THE SASSANIANS RULED THE LAST GREAT EMPIRE OF PERSIA BEFORE THE ARAB CONQUESTS OF THE 7TH CENTURY. Rome's only equal in the classical world, the Sassanian Empire had an enormous impact on the development of architecture, mythology, arts, music, military tactics and technology. Within the Sassanian military, the cavalry was the most influential element, and Sassanian cavalry tactics were adopted by the Romans, Arabs, and Turks. Their cavalry systems of weaponry, battle tactics, Tamgas, Medallions, court customs, and costumes influenced Romano-Byzantine and medieval European culture, and this book explains how a little-studied eastern power affected the development of cavalry traditions in the western world.