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Payvand.com – World Premiere of the film “Taq Kasra: Wonder of Architecture” will take place at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London on 1 February 2018. The film – which is the first-ever documentary on this iconic monument – is directed by Pejman Akbarzadeh, based in the Netherlands.
Taq Kasra, Symbol of Persian Empire in Sasanian Era
(photo by Pejman Akbarzadeh)
Taq Kasra, also known as Arch of Ctesiphon, is the world’s largest brickwork vault. The palace is a symbol of the Persian Empire in the Sasanian era (224-651 AD), when a major part of Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) was part of Persia.
TRAILER: Taq Kasra: Wonder of Architecture (2018)
SOAS in its press release states: “Taq Kasra was in serious danger of ISIS attacks in 2015-2016 and this was the main motivation for Pejman Akbarzadeh to travel to Iraq twice and film the arch before it was potentially destroyed”.
Taq Kasra in late antiquity was a royal Persian residence but since a few centuries ago, in view of geopolitical changes in the Near East, it is located in Iraqi territory, close to Baghdad. It was neglected shortly after the Arab invasion of Persia [Iran] in the 7th century AD but remained a source of inspiration for archaeologists, poets and other travellers.
The 30-minute documentary “Taq Kasra: Wonder of Architecture” explores the history and architecture of this monument with respected archaeologists and scholars from around the world – including Edward Keall, Vesta Sarkhosh-Curtis, Touraj Daryaee, Ute Franke, Ali Mozaffari – and portrays the huge impact of war and ideological policies on the identity of this ancient arch. Iraqi heritage authorities have been interviewed in the film as well.
The documentary is produced by the Persian Dutch Network, in association with Toos Foundation in London, and co-funded by the Soudavar Memorial Foundation in Geneva.
Following the screening at SOAS, a Q&A session will be held with the presence of the documentary director Pejman Akbarzadeh and Vesta Sarkhosh-Curtis of the British Museum, a scholar of Persian art in Parthian and Sasanian eras.
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Taq Kasra: An Online Source
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Tags: Taq-i Kisra Taq-e Kesra, Arch of Khosrow, Sasanid Persia
