Derafsch-e Kaviani

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The Derafsh Kāviān
The Derafsh Kāviān

The Derafsch-e Kaviani ( Middle Persian Drafš-e Kāviyān ; newly Persian درفش کاویانی, DMG Derafš-e Kāviyānī ) was the legendary standard of the Sassanid rulers . The banner was sometimes also called "Standard of Jamschid " (درفش جمشيد, DMG Derafš-e Ǧamšīd ), "Standard of Fereydun " (درفش فريدون, DMG Derafš-e Fereydūn ) or "royal standard" (درفش كئى, DMG Derafš-e ke'ī ) called.

The name Drafš-e Kāviyānī means "standard of the Kay" (i.e. kavis "kings") or "of Kāveh ".

Legend

The second meaning refers to an Iranian legend in which the Derafsch-e Kāviān is the banner of a blacksmith raised to a hero named Kāva (Modern Persian: Kāve). This allegedly led a revolt against a foreign ruler named Dahāg (Modern Persian: Żaḥāk ). The epic Shāhnāme from the 10th century takes up Zahhak again as a vicious Arab, against whom Kāveh calls people to arms, using his apron attached to a spear as a banner. After the war was won, the people decorated their aprons with jewels and the banner became a symbol of Iranian independence and resistance to foreign rule.

Sassanid standard

There is no direct mention of the Derafsh-e Kāviān from the Achaemenid or Parthian periods of Iran. In the late Sassanid period (224–651 AD) the Derafsch-e Kāviān became the symbol of the Sassanid dynasty. It represented the Sassanid state - Ērānšāhr , the "Iranian Empire" - ( Eran Shahr means Aryan Empire in Middle Persian ) and can therefore be considered the first national flag of Iran . The banner carried a star (the akhtar ) on a purple background, was set with jewels and had fluttering red, gold and purple pennants. The term Achtar also means "luck", which is why the loss of the standard in battle was also seen as a loss of luck in the battle. After the defeat of the Sassanids in the battle of Kadesia against the Muslim Arabs, the Sassanid flag was saved by a certain Zerar bin Kattab, who received 30,000 dinars from the caliph for it . After it was stripped of its jewels, Caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab is said to have burned the standard.

As a symbol of the Sassanid Empire, the Derafsch-e Kāviān was irrevocably linked to Ērānšāhr and the Iranian nationality. Hence, when in 867 Ya'qub-i Laith from the Saffarid dynasty claimed the inheritance of the Sassanid rulers to “revive their splendor”, a poem written in his name to the Abbasid caliph said : “I ride under the Derafsch-e Kāviān with the help of which I want to rule the nations. ”However, there is no evidence that Ya'qub-i Laith ever commissioned such a flag. Nevertheless, stars remained a popular coat of arms in the area of ​​Iran until they were later superseded by the lion and sun symbol (Šir o Xoršid).

Individual evidence

  1. Article DERAFŠ-E KĀVĪĀN in Iranica
  2. ^ Website honoring Dr. Kourosh Aryamanesh — Depicts images of the Derafsh Kaviani:
  3. Image of the Derafsh Kaviani:
  4. Article FLAGS i. Of Persia in Iranica
  5. Product DERAFŠ in Iranica