to mention the Sasanian rock carving at Guyum was Ernst Herzfeld who visited the site on February 18, 1924. Although he made two photographs and a sketch of it (Pl. 1-2 and 11), he never published any illustration but merely mentioned it in a “Reisebericht” (Herzfeld 1926: 250). His notes, sketches and photographs are part now of the “Herzfeld archives”, and are kept at the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. (see: http://www.asia.si.edu/archives/fi nding_aids/herzfeld.html#a12). The intrepid explorer Aurel Stein stayed at the walled village of Guyum during his survey of western Fars in 1935, but it is uncertain whether he saw the relief since he made no mention of it (Stein 1940: 4). As far as we know, it was Louis Vanden Berghe who published the fi rst photographs of the sculpture (Pl. 3-6). He visited Guyum on May 21st 1957 and devoted a paper to it, written in Dutch but with a French abstract.

1 The authors are indebted to the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., and par- ticularly to Dr. Ann C. Gunter, curator, and to Miss Betsy Kohut, Mr. David Hogge and Mrs. Linda Ravitz, staff, for assisting them in accessing the Herzfeld archives and for the permission to reproduce plates 1, 2 and 11.

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However, as it was published in the “Gentse Bijdragen tot de Kunst- geschiedenis en de Oudheidkunde”, the journal of the former Higher Insti- tute for Art and Archaeology at Ghent University, it was not readily avail- able to many scholars (1959b). In the same year, Vanden Berghe published a photograph of the sculpture in his monumental work “L’archéologie de l’Iran Ancien” (Vanden Berghe 1959a: 56, Pl. 83). In 1968, he made another comment on it in a general brochure on the Belgian involvement in Iranian archaeology, published in ﬁ ve different languages by the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Vanden Berghe 1968: 21-22, ill.). In November 1972, Louis Vanden Berghe and Erik Smekens paid a visit to the site and made detailed observations. Another visit to the site was made in May 1975 by Louis Vanden Berghe, Ernie Haerinck and Erik Smekens. That year, this team spend more than 4 months in Iran, with the sole intention to visit all known sites with rock reliefs. These were recorded, measured, described and photographed in preparation of a general book on Iranian rock sculptures that has not materialised so far. In the late 1960’s or early ‘70’s Guyum was also visited by other scholars interested in rock sculptures, such as Georgina Herrmann (Matheson 1972: 210) and Eric De Waele (1978: 21, ﬁ g. 6). Erich Schmidt also provided a short description of the site but his report was based exclusively on Vanden Berghe’s 1959 book (Schmidt 1970: 134).

Guyum is located at ca. 30 km to the NNW of Shiraz, on the road to Ardakan. It lies 3 km to the west of the village of Guyum at Tang-i Qavam- abad, in a garden named Ab-i Shar (at least that was the name in the ﬁ f- ties), with a spring at the foot of the rock. As is often the case, rock carvings are located in the vicinity of a spring or river (e.g. Firuzabad, Darabgird, Bishapur, Sarab-i Bahram, Barm-i Dilak and Taq-i Bustan). A lot of grapes are grown in the region of Shiraz and it was probably a major wine producing area, also in Sasanian times (De Waele 1978: 15 and note 16). The rock relief of Guyum lies about 4.50 m. above the actual plain level and is oriented to the northwest. Only the standing king is represented, facing right. He is 2.60 m. high, and the panel is 1.60 m. in width. In view of the crown this person is to be identiﬁ ed as Bahram II (276-293), grand- son of Shapur I. He was a politically unimportant king, who had, however, to pay a lot of attention to internal affairs (Shahbazi 1989). No less than six and possibly eight rock carvings are known of him: Naqsh-i Rustam II

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(with family and nobles), Sarab-i Bahram (seated king and noblemen), Bishapur IV (mounted king receiving a foreign delegation), Sar Mashhad (king ﬁ ghting lions), Barm-i Dilak IIA (panel with standing king alone) and Guyum (standing king alone), and maybe also Naqsh-i Rustam III (jousting scene) and VII (double jousting scene). He is quite often shown in the presence of members of the aristocracy or members of his family. The relief at Bishapur IV, where the mounted Bahram II receives a foreign delegation, is the only one seemingly representing external affairs. Two other reliefs, one at Sarab-i Qandil (e.g. De Waele 1978: 17-20; Herrmann 1983: 31-36) and another at Barm-i Dilak I (Vanden Berghe 1989: 805), most likely do not represent the king himself. A man, a prince heir, a dignitary or a local noble is shown giving a ﬂ ower to or receiving one from a lady. These rock carvings are generally attributed to the time of Bahram II (e.g. Herrmann 2000: 42). However, Levit Tawil (1993: 167- 168) is of the opinion that both rock carvings should be attributed to the time of Ardashir I. The representations of Kartir at Naqsh-i Radjab II (bust and inscription), Naqsh-i Rustam VI (bust and inscription) and Barm-i Dilak IIB (panel with standing Kartir) most likely also belong to the time of Bahram II. The king considered Kartir as his mentor and gave him the title of “saviour of Bah- ram’s soul”. He also gave him the rank of noble and appointed him as the custodian of the dynastic shrine at Istakhr and as the supreme judge of the empire (Shahbazi 1989: 516).

The relief at Guyum shows the standing king Bahram II in full with his body almost in a frontal position (Pl. 1-12). As is common in Sasanian rock carvings, he is shown with exaggerated shoulders. Since many reliefs are carved at quite a height, the exaggerated shoulders create an optically more correct fi gure with normal proportions when viewed from ground level. The carving is much weathered, which of course may account for the loss of some details, but the carving itself was probably not much detailed from the start. This is obviously worsened by certain willingly infl icted damages, such as on the kings’ face. Bahram II is not represented in a nicely cut rectangular panel, as is usu- ally the case, but in an irregular panel that largely follows the king’s outline. This is also more or less the case at Barm-i Dilak (Pl. 14-17), but here it may have another explanation. It is not to be excluded, that the Guyum relief was in fact never fi nished.

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At Guyum the area in front of the king is obviously fl attened. The paral- lel chiseling lines are still clearly visible on Pl. 3, 4 and 6. Also the hori- zontal ledge on which the fi gure is placed extends in front of this fl attened area. The top of the panel above the king and above this fl attened area is cut away in the same manner and to the same depth as the lower ledge. It seems probable that a second fi gure, an object (e.g. an altar) or a panel with an inscription was originally intended to be placed in front of the king. From the unfi nished rock sculpture of Narseh at Naqsh-i Rustam (Pl. 13), we do have some ideas about how the Sasanian sculptors went ahead. Starting from a fl at panel, they cut the outline of the fi gure and completely fi nished the fi gure before starting work on the next fi gure. At Guyum, it is only around the Bahram II fi gure that the sculptor has worked the relief to the intended full depth of the representation. It seems the sculptor fi nished this royal fi gure (or in view of the limited detail, almost fi nished the royal fi gure) and was about to start on the area in front of the king when the project was either abandoned or altered. This is of course a speculative interpretation of this monument, since we do not have any historical infor- mation to document the original concept or the circumstances in which it was created.

The royal fi gure is shown with hair in curly bunches at the back of his head and with a winged crown topped by a huge korymbos that cuts into the border of the panel (Pl. 10). The crown is not very detailed. Only the outline of the wings is still clearly recognisable. The crown, however, allows an identifi cation as Bahram II, since this king is always shown with this particular crown on the reliefs and on the coins (Göbl 1968: 43 sq.). Bah- ram II is described in the lost “Book of Portraits of Sasanian Kings” as wearing a red gown, green trousers and a crown with a sky-blue globe (Erdmann 1951: 96 no 35; Shahbazi 1989: 516). The wings on his crown refer to the wings of the bird of his patron god Bahram (a bird of prey, possibly a falcon) (Jamzadeh 1989: 514; see also on the old Iranian god Bahram: Gnoli 1989). At Guyum the king’s face is almost completely destroyed. The head is shown in right profi le. He probably wears a necklace that is, however, not as detailed as on his other rock carvings. His right arm is outstretched, but slightly fl exed and he is shown with bent forefi nger, in front of his upper body (Choksy 1992: 205). The beard is held at the chin by a ring.

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Long ribbons with stylised folds are shown behind his right shoulder. He does not wear a cloak or loose sleeveless outer garment as at Barm-i Dilak IIA (Pl. 15-17). He is shown with a tunic belted at the waist that reaches to the knees. At the height of his left knee a circular hem-weight is hanging from the lower edge of the tunic (or the cloak?) as is also to be seen on his tunic at Barm-i Dilak IIA (see Pl. 17). The same hem-weight is faintly visible at the height of his right thigh. The tunic’s girdle is tied in a bow and the folded ends fall on his thighs and are shown on top of the heavy sword belt. Below the tunic he wears loose trousers with stylised folds that give the impression of being caught by the wind. The trousers fall onto his feet. His shoes are tied with ribbons, as is best visible on the right foot. The straps are sculpted in low relief on the ﬂ at base-line of the 3 relief. His right foot is shown in ⁄4 and the left one is depicted in proﬁ le. 3 His right leg is in a frontal position while the left leg is shown in ⁄4. The king’s left hand rests on the grip of his sword, which is bearably visible. The sword itself disappears behind the king’s legs.

It is obvious that the Guyum rock carving is almost identical to Barm-i Dilak IIA (compare Pl. 1-13 to Pl. 15-19), though the Guyum relief is less detailed. The king on both reliefs is shown facing right in the same attitude. He displays a bent forefi nger, possibly in a venerating position to a not represented god (?) (Choksy 1992: 204-205; 2002: 20-23) and rests his left hand on a long sword. Vanden Berghe (1959b: 7, 21, 24; 1988: 1527-1528) suggested that Guyum remained unfi nished and was intended to be an investiture scene with a deity (remark: so far no investiture scene of Bahram II is known). Eric De Waele (1978: 14-15), on the contrary suggests that the attitude of veneration at Guyum and Barm-i Dilak is in honour of the god venerated at the site. He identifi es this god as Anahita in view of the presence of the water source, the lush vegetation and the gesture of the king towards the source.

On the whole, the relief at Guyum is badly weathered and damaged and the standard of carving is relatively poor. Vanden Berghe (1959b: 20) considered it as reﬂ ecting a provincial style. Eric De Waele (1978: 26) and Geor- gina Herrmann (2000: 42-43) suggested that Guyum and other reliefs like Sarab-i Qandil or Barm-i Dilak were non-ofﬁ cial reliefs. These might not belong to the central Sasanian royal production and need not necessarily have been a royal commission. These relatively small rock carvings could

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be private representations commissioned by a local nobleman or by a dignitary of high standing. These local high ofﬁ cials represented themselves and/or the king (Sarab-i Qandil, Barm-i Dilak and Guyum) as a token of gratitude or to please the sovereign. At the same time they emphasized their own importance.

Bibliography

CHOKSY, J.K., 1992. Gesture in Ancient Iran and Central Asia II. Proskynesis and the Bent Foreﬁ nger, Bulletin of the Asia Institute 4: 201-207. —, 2002. In reverence for deities and submission to kings: a few gestures in ancient Near Eastern societies, Iranica Antiqua XXXVII: 7-29. DE WAELE, E., 1978. Sur le bas-relief sassanide de Tang-e Qandil et le “bas-relief au couple” de Barm-e Dilak, Revue des archéologues et historiens d’art de Louvain, vol. XI: 9-32. ERDMANN, K., 1951. Die Entwicklung der sasanidischen Krone, Ars Islamica 15- 16: 87-123. GNOLI, G., 1989. Bahram. I. In Old and Middle Iranian Texts, in: Yarshater E. (ed.), Encyclopaedia Iranica vol. III, London/New York: 510-513. GÖBL, R., 1968. Sassanidische Numismatik, Brunswick. HERRMANN, G., 1970/2. The sculptures of Bahram II, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society: 165-171. —, 1983. The Sasanian Rock Reliefs at Bishapur: Part 3. Bishapur I, Bishapur II, Darab-i Bahram, The Rock Relief at Tang-i Qandil, (= Iranische Denk- mäler, Lieferung 11, Reihe II. Iranische Felsreliefs G), Berlin. —, 2000. The Rock Reliefs of Sasanian Iran, in: Curtis J. (ed.), Mesopotamia and Iran in the Parthian and Sasanian Periods. Rejection and Revival c. 238 BC- AD 642 (Proceedings of a Seminar in memory of Vladimir G. Lukonin), Lon- don: 35-45. HERZFELD, E., 1926. Reisebericht, Zeitschrift der Deutschen Morgenländischen Gesellschaft 80 (=NF Bd. 5): 225-284. JAMZADEH, P., 1989. Bahram. II. Representation in Iranian Art, in: Yarshater E. (ed.), Encyclopaedia Iranica vol. III, London/New York: 513-514. LEVIT-TAWIL, D., 1993. Re-dating the Sasanian reliefs at Tang-e Qandil and Barm- e Dilak: Composition and style as dating criteria, Iranica Antiqua XXVIII: 141-168. MATHESON, S.A., 1972. Persia: An Archaeological Guide, London. SCHMIDT, E., 1970, Persepolis III: The Royal Tombs and Other Monuments, The University of Chicago Oriental Institute Publications LXVIII, Chicago. SHAHBAZI, A.Sh., 1989. Bahram. II. Bahram II, in: Yarshater E. (ed.), Encyclo- paedia Iranica vol. III, London/New York: 516-517. STEIN, A., 1940. Old Routes of Western Iran. Narrative of an archaeological journey, London.

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VANDEN BERGHE, L., 1959a. Archéologie de l’Iran Ancien, Leyde. —, 1959b. Het Rotsreliëf te Guyum in het licht van de Hofkunst van de Sassa- nidische Koning Bahram II (avec résumé en français), Gentse Bijdragen tot de Kunstgeschiedenis en de Oudheidkunde, Deel XVII (1957-58), Gent: 1-25. —, 1968. A la découverte des civilisations de l’Iran Ancien. Une initiative belge de cooperation à la connaissance du patrimoine historique iranien. (=Textes et Documents no 239-240), septembre/octobre 1968. —, 1984. Reliefs rupestres de l’Iran Ancien, Bruxelles. —, 1988. Les scènes d’investiture sur les reliefs rupestres de l’Iran ancien: evolu- tion et signiﬁ cation, in: Gnoli G. & Lanciotti L. (eds.), Orientalia Iosephi Tucci Memoriae Dicata (=Serie Orientale Roma LVI, 3), Roma: 1511-1531. —, 1989. Barm-e Dilak, in: Yarshater E. (ed.), Encyclopaedia Iranica, vol. III, London/New York: 805-806.

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Pl. 1. The rock relief at Guyum, photograph by Ernst Herzfeld on February 18, 1924. (Ernst Herzfeld papers, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., Ernst Herzfeld photo ﬁ le 8, vol. 2, image 154 = neg. 2490 / Gift of Ernst Herzfeld, 1946).

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Pl. 2. The rock relief at Guyum, photograph by Ernst Herzfeld on February 18, 1924. (Ernst Herzfeld papers, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., Ernst Herzfeld photo ﬁ le 8, vol. 2, image 155 = neg. 2491 / Gift of Ernst Herzfeld, 1946).

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Pl. 3. Guyum: general view (photo L. Vanden Berghe, May 1957).

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Pl. 4. Guyum: general view (photo L. Vanden Berghe, May 1957).

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Pl. 5. Guyum. (photo L. Vanden Berghe, May 1957).

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Pl. 6. Guyum. (photo L. Vanden Berghe, May 1957).

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Pl. 7. Guyum. (photo Erik Smekens, late May 1975).

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Pl. 8. Guyum. (photo Erik Smekens, November 1972).

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Pl. 9. Guyum. (photo taken with ﬂ ash, Erik Smekens, late May 1975).

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Pl. 10. Guyum: detail (photo Erik Smekens, November 1972).

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Pl. 11. Extract from Ernst Herzfeld’s sketchbook with a drawing of the relief and a nearby inscription at Guyum (February 18, 1924). (Ernst Herzfeld papers, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., Ernst Herzfeld’s Sketchbook SK-VII, page 6 / Gift of Ernst Herzfeld, 1946). 220-03-2009 13:04:21 0 - 0 3 - 2 0 0 9

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Pl. 12. Guyum: Field sketch by Erik Smekens (November 1972).

11504-08_Iran_Antiqua_44_14504-08_Iran_Antiqua_44_14 554949 220-03-20090-03-2009 13:04:2113:04:21 550 E. HAERINCK & B. OVERLAET Pl. 13. The unﬁ nished rock sculpture ascribed to Narseh at Naqsh-i Rustam (photo Erik Smekens). Pl. 13. The unﬁ

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Pl. 16. Barm-i Dilak: panel IIA (photo Erik Smekens, November 1972).

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Pl. 17. Barm-i Dilak: panel IIA (photo Erik Smekens, November 1975).

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Pl. 18. Barm-i Dilak: panel IIA, detail (photo Erik Smekens, May 1972).

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Pl. 19. Barm-i Dilak: panel IIA, detail (photo Erik Smekens, May 1972).

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a. b.

c. d. Pl. 20. Head of Bahram II on a. Naqsh-i Rustam II (1975); b. Bishapur IV (1972); c. Sar Mashhad (1975); d. Sarab-i Bahram (1972) (photos Erik Smekens).

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Pl. 21. Head of Bahram II (?) on a. Naqsh-i Rustam III and b. Naqsh-i Rustam VII, top panel, c. Naqsh-i Rustam VII, lower panel (photos Erik Smekens 1975).

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