The Shami statue is one of the main surviving works of

Parthian art Parthian art was Iranian art made during the Parthian Empire from 247 BC to 224 AD, based in the Near East. It has a mixture of Persian and Hellenistic influences. For some time after the period of the Parthian Empire, art in its styles continue ...

. It is currently in the

National Museum of Iran The National Museum of Iran ( fa, موزهٔ ملی ایران ) is located in Tehran, Iran. It is an institution formed of two complexes; the Museum of Ancient Iran and the Museum of Islamic Archaeology and Art of Iran, which were opened in 1937 ...

(Inv. no. 2401) and was found at Shami (modern

Khūzestān Province Khuzestan Province (also spelled Xuzestan; fa, استان خوزستان ''Ostān-e Xūzestān'') is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It is in the southwest of the country, bordering Iraq and the Persian Gulf. Its capital is Ahvaz and it covers ...

), where there was an ancient sanctuary. The bronze statue is 1.94 m high. The man depicted is shown frontally. The figure's head is slightly too small in relation to the rest of its body and the face has a plain, unmodelled surface with an

aquiline nose An aquiline nose (also called a Roman nose) is a human nose with a prominent bridge, giving it the appearance of being curved or slightly bent. The word ''aquiline'' comes from the Latin word ''aquilinus'' ("eagle-like"), an allusion to the curve ...

. The man bears a short beard and a heavy moustache, while his hair is long and covers the ears. Around the head he wears a wide ribbon. He wears a tunic with a V-shaped opening at the front and wears trousers. Around the neck he wears a necklace, perhaps a metal ring. The left hand and the entire right arm are missing. In Shami, however, there was found a bronze arm which might belong to this statue. It is possible that the head and the body of the figure were crafted separately and put together in Shami, as the head is too small and made from a different type of bronze as to the rest of the statue. The high quality of the art work caused some speculations of its production place. Some scholars believe that it was made by Greek or Roman artists. Others argue that it was produced in

Palmyra Palmyra (; Palmyrene: () ''Tadmor''; ar, تَدْمُر ''Tadmur'') is an ancient city in present-day Homs Governorate, Syria. Archaeological finds date back to the Neolithic period, and documents first mention the city in the early seco ...

or by an artist from this city, while others suggest that it was made in

Susa Susa ( ; Middle elx, 𒀸𒋗𒊺𒂗, translit=Šušen; Middle and Neo- elx, 𒋢𒋢𒌦, translit=Šušun; Neo-Elamite and Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼𒀭, translit=Šušán; Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼, translit=Šušá; fa, شوش ...

(the nearest bigger ancient city). The statue was found by local peasants but must have originally adorned a sanctuary at Shami, where several Hellenistic bronze statues were found. The statue depicts a nobleman from the

Parthian Empire The Parthian Empire (), also known as the Arsacid Empire (), was a major Iranian political and cultural power in ancient Iran from 247 BC to 224 AD. Its latter name comes from its founder, Arsaces I, who led the Parni tribe in conq ...

. The statue is hard to date. Scholars have proposed various datings ranging from the 2nd century BC to the 2nd century AD.Mathiesen: ''Sculpture in the Parthian Empire'', p. 167, n. 11 (list of various datings) File:Parthian man statue.jpg, The Statue of

Parthia Parthia ( peo, 𐎱𐎼𐎰𐎺 ''Parθava''; xpr, 𐭐𐭓𐭕𐭅 ''Parθaw''; pal, 𐭯𐭫𐭮𐭥𐭡𐭥 ''Pahlaw'') is a historical region located in northeastern Greater Iran. It was conquered and subjugated by the empire of the Mede ...

n Noble Man, the face File:National Meusem Darafsh 6 (59).JPG, The Statue of

n Noble Man, National Museum of Iran 2401

References

Literature

* *Hans Erik Mathiesen 1992,''Sculpture in the Parthian Empire'', Aarhus 1992 , p. 165-167 * Curtis, Vesta Sarkhosh., 1993, "A Parthian statuette from Susa and the bronze statue from Shami." ''Iran'' 31, no. 1: 63-69. * Lindstroem, G., 2021, The Portrait of a Hellenistic Ruler and Other Bronze Sculptures from Kal-e Chendar/Shami. Results of the 2015 and 2016 studies in the National Museum of Iran, ''Journal of Iran National Museum'' 2(1): 177-196, DOI
10.22034/JINM.2021.252917

Weblinks

*Trudy S. Kawami, “SHAMI STATUE,” Encyclopædia Iranica, online edition, 2016, available at http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/shami-statue (accessed on 20 October 2016). {{National Museum of Iran Parthian Empire Persian art Archaeological discoveries in Iran Bronze sculptures in Iran Statues in Tehran Parthian art