LONDON: Years of exploration and careful coordination across the seas from Pakistan and India to Hong Kong and the United States have culminated in a unique exhibition retracing the evolution of Zoroastrianism. The display is both engrossing and informative.

Zoroastrianism may only have a modest following of two million worldwide, but before Islam, it was the state religion in Iran. Its beliefs are rooted in the dichotomy between good and evil, quite similar to Christianity and Islam. “The Everlasting Flame: Zoroastrianism in History and Imagination” maps out the history of the religion from the second millennium BC to date, a first of its kind to provide a visual narrative of the history of the religion and its rich cultural heritage.

The 200 unique Zoroastrianism cultural artifacts on display at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London are the fruit of years of painstaking fundraising and hard work. In the basement of the Brunei Gallery is the replica of a fire temple complete with prayer room, and portraits of notable Zoroastrians, which include familiar names such as members of the Tata family, the Wadia family and Framji Pestonjee Patuck, on loan from the Tata Central Archives, Hameed Haroon and the Royal Asiatic Society.

On display on the first floor is a rare seventh century ossuary found near Samarkand (Uzbekistan) used to collect bones that remain after the “sky burials”. The basement also has a 10-metre glass etching based on the cast of the western staircase from the palace of Darius at Persepolis in the British Museum.

The exhibition is the brainchild of curators Dr Sarah Stuart and Firoza Mistree, who have worked together for years exploring and understanding Zoroastrianism. It seemed natural that the next step would be an exhibition showcasing how the religion had evolved. So from London to Mumbai, Stuart, a lecturer at SOAS, and Mistree got together with art historian Pehroza Godrej to get the job done.

Rewarding Journey

The exhibition takes you on a journey from the earliest days of the religion to its emergence as the foremost religion of the Achaemenid, Parthian and Sassanian empires of imperial Persia.

There are painted pottery vessels from Iran dating back to 4200-3700 BCE Susa I period on loan from the Alpaiwalla Museum standing side by side a naked figurine from 1500-1100 BCE. Sacred texts include a 16th century copy of the Yasna ceremony, the Videvdad Sadeh and The Menog I Khrad (spirit of wisdom) on loan from the British Library.

One of the most interesting items on display is the Dakhma chart from the History of the Bombay Parsi Panchayat (1860-1960). It shows how a dakhma is built – the stone plinths form three concentric circles: the outer one for men, the central one for women and the inner one for children. From fifth century Afghanistan, there is a Bactrian document addressed to the god Mihr and a document listing the earliest use of Zoroastrian day names dating to the fourth century.

“After 18 months of fundraising, looking at the exhibition and the response is heart-warming. I think it is rewarding to see that people are interested, particularly ordinary members of the British public,” said Stuart. “This was an idea Firoza and I had for more than 10 years, probably in 2001 when she came to SOAS for the launch of ‘A Zoroastrian Tapestry: Art, Religion and Culture’.”

Among Stuart’s favorite pieces at the exhibition are the ossuaries from Samarkand. It took a lot of negotiating to get them from Uzbekistan. “The etching on the ossuaries are fantastic and both of them are very special to me,” she said. “One of them shows the soul in the shape of a person on the way to heaven or hell, waiting to be scaled.”

She added that the Zoroastrians were a tiny minority and their story needed to be told. Admission to the exhibition is free and open till December 14.