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'Book of the Marvels of the World' (French: <i>Livre des Merveilles du Monde</i>) or 'Description of the World' (<i>Devisement du Monde</i>), in Italian <i>Il Milione</i> ('The Million') or <i>Oriente Poliano</i> and in English commonly called 'The Travels of Marco Polo', is a 13th-century travelogue.<br/><br/> It was recorded by Rustichello da Pisa from stories told by Marco Polo, describing Polo's travels through Asia between 1276 and 1291, and his experiences at the court of Kublai Khan.
An 8th-century Tang dynasty Chinese clay figurine of a Sogdian man wearing a distinctive cap and face veil, possibly a Zoroastrian priest engaging in a ritual at a fire temple, since face veils were used to avoid contaminating the holy fire with breath or saliva.<br/><br/> Alternatively, from the posture, the figurine may represent a Sogdian camel rider on the Silk Road covering his mouth and nose against the sandstorms of the Taklamakan Desert in Xinjiang.
<i>Clavis Artis</i> is the title of an alchemical manuscript published in Germany in three volumes in the late 17th or early 18th century, attributed to Zoroaster (Zarathustra). It features numerous watercolour illustrations depicting alchemical images, as well as pen drawings of laboratory instruments.<br/><br/> Three copies of the manuscript are known to exist, one at the Biblioteca dell’Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei in Rome, one at the Biblioteca Civica Attilio Hortis in Trieste, and one at the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich. There is no information about the author and the origin of the manuscript, but there are references to a Rosicrucian order (Orden der Gold- und Rosenkreutzer).
<i>Clavis Artis</i> is the title of an alchemical manuscript published in Germany in three volumes in the late 17th or early 18th century, attributed to Zoroaster (Zarathustra). It features numerous watercolor illustrations depicting alchemical images, as well as pen drawings of laboratory instruments.<br/><br/> Three copies of the manuscript are known to exist, one at the Biblioteca dell’Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei in Rome, one at the Biblioteca Civica Attilio Hortis in Trieste, and one at the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich. There is no information about the author and the origin of the manuscript, but there are references to a Rosicrucian order (Orden der Gold- und Rosenkreutzer).
The Magi, also referred to as the Three Wise Men or Three Kings, were, in the Gospel of Matthew and Christian tradition, a group of distinguished foreigners who visited Jesus after his birth, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. They are regular figures in traditional accounts of the nativity celebrations of Christmas and are an important part of Christian tradition.<br/><br/> The New Testament does not give the names of the Magi. However, traditions and legends identify a variety of different names for them. In the Western Christian church, they have been all regarded as saints and are commonly known as Melchior, a Persian scholar; Caspar, an Indian scholar; and Balthazar, a Babylonian scholar.
<i>Clavis Artis</i> is the title of an alchemical manuscript published in Germany in three volumes in the late 17th or early 18th century, attributed to Zoroaster (Zarathustra). It features numerous watercolour illustrations depicting alchemical images, as well as pen drawings of laboratory instruments.<br/><br/> Three copies of the manuscript are known to exist, one at the Biblioteca dell’Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei in Rome, one at the Biblioteca Civica Attilio Hortis in Trieste, and one at the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich. There is no information about the author and the origin of the manuscript, but there are references to a Rosicrucian order (Orden der Gold- und Rosenkreutzer).
<i>Clavis Artis</i> is the title of an alchemical manuscript published in Germany in three volumes in the late 17th or early 18th century, attributed to Zoroaster (Zarathustra). It features numerous watercolor illustrations depicting alchemical images, as well as pen drawings of laboratory instruments.<br/><br/> Three copies of the manuscript are known to exist, one at the Biblioteca dell’Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei in Rome, one at the Biblioteca Civica Attilio Hortis in Trieste, and one at the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich. There is no information about the author and the origin of the manuscript, but there are references to a Rosicrucian order (Orden der Gold- und Rosenkreutzer).
The collapse of the Persian Sassanid Empire in the 7th century CE caused the state religion to be switched from Zoroastrianism to Islam. Zoroastrianism slowly went from the religion of most in Iran, to a persecuted minority.<br/><br/> For the survival of their faith and their lives, a large number of Zoroastrians chose to emigrate. According to the Qissa-i Sanjan, one group of those refugees landed in what is now Gujarat, India, where they were allowed greater freedom to observe their old customs and to preserve their faith.<br/><br/> The descendants of those Zoroastrians, now known as the Parsis, would play a small but significant role in the development of India. Today there are around 70,000 Parsis in India.<br/><br/> The Parsis, as Zoroastrians, still use a variant of the religious calendar instituted under the Sassanids. That calendar still marks the number of years since the accession of Yazdegerd III, just as it did in 632 CE.
The Magi, also referred to as the Three Wise Men or Three Kings, were, in the Gospel of Matthew and Christian tradition, a group of distinguished foreigners who visited Jesus after his birth, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. They are regular figures in traditional accounts of the nativity celebrations of Christmas and are an important part of Christian tradition.<br/><br/> The New Testament does not give the names of the Magi. However, traditions and legends identify a variety of different names for them. In the Western Christian church, they have been all regarded as saints and are commonly known as Melchior, a Persian scholar; Caspar, an Indian scholar; and Balthazar, a Babylonian scholar.
<i>Clavis Artis</i> is the title of an alchemical manuscript published in Germany in three volumes in the late 17th or early 18th century, attributed to Zoroaster (Zarathustra). It features numerous watercolour illustrations depicting alchemical images, as well as pen drawings of laboratory instruments.<br/><br/> Three copies of the manuscript are known to exist, one at the Biblioteca dell’Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei in Rome, one at the Biblioteca Civica Attilio Hortis in Trieste, and one at the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich. There is no information about the author and the origin of the manuscript, but there are references to a Rosicrucian order (Orden der Gold- und Rosenkreutzer).
<i>Clavis Artis</i> is the title of an alchemical manuscript published in Germany in three volumes in the late 17th or early 18th century, attributed to Zoroaster (Zarathustra). It features numerous watercolor illustrations depicting alchemical images, as well as pen drawings of laboratory instruments.<br/><br/> Three copies of the manuscript are known to exist, one at the Biblioteca dell’Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei in Rome, one at the Biblioteca Civica Attilio Hortis in Trieste, and one at the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich. There is no information about the author and the origin of the manuscript, but there are references to a Rosicrucian order (Orden der Gold- und Rosenkreutzer).
<i>Clavis Artis</i> is the title of an alchemical manuscript published in Germany in three volumes in the late 17th or early 18th century, attributed to Zoroaster (Zarathustra). It features numerous watercolour illustrations depicting alchemical images, as well as pen drawings of laboratory instruments.<br/><br/> Three copies of the manuscript are known to exist, one at the Biblioteca dell’Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei in Rome, one at the Biblioteca Civica Attilio Hortis in Trieste, and one at the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich. There is no information about the author and the origin of the manuscript, but there are references to a Rosicrucian order (Orden der Gold- und Rosenkreutzer).
<i>Clavis Artis</i> is the title of an alchemical manuscript published in Germany in three volumes in the late 17th or early 18th century, attributed to Zoroaster (Zarathustra). It features numerous watercolor illustrations depicting alchemical images, as well as pen drawings of laboratory instruments.<br/><br/> Three copies of the manuscript are known to exist, one at the Biblioteca dell’Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei in Rome, one at the Biblioteca Civica Attilio Hortis in Trieste, and one at the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich. There is no information about the author and the origin of the manuscript, but there are references to a Rosicrucian order (Orden der Gold- und Rosenkreutzer).
<i>Clavis Artis</i> is the title of an alchemical manuscript published in Germany in three volumes in the late 17th or early 18th century, attributed to Zoroaster (Zarathustra). It features numerous watercolour illustrations depicting alchemical images, as well as pen drawings of laboratory instruments.<br/><br/> Three copies of the manuscript are known to exist, one at the Biblioteca dell’Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei in Rome, one at the Biblioteca Civica Attilio Hortis in Trieste, and one at the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich. There is no information about the author and the origin of the manuscript, but there are references to a Rosicrucian order (Orden der Gold- und Rosenkreutzer).
<i>Clavis Artis</i> is the title of an alchemical manuscript published in Germany in three volumes in the late 17th or early 18th century, attributed to Zoroaster (Zarathustra). It features numerous watercolor illustrations depicting alchemical images, as well as pen drawings of laboratory instruments.<br/><br/> Three copies of the manuscript are known to exist, one at the Biblioteca dell’Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei in Rome, one at the Biblioteca Civica Attilio Hortis in Trieste, and one at the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich. There is no information about the author and the origin of the manuscript, but there are references to a Rosicrucian order (Orden der Gold- und Rosenkreutzer).
Zoroaster (Old Persian: Zarathustra, in modern Persian Zardosht) is generally thought to have lived about the 11th or 10th century BCE. Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of Zoroaster as prophet. The term Zoroastrianism is, in general usage, essentially synonymous with Mazdaism (the worship of Ahura Mazda, exalted by Zoroaster as the supreme divine authority).<br/><br/> In Zoroastrianism, the Creator Ahura Mazda is all good, and no evil originates from Him. Thus, in Zoroastrianism good and evil have distinct sources, with evil (druj) trying to destroy the creation of Mazda (asha), and good trying to sustain it. In some form, it served as the national- or state religion of a significant portion of the Iranian people for many centuries.
Zoroaster (Old Persian: Zarathustra, in modern Persian Zardosht) is generally thought to have lived about the 11th or 10th century BCE. Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of Zoroaster as prophet. The term Zoroastrianism is, in general usage, essentially synonymous with Mazdaism (the worship of Ahura Mazda, exalted by Zoroaster as the supreme divine authority).<br/><br/> In Zoroastrianism, the Creator Ahura Mazda is all good, and no evil originates from Him. Thus, in Zoroastrianism good and evil have distinct sources, with evil (druj) trying to destroy the creation of Mazda (asha), and good trying to sustain it. In some form, it served as the national- or state religion of a significant portion of the Iranian people for many centuries.
Zoroaster (Old Persian: Zarathustra, in modern Persian Zardosht) is generally thought to have lived about the 11th or 10th century BCE. Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of Zoroaster as prophet. The term Zoroastrianism is, in general usage, essentially synonymous with Mazdaism (the worship of Ahura Mazda, exalted by Zoroaster as the supreme divine authority).<br/><br/> In Zoroastrianism, the Creator Ahura Mazda is all good, and no evil originates from Him. Thus, in Zoroastrianism good and evil have distinct sources, with evil (druj) trying to destroy the creation of Mazda (asha), and good trying to sustain it. In some form, it served as the national- or state religion of a significant portion of the Iranian people for many centuries.
Zoroaster (Old Persian: Zarathustra, in modern Persian Zardosht) is generally thought to have lived about the 11th or 10th century BCE. Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of Zoroaster as prophet. The term Zoroastrianism is, in general usage, essentially synonymous with Mazdaism (the worship of Ahura Mazda, exalted by Zoroaster as the supreme divine authority).<br/><br/> In Zoroastrianism, the Creator Ahura Mazda is all good, and no evil originates from Him. Thus, in Zoroastrianism good and evil have distinct sources, with evil (druj) trying to destroy the creation of Mazda (asha), and good trying to sustain it. In some form, it served as the national- or state religion of a significant portion of the Iranian people for many centuries.
Zoroaster (Old Persian: Zarathustra, in modern Persian Zardosht) is generally thought to have lived about the 11th or 10th century BCE. Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of Zoroaster as prophet. The term Zoroastrianism is, in general usage, essentially synonymous with Mazdaism (the worship of Ahura Mazda, exalted by Zoroaster as the supreme divine authority).<br/><br/> In Zoroastrianism, the Creator Ahura Mazda is all good, and no evil originates from Him. Thus, in Zoroastrianism good and evil have distinct sources, with evil (druj) trying to destroy the creation of Mazda (asha), and good trying to sustain it. In some form, it served as the national- or state religion of a significant portion of the Iranian people for many centuries.
Zoroaster (Old Persian: Zarathustra, in modern Persian Zardosht) is generally thought to have lived about the 11th or 10th century BCE. Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of Zoroaster as prophet. The term Zoroastrianism is, in general usage, essentially synonymous with Mazdaism (the worship of Ahura Mazda, exalted by Zoroaster as the supreme divine authority).<br/><br/> In Zoroastrianism, the Creator Ahura Mazda is all good, and no evil originates from Him. Thus, in Zoroastrianism good and evil have distinct sources, with evil (druj) trying to destroy the creation of Mazda (asha), and good trying to sustain it. In some form, it served as the national- or state religion of a significant portion of the Iranian people for many centuries.
Zoroaster (Old Persian: Zarathustra, in modern Persian Zardosht) is generally thought to have lived about the 11th or 10th century BCE. Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of Zoroaster as prophet. The term Zoroastrianism is, in general usage, essentially synonymous with Mazdaism (the worship of Ahura Mazda, exalted by Zoroaster as the supreme divine authority).<br/><br/> In Zoroastrianism, the Creator Ahura Mazda is all good, and no evil originates from Him. Thus, in Zoroastrianism good and evil have distinct sources, with evil (druj) trying to destroy the creation of Mazda (asha), and good trying to sustain it. In some form, it served as the national- or state religion of a significant portion of the Iranian people for many centuries.
Zoroaster (Old Persian: Zarathustra, in modern Persian Zardosht) is generally thought to have lived about the 11th or 10th century BCE. Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of Zoroaster as prophet. The term Zoroastrianism is, in general usage, essentially synonymous with Mazdaism (the worship of Ahura Mazda, exalted by Zoroaster as the supreme divine authority).<br/><br/> In Zoroastrianism, the Creator Ahura Mazda is all good, and no evil originates from Him. Thus, in Zoroastrianism good and evil have distinct sources, with evil (druj) trying to destroy the creation of Mazda (asha), and good trying to sustain it. In some form, it served as the national- or state religion of a significant portion of the Iranian people for many centuries.
Zoroaster (Old Persian: Zarathustra, in modern Persian Zardosht) is generally thought to have lived about the 11th or 10th century BCE. Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of Zoroaster as prophet. The term Zoroastrianism is, in general usage, essentially synonymous with Mazdaism (the worship of Ahura Mazda, exalted by Zoroaster as the supreme divine authority).<br/><br/> In Zoroastrianism, the Creator Ahura Mazda is all good, and no evil originates from Him. Thus, in Zoroastrianism good and evil have distinct sources, with evil (druj) trying to destroy the creation of Mazda (asha), and good trying to sustain it. In some form, it served as the national- or state religion of a significant portion of the Iranian people for many centuries.
Angra Mainyu is the Avestan-language name of Zoroastrianism's hypostasis of the destructive spirit. The Middle Persian equivalent is Ahriman.
Pieter Bruegel (Brueghel) the Elder, c. 1525 – 9 September 1569, was a Flemish Renaissance painter and printmaker known for his landscapes and peasant scenes.<br/><br/> He is sometimes referred to as the 'Peasant Bruegel' to distinguish him from other members of the Brueghel dynasty, but he is also the one generally meant when the context does not make clear which Brueghel is being referred to. From 1559 he dropped the 'h' from his name and signed his paintings as Bruegel.
The Magi, in royal or aristocratic dress, come to adore Christ child and to bring gifts of frankincense, gold and myrrh.<br/><br/> From the Ranworth Antiphonal of c.1460-1480 - its professional but provincial decoration suggest it was made in the Norwich area for use in the Norwich diocese (at Ranworth church, Norfolk, by 1505).
The collapse of the Persian Sassanid Empire in the 7th century CE caused the state religion to be switched from Zoroastrianism to Islam. Zoroastrianism slowly went from the religion of most in Iran, to a persecuted minority.<br/><br/> For the survival of their faith and their lives, a large number of Zoroastrians chose to emigrate. According to the Qissa-i Sanjan, one group of those refugees landed in what is now Gujarat, India, where they were allowed greater freedom to observe their old customs and to preserve their faith.<br/><br/> The descendants of those Zoroastrians, now known as the Parsis, would play a small but significant role in the development of India. Today there are around 70,000 Parsis in India.<br/><br/> The Parsis, as Zoroastrians, still use a variant of the religious calendar instituted under the Sassanids. That calendar still marks the number of years since the accession of Yazdegerd III, just as it did in 632 CE.
Zoroaster (Old Persian: Zarathustra, in modern Persian Zardosht) is generally thought to have lived about the 11th or 10th century BCE. Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of Zoroaster as prophet. The term Zoroastrianism is, in general usage, essentially synonymous with Mazdaism (the worship of Ahura Mazda, exalted by Zoroaster as the supreme divine authority).<br/><br/> In Zoroastrianism, the Creator Ahura Mazda is all good, and no evil originates from Him. Thus, in Zoroastrianism good and evil have distinct sources, with evil (druj) trying to destroy the creation of Mazda (asha), and good trying to sustain it. In some form, it served as the national- or state religion of a significant portion of the Iranian people for many centuries.
The Faravahar is one of the best-known symbols of Zoroastrianism, the state religion of ancient Iran. This religious-cultural symbol was adapted by the Pahlavi dynasty to represent the Iranian nation. The winged disc has a long history in the art and culture of the ancient Near and Middle East. Historically, the symbol is influenced by the "winged sun" hieroglyph appearing on Bronze Age royal seals. In Neo-Assyrian times, a human bust is added to the disk, the "feather-robed archer" interpreted as symbolizing Ashur. The symbol is currently thought to represent a Fravashi (a guardian angel). Because the symbol first appears on royal inscriptions, it is also thought to represent the 'Divine Royal Glory' and the divine mandate that was the foundation of a king's authority.
Zoroaster (Old Persian: Zarathustra, in modern Persian Zardosht) is generally thought to have lived about the 11th or 10th century BCE. Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of Zoroaster as prophet. The term Zoroastrianism is, in general usage, essentially synonymous with Mazdaism (the worship of Ahura Mazda, exalted by Zoroaster as the supreme divine authority).<br/><br/> In Zoroastrianism, the Creator Ahura Mazda is all good, and no evil originates from Him. Thus, in Zoroastrianism good and evil have distinct sources, with evil (druj) trying to destroy the creation of Mazda (asha), and good trying to sustain it. In some form, it served as the national- or state religion of a significant portion of the Iranian people for many centuries.
The national Persian epic, the ‘Shahnameh’, meaning ‘The King’s Chronicles’, is a poetic opus written around 1000 AD by Ferdowsi. Regarded as the national folktale of Greater Persia, the Shahnameh consists of some 60,000 verses and tells the mythical and historical past of (Greater) Iran from the creation of the world up until the Islamic conquest of Persia in the 7th century.
Zoroaster (Old Persian: Zarathustra, in modern Persian Zardosht) is generally thought to have lived about the 11th or 10th century BCE. Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of Zoroaster as prophet. The term Zoroastrianism is, in general usage, essentially synonymous with Mazdaism (the worship of Ahura Mazda, exalted by Zoroaster as the supreme divine authority).<br/><br/> In Zoroastrianism, the Creator Ahura Mazda is all good, and no evil originates from Him. Thus, in Zoroastrianism good and evil have distinct sources, with evil (druj) trying to destroy the creation of Mazda (asha), and good trying to sustain it. In some form, it served as the national- or state religion of a significant portion of the Iranian people for many centuries.
Magi (Latin plural of magus; Ancient Greek: μάγος magos; Old Persian: maguš, Persian: Ù…Ùغ‎ mogh; English singular magian, mage, magus, magusian, magusaean) is a term, used since at least the 4th century BCE, to denote followers of Zoroaster, or rather, followers of what the Hellenistic world associated Zoroaster with, which was – in the main – the ability to read the stars, and manipulate the fate that the stars foretold.<br/><br/> Pervasive throughout the Eastern Mediterranean and Western Asia until late antiquity and beyond, Greek mágos, "Magian" or "magician," was influenced by (and eventually displaced) Greek goÄ“s(γÏŒης), the older word for a practitioner of magic, to include astrology, alchemy and other forms of esoteric knowledge. This association was in turn the product of the Hellenistic fascination for (Pseudo-) Zoroaster, who was perceived by the Greeks to be the "Chaldean" "founder" of the Magi and "inventor" of both astrology and magic. Among the skeptical thinkers of the period, the term 'magian' acquired a negative connotation and was associated with tricksters and conjurers. This pejorative meaning survives in the words "magic" and "magician".<br/><br/> In English, the term "magi" is most commonly used in reference to the Gospel of Matthew's 'wise men from the East', or 'three wise men', though that number does not actually appear in Matthew's account. The plural "magi" entered the English language around 1200, in reference to the Biblical magi of Matthew 2:1. The singular appears considerably later, in the late 14th century, when it was borrowed from Old French in the meaning magician together with magic.
Magi (Latin plural of magus; Ancient Greek: μάγος magos; Old Persian: maguš, Persian: Ù…Ùغ‎ mogh; English singular magian, mage, magus, magusian, magusaean) is a term, used since at least the 4th century BCE, to denote followers of Zoroaster, or rather, followers of what the Hellenistic world associated Zoroaster with, which was – in the main – the ability to read the stars, and manipulate the fate that the stars foretold.<br/><br/> Pervasive throughout the Eastern Mediterranean and Western Asia until late antiquity and beyond, Greek mágos, "Magian" or "magician," was influenced by (and eventually displaced) Greek goÄ“s(γÏŒης), the older word for a practitioner of magic, to include astrology, alchemy and other forms of esoteric knowledge. This association was in turn the product of the Hellenistic fascination for (Pseudo-) Zoroaster, who was perceived by the Greeks to be the "Chaldean" "founder" of the Magi and "inventor" of both astrology and magic. Among the skeptical thinkers of the period, the term 'magian' acquired a negative connotation and was associated with tricksters and conjurers. This pejorative meaning survives in the words "magic" and "magician".<br/><br/> In English, the term "magi" is most commonly used in reference to the Gospel of Matthew's 'wise men from the East', or 'three wise men', though that number does not actually appear in Matthew's account. The plural "magi" entered the English language around 1200, in reference to the Biblical magi of Matthew 2:1. The singular appears considerably later, in the late 14th century, when it was borrowed from Old French in the meaning magician together with magic.
The Secretum Secretorum is a medieval treatise also known as Secret of Secrets, or The Book of the Secret of Secrets, or in Arabic: كتاب سر الأسرار‎ (Kitab sirr al-asrar), or the Book of the Science of Government: on the good ordering of statecraft.<br/><br/> It is a mid-12th century Latin translation of a 10th-century Arabic encyclopedic treatise on a wide range of topics, including statecraft, ethics, physiognomy, astrology, alchemy, magic and medicine. It was influential in Europe during the High Middle Ages.
Zoroaster (Old Persian: Zarathustra, in modern Persian Zardosht) is generally thought to have lived about the 11th or 10th century BCE. Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of Zoroaster as prophet. The term Zoroastrianism is, in general usage, essentially synonymous with Mazdaism (the worship of Ahura Mazda, exalted by Zoroaster as the supreme divine authority).<br/><br/> In Zoroastrianism, the Creator Ahura Mazda is all good, and no evil originates from Him. Thus, in Zoroastrianism good and evil have distinct sources, with evil (druj) trying to destroy the creation of Mazda (asha), and good trying to sustain it. In some form, it served as the national- or state religion of a significant portion of the Iranian people for many centuries.
Angra Mainyu is the Avestan-language name of Zoroastrianism's hypostasis of the destructive spirit. The Middle Persian equivalent is Ahriman.
The Sassanid Empire (also spelled Sasanid Empire, Sassanian Empire, or Sasanian Empire), known to its inhabitants as Ä’rÄnshahr and Ä’rÄn in Middle Persian and resulting in the New Persian terms Iranshahr and Iran, was the last pre-Islamic Persian Empire, ruled by the Sasanian Dynasty from 224 to 651. The Sassanid Empire, which succeeded the Parthian Empire, was recognized as one of the two main powers in Western Asia and Europe, alongside the Roman Empire and its successor, the Byzantine Empire, for a period of more than 400 years.<br/><br/> The Sassanid Empire was founded by Ardashir I, after the fall of the Arsacid Empire and the defeat of the last Arsacid king, Artabanus IV. It lasted until Yazdegerd III lost control of his empire in a series of invasions from the Arab Caliphate. During its existence, the Sassanid Empire encompassed all of today's Iran, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, the Caucasus (Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Dagestan), southwestern Central Asia, part of Turkey, certain coastal parts of the Arabian Peninsula, the Persian Gulf area, and areas of southwestern Pakistan, even stretching into India.<br/><br/> The Sassanid capital was at Ctessiphon, and the main religion was Zoroastrianism.