Sasanian archaeology

Sasanian archaeology is a branch of archaeology that focuses on the excavation and study of artifacts and material culture of the Sasanian Empire. The Sasanian Empire was the last Persian empire of Late Antiquity, succeeding the Parthians to rule over the geographic region centered in Iran, but also including large parts of the Eastern Mediterranean, the Middle East, and Central Asia, and more sporadically parts of the Arabian Peninsula, from 224 CE to 651 CE. Compared to literary sources, archaeology has played a small, but growing role in understanding the history of this time, place, and state. Archaeology has helped understand Iranian architecture and the daily lives of the inhabitants of the empire, as well as trends of agricultural intensification, economic intensification, border defense, urbanization, religious identity and plurality, and the impact of Sasanian culture on its surrounding societies.

There are eight Sasanian archaeological sites considered UNESCO World Heritage Sites, all in the Sassanid Archaeological Landscape of Fars Region, or the southeastern part of the Fars province, across three cities (Sarvestan, Bishapur and Firuzabad), in Iran,. These include the Qal'eh Dokhtar castle, the Ardashir Investiture Relief, The Victory Relief of Ardashir, the site of Ardashir-Khwarrah, the Palace of Ardashir, the entire city of Bishapur and its related components, the Shapur Cave, and finally, the Sarvestan Palace.