Cornucopia in Semiosphere of Parthian Era

Cornucopia or the Horn of Plenty is amongst the cultural and social symbols which represented the concept of plenty and prosperity in Europe and United State of America. The origin of Cornucopia is dated back to the Greek myths and related to parts of Zeus’ life, and also to the stories of other Greek gods and goddess such as Heracles, Hades, Demeter and Tyche. The picture of Cornucopia has also been found on some of Parthian reliefs and coins and some subjects that had been remained from that era were designed such as Cornucopia and a hollow horn. This article will introduce these objects in a descriptive-analytical method while studies the meaning and connotation of Cornucopia in a cultural semiotic approach in the semiosphere of Parthian era. The result of this research speaks of the attention of Parthians in using the functions of symbols for representation of their power and legitimacy especially in the settlements of Greek-origin colonies mainly in Mesopotamia.