 | This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations .(March 2023) |
 View of Shekaft-e Salman with location of four Elamite Reliefs (J. Alvarez-Mon) | |
  Shown within Iran  Eshkaft-e Salman (Near East) | |
| Location | Izeh, Khuzestan province, Iran |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 31°49′07″N49°50′59″E / 31.81861°N 49.84972°E |
Eshkaft-e Salman (also spelled Shekaft-e Salman or Eshkofte Salman) is an archaeological site in the Khuzestan province of Iran.
On the southwest side of the valley, 2.5 km from the town center of Izeh, southwest Iran, is the majestic “romantic grotto” of Shekaft-e Salman (“Salomon’s Cave”) where a waterfall cascades seasonally over a high cliff-face, passing across the entrance to a natural cave below. Its waters merge with the spring water flowing out of the cave. Four reliefs, Shekaft-e Salman (SSI-IV), were carved inside and to the right of the mouth of the cave. Similarities with inscribed brick panels at Susa advocate a 12th-century BC date for the first two reliefs (SSI and SS II), depicting royal families and probably carved in connection with cultic activities pursued by the Shutrukid House in the open-air highland sanctuaries.
(H. ca. 1.9 m w. 3.30 m/2.60 m; 12th and 11th-7th centuries BC). Carved inside a rectangular panel about 8.5 m above ground level, SSI depicts two men, a boy, and a woman standing in profile oriented toward the cave making worship gestures before a fire stand. It seems that the original panel, which dates to around the 12th century, had shown only the royal family (Male B, Boy, and Female) and that the fire stand and the man closest to it (Male A) were 11th-7th century additions. A poorly preserved Elamite inscription added to the relief in the 7th-6th century BC by Hanni, kutur (caretaker, protector, ruler) of Ayapir extends over the lower part of the relief. The first man in the group (Male A) raises the arms in front, flexed at the elbow. The hands are closed into a fist, index fingers extended. He has a long beard, a pair of long side-locks ending in a curl, a “visor” hairstyle, and a long braid that extends down the back and ends in a curl at waist level. His garment is short-sleeved, belted at the waist, and has a bell-shaped, knee-length skirt. His feet are bare. The second man (Male B) clasps his hands together at the waist. He has a similar garment, face, hairstyle and physique to the previous. The boy behind him wears a comparable garment and adopts the same clasped-hands gesture. Last in line is the woman, who holds the right arm flexed at the elbow with hand raised and index finger extended in an upward-pointing gesture. The left hand is held in front of the waist and may be grasping a folded textile. The short-sleeved garment shirt molds over small breasts and the long, bell-shaped, floor-length skirt covers the feet and flares into two triangular tips at the hemline. A small band at the forehead follows the line of the hair, which extends upward in a large mass and bulges at the back. The face is rather round, with pronounced cheeks, small mouth and a double chin. The neck is adorned by a necklace with an extension (or a braid?) along the line of the arm (like the female in SSII below).
(H. 1.92 m, w. 2.23 m; 12th century BC). Carved in a rectangular panel at around the same height (at least 8 m) as SSI, but closer to the cave. It depicts a man, a boy, and a woman standing oriented toward the cave. The man is on a low pedestal in front clasping his hands at the waist. A band above the left wrist extends along the length of the forearm to the elbow (perhaps straps related to archery paraphernalia). The garment has short sleeves and long fringes crossing the chest in a V-shape. A curved line at the neck could indicate an undergarment or a necklace. The narrow waist is girded by a wide band and the bell-shaped skirt flares out above the knee into a fringed hemline. The “visor” hairstyle covers the top of the ear and a narrow band runs along the forehead. A pair of chest-length, braided side-locks narrow toward the end where they curl upward in opposite directions and another long braid runs along the left shoulder, ending in a curl above the elbow. The boy wears the same style of garment, headdress and back-braid and performs the same gesture. Behind him, the woman grips her left wrist with her right hand. The left hand may hold a folded textile. The definition of small breasts with nipples suggests a garment shirt made of fine fabric. The bell-shaped skirt falls from the narrow waist to the ground, covering the feet. It is divided into a sequence of three fringes: an upper row of long fringing, a middle row of wavy fringing that decreases in length toward the center creating a triangular space, and a bottom row of fringing composed of fifteen long tassels. The well-preserved face is round, with a double chin, a small, slightly smiling mouth, a thick monobrow and a large eye. The hair sweeps upward at the front, covers the ear, and bulges in a bun-like mass at the back. The neck is encircled by a choker, which may be fixed by a clasp with a long extension (a braid?) ending in a curl. A narrow band runs along the forehead at the hairline and down toward a figure-eight shape earring.
Three captions were added to this relief by Hanni of Ayapir in the 7th-6th centuries BC. One of them (IIA), now unreadable, was inscribed over the fringe of the adult male's skirt. The other two, one on the boy's skirt (IIB) and the other above the fringed hemline of the female's long dress (IIC), were read by Hinz, respectively, as Zashehshi(?), daughter(?) of Hanni and Amatema, wife or daughter (?) of Hanni.
In certain details these depictions of royal couples at Shekaft-e Salman are strikingly similar to the fragmentary couple from a royal tabernacle at Susa. The closest parallels are in the ruler's distinguishing pair of long, braided side-locks that curl at the ends, the short-sleeved garment with fringes crossing the chest in a V-shape, the wide shoulders, and the clasped-hands gesture. Parallels in the queens are the small breasts and short-sleeved garment shirt. At the same time, there are notable divergences. On the brick panels at Susa, no traces of children were specifically noted (bearing in mind, however, that the bricks were very fragmentary); the king wears a long rather than short garment, shoes, and has no sign of arm bands; the queen has a palmette clasp on the sleeve, no braid (?) along the arm, an open right hand (rather than gripping the left wrist or pointing the index finger), and a slightly shorter garment with feet visible below. Though not identical, the similarities with the inscribed brick panels at Susa advocate a 12th-century BC date for the SSI and II. Shilhak-Inshushinak was apparently keen on royal family portraits, telling us directly that he commissioned a stele in stone depicting himself with Nahhunte-Utu and “our family”.
(H. 2.35 m x 4.45 m). Relief carved inside the mouth of the cave depicting a man standing in profile oriented toward its interior. He wears a short-sleeved garment with a short bell-shaped skirt and raises the hands in front of the face with index fingers extended in a pointing gesture. A long inscription of Hanni was added to his right and a large, blank panel to his left. The date of this relief could be as early as the 11th century and as late as the 7th century.
(H. 2.30 m x 1.25 m). Relief carved inside the mouth of the cave depicting a man standing on a small pedestal oriented toward the cave's interior. He wears a short-sleeved garment with a long skirt and clasps his hands together at the waist. A 12th to 11th century BC date seems most appropriate for this relief.
The artistic initiatives of the Shutrukids left a distinctive imprint on subsequent artistic manifestations at both Susa and in the highlands of Elam, especially with respect to the representation of royalty. Much like royal inscriptions, official elite art was by nature archaizing and, consequently, besides honoring tradition and keeping the memory of ancestors alive, the ability to replicate the masterpieces of the past must have been a mark of artistic excellence. An example that may demonstrate this principle is the later addition of the ruler in SSI (Male A), which has much in common with both old-fashioned religious art from the sukkalmah period and with Shutrukid elite imagery, and yet some details suggest a possible later manufacture (perhaps in the Neo-Elamite period).
Susa was an ancient city in the lower Zagros Mountains about 250 km (160 mi) east of the Tigris, between the Karkheh and Dez Rivers in modern day Iran. One of the most important cities of the Ancient Near East, Susa served as the capital of Elam and the winter capital of Achaemenid Empire, and remained a strategic centre during the Parthian and Sasanian periods.
Elam was an ancient civilization centered in the far west and southwest of modern-day Iran, stretching from the lowlands of what is now Khuzestan and Ilam Province as well as a small part of southern Iraq. The modern name Elam stems from the Sumerian transliteration elam(a), along with the later Akkadian elamtu, and the Elamite haltamti. Elamite states were among the leading political forces of the Ancient Near East. In classical literature, Elam was also known as Susiana, a name derived from its capital Susa.
1860s fashion in European and European-influenced countries is characterized by extremely full-skirted women's fashions relying on crinolines and hoops and the emergence of "alternative fashions" under the influence of the Artistic Dress movement.
1830s fashion in Western and Western-influenced fashion is characterized by an emphasis on breadth, initially at the shoulder and later in the hips, in contrast to the narrower silhouettes that had predominated between 1800 and 1820.
1840s fashion in European and European-influenced clothing is characterized by a narrow, natural shoulder line following the exaggerated puffed sleeves of the later 1820s and 1830s. The narrower shoulder was accompanied by a lower waistline for both men and women.
A dolman is either a military shirt, or a jacket decorated with braiding, first worn by Hungarian hussars. The word is of Turkish origin, and after being adopted into Hungarian, has propagated to other languages. The garment was worn by peasants from the 16th century onward and eventually spread throughout the country, mainly within wealthy peasant circles. It reached people living in the poorest conditions only at the end of the 19th century.
Fashion in the period 1550–1600 in European clothing was characterized by increased opulence. Contrasting fabrics, slashes, embroidery, applied trims, and other forms of surface ornamentation remained prominent. The wide silhouette, conical for women with breadth at the hips and broadly square for men with width at the shoulders had reached its peak in the 1530s, and by mid-century a tall, narrow line with a V-lined waist was back in fashion. Sleeves and women's skirts then began to widen again, with emphasis at the shoulder that would continue into the next century. The characteristic garment of the period was the ruff, which began as a modest ruffle attached to the neckband of a shirt or smock and grew into a separate garment of fine linen, trimmed with lace, cutwork or embroidery, and shaped into crisp, precise folds with starch and heated irons.
Fashion in the period 1650–1700 in Western clothing is characterized by rapid change. The style of this era is known as Baroque. Following the end of the Thirty Years' War and the Restoration of England's Charles II, military influences in men's clothing were replaced by a brief period of decorative exuberance which then sobered into the coat, waistcoat and breeches costume that would reign for the next century and a half. In the normal cycle of fashion, the broad, high-waisted silhouette of the previous period was replaced by a long, lean line with a low waist for both men and women. This period also marked the rise of the periwig as an essential item of men's fashion.
Fashion in the period 1500–1550 in Europe is marked by very thick, big and voluminous clothing worn in an abundance of layers. Contrasting fabrics, slashes, embroidery, applied trims, and other forms of surface ornamentation became prominent. The tall, narrow lines of the late Medieval period were replaced with a wide silhouette, conical for women with breadth at the hips and broadly square for men with width at the shoulders. Sleeves were a center of attention, and were puffed, slashed, cuffed, and turned back to reveal contrasting linings.
Fashion in 15th-century Europe was characterized by a series of extremes and extravagances, from the voluminous robes called houppelandes with their sweeping floor-length sleeves to the revealing doublets and hose of Renaissance Italy. Hats, hoods, and other headdresses assumed increasing importance, and were draped, jeweled, and feathered.
The preservation of fabric fibers and leathers allows for insights into the attire of ancient societies. The clothing used in the ancient world reflects the technologies that these peoples mastered. In many cultures, clothing indicated the social status of various members of society.
The conquest of Elam by the Neo-Assyrian Empire took place between 655 and 639 BC.
The Medieval period in England is usually classified as the time between the fall of the Roman Empire to the beginning of the Renaissance, roughly the years AD 410–1485. For various peoples living in England, the Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Danes, Normans and Britons, clothing in the medieval era differed widely for men and women as well as for different classes in the social hierarchy. The general styles of Early medieval European dress were shared in England. In the later part of the period, men's clothing changed much more rapidly than women's styles. Clothes were very expensive and both the men and women of lower social classes continued also divided social classes by regulating the colors and styles these various ranks were permitted to wear. In the early Middle Ages, clothing was typically simple and, particularly in the case of lower-class peoples, served only basic utilitarian functions such as modesty and protection from the elements. As time went on the advent of more advanced textile techniques and increased international relations, clothing gradually got more and more intricate and elegant, even with those under the wealthy classes, up into the renaissance.
Kul-e Farah is an archaeological site and open air sanctuary situated in the Zagros mountain valley of Izeh/Mālamir, in south-western Iran, around 800 meters over sea level. Six Elamite rock reliefs are located in a small gorge marked by a seasonal creek bed on the plain's east side of the valley, near the town of Izeh in Khuzestan.
Traditional clothing is one of the factors that has differentiated this nation from neighboring countries, dating back as far as the Illyrian era.
History of clothing in the Indian subcontinent can be traced to the Indus Valley civilization or earlier. Indians have mainly worn clothing made up of locally grown cotton. India was one of the first places where cotton was cultivated and used even as early as 2500 BCE during the Harappan era. The remnants of the ancient Indian clothing can be found in the figurines discovered from the sites near the Indus Valley civilisation, the rock-cut sculptures, the cave paintings, and human art forms found in temples and monuments. These scriptures view the figures of human wearing clothes which can be wrapped around the body. Taking the instances of the sari to that of turban and the dhoti, the traditional Indian wears were mostly tied around the body in various ways.
A rock relief or rock-cut relief is a relief sculpture carved on solid or "living rock" such as a cliff, rather than a detached piece of stone. They are a category of rock art, and sometimes found as part of, or in conjunction with, rock-cut architecture. However, they tend to be omitted in most works on rock art, which concentrate on engravings and paintings by prehistoric peoples. A few such works exploit the natural contours of the rock and use them to define an image, but they do not amount to man-made reliefs. Rock reliefs have been made in many cultures throughout human history, and were especially important in the art of the ancient Near East. Rock reliefs are generally fairly large, as they need to be in order to have an impact in the open air. Most of those discussed here have figures that are over life-size, and in many the figures are multiples of life-size.
The Anubanini petroglyph, also called Sar-e Pol-e Zohab II or Sarpol-i Zohab relief, is a rock relief from the Akkadian Empire period or the Isin-Larsa period and is located in Kermanshah Province, Iran. The rock relief is believed to belong to the Lullubi culture and is located 120 kilometers away from the north of Kermanshah, close to Sarpol-e Zahab. Lullubi reliefs are the earliest rock reliefs of Iran, later ones being the Elamite reliefs of Eshkaft-e Salman and Kul-e Farah.
Humban-haltash III or Umanaldash was the last major ruler of Elam. He was defeated and captured by the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal.
The art of rock relief has been practiced by several civilizations during Iranian Antiquity since the end of the 3rd millennium BC. Iran, with 90 panels known in 2007 and distributed mainly in the provinces of Fars, Kurdistan, and Khuzestan, has the largest Middle Eastern concentration of ancient rock reliefs. This profusion is explained by the abundance of rock material in western Iran. It is also due to the fact that, drawing inspiration from its predecessors both for the choice of themes and for that of the sites, each new empire marks its advent by the realization of new panels and thus makes the art evolve. Although uniquely Iranian, this representative art form is constantly influenced from the outside.
See list of references in Kul-e Farah
