1. Name

2. Early life and accession

3. First reign
    Conflict with Sukhra over the empire  The Mazdakite movement and deposal 

4. Imprisonment, flight and return

5. Second reign
    Reforms   Constructions   Relations with his Christian subjects  Anastasian war   Wars in the east   Negotiations with the Byzantines over the adoption of Khosrow I  Iberian war 

6. Coins

7. Succession

8. Legacy

9. Notes

10. References

11. Bibliography
      Ancient works    Modern works  

Kavad I ({{lang-pal|𐭪𐭥𐭠𐭲}} Kawād, {{lang-fa|قباد}} Qobād; 473 {{ndash}} 13 September 531) was the king (shah) of the Sasanian Empire from 488 to 531, with an interruption of two years. A son of Peroz I ({{reign|459|484}}), he was crowned by the nobles in place of his deposed and unpopular uncle Balash ({{reign|484|488}}). His reign saw the uprising of Vakhtang I of Iberia, the rise of Mazdakism, as well as the Anastasian War and the Iberian War against the Byzantine Empire. During Kavad's reign, massive fortification activities were conducted in the Caucasus, including Derbent.

At the accession of Kavad, the authority and status of the Sasanian kings had reached rock-bottom; when Kavad died 43 years later, his son Khosrow I inherited a sturdy and mighty empire that equaled that of the Byzantines. Many vital reforms were introduced by Kavad, which were completely implemented by Khosrow I. Due to the many challenges and issues that Kavad successfully thwarted, he is considered one of the most effective and successful kings to rule the Sasanian Empire, in the words of Schindel, "a genius in his own right, even if of a somewhat Machiavellian type."{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}}

Name

Due to increased Sasanian interest in Kayanian history, Kavad was named after the mythological Kayanian king Kavi Kavata.{{sfn|Boyce|2001|p=127}}

Early life and accession

The son of the Sasanian shah Peroz I ({{reign|459|484}}), Kavad was born in 473.{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}} In 484, Peroz was defeated and killed by a Hephthalite army at the battle of Herat. The Iranian magnates—most notably Sukhra and Shapur Mihran—elected Peroz's brother, Balash, as the new shah. He did, however, prove unpopular among the nobility and clergy, who had him deposed after just four years–in 488.{{sfn|Chaumont|Schippmann|1988|pp=574–580}} Sukhra, a member of the House of Karen, one of the Seven Great Houses of Iran, played a main role in Balash's deposal,{{sfn|Chaumont|Schippmann|1988|pp=574–580}} and appointed Kavad as the new shah of Iran.{{sfn|Pourshariati|2008|p=78}}

First reign

Conflict with Sukhra over the empire

Kavad ascended the throne at age of 15; his young age is emphasized on his coins, which shows him with short whiskers.{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}} He inherited an empire that reached had its lowest; the nobility and clergy held much influence and authority over the nation, and were able to act as king-makers, as seen by their choice to depose Balash.{{sfn|Daryaee|2014|pp=25-26}} Economic wise, the empire was not doing well either, due to drought, famine, and the crushing defeats suffered by the Hephthalites, whom the Sasanians had forced to pay vast amounts of tribute to.{{sfn|Daryaee|2014|p=26}} The young and inexperienced Kavad was tutored by Sukhra during his first five years as shah. During this period, Kavad was a mere figurehead, whilst Sukhra was the de facto ruler of the empire. This is emphasized by al-Tabari; "The people came to Sukhra and undertook all their dealings with him, treating Kavad as a person of no importance and regarding his commands with contempt."{{sfn|Pourshariati|2008|p=78}} Sukhra bragged about having put Kavad on the throne, and numerous regions and the representatives of the elite paid tribute not to Kavad, but Sukhra.{{sfn|Pourshariati|2008|p=79}} Sukhra also controlled the royal treasury and the Iranian military.{{sfn|Pourshariati|2008|p=79}} In 493, Kavad, now having reached adulthood, wanted to get rid of Sukhra's dominance, and as a result had him exiled to his native Shiraz in southwestern Iran.{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}}{{sfn|Pourshariati|2008|p=79}} Even in exile, however, Sukhra was in control of everything except the kingly crown.{{sfn|Pourshariati|2008|p=79}}

Alarmed by the thought that Sukhra might rebel, Kavad wanted to completely get rid of him. However, he lacked manpower to do so, as the army was controlled by Sukhra, and the Sasanians mainly relied on the military of the Seven Great Houses of Iran.{{sfn|Pourshariati|2008|p=80}} He found his solution in Shapur of Ray, a powerful nobleman from the House of Mihran, and a resolute opponent of Sukhra.{{sfn|Pourshariati|2008|pp=79-80}} Shapur, at head of an army of his own men and that of disgruntled nobles, marched to Shiraz, defeated Sukhra's forces, and took the latter to the Sasanian capital of Ctesiphon.{{sfn|Pourshariati|2008|p=80}} However, even in imprisonment in Ctesiphon, Sukhra was considered too powerful, and was thus executed.{{sfn|Pourshariati|2008|p=80}} Sukhra's execution caused displeasure among some prominent members of the nobility, which weakened Kavad's status as shah.{{sfn|Frye|1983|p=150}} His death marked the temporarily loss of authority of the House of Karen, whose members were exiled in the regions of Tabaristan and Zabulistan, which was away from the Sasanian court in Ctesiphon.{{sfn|Pourshariati|2017}}{{efn|Although some of Sukhra's sons would later serve Kavad, the power of the Karens was first restored during the reign of Kavad's son and successor, Khosrow I Anushirvan ({{reign|531|579}}), who reportedly regretted Kavad's approach to the family, and gave them the post of army chief (spahbed) of Khorasan.{{sfn|Pourshariati|2017}}}}

The Mazdakite movement and deposal

Not long after, a Zoroastrian priest named Mazdak caught the attention of Kavad. Mazdak was the chief representative of a religious and philosophical teaching called Mazdakism, which was against violence, and called for the sharing of wealth, women and property,{{sfn|Daryaee|2014|p=26}} a archaic form of communism.{{sfn|Frye|1983|p=150}} Mazdakism not consisted of theological and cosmological aspects, but also political and social impacts, which was to the disadvantage of the nobility and clergy. Kavad thus used the faith as a political tool in order to curb the power of the nobility and clergy.{{sfn|Frye|1983|p=150}}{{sfn|Daryaee|2014|p=26}} Royal granaries and land was shared among the lower-classes.{{sfn|Daryaee|2014|pp=26-27}} Kavad was as a result deposed by the nobility, who installed his brother Jamasp on the throne.{{sfn|Daryaee|2014|p=27}} One of the other reasons behind Kavad's deposal was his execution of Sukhra.{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}}

Imprisonment, flight and return

A council shortly took place among the nobility on what to do with Kavad. Gushnaspdad, a member of a prominent family of landowners (the Kanarangiyan) proposed to have Kavad executed. His proposal was, however, overruled and Kavad was instead imprisoned in the "Prison of Oblivion" in Khuzestan.{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}}{{sfn|Daryaee|2014|p=27}} With the aid of his sister and the Iranian officer Siyawush, Kavad managed to free himself from imprisonment, and went to the court of the Hephthalite king, where he took refuge.^[1]{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}}{{sfn|Daryaee|2014|p=27}} There Kavad gained the support of the Hephthalite king, and also married the latters daughter (who was Kavad's own niece).{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}} In 498, Kavad returned to Iran with a Hephthalite army. When Kavad crossed the domains of the Kanarangiyan family in Khorasan, he was met by a member of the family, Adergoudounbades, who agreed to lend his aid.{{sfn|Pourshariati|2008|p=267}} Another noble who supported Kavad was Zarmihr Karen, a son of Sukhra.{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}}

Jamasp, including the nobility and clergy did not put any resistance as they wanted to prevent another civil war.{{sfn|Pourshariati|2008|p=114}} They made an agreement with Kavad that he would be shah again with the understanding that he would not hurt Jamasp nor the elite.{{sfn|Pourshariati|2008|p=114}} Jamasp was spared, however Gushnaspdad and other nobles who had plotted against Kavad were executed. Generally, however, Kavad secured his position by lenience.{{sfn|Frye|1983|p=150}} Adergoudounbades was appointed as the new head of the Kanarangiyan,{{sfn|Pourshariati|2008|pp=267–268}} while Siyawush was appointed as the head of the Sasanian army (arteshtaran-salar).^[1] Kavad's reclaim of his throne displays the troubled circumstances of the empire, where in a time of anarchy a small force was able to overwhelm the nobility-clergy alliance.{{sfn|Daryaee|2014|p=27}}

Second reign

Kavad, now reigning as the shah of Iran for the second time, appointed another son of Sukhra, Bozorgmehr, as his minister (wuzurg framadār).{{sfn|Pourshariati|2008|p=114}}

Reforms

Prior to Kavad's reign, a majority of the land was owned by Seven Great Houses of Iran: Suren, Waraz, Karen, Ispahbudhan, Spandiyadh, Mihran, and Zik.{{sfn|Curtis|2008|p=126}} These great landowners enjoyed tax exemptions from the Sasanian empire, and were tax collectors within their local provincial areas.{{sfn|Frye|1984|p=page needed}} During the last years of Kavad's reign, he started implementing a new tax reform, which the nobility was unable to oppose due to being weakened by the Mazdakism movement.{{sfn|Rubin|2009}}

Constructions

Many places were founded and re-built under Kavad. He founded Eran-asan-kar-Kawad in Media;{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}} Fahraj in Spahan;{{sfn|Langarudi|2002}} Weh-Kawad, Eran-win(n)ard-Kawad, Kawad-xwarrah, and Arrajan in Pars.{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}}{{sfn|Gaube|1986|pp=519-520}} He rebuilt Kirmanshah in Media, which he also used as one of his residences.{{sfn|Calmard|1988|pp=319-324}} He founded a township in Meybod, which was named Haft-adhar ("seven fires"), due to a Zoroastrian fire temple being established there, whose original fire was supported by fires brought from seven other temples in Pars, Balkh, Adurbadagan, Nisa, Spahan, Ghazni, and Ctesiphon.{{sfn|Modarres}} In the Caucasus, Kavad had new fortifications made at Derbent,{{sfn|Kettenhofen|1994|pp=13–19}} and ordered the construction of the Apzut Kawat wall (Middle Persian: *Abzūd Kawād, "Kavad increased [in glory]" or "has prospered").{{sfn|Gadjiev|2017}} The prominent fortress of P'artaw, which had been rebuilt during the reign of Peroz I and named Perozabad ("the city of Peroz"), was fortified by Kavad under the name of Perozkavad ("victorious Kavad").{{sfn|Chaumont|1985|pp=806-810}}

Relations with his Christian subjects

Kavad's relation with his Christian subjects are unclear. In Christian Iberia, where the Sasanians had earlier tried to spread Zoroastrianism, Kavad represented himself as an advocate of orthodox Zoroastrianism. In Armenia, however, Kavad settled the disputes with the Christians and appears to have continued the pacific approach of Balash.{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}} The Christians of Mesopotamia and Iran proper practised their religion without any persecution, despite the punishment of Christians in Iran proper being briefly mentioned in {{circa|512/3}}.{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}} Like Jamasp, Kavad also supported the Patriarchs of the Church of the East, Babai, with Christians serving in high offices at the Sasanian court.{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}}

Anastasian war

The Sasanians and Byzantines had kept peace since the brief Byzantine–Sasanian War of 440. The last major war between the two empires had been during the reign of Shapur II ({{reign|309|379}}).{{sfn|Daryaee|2009}} However, war finally erupted in 502. Kavad needed money to pay his debts to the Hephthalites who had helped him regain his throne, and he applied for subsidies to the Byzantine Empire, which had before supported the Sasanians. But now the Emperor Anastasius I ({{reign|491|518}}) refused subsidies, which made Kavad try to gain the money by force.{{sfn|Greatrex|Lieu|2002|p=62}} According to another source, the Iranians had been displeased with the Byzantines reluctance to aid them in the defense of the Caucasus against the Huns.{{sfn|Daryaee|2014|p=27}} Regardless, in 502, Kavad captured Theodosiopolis, perhaps with local support; the city was in any case undefended by troops and weakly fortified.{{sfn|Greatrex|Lieu|2002|p=62}}

He then besieged the fortress-city of Amida through the autumn and winter (502–503). The siege of the city proved to be a far more difficult enterprise than Kavad expected; the defenders, although unsupported by troops, repelled the Iranian assaults for three months before they were finally beaten.{{sfn|Greatrex|Lieu|2002|p=63}} The Byzantines attempted to recapture the city, but they were unsuccessful. Kavad then tried to capture Edessa in Osroene, but was unsuccessful.{{sfn|Greatrex|Lieu|2002|pp=69–71}} In 505 an invasion of Armenia by the Huns from the Caucasus led to an armistice, during which the Byzantines paid subsidies to the Iranians for the maintenance of the fortifications on the Caucasus,{{sfn|Greatrex|Lieu|2002|p=77}} and in return for Amida, which was captured by Kavad. The peace treaty was signed by the Ispahbudhan aristocrat Bawi, the brother-in-law of Kavad.{{sfn|Pourshariati|2008|p=111}} Although Kavad's first war with the Byzantines did not end with a decisive winner, the conquest of Amida was the most prominent accomplishment achieved by a Sasanian army since 359, when the same city had been captured by Shapur II.{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}}

Wars in the east

Not much is known about Kavad's wars in the east; according to Procopius, Kavad was forced to leave for the eastern frontier in 503 to deal with an attack by "hostile Huns", one of the many clashes in a reportedly lengthy war. After the Sasanian disaster at the battle of Herat in 484, all of Khorasan was seized by the Hephthalites; no Sasanian coin mints from the area (Nishapur, Herat, Marw) have been found from this period until the second reign of Kavad, where a Sasanian coin dating to 512/3 has been found in Marw. This indicates that the Sasanians under Kavad had managed to re-conquer Khorasan after successfully dealing with the Hephthalites.{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}}

Negotiations with the Byzantines over the adoption of Khosrow I

In {{circa|520}}, Kavad, in order to secure the succession of his youngest son Khosrow I, whose position was threatened by rival brothers and the Mazdakite sect, proposed that Emperor Justin I adopt him. The proposal was initially greeted with enthusiasm by the Byzantine Emperor and his nephew, Justinian, but Justin's quaestor, Proclus, opposed the move, due to the concern of Khosrow possibly later trying to take over the Byzantine throne.{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}} The Byzantines instead made a counter-proposal to adopt Khosrow not as a Roman, but a barbarian.^[2] In the end the negotiations did not a consensus.{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}} Khosrow reportedly felt insulted by the Byzantines, and his attitude deteriorated towards them.{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}} Mahbod, who had along with Siyawush acted as the diplomats of the negotiations, accused the latter of purposely sabotaging the negotiations.^[2] Further accusations were made towards Siyawush, which included the reverence of new deities and having his dead wife buried, which was a violation of Iranian laws.{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}} Siyawush was thus most likely a Mazdakite, the religious sect that Kavad originally supported but now had withdrawn his support from. Although Siyawush was a close friend of Kavad and had helped him escape from imprisonment, the latter did not try to prevent his execution, seemingly with the purpose of restricting Siyawush's immensive authority as the head of the Sasanian army, a post which was disliked by the other nobles.{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=136–141}} Siyawush was executed, and his office was abolished.{{sfn|Sundermann|1986|p=662}} Despite the breakdown of the negotiations, it was not until 530 that full-scale warfare on the main eastern frontier broke out. In the intervening years, the two sides preferred to wage war by proxy, through Arab allies in the south and Huns in the north.{{sfn|Greatrex|Lieu|2002|pp=81–82}}

Iberian war

Hostility between the two powers erupted into conflict when Guaram I, the king of Caucasian Iberia, defected to the Romans in 524–525, after Kavad tried to convert the Iberians to Zoroastrianism.^[3] Sasanian and Roman fighting then broke out in the Transcaucasus region and upper Mesopotamia by 526–527.^[4] Kavad's Arab vassal, al-Mundhir IV ibn al-Mundhir, laid waste to Mesopotamia and slaughtered the monks and nuns.

In 530, Kavad sent Perozes and Baresmanas at the head of 50,000 men^[5] to capture Dara; the two generals, were, however, defeated and killed by the forces of Belisarius. In 531, the Persian general Azarethes managed to defeat Belisarius at the Battle of Callinicum.{{sfn|Frye|1983|p=152}} However, the Sasanian losses were so high that Kavad removed Azarethes from his post.

Kavad then organized another invasion of Byzantine territory, in which a large army, commanded by Mihr-Mihroe, Adergoudounbades and Bawi, invaded Mesopotamia and besieged the city of Martyropolis, which at that time was being protected by Buzes and Bessas.^[6] However, with winter approaching and Byzantine reinforcements coming from Amida and the sudden death of Kavad, the Sasanians lifted the siege in November or December.^[7]

Coins

The provinces of Gorgan, Khuzestan, and Asoristan provided the most mints for Kavad during his reign.{{sfn|Schindel|2013|pp=141–143}}

Succession

Kavad I was succeeded by his youngest son Khosrow I; however, at the beginning of his reign in 531, Bawi, along with other members of the Iranian aristocracy, became involved in a conspiracy in which they tried to overthrow Khosrow and make Kavad, the son of Kavad's second eldest son Zamasp (Zames),^[8] the king of the Sasanian Empire. Upon learning of the plot, Khosrow executed all his brothers and their offspring, along with Bawi and the other Iranian nobles who were involved.{{sfn|Pourshariati|2008|p=111}} Khosrow also ordered the execution of Kavad, who was still a child, and was away from the court, being raised by Adergoudounbades. Khosrow sent orders to kill Kavad, but Adergoudounbades disobeyed and brought him up in secret, until he was betrayed to the shah in 541 by his own son, Bahram (Varranes). Khosrow had him executed, but Kavad, or someone claiming to be him, managed to flee to the Byzantine Empire.^[9]

Legacy

Notes

References

Bibliography

Ancient works

• Procopius, History of the Wars.

Modern works

• {{cite book | title = Zoroastrians: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices | year = 2001 | publisher = Psychology Press | location = | editor-last = | editor-first = | last = Boyce | first = Mary | authorlink = Mary Boyce | chapter = | pages = 1–252 | isbn = 9780415239028 | url = https://books.google.dk/books?id=a6gbxVfjtUEC&dq=false |ref=harv}}
• {{cite encyclopedia | article = Kermanshah iv. History to 1953 | last = Calmard | first = Jean | authorlink = | url = http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/kermanshah-04-history-to-1953 | editor-last = | editor-first = | editor-link = | encyclopedia = Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. XVI, Fasc. 3 | pages = 319-324 | location = | publisher = | year = 1988 | isbn = |ref=harv}}
• {{cite encyclopedia | article = Albania | last = Chaumont | first = M. L. | authorlink = | url = http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/albania-iranian-aran-arm | editor-last = | editor-first = | editor-link = | encyclopedia = Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. I, Fasc. 8 | pages = 806-810 | location = | publisher = | year = 1985 | isbn = |ref=harv}}
• {{cite encyclopedia | article = Balāš, Sasanian king of kings | last1 = Chaumont| first1 = M. L. | first2 = K. | last2 = Schippmann | authorlink = | url = http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/balas-proper-name#Sasanianking | editor-last = | editor-first = | editor-link = | encyclopedia = Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. III, Fasc. 6 | pages = 574-580 | location = | publisher = | year = 1988 | isbn = |ref=harv}}
• {{cite encyclopedia | article = Šāpur II | last = Daryaee | first = Touraj | authorlink = | url = http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/shapur-ii | editor-last = | editor-first = | editor-link = | encyclopedia = Encyclopaedia Iranica | pages = | location = | publisher = | year = 2009 | isbn = |ref=harv}}
• {{cite book | title = Sasanian Persia: The Rise and Fall of an Empire | year = 2014 | publisher = I.B.Tauris | location = | editor-last = | editor-first = | last = Daryaee| first = Touraj | authorlink = Touraj Daryaee | pages = 1–240 | isbn = 0857716662 | url = https://books.google.dk/books?id=LU0BAwAAQBAJ |ref=harv}}
• {{citation|last=Frye|first=R. N.|title=The political history of Iran under the Sasanians|chapter=Chapter 4|series=The Cambridge History of Iran|volume=3|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1983|isbn=978-0-521-20092-9 | issue=1|ref=harv}}
• {{cite book | title = The History of Ancient Iran | year = 1984 | publisher = C.H.Beck | location = | editor-last = | editor-first = | last = Frye | first = Richard Nelson | authorlink = Richard Nelson Frye | chapter = | pages = 1–411 | isbn = 9783406093975 | url = https://books.google.dk/books?id=0y1jeSqbHLwC&dq=false |ref=harv}}
• {{cite encyclopedia | article = Apzut Kawāt wall | last = Gadjiev| first = Murtazali | authorlink = | url = http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/apzut-kawat-wall | editor-last = | editor-first = | editor-link = | encyclopedia = Encyclopaedia Iranica | pages = | location = | publisher = | year = 2017 | isbn = |ref=harv}}
• {{cite encyclopedia | article = Arrajān | last = Gaube | first = H. | authorlink = | url = http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/arrajan-medieval-city-and-province-in-southwestern-iran-between-kuzestan-and-fars | editor-last = | editor-first = | editor-link = | encyclopedia = Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. II, Fasc. 5 | pages = 519-520 | location = | publisher = | year = 1986 | isbn = |ref=harv}}
• {{cite book|last=Greatrex|first=Geoffrey|last2=Lieu|first2=Samuel N. C.|title=The Roman Eastern Frontier and the Persian Wars (Part II, 363–630 AD)|year=2002|location=New York, New York and London, United Kingdom|publisher=Routledge|isbn=0-415-14687-9|pages=82–97|chapter=Justinian's First Persian War and the Eternal Peace|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zoZIxpQ8A2IC|ref=harv}}
• {{cite encyclopedia | first = Erich | last = Kettenhofen | article = Darband | encyclopaedia = Encyclopædia Iranica, Vol. VII | pages = 13–19 | year = 1994 | url = http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/darband-i-ancient-city | ref=harv}}
• {{cite encyclopedia | article = Fahraj | last = Langarudi | first = Rezazadeh | authorlink = | url = http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/fahraj-1 | editor-last = | editor-first = | editor-link = | encyclopedia = Encyclopaedia Iranica | pages = | location = | publisher = | year = 2002 | isbn = |ref=harv}}
• {{cite encyclopedia | article = Meybod | last = Modarres | first = Ali | authorlink = | url = http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/meybod | editor-last = | editor-first = | editor-link = | encyclopedia = Encyclopaedia Iranica | pages = | location = | publisher = | year = | isbn = |ref=harv}}
• {{cite book|last=Pourshariati|first=Parvaneh|title=Decline and Fall of the Sasanian Empire: The Sasanian-Parthian Confederacy and the Arab Conquest of Iran|location=London and New York|publisher=I.B. Tauris|year=2008|isbn=978-1-84511-645-3|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=I-xtAAAAMAAJ|ref=harv}}
• {{cite encyclopedia | article = Kārin | last = Pourshariati | first = Parvaneh | authorlink = | url = http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/karin | editor-last = | editor-first = | editor-link = | encyclopedia = Encyclopaedia Iranica | pages = | location = | publisher = | year = 2017 | isbn = |ref=harv}}
• {{cite encyclopedia|article=Kawād I i. Reign|last=Schindel|first=Nikolaus|url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/kawad-i-reign|encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. XVI, Fasc. 2|pages=136–141|year=2013|ref=harv}}
• {{cite encyclopedia|article=Kawād I ii. Coinage|last=Schindel|first=Nikolaus|url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/kawad-i|encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. XVI, Fasc. 2|pages=141-143|year=2013|ref=harv}}
• {{cite encyclopedia|last=Sundermann|first=W.|encyclopedia =Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. II, Fasc. 6|article =Artēštārān sālār|pages=662|url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/artestaran-salar-chief-of-the-warriors-a-high-ranking-title-in-sasanian-times-see-artestar-|year=1986|ref=harv}}
• {{cite encyclopedia|article=Bozorgān|last=Tafazzoli|first=Ahmad|url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/bozorgan-mpers|encyclopedia =Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. IV, Fasc. 4|pages=427|publisher=Ahmad Tafazzoli|year=1989|ref=harv}}

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