A Sassanian moulded stucco plaque depicting a senmurv, Persia, First half of the 7th century

of square form, carved with the figure of a senmurv facing left in high relief inside a pearled medallion, within two raised vertical borders

ex-Kevorkian Collection

In generally good condition, slight rubbing to the middle of the senmurv, the pearled medallion chipped in two areas at the top left and right, the bottom two corners of the square chipped off, as viewed.
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Between 1934 and 1936 an excavation led by Dr. Erich F. Schmidt took place at Chal Tarkhan-Eshaqabad, near Rayy, Iran, which revealed large portions of two palaces and a significant amount of Sassanian stucco.  Among the small objects, coins and pottery, various moulded plaques were found such as those in the form of senmurvs, as in this example.  The general assemblage of figural stucco from the two palaces at Chal Tarkhan-Eshqabad offers many similarities with that discovered at other sites in the region, such as Kish, Damghan and Ctesiphon.  However, as of yet there is no evidence to suggest that moulded stucco plaques depicting senmurvs of this particular shape and size were produced anywhere else. 

This example can be compared directly to one in the British Museum (see Les Perses Sassanides, Fastes d'un Empire Oublié (224-642), Musée des Arts de l'Asie de la Ville de Paris, 15^th Sept-30^th Dec 2006, p.60, pl.15) and also a reconstructed stucco panel from Chal Tarkhan-Eshqabad in the Philadelphia Museum of Art (see Thompson 1976, pl.XXIII.I and pp.29-31).  The present plaque is so similar in size, form and appearance to these examples (characterised by the senmurv's relatively large head in comparison to its tail and wing) that it is most likely to have been made from the same mould, and would have adorned an interior wall of one of the excavated palaces along with others of its kind in a vertical frieze.

The senmurv is a curious and original combination of the late Roman hippocamp, Near Eastern lion-griffin and serpent dragon with feathered tail, although in the case of those made in this mould the head is almost dog-like and has short forward-pointing ears.  In terms of iconography it has been interpreted as the mythical bird of the Pahlavi texts, and in fact the Parthian winged lion has a similar-shaped head and wings. The image of the senmurv can be found in all areas of Iranian art and ornament, with various representations appearing on textiles, metalwork and architecture during both the Sassanian and Umayyad periods.  Indeed it has even been suggested that it is a royal creature, appearing three times on Taq-i-Bustan textiles, limited to the king's garments.  For further ornamental representations of the senmurv, both Islamic and pre-Islamic, see Les Perses Sassanides, Fastes d'un Empire Oublié (224-642), p.116, pl.56 (a silver-gilt repoussé ewer, Iran or Afghanistan, 6^th century) and Splendour des Sassanides, 12^th Feb-25^th Apr 1993, Musées royaux d'Art et d'Histoire, Bruxelles, 1993, p.275, pl.127/8 (a silk caftan, Caucasus, 8^th/9^th century).