Taq-e Bostan: Sasanian Rock Reliefs and Grottoes at Kermanshah

Taq-e Bostan is a site of Sasanian rock reliefs and grottoes near Kermanshah in western Iran, carved into a cliff beside a spring-fed pool on the old route between Mesopotamia and the Iranian plateau. Its earliest relief, the investiture of King Ardashir II, dates from about AD 379–383, and its great arched grotto was probably made for Khosrow II in the early 7th century. Together they form the last great group of royal rock carvings of the Sasanian Empire, and one of the finest.

Setting and name

The reliefs are cut into the foot of a limestone mountain on the northern edge of Kermanshah. A strong spring rises at the base of the cliff and feeds a pool. In antiquity, as today, the place was a pleasant garden spot on the main road from Ctesiphon, the Sasanian capital in Mesopotamia, to the Iranian highlands.

The name Taq-e Bostan is usually translated as “Arch of the Garden”. The region was already rich in royal monuments: about 30 kilometres to the east stands the cliff of Bisotun with the Behistun Inscription of Darius the Great, carved more than 800 years before the earliest Sasanian work at Taq-e Bostan.

The Sasanian tradition of rock reliefs

The Sasanian dynasty ruled Iran from 224 to 651 after the Battle of Hormozdgan. Its kings revived the ancient custom of carving monumental scenes into rock faces. Most of the early reliefs, from the 3rd century, are in Fars, the dynasty’s homeland, at sites such as Naqsh-e Rostam, Bishapur and Firuzabad.

These reliefs showed kings receiving their royal power from the gods, triumphing over enemies such as Roman emperors, and fighting heroically on horseback. After the early 4th century the custom faded in Fars. Taq-e Bostan, in the west of the empire, is the main place where it continued.

Taq-e Bostan also differs in form from the earlier monuments. Most reliefs in Fars were carved on open cliff faces, but here the sculptors cut arched rooms deep into the rock, turning the reliefs into architecture. The carving of the large grotto is also much deeper, with some figures standing out almost fully in the round. Its location near a royal road and a natural garden suggests that it was meant to be seen by travellers, courtiers and envoys passing between the capital and the highlands.

The relief of Ardashir II

The oldest carving at the site is a flat relief on the cliff face showing the investiture of Ardashir II (reigned 379–383), brother and successor of the great Shapur II.

Three standing figures appear. In the centre, Ardashir receives a beribboned ring, the symbol of royal authority, from the figure on the right, usually identified as the supreme god Ahura Mazda. Some scholars have suggested instead that this figure is Shapur II himself. On the left stands a figure with a radiant crown, standing on a lotus flower and holding a bundle of sacred twigs (barsom); he is generally identified as the god Mithra.

Under the feet of the king and the investing figure lies a fallen enemy wearing a Roman-style costume. Many scholars identify him as the emperor Julian, killed during his failed invasion of Persia in 363 (see Julian’s Persian Expedition). The identification is attractive but cannot be proved.

The small grotto of Shapur III

Next to it is a small, arched niche cut into the rock, known as the small grotto. Its back wall shows two standing kings, identified by inscriptions in Middle Persian as Shapur II and his son Shapur III (reigned 383–388), who commissioned it.

These inscriptions give the names and titles of both rulers, making the grotto one of the few firmly dated Sasanian monuments of the 4th century.

The large grotto

The most famous monument at Taq-e Bostan is the large grotto (Taq-e Bozorg), a deep barrel-vaulted hall carved out of the rock. It is traditionally attributed to Khosrow II (reigned 590–628), and most scholars accept a date in his reign. A minority have argued for an earlier king, such as Peroz (reigned 459–484).

The facade

The arch is framed by carved pillars with tree-of-life designs. Above it, in the spandrels, are two winged female figures holding diadems and cups. Their form closely resembles the winged Victories of Roman triumphal arches, showing how Sasanian artists borrowed and adapted Roman imagery.

The back wall

The back wall is divided into two levels. Above, a king stands between two divine figures. One, on the right, is usually identified as Ahura Mazda, offering a ring; the other, a woman holding a ring and a water jug, is generally thought to be the goddess Anahita.

Below is a huge relief of a horseman in full armour: a helmet with a mail veil covering the face, a coat of mail, a lance and a shield, on a horse protected by an armoured apron. He is often identified as the king himself, possibly Khosrow II on his famous horse Shabdiz. It is one of the most important images of a heavily armoured Sasanian cavalryman, the type the Romans called a clibanarius or cataphract.

The hunting scenes

The side walls carry two large hunting scenes. On the left, the king hunts wild boar from a boat in a marsh, accompanied by boats of female musicians playing harps, while elephants drive the boars and later carry away the kill. On the right, the king hunts deer in a walled game park, with mounted attendants and musicians.

These scenes are full of detail about Sasanian court life, dress, textiles and music. Parts of them were never completely finished, giving rare evidence of how the carvers worked.

Later history

After the fall of the Sasanian Empire in the 7th century, Taq-e Bostan remained famous. Medieval Persian and Arab writers associated the great horseman with Khosrow II and his horse Shabdiz, and with the romance of Khosrow and his queen Shirin, later retold by the poet Nizami in the 12th century.

In the early 19th century the Qajar dynasty added its own relief at the site, showing Fath-Ali Shah and his courtiers, deliberately placing the Qajars in the tradition of ancient Iranian kingship. Today Taq-e Bostan is a protected national monument and one of the most visited historic sites in western Iran.

Key people

• Ardashir II (reigned 379–383): Sasanian king whose investiture is the earliest relief at the site.
• Shapur II (reigned 309–379): the long-reigning king who defeated Julian; shown in the small grotto.
• Shapur III (reigned 383–388): son of Shapur II, who commissioned the small grotto.
• Khosrow II (reigned 590–628): king traditionally credited with the large grotto, whose wars with Byzantium are covered in the Byzantine-Sasanian War of 602–628.

Timeline

• 224: The Sasanian dynasty comes to power in Iran.
• 363: Shapur II defeats Julian’s invasion of Mesopotamia.
• 379–383: Reign of Ardashir II; his investiture relief is carved.
• 383–388: Reign of Shapur III; the small grotto is made.
• 590–628: Reign of Khosrow II, traditionally linked with the large grotto.
• 651: Death of Yazdegerd III and end of the Sasanian dynasty.
• Early 19th century: A Qajar relief of Fath-Ali Shah is added to the site.

Why it matters

Taq-e Bostan shows Sasanian royal art at its most ambitious and detailed. Its reliefs record how the kings of Iran presented their divine right to rule, their wars and their pleasures, and they remain among the best visual sources for the arms, dress and court culture of late antique Persia.