Tracing the origins of Sasanian power has been a persistent concern of scholars working on what is increasingly termed “Late Antique” Iran. In this volume, Rezakhani takes a deeper look at the Eastern Persianate lands, arguing that their importance throughout the Sasanian Empire has hitherto gone unrecognized owing to a lack of scholarly focus on the this region in the Late Antique period, which in turn reflects the paucity and disparateness of the available historical materials. He therefore stresses the need to piece together political history using alternative sources, most notably numismatics, the data from which forms this book's primary focus, in spite of the more general title.
Having outlined the problem of sources, Rezakhani begins by framing what he terms “East Iran”. He uses this term to emphasize that the zone considered “eastern” is actually “central” in terms of Sasanian political narratives, that it should be regarded as a unified region, and that it can be linked to the later concept of Khurasan. This highlights the underlying major thesis of the work, discussed in the conclusion, as being the genesis of Khurasan and the origins of its importance.
The eleven subsequent chapters deal geographically and chronologically with different political realities, making the book easily navigable. Rezakhani's chrono-numismatic journey begins in Sistan/Sakastan, which, he argues, was the locus for the foundation of later Sasanian genealogical references, notwithstanding the leaps it is necessary to make in the source materials. The direct relevance to Sasanian kingship is made clear: several aspects of the identity of later rulers emerged somewhere in the midst of an Indo-Parthian melting pot.
The following chapters on the Kushans and Kushano-Sasanians are less directly connected to the history of the Sasanians, and focus rather on the homogeneity of an eastern identity. The beginnings of cultural unity across the Hindu Kush is a key aspect which has so often been overlooked, and Rezakhani notably brings it to the fore. There is a need, however, to combine this with the rich information which exists from archaeological and art historical sources; to cite one example, the excavations and murals at Dilbarjin (published in Drevniaia Baktriia vol. 1 (Moscow, 1976), which Rezakhani dismisses out of hand).
Rezakhani tackles the difficult disambiguation of the Kidarites and Huns in chapter 4, bringing into the discussion for the first time the lands north and east of the Oxus. Their stated hegemony over the regions south of the Hindu Kush is not explored in detail, and they loom geographically larger in his descriptions than the data can realistically suggest. Apart from an interesting aside on the origins of the royal title kay, there is again little discussion of their direct relationship with the Sasanians. Likewise, his discussion of the Alkhans (chapter 5) rests mainly on understanding their own political identity. The Hephthalites (chapter 6) arguably had the greatest engagement with Sasanian Iran in a military sense, and Rezakhani provides a balanced account of how this can be reconstructed from a variety of different historical standpoints.
Throughout chapters 6 and 7 the author deliberately merges the regions of Transoxania, Tokharistan and Khurasan as part of an integrated East Iranian world and an inheritor to the Kushans. There is not sufficient evidence, however to warrant such a connected view, and his discussion at points actually demonstrates the fragmentedness of the region in the fifth–sixth century. The Sogdians, while notably trading in Chinese and Sasanian spheres, exerted little ostensible political power beyond the Oxus, and their direct influence in Sasanian matters was light to say the least.
For the final chapters, dealing with the sixth-century and the Turks, the book gives a brief overview of the key changes and their impact on Eurasian politics, without delving too far into the inevitable changes which were to come. This segues directly into the capture of East Iran under the Arabs, and hurriedly to the Samanid court in order to frame a postscript on the Shahnameh, which appears something of a disconnected addendum.
The conclusions drawn in the volume reflect the concerns of many working in this region: that the role of Central Asia, or East Iran, has been seen too often as peripheral, rather than central. While for the later medieval period this is perhaps more easily demonstrated, this work accompanies the recent arguments of several others, including Payne, de la Vaissière, and Canepa, beginning this important shift of focus for Late Antiquity.
The book urgently required a closer editorial eye on proofing and standardization of spelling. In places the typographical mistakes and transliteration errors (for ancient and modern languages) go so far as to risk causing considerable confusion, particularly among those unfamiliar with the topic.
The weight of numismatic material presented by the volume also raises an interesting point that has so far received little attention, which is how we should treat the growing body of unprovenanced source material (for which considerable data is available online through auction catalogues, widely used for the images in the book). When, as in the majority of cases, a secure origin for the material cannot be proven, does this mean that we should distance ourselves from them as sources? This complex ethical debate is not tackled in the book, but it is one with a direct impact for the longer term of research in countries such as Afghanistan, and the preservation of evidence for the Late Antique period not yet uncovered.
This volume offers a synthesis of material which for many is otherwise in their peripheral vision. Reorienting indeed, the focus is on the eastern Persianate lands in Late Antiquity, rather than the Sasanians. Rezakhani attempts to present a coherent narrative of a very fragmentary history, but in several places falls short, particularly in the way he articulates his theses. His reconstruction of royal lineage and the symbolism of power for successive dynasties successfully combines numismatics and written sources, but there is the impression that the geographical and chronological limits of the book are too broad to allow for a detailed discussion. Moreover, this type of study cannot but highlight the widespread neglect of social and cultural history for this region in Late Antiquity; fields in which archaeology and art history must also play a fundamental role.
