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A detail study of the tales can provide a rich understanding of beliefs, thoughts, way of living, totems, myths, and the old patterns of a nation. A good example of such tales which has never been recorded in any written source is the tale Tree of Life common in Kohmare Sorkhi area of Fars province in Iran. This tale is, somehow, intermingled with mythical motifs; therefore, it is difficult to determine the accurate boundary between tale and myth. The aim of the study, however, is to investigate these motifs in this tale. To accomplish this, this tale was registered and recorded out of different narrators borrowing a field method study as the research method; secondly, the mythical motifs were addressed with an analytical-descriptive method. The findings of the study showed that several main motifs formed the fundamental pivots of the tale: 1) the hero of the tale saves the sources of birth- cow, girl, and rain-producing clouds- from the evil forces, and restores happiness and safety, 2) the hero and his companions overcome the six adventures to return home, 3) the hero of the tale moves towards the tree of life- pomegranate tree- which is at the center of the world and plucks the fruit after imprisoning the guard of the tree, 4) the pomegranate and fig trees are posed as fertility symbols in the tale. The myth of fertility and the attempt of the hero to reach the fertility fruits is one of the main pivots of the story, and 5) the oracle appears in the role of the guide and leader of the hero.
 
 

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For a long time, humans have used plant motifs on objects such as pottery, goblet, and others, which sometimes have a symbolic appearance and were very important in the relics of a particular period. One of the most important motifs, that has a Mesopotamian origin, is the tree of life. The tree of life is a plant that is found in many mythical traditions of the Near East such as Mesopotamia, Anatolia and Egypt. The flower of life or the motif of geometric rosette is another valuable motif with six petals. In this paper, the authors first discuss the symbols and symbolism and then investigate the background of the tree of life and then discuss the motif of geometric rostte or flower of life, and later focus on the Golden, Silver and Bronze findings at the sites of Marlik, Amarlu in Gilan and Kelardasht in Mazandaran related to iron age of Iran and investigate the impact of this symbolic motif on archaeological findings in the surrounding sites that have probably transformed the motif of the tree of life into the flower of life. This motif emerged among the communities of northern Iran during a period almost identical to the Assyrian era at the bottom of the Golden and Silver and Bronze goblets and is a kind of symbol of the tree of life that then the artists replaced the sacred tree with six petal rosette.