Siyâvash or Siyâvosh or Siavash, is a major figure in Ferdowsi's epic, the Shahnameh. He was a legendary Iranian prince from the earliest days of the Iranian Empire. A handsome and desirable young man, his name literally means "the one with the black horse" or "black stallion". Ferdowsi, the author of the Book of Kings, names his horse Shabrang Behzād literally "night-coloured purebred".
As a young man well-versed in the arts of war, he is granted entry to court by his father, Kay Kāvus, the shah of Iran. However, his stepmother, Sudabeh, the Queen of Iran, develops a burning lust for him. Refusing her advances, Siavash will have nothing to do with her stratagems to lure him into intercourse. She fakes a rape and abortion scene and blames the double calamity on Siavash who is forced to prove his innocence by riding through a colossal mountain of fire. Despite his proven innocence, the Shah eventually grows cold towards Siavash as he does not want to punish the woman he loves or anger her father, a powerful ally in the East.