Alternative Views on Sasanian History: Contemporary Chinese Accounts of Persia

Over the last century in Western scholarship, the history of late Sasanian history has been built up using the accounts recorded in the works of al-Ṭabarī, Theophanes, and others. The narrative created is one of court intrigue, with many conversations and details included, which historians today generally read as objective. Encyclopædia Iranica and other resources digest these sources, providing a detailed history of the late kings and their interactions. We read of a palace coup d’état and Khosrow being condemned by his son.

The Chinese records of the early seventh century—preserved in an array of different court records and histories—however, present a different picture of what happened. They record that it was the Western Turks who killed Khosrow. They also name his successors, with names that align with the numismatic evidence. The Chinese records are brief by comparison, but they represent largely unmodified court records that were simply copied. Modern historians have rarely considered these, or otherwise the Chinese accounts have been simply dismissed. Still, Iranology accepts the Chinese account of Pērōz and his exile to China, while ignoring the other record of Khosrow that does not align with the Greek and Arabic histories.

This talk will introduce the contemporary Chinese records of Persia, highlighting their value while discussing the possibility of revisiting late Sasanian history.