Although the Roman cult of Mithras developed within the religious and social environments of the Roman Empire, Persia remained closely associated in ancient and modern interpretations with the figure of Mithra and broader Iranian religious traditions. The region occupies an important place in discussions concerning cultural transmission, eastern influences and the complex relationship between Roman Mithraism and Iranian religious worlds.
Mithraic monuments of Persia
Mithra temple of Marāgheh
The Mithra Temple of Maragheh, also referred to as the Mithra Temple of Verjuy or simply Mehr Temple, is the oldest surviving Mithraic temple in Iran known to date.
Niasar Cave
The Niasar Cave, غار نیاسر, was a temple probably devoted to Iranian Mithras that dates back to the early Partian era.
Mithraeum of Nush-i Jan
The Nushijan Mithraeum testifies to the worship of Mithra in the region since before the Zoroastrian reform.
Fragments of a column base from Hamadan
The base of the column bears an inscription that records the rebuilding of a palace at Ectabana ’by the favour of Ahuramaza, Anahita and Mithra’.
CIMRM 7
CIMRM 8
Inscription from Hamadan where the ’great king’ Artaxerxes mentions Ahuramazda, Anahita, and Mithra as guardians.
CIMRM 8
Places in Persia
Ectabana
Ecbatana was an ancient city, which was first the capital of Media in western Iran, and later was an important city in Persian, Seleucid, and Parthian empires.
Inscriptions from Persia
Fragments of a column base from Hamadan
References
- Afshin Tavakoli (2004) Verjuy Mithra Temple the Oldest Surviving Mithraist Temple in Iran
- Ali Hozhabri (2014) The Mithraeum of Nush-i Jan. Exploring the Use of Cross Motif in Architecture of Tepe Nush-i Jan
- Cultural Institute of Iran. Mehr Temple of Maragheh
- Shahrokh Razmjou; Babak Amin Tafreshi (1998) Niasar Cave. A Man-Made Mithra Temple
- The British Museum (2023) column [Fragment of dark limestone torus]
