%A Koulabadi, Rahele %A Kouhpar, Seyyed Mehdi Mousavi %A Neyestani, Javad %A Haji, Seyyed Rasool Mousavi %D 2019 %T An Overview of Goddess Anahita and her Iconography in Ancient Iran %! An Overview of Goddess Anahita and her Iconography in Ancient Iran %X In Persian mythology, Anahita is the only goddess to have her name immortalised next to Ahura Mazda and Mithra - the two overarching Zoroastrian deities. The first written evidence stems from fourth-century BCE inscriptions in Susa and Hamadan. In Persia, Anahita was the deity assigned to water, as well as fertility and prosperity. She was also the protectress of the righteous kings, a tradition starting with the Achaemenian empire and lasting until the end of the Sasanian dynasty. The cultic syncretism developing in the vast Persian empires is as much part of the scrutiny of our authors as the Avestan origins of the Anahita cult. %U https://doi.org/10.13173/centasiaj.62.2.0203 %0 Journal Article %R 10.13173/centasiaj.62.2.0203 %J Central Asiatic Journal %V 62 %N 2