Author
Assistant Professor and Faculty Member of History Department, Institute for Humanities and Cultural Studies
Abstract
Numismatics is amongst the supplementary sciences for historical studies which its validity has been confirmed by archeologists, historians, art historians and researchers of other fields since past 100 years ago. Coins as metal objects are resistance to changes of temperature and in many cases remain in high quality with fewer changes. Data on coins including designs, writings, phrases, mottos, symbols and the process of changes of signs on coins play important role in archeological, historical, economical and social studies. Despite Iran’s background as one of the first propagators of coins and the considerable collections of coins which conserve in museums and private collections in and outside of this country, little intention has been given to the numismatic studies in Iran. Due to the lack of interdisciplinary studies in ancient Iranian studies, this article will review the background of numismatic studies in Iran while using SWOT method in order to evaluate the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats involved in numismatic studies on ancient coins in Iran. This article speaks about the lack of cohesive and scientific program for ancient coins research in Iran, while there is a proper opportunity for continuous historical studies for Iranian scholars and presenting new theories in native and international studies on ancient coins of Iran.
Keywords