Brill Publications has announced the forthcoming release of the latest work by German researcher Nils Purwins, titled The Structure of the Sasanian Empire: Administration and Elites in Comparison with the Roman Empire, in two volumes, as part of the ‘Ancient Iran’ series. The work will be published on November 27, 2025.

This two-volume study is the first comprehensive and systematic examination of the administrative and social structure of the Sasanian Empire from the fifth to the seventh centuries AD. By collecting and analyzing over a thousand leather documents, seals, ostraca, inscriptions, and historical texts—many of which are presented for the first time in this collection—the author provides a precise picture of the administrative system and social life across the Sasanian Empire.

In this work, the subjects of the ‘King of Kings’ report—through text and images—of their lives in various provinces, of the organization of military, civil, and religious systems, and of the circles of power within the Sasanian court.

Furthermore, the book offers the first systematic structural comparison between the Sasanian Empire and the East Roman (Byzantine) Empire, examining the administrative and social organization of these two great powers of the ancient world in a comparative framework. This research, which includes over a thousand images, diagrams, and detailed maps, seeks to answer the fundamental question: To what extent were Eran-shahr (Iran) and the Roman Empire truly “two eyes that illuminated the world from above,” as Khosrow II once stated, according to Theophylact?

This collection will be published in two volumes, both in print and as an electronic version.

News Link: https://brill.com/display/title/72671