As Iran and the United States fight a widening war, Frye’s forgotten legacy as an American Iranophile is worth revisiting. Over several decades, Frye’s scholarship helped make the history of ancient Iran accessible to generations of students. His choice reflected a genuine love for Iran and its people, an affection that, in the end, was not reciprocated. The Iranians are very hospitable people, and I love them very much, and so there is no reason why I shouldn’t be buried in Isfahan,” Frye said. “Isfahan is the center of today’s Iran and is the former capital of Iran, and it’s the cultural center of Iran.