SOAS Research Online

Abstract

This article examines five Sasanian bullae from the fire temple of Ādur Gušnasp with seal impressions depicting Aphrodite and Eros, and Aphrodite Anadyomene, from the fire temple of Ādur Gušnasp. The original seal with Aphrodite and Eros likely dates from the late 1st century BCE to the early 1st century CE, reused between the 5th and 7th centuries CE, while the Aphrodite Anadyomene seal is from the 2nd or 3rd century CE. Contextualising these findings within Graeco-Roman and Iranian cultures, the article explores reinterpretations of Graeco-Roman iconography for Zoroastrian and non-Zoroastrian audiences. It also argues that bullae with concave impressions were attached to vessels, not just documents. Additionally, it discusses other sealings with the Middle Persian inscriptions, identifying a mgw ‘priest’ and an astrologer, providing the first attestation of the word axtar ‘constellation’ on a Sasanian seal.