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Bahram III, Sakān Šāh: a reign of four months
Bahram III was the son of Bahram II and had earlier ruled Sakastan with the title Sakān Šāh. A group of nobles led by Wahnām son of Tatrus proclaimed him king in Persis. But an assembly of nobles, with Kartir among them, offered the crown to Narseh, the great king of Armenia. Wahnām was captured and executed. The Paikuli inscription says Bahram surrendered; what happened to him afterwards is recorded in no source.
- reign
- 4 months
- fate after surrender
- ?
Map: the succession crisis of 293 CE
Administration & economy293 CE1 of 3
Proclaimed king
Klíma (Iranica): Bahram was proclaimed king in Persis by a group of nobles led by Wahnām son of Tatrus (it is claimed against his will), supported by Ādurfarrōbay, king of Mesene. Weber: it was done secretly and without the nobles’ acclamation. The Paikuli inscription says Wahnām acted through “his own falsehood” and with the help of “Ahrimen and the devils”.
Certainty: Probable
Sources: O. Klíma, Encyclopaedia Iranica, 1988 · U. Weber, Encyclopaedia Iranica, 2016 · H. Humbach & P. O. Skjærvø, 1983
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Three separate layers
Each section has three layers: “Historical evidence” is only what the sources say; “Philosophical interpretation” is our reading by the standard of property and liberty; “Modern cultural meaning”. Quotations come only from published translations, with references.
Historical evidencePhilosophical interpretationModern cultural meaning
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The king whose fate went unrecorded
The Paikuli inscription says Bahram surrendered to Narseh. Iranica (Klíma): “the fate of Bahrām is not recorded.” He left no monument. Coins with a fluted crown were once assigned to him, but Göbl showed they belong to Narseh. A silver plate naming “Bahrām, King of Kings of Iran and Non-Iran” is also suspect.
Narseh and the Paikuli inscription
Narseh later added a fallen enemy under his horse in the Bishapur relief; Klíma thinks it more likely stands for Wahnām than for Bahram III.
This crisis shows that the Sasanian crown was not the king’s personal property to pass to his son; the nobles could give it to someone else. That makes Paikuli a rare record of consent and compact between king and elite.
Sources: O. Klíma, Encyclopaedia Iranica · U. Weber, Encyclopaedia Iranica · H. Humbach & P. O. Skjærvø
Synthesis
Bahram III was king for four months and left neither a monument nor a secure coin. His story is told only by his victorious rival, Narseh.
Bibliography
- O. Klíma, Encyclopaedia Iranica, Bahrām III (1988). https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/bahram-iii/
- U. Weber, Encyclopaedia Iranica, Narseh (2016). https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/narseh/
- H. Humbach & P. O. Skjærvø, The Sassanian Inscription of Paikuli, Part 3.1: Restored text and translation (by P. O. Skjærvø) (1983). https://sites.uci.edu/sasanika/paikuli-inscription-npi/Narseh’s bilingual inscription; the text is badly broken and much of it is restored. The question marks and brackets are the translator’s own.
All photos are from Wikimedia Commons; licence and author were checked on each file page.
Bahram II, his fatherNarseh, his successorThe Sasanian dynasty