Recorded: May 20, 2022
Event: The World of Ancient Iran and the West
Citation: Potter, David. "Western Sources for the Sasanians." Pourdavoud Center: The World of Ancient Iran and the West (May 20, 2022).
by David Potter (University of Michigan)
David Potter is Francis W. Kelsey Collegiate Professor of Greek and Roman History, Arthur F. Thurnau Professor and Professor of Greek and Latin in the Department of Classical Studies at the University of Michigan. His recent publications include Disruption: How Things Change (Oxford UP, 2021); The Origin of Empire (Harvard UP, 2019). And Theodora: Actress, Empress, Saint (Oxford UP, 2016). As a member of the School of Historical Studies at the Institute for Advanced Study in 2021/22, he has been working on a book on Julius Caesar and the destruction of democracy.
Western Sources for the Sasanians
The Greco-Roman sources for the Sasanians differ widely in tone and content according to the author’s date, religious presentation, personal experience, relationship to the imperial court, and purpose. Evolution in the tradition, from stereotype to more nuanced analysis stems from Rome’s acceptance of the essential equality between the two empires in terms of military capacity. One result was that western interest in Persia’s internal affairs increased. At the same time, there is rarely a sense of mutual obligation, which might make Khusro’s decision to attempt the elimination of the Roman empire more comprehensible, while the evolved Roman understanding of the situation in central Asia, evident in the sixth century, provides context for Heraclius’ strategy to end that war. In terms of approach, the Roman sources can be divided into four periods. The first runs from the emergence of the Sasanian regime to the age of Diocletian. The second period centers on the mid-fourth century wars waged by Constantius II and Julian with Sapor II. The third period runs roughly from the reign of Anastasius to the “fifty-year peace” between Justinian and Khusro I in 562. This is a period in which the Sasanian dealings with central Asia begin to influence relations with Rome in a new way and in which the failure of the western empire exerts a significant impact on the direction of imperial policy. Finally, there is the period from the end of Justinian’s reign to the end of the great war of the early seventh century.