15 Sep: Smithsonian Institution screens TAQ KASRA documentary in Washington DC

Ctesiphon day at Freer Gallery

SI (Press Release) – Located on the eastern bank of the Tigris River near present-day Baghdad, Iraq, the city of Ctesiphon served as a royal capital of the Persian Empire in the Parthian and Sasanian eras for over eight hundred years. The city’s most iconic structure was the Taq Kasra (Throne of Khosrow) palace, one of the wonders of the ancient world. The palace’s vaulted brick throne room measures eighty-four feet across, making it the largest of its kind.

To celebrate this exceptional monument, Touraj Daryaee, Matthew Canepa, Katharyn Hanson, and Richard Kurin discuss the site’s importance and recent preservation efforts. Then, watch the first documentary on this unique monument, Taq Kasra: Wonder of Architecture, directed by Pejman Akbarzadeh, produced by Persian Dutch Network, and funded by the Soudavar Memorial and Toos Foundations. Watch the trailer.
The screening will be followed by a Q&A session with Pejman Akbarzadeh.

Date & Place:
Saturday, September 15, 2018, 2 pm

Freer Gallery of Art (Meyer Auditorium), Washington DC
Cost: Free

Co-sponsor This event was organized with support from the Tina and Hamid Moghadam Endowment for Iran and the Ancient Near East and the Ancient Near East Fund.

(Source: SI)

Following the Smithsonian’s event, the documentary will be screened at Yale University on 27 September (6 PM, Luce Auditorium) and at the US Military Academy in West Point on 28 September 2018.
Both events will be followed by a Q&A session with the director.

Taq-e Kisra Links

TAQ KASRA: World Premiere : SOAS, University of London

FIRST FILM ON TAQ-I KISRA; Interview with Pejman Akbarzadeh : Voice of America Persian Service

AYVĀN-E KESRĀ / KHOSROW : Encyclopedia Iranica

TAQ-e KISRA : Encyclopedia Britanica

PERSIAN SITE OUTSIDE PERSIA : Persian Dutch Network

ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE PHOTOGRAPHS: CTESIPHON : University of Chicago

ARCH OF CTESIPHON : World Heritage Forum

ANCIENT PERSIAN ARCH BECOMES CASUALTY OF WAR : Los Angeles Times

Architecture of the National Museum in Tehran is inspired by Taq Kasra.


Iraqi pre-Islamic landmark threatening to collapse (Al-monitor)

Eiwan, a Composition by Alireza Farhang (Listen)