Chosroes was released from confinement and restored to the throne
from which he had been expelled by Varahran IV. in A.D. 391. He,
however, survived his elevation only a year. Upon his decease, A.D.
413, Isdigerd selected for the viceroyship, not an Arsacid, not even
an Armenian, but his own son, Sapor, whom he forced upon the reluctant
provincials, compelling them to acknowledge him as monarch (A.D.
413-414). Sapor was instructed to ingratiate himself with the Armenian
nobles, by inviting them to visit him, by feasting them, making them
presents, holding friendly converse with them, hunting with them; and
was bidden to use such influence as he might obtain to convert the
chiefs from Christianity to Zoroastrianism. The young prince appears
to have done his best; but the Armenians were obstinate, resisted his
blandishments, and remained Christians in spite of all his efforts. He
reigned from A.D. 414 to 418, at the end of which time, learning that
his father had fallen into ill health, he quitted Armenia and returned
to the Persian court, in order to press his claims to the succession.
Isdigerd died soon afterwards (A.D. 419 or 420); and Sapor made an
attempt to seize the throne; but there was another pretender
whose partisans had more strength, and the viceroy of Armenia was
treacherously assassinated in the palace of his father. Armenia remained
for three years in a state of anarchy; and it was not till Varahran V.
had been for some time established upon the Persian throne that Artases
was made viceroy, under the name of Artasiris or Artaxerxes.

The coins of Isdigerd I. are not remarkable as works of art; but they
possess some features of interest. They are numerous, and appear to have
been issued from various mints, but all bear a head of the same type.
[PLATE XXI., Fig. 1.] It is that of a middle-aged man, with a short
beard and hair gathered behind the head in a cluster of curls. The
distinguishing mark is the headdress, which has the usual inflated ball
above a fragment of the old mural crown, and further bears a crescent in
front. The reverse has the usual fire-altar with supporters, and is
for the most part very rudely executed. The ordinary legend is, on the
obverse, _"Mazdisn bag ramashtras Izdikerti, malkan malka Airan,"_ or
"the Ormazd-worshipping divine most peaceful Isdigerd, king of the kings
of Iran;" and on the reverse, _Ramashtras Izdikerti,_ "the most peaceful
Isdigerd." In some cases, there is a seco