INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
TEHRAN-- The ancient Silk Road resulted in cultural exchanges between China and Iran, leaving noticeable marks on todays Iranian cultural
custom, one of which being the 12-animal zodiac, an Iranian historian has said.China commemorated the Year of the Rabbit on Jan
22 according to its lunar calendar
In the Chinese calendar and zodiac, the bunny is the 4th in the 12-year cycle of animals
Like in China, the upcoming brand-new year in Iran, which will start on March 22, is also the Year of the Rabbit, China Daily quoted
Kourosh Salehi as saying on Wednesday
Whats intriguing is that throughout its evolution and history, the principle of the animals has gotten in Irans culture from China and East
Asia, stated Salehi, who is a historian and international affairs expert at the International University of Islamic Denominations
Iranians, in addition to naming and enumerating the years based on their ordinal numbers according to the solar Hijri calendar, still state
what animal each year represents, Salehi explained.The scientist thinks that Chinas cultural effect on Iran is also shown in the three-hare
(or three-rabbit) symbol discovered on various artifacts.The circular motif is very widely known and appears on paintings and photos, either
sculpted on coins, trays, and metal objects or painted on clay meals and tiles
It has been found all over the world, including in East Asia and West Asia
A tray from the Middle Ages bearing this sign was found in Iran.According to Salehi, the three-rabbit sculpting discovered in Iran is
precisely in line with the ones found in ancient samples discovered in China, demonstrating the influence of Chinese culture on Iranian
culture throughout the Ilkhanate (1256-- 1335) era.Salehi claims that at the time, the bunny sign, which can be seen on some metal artifacts
and coins found in Iran, was thought to have actually been brought there by Chinese painters and artists.Salehi states he has two really
intriguing coins with the sign in his personal collection and makes reference to other items found in Iran that have roughly the very same
rabbit-based symbol.According to the graphological analysis of the coins and the design of the frames around the bunnies, it can be presumed
that the artifacts go back to the Ilkhanate period
In Iranian culture, the subject of rabbits was typically mentioned in ancient, religious, and mythological stories of Iran.The three bunnies
are portrayed at the center of a round things, chasing after each other in a circle, which is one of the distinctive features of the
three-rabbit symbols on all the artifacts discovered in Iran so far
This suggests that the circle of life, fertility, and death is still ongoing.According to Salehi, the rabbit represents fertility, speed,
shrewd and social life from the point of views of semiotics and mythology.AFM
