Shoushtary Diba in Sassanid Era : Production , Application and Quality

Since ancient times, Iran has been regarded as a bridge between East and West in terms of special geographical position. Meanwhile, some parts of the land were of particular importance because of their location on the Silk Road and the proximity to the center of government. Shoushtar is one of the ancient regions of Iran, which has been considered by various scholars and researchers from different aspects. In this paper, the historical background of Shoushtar and Diba Shoushtary, which has enjoyed a high economic value in the Sassanid era, has been studied. The aim of this paper is to investigate the historical, geographical, economic and commercial history of Shoushtar and the quality of its Diba, which is located as a geographic area along the southern route of the Silk Road and its most important product has been silk garment, of which the cover the Kaaba, the garments of the kings and rulers have been provided. The main issue of the research is based on this principle, which is the reason of the prosperity and quality of Shoushtari Diba.


Introduction
Iran, in terms of geographical location and serving as the East-West Bridge and its location along the free waters, has had a unique opportunity from the distant past, and has been the cradle of the great civilizations of the world.The Sassanid Empire, with the coronation of Ardeshir Babakan in 226 AD, formally took over the government.Although the Sassanid civilization was the sequence of Parthian civilization, it was considered its supplement.During the Sassanid era, new foundations were found in the community, which included: 1-Rouhani (Asrón) 2-Warriors (Arteshtars) 3-The servants of the departments (secretaries) 4. The mass of the people (villagers and Vasteryooshes) and craftsmen and townsmen or Hutoxsh.The mass class consisted of guilds, such as tradesmen, merchants and other artisans.The chief of artisans was the head of all the people who worked in crafts, and his nickname was Hutakhbod.Vasteryoosh Salar was both the minister of Finance and the minister of agriculture, industry and trade.Major industrial products of this age were gold, silver, copper, pearls, silk and woolen fabrics and carpets.Of course, the weaving industry has been one of Iran's most important industries.In the Sassanid era, we see that weaving industry and its quality reached its peak.The city of Shoushtar, during this period, gained world reputation as the production base of ShoustarDiba.Shapur I also helped to complete this and brought wisents from elsewhere to Shoushtar, and had a twofold impact on its production and exports, so that the garments of the kings and rulers and the Kaaba cover were long produced in this area.In this article, the historical background of the city of Shoushtar and ShoushtarDiba, and the quality of weaving and its quality causes have been studied.The purpose of this research is to investigate the historical, commercial and economic status of Shoushtar city and the causes of quality and production and export of this product in the Sassanid era.

The appellation of Shoustar
The word "Shoushtar" in reference has been applied in various forms, such as "Toster" (Estakhri, 1927: 88), Shoushtar "Toustar" (IbnKhordad, 1967: 34;IbnRosteh, 1940: 220, Shoushtarin (Marquart, 1901: 42) Suestra and Arabic Tester, Karkheh Doriza (Neldaka, 1979: 3).According to historians, including Hamza Esfahani, Shoushtar means better, and when the city of Susa went into ruin, another city was built in six miles, which was cooler and more fertile than Shoush, and called it Shoushtar, namely, better than Shoush.Hamdullah Mostofi says about Soushtar in the eighth century: "The environment of this city is 500 steps and has four gates" (Lestranj, quoted by Mostofi, 1998: 253).His contemporary Ibn Battuta called the river Dagil (Karoon) (Nahr al-Arzagh), the Blue River, and, in the description of its bridge, said that it is like the bridge of Baghdad and Hilla, and it is drawn on the river in the west of the city near the gate of Dezfool (Lestranj, quoted by Ibn Battuta, 1998: 253).He almost described in detail the various fields of the city, and that city was very thriving during his time.At eight miles away from northwest of Shoushtar, there are ruins on the way to Dezfool, which today are called Shah Abad, and here is the position of the city of JundeeSabour or Jundishapur.Jundishapur was the seat of Khuzestan during Sassanid times, and until the time of Mansur, Abbasid caliph, its great medical school was well-known, which was founded by Bakhtishoo and after the death of this doctor, his children and his descendants in the device of several Abbasid caliphs had a lot of dignity (Lestranj 1998: 256).According to Marquart (1901: 42), "Shoushtar" and "Shoushtar" was mentioned in 410 as the Diocese; and also in the years 420-430-485-499-553-557-558 and 605 AD, it was considered the Diocese.Some other historians believe that Shoushtar's name has been taken from the word "Shusha", meaning "Delightful."In his book "Historical Geography of the Land of the Eastern Caliphate," Lestranj considers the Shoushtar as the second seat of Khoozestan and addresses the description of this city and its geographical location (Lestranj, 1933: 253).In the book "The List of Iranian Cities", paragraph 46, the building of Susa and Shoushtar was made by "Shoushan-Dokht", the daughter of Resgulata, and First Yazdgerd's wife (Marquart, 1901: 43).Some Iranologists consider the Pebdeh Cave in the northeast of Shoushtar as the first human settlements in Iran, and estimate the age of living in Shoushtar to 10,000 years ago.IbnMoghna says: "The first city that was built after the storm of Noah was Susa and Shoushtar" (Shoushtari, 1986: 60).

The attention of the Sassanid kings to Shoushtar
Shoushtar was one of the most important cities of Iran during the ancient period due to its close proximity to the center of government and the Silk Road.It attracted the attention of the rulers, so that he assigned the Kaiser of Rome, (Rome king), captured by Sassanid Shapur I, to the work of the prosperity and development of Shoustar and gave the responsibility of the construction or renovation of the dam "Shadorvan" (Estakhri, 1927: 253).Shadorvan, the Shoushtar Great Dam, was built to raise the river's water so that the water from Karoon entered the ditches that were dug and the eastern part of the city would be liquefied.This creek is now called Goorgoor water, and it was called Masreghan or Mashreghan in the Middle Ages that today, what is at the bottom of Shoushtar is Shatit, meaning the Little River.Marquart describes the state of Khuzestan as an alimah.According to him, one of the Asian lands, "Eliami" (Elimid = Eli Ma'is), or in other word "Khoozestan", which is called "Sosanik" in Greek and borrowed from the name "Shoushan" city.Sometimes is called "Besra" in Arabic.The western part is confined to Dklat (Dejle), Babel and Khoozestan.Its southern part is confined to the Persian Gulf and its northern regions is confined to Goorestan (Marquart, 1901: 32).The art of spinning and weaving of fabric and carpet is one of the oldest and newest fine arts in Superior Iran, and it has a reputation in the world.The ancient inhabitants of Iran's plateau were familiar with spinning and weaving techniques according to the need for garments and textiles, and made carpet and clothing and a variety of subtle textiles of sheepskin, goat's hair and animal skin that whose signs and works are obvious in objects discovered from prehistoric times.China's and India's silk trade was unique to Iran, and besides, silk knitting machines were set up for domestic consumption and being exported abroad, that by imitating, they were set up in all countries of the Western Asia.Knitting machines for silk fabrics in Shoushtar were set up by Aramaic and the migrating weavers, from the time of Shapur I after the capture of Antioch.

1. Knitting and textile in the Sassanid era
Knitting in Iran has a rich history and has seen many ups and downs due to environmental, political, economic, and cultural conditions.The Sassanid knitting industry has officially launched after the extinction of the Parthian dynasty and the coming of Ardeshir (226 AD), the founder of the Sassanid Dynasty.Some scholars believe that this period was a reaction and feedback to the Parthians' Greek-oriented art (Girshman, 1971: 232).During this period, Iranians had been intermediating silk trade from the East to the West, and much attention was paid to the technique of weaving silk fabrics and the textile industry (Roohfar, 2001: 4).The reputation of knitting textile in the Sassanid period reached its peak.This art, in addition to claiming the revival of Achaemenid art, was somehow also inherited the art of the Parthians.Still can be seen the works of Hellenistic art and more than the effects of Eastern art in the Sassanid art, while the national traditions in the Sassanid art are very strong and solid (Godard, 1998: 232).
In this era, the existence of highly advanced knitting machines is undeniable.The presence of textured geometric shapes, as well as woven fabrics with sophisticated herbal and human designs, implies this.The beauty of these woven fabrics was so much that most of the great civilizations of that time demanded Sassanid fabrics or used their designs in their woven fabrics (Farbod and Pour Abrisham, 2007: 66).In Europe, there are examples of Iranian Sassanid fabrics, most of which have been taken in the Crusades by Christian warriors from Palestine to Europe.In the eyes of the Crusaders, these fabrics were so priceless that they either wrapped up the church objects or buried them with themselves in graves and today some of them remain in the treasuries of the churches or they have been taken to the museums from there (Nafisi, 2004: 229).In addition to the remaining works, there are various sources for the study of Sassanid textiles, many of which have been obtained in the ancient fortifications of Ta'kBostan (Sasanian Center), Susa, Ctesiphon, Bishapur, Yazdgerd Castel, ChalTorkhan near Rey, the Hesar Hill and Khajeh Mount.Our earliest document is the Susa wall painting, which belongs to the first half of the 4th century AD, and the colorful garments of rider has been woven with golden yarns and has rhomboid networks and geometric decorations (Girshman, 1971: 226).

2. The role of Sassanid kings in the development of the weaving industry
The Sassanid kings, in order to advance the industry and trade, transmitted the industrialists and professionals who were captive to the inner regions of Iran, in particular Khoozestan, and these Roman and Syriac prisoners began to teach and extend the technique of weaving in JundiShapur, Shoushtar, and Susa with the support of the government.This shows that the Sassanid kings were not convinced that they only be the intermediary between East and West, but wanted Iran to take over sewing silk as well as nursing silkworm (Piccoloskaya, 1997: 312).In the book "Gold lawns", this issue has been explicitly addressed: "Subsequently, Shapur came to the island and attacked other lands and Roman people, and brought people out of there, and settled in Susa, Shoushtar and other cities of Ahvaz Province, who gave birth and settled in that land.And from then on, they knitted ShoushtariDiba and all kinds of silk in Shoushtar, and fur in Susa, curtains and carpets in the land of Nasibin" (Masoudi, 1965: 254).The speech of Masoudi is also confirmed by Sa'alebi: "Then, when Shapur gained what he desired of the war with the Roman Empire, he seized upon the people of Sinjar, Basra, Tuvaneh, and Amed (Diyarebakir), and captured a large group of them.He placed some of them in Shoushtar and Susa and brought them to work on knitting Diba and fur (Sa'aliMorghani, 1993: 306).
Sassanid textiles have influenced the woven of different nations."According to the writings of Sidonius, the bishops of Claremont, Iranian textiles, in the 5th century AD, used to be transported to the entire west to the land of the flower" (Sami, 1963: 195).The immigration of the inhabitants of the Roman provinces is one of the most influential factors in the spread of textiles in the Sassanid period.In the third century, Syria was a border region in the Iranian and Roman Empire, which during the wars always crossed between the parties.In a three year war, probably between 241-239 AD, the Iranians, led by Sassanid Shapur, captured Antioch.Shapur once again broke up to Antioch in the years 253 and 260 AD.In this battle, Valerianos, the Roman emperor and many of his soldiers were captured.Based on Shapur's inscription in the role of Rustam, these captives were exiled to various cities."... and people of the Roman Empire were caught, we brought them into exile on non-Iranian lands, and in the ourselves Iranian Empire, in Persia, in the Land of Parthia in Susiana and in Asuristan ..." (Girshman, 2000: 193).Muslim historians have mentioned the detention of these captives in Khoozestan: "Shapur, the son of Ardeshir, fought with the Roman Empire and captured many of them, and brought them to the city of Shapur in Fars, Jundishapur and Tustar (Shoushtar)" (Maghdasi, 1995: 511).Another report by Broccopius, a Byzantine historian of the sixth century AD, tells us about the immigration of Roman people, textile industry (Bolnova, 2004: 187).These migrations, the background to the presence of the Syrian weaver families from the distant past, had contributed to the expansion of the Iranian knitting industry.Although Orientalists emphasize the influence of the Roman prisoners on the development of the knitting industry in this period, the brilliant background of knitting and the support of the Sassanid kings in this field should not be overlooked.

3. Silk Road in the Sassanid era
When it comes to the Silk Road, it usually relates the relationship between the East and the West.Iran was in ancient times on the long road of the famous Silk Road, due to its strategic location between the continents of Asia, Europe and Africa, and it was regarded as an important factor in the relationship between the east and the west.On this international road, not only goods were traded, but also knowledge and techniques, and even the language and philosophical and religious thoughts, were exchanged.In the Sassanid period , relations between Iran and China developed and expanded, and the two nations established relations (Fazeli, 2011: 11).The travel of ambassadors and political representatives, as well as the tourists and Buddhist pilgrims of China to Iran and its neighboring countries grew, and in any case, at the top of all the favorite affairs of the two nations, trade and commerce had a leading role.Iran's silk fabrics were so fascinating that the Chinese people, who themselves had many years of silk textiles, liked and bought them (Hawar, 2000: 311).The Silk Road and China's silk actually provided the best position for the Sassanid knitting industry to prepare materials and develop Sassanid textiles (Frang & Brownstone, 1997: 183).

Shoushtari Diba in literary narratives
Diba is a silk and precious fabric, and it has been made from a plant called "Qaliblob", which grows around Shoushtar.(Dibe -Dibah) means silk and colorful fabric and Dibache (prologue) is its Arabized.The name Shoushtar has been associated with Diba and Dibeh in Persian literature and narratives, and ShoushtarDiba is famous everywhere.This kind of Diba was produced in the city of Shoushtar and was exported to other areas in Sassanid and the first Islamic era, so its name is merely a place assignment.The fabric was one of the most exquisite and unique in the world, and because of its high quality, the kings and grandee were dressed with it, and it was used to cover the Kaaba.Most of the titles of fabrics that are thus based on existing texts do not have more than two states, or they are spatial assignment or, in some cases, indicate the type of fiber to us.Thus, the matching of specific types of texture or type of fibers and decorative practices, and finally, the category of each of them under certain titles, due to lack of samples, causes problems in the accurate study of fabric.However, what is of interest to us in this category is the spatial assignment of the Shoushtari Diba, as mentioned in various sources.The quality of this product was such that it was exported to all parts of the world, and at various periods of the early days of Islam, the cover of the Kaaba and the costume of the rulers were provided from it.Its inhabitants, in the Sassanid era, had a special skill in knitting, and they were able to further increase the quality of it by increasing the support of the court and the use of technique experts of silk productions from other parts of Iran, and occasionally from Rome.
The cities of Ahwaz and Shoushtar, in the era of the Caliphate, were very famous for the production and supply of Diba, Harir and other precious silk fabrics and the expansion of craftsman workshops in this wealthy province of Iran is related to the early days of the Sassanid kings in the third and fourth centuries AD.In some historical sources, for ShoushtarDiba, there is a greater advantage than Harir and silk fabrics, and they say that Diba's fabric was much softer and better than Harir, and that it was knitted in gold, silver, and motifs and the turbans of kings and elders were prepared of it and Iranian poets likened everything they wanted to exaggerate in its description and beauty to Shoustar Diba.
In the past, the best weavers of Parand and Harir and Diba were from Shoushtar.The name Shoushtar has been associated with Diba and Dibe in Persian literature and narratives, and ShoushtarDiba is famous everywhere (Yahaghi, 1998: 199).Of gold textiles and decorated with ruby and pearls and other precious grains related to Sassanid masters, especially the garments of Khosrow Parviz (Sasanian king), which were kept in the treasury, as well as costly carpets in the court and palaces, there are many traditions in the books of history belonging to the historians of Rome and Islam (Sami, 1991: 18).The habit was that on the Harir, Diba and silk fabric, which was prepared for the clothes of sultans, the strings of gold or non-gold strings, which differed in color from the background, the name of the kings or signs that were specific to them were woven.The permission to wear these garments was granted to individuals, whom the Shah sought to decorate, or assign them to one of the duties of the government.Before Islam, the kings of Iran ordered to design on the fabrics of their clothing, whether their own faces and figurines, or some of the faces and shapes that were designated for this purpose.Maghdasi, geographer and historian after Islam, referred to the cities of Shoushtar, Yazd and Fasa, that in those regions, silk textiles were woven and in Ahvaz, the seat of Khuzestan, there is a kind of silk fabric that women use to make clothes.In Shoushtar, a famous brocade called Diba, which was famous all over the world, as well as carpet and delicate fabrics.Silk and cotton fabrics were produced in the provinces of Susa (Lestranj, quoted from Maghdasi, 1998: 265).

5. Quality and proximity to business centers
Estakhri also writes about knitting in Khuzestan: "From Shoushtar, there will be garments of precious Diba and the Cover of Kaaba's house will be built there".He says about Iranian silk fabrics: "The carpets and fabric of Egyptian Fatimid palaces, along with the costly and silk works of 880 AD, were woven in Shoushtar with the order of Mu'aziddin Allah, the Fatimid caliph, and included a map of the universe and the faces of the rivers, mountains, seas, cities and its rivers.Therefore, Shoushtar should be considered as one of the fabrication centers.Unfortunately, there are no examples from the early centuries.The only remaining pieces belong to the Al Boyah era, which are carefully woven and are very interesting in terms of design and color.In some of these pieces, we see geometric shapes, the Kofi script, or the edges of animal images and circles in which there are birds and animals around the tree of life.
In the early Islamic centuries, especially in the Samanid era, Al Buehid and Seljuk, Sassanid traditions were followed in the weaving workshops, and while artists tried to create distinctive fabrics with designs made up of more elements, only it was in the time of the Mughals that the general designs of Sassanid fabrics lost their prevalence and domination, and the design of the sequences of parallel decorative tapes, replaced them together.These stripes were gradually curved, and during the Safavid period, the image of ordinary people was also added.From the eleventh century onwards, the design of many of the fabrics was twisted rows of flower-plant designs (Jensen, 1980: 204-205).
Huiwen Tsiyang, a famous Chinese traveler, who at the beginning of the 7th century described the situation in Western Asia, briefly outlines Iran's industrial products: "The main products of this country are gold and silver and copper and mountain crystals and rare pearls and other precious materials.Of course, the weaving industry has been one of Iran's most important industries.To enter other industrial fields in the country and to plant and cultivate in none planted deserts, it used to be the habit that prisoners of war were divided into several groups and settled in different parts of the country.In this way, Darius I settled many of Arteria's people into Susa and replaced the Roman captives near Marv.Shapur I also settled the Roman prisoners in GundiShapur, where he used the skill of the Romans in engineering, and built the famous "Kaiser" Dam.Shapur II settled the captives arrested in the city of Amed between Shush, Shoushtar and other cities of Ahwaz, and they popularized new types of silk embroidery and gold weaving (Christensen, 2009: 90).Most of the time, such places, which were built by the captives, would soon become devastated, but sometimes also became sustained and stable.The land trade took place in the old roads and streets of caravans.The great Ciesfone highway, which was the capital, was started alongside the Tigris, and arrived at Hamadan from Halvan and Cangavar, and in Hamadan, there were different routes, one toward the south, from Khuzestan and Fars, to the Gulf, the other to Ray, and from there, roads, passing through the mountains of Gilan and Alborz, led to the Caspian Sea, or from the way Khorasan and the Kabul Valley were linked to India.Maritime trade was so important that Ardeshir I, after reaching Mishan and Kharsen, tried a great deal to boost the old ports and build new harbors.The most important commodity that was transported from Iran was silk.But since the Iranians were allocating a lot of raw silk of China that they imported, they were able to sell their products to Western countries at any cost.From the sixth century onwards, the Byzantine people succeeded in planting berry tree and cultivating silkworms, and to some extent they did not need to import foreign silk.The Turks, thus provoked by their Sogdian subjects, attempted to obtain Khosrow I a permit to cross their silk from Iranian territory, but no result was obtained (Christensen, 2009: 91).Weaving cloth, which was the leading Iranian industry, has gradually expanded, and the volume of production and the number of its employees has steadily increased.A part of the textile industry, under the supervision of government officials, produced cloth and decorations for garments and calipers, heads of the army, government officials, and all sorts of garments ordered by the government apparatus.In the early 4th century, there were dozens of workshops in Khuzestan producing special cotton and silk fabrics for all types of clothing, veils and scarves (McDowell, 1980: 154).According to Masoudi, Shapur displaced the inhabitants of Shama to Susa, Shoushtar and other cities of Khuzestan, and their generations became very rich and settled in the land and worked on providing and weaving of ShoushtarDiba and other kinds of silk fabrics in Shoushtar, Ahvaz and Susa, and these fabrics later became known as Shoushtar brocade, ShoushtarDiba and ShoushtarParand and Room Diba (Massoudi 1999: 186).The various cities of Khuzestan in the Sassanid era had active workshops of knitting, and that Shapur I, after the victory over Valerian, the Roman emperor, brought the weaver artists from there, and settled in Shoushtar and other cities of Khuzestan province, and from then on, in Shoushtar, Diba and all kinds of Harir and fur were woven (Rooh Far, 2006: 72).Maghdasi also referred to the production of Diba, fur and cotton fabrics, which were woven in Susa, Shoushtar and Bishapur (Maghdasi, 1982: 611).The quality of Shoushtar's fabrics was so great that it was considered by the Caliphs, and Mu'tazid, the Abbasid Caliph, had ordered that his garment to be made of Schuster's textiles (Massoudi, 1999: 628).

6. The application of ShoustarDiba
Textile weaving has a long history due to the human's basic needs, and has accepted many developments in different ages.Diba, as a delicate and precious exquisite, has used a variety of uses, such as the costumes of kings and rulers, the cover of Kaaba and turban.The most frequent use of ShoustarDiba was in preparing clothes, which were used by the courtiers and the Caliph himself.For example, among the garments of Mo'tazidAbbasi, there were garments of ShoustarDiba.Sometimes, these garments arrived at the rulers in the form of pre-orders, as Shams al-Ma'aliQawoosibnVoshmgyr, sent fifty sets of colorful costumes from Shoushtar's clothing to Ismail ibnNoohSamani (Atbi, 2003: 187).Or Ali ibn Isa, sent to Aaron from Khorasan a thousand servants of Turks, each with two colorful clothes of Shoushtar in hands (Bayhaghi, 2008: 642).Considering this large volume of storage and exchange, it is possible to estimate the high production rate of Diba in Shoushtar.Among the property that Ptaktakin (the warlord of Moazzad-Doleh) left behind, there were four thousand garments of Diba, which included two hundred and fifty garments from ShoushtarDiba (Faghihi, 1978: 408).In addition to cloak and shirt, precious turbans were woven from Diba.Yaghoot Hamawi writes that Sahib ibnEbad had a turban with a wide margin on his head which was woven in Shoushtar.One of the audience was looking at it that at that time, Sahib IbnEbad said to him: "What did you do in Shoushtar for Shoushtar (Hamawi, 1965: 849).Arabs, who had attained the fabrics in Diba in the very first century AD, because of the exquisite nature of this fabric, selected the Kaaba fabric, the most sacred material for Muslims.The Arabs, who at the same time of the first century AD, had reached the workshops of Diba, because of its exquisite quality, they selected the fabric of Kaaba cover, the most sacred fabric for Muslims, of it.Although we do not correctly know who first covered the Kaaba with Diba, but in history, Yazid bin Mu'awiyah, Ibn Zubayr and Abdul Malik ibn Marwan were named.In the geographic texts of the 4th century AH, it has been emphasized that the Kaaba cover is now woven in Shoushtar from Shoushtar Diba (Estakhri, 1989: 29;Ibn HouGhal, 1966: 82;Jayani, 2007: 106).

Conclusion
Fabric is one of the most important export items in Iran, wherever Iran's economic and commercial system is spoken.This reflects the flow of production and the diversity of this industry and art.In the Sassanid era, the vast majority of the country's products were made up of a variety of fabrics, that in this respect, Shoushtar'sDiba has a special reputation and the importance of this handmade and traditional industry has been expressed by many writers and poets at various times.The fabric was one of the most exquisite and unique in the world, and due to its high quality, the costumes of the kings and elders were provided and it also used to cover the Kaaba.Therefore, in addition to geography writers, historians and poets and Iranian writers, foreign writers have also named this cloth, attributing it to the era of Sassanid and early Islam.And the expansion of knitting shops in Shoushtar is related to the time of the Sassanid kings.A number of factors have contributed to the flourishing of this industry, including: The interest of the Sassanid kings in covering, producing and exporting, and helping and pave the way for the best possible production of this product, such as the use of the Roman prisoners in this regard, and the geographic location of Khuzestan, located on the southern route of the Silk Road and then the growth of the raw material of this type of fabric, and the abundance of water in the Shoushtar area.Research findings show that the presence of natural basic materials, historical and geographical location, the location of the southern route of the Silk Road and the interest of the Sassanid kings in the spinning industry, as well as various types of clothing of high quality and the use of the artists of other countries in the production, export and reputation of this product have had undeniable effects.