Sassanian Army

[Roxofarnes]

Anyway - there is something about these chains indeed and it seems that there is much more than just misobservation. I believe these chained units must have been a sort of marvel and misinterpreted as the prevention from escaping. No source mentions the length of the said chains - these might not be very debiliating for manouverability if long enough. But movable fortification seems very much in Persian mentality. Especially if the "true fighting" was carried by horseman.
There can be no doubt that Sasanians treated infantry as much inferior to cavalry but this does not mean that the former were just crowds of peasantry which much later would be called Kannonenfliesch...