Persepolis – Ancient Persia

Known as Takht-e Jamshid in Iran or to others as Persepolis (the name the Greeks gave it), these ancient ruins offer a glimpse of the grandeur of the ancient Achaemenid Empire. An easy day trip from the southern city of Shiraz, Persepolis and Shiraz itself feature on almost all Iran travel itineraries. (More about our time in Shiraz here).

Looking down on Persepolis

Looking down on Persepolis: Treasury to the left, Throne Hall in the centre, bas-relief staircase under protection, the tallest columns are what remains of Apadana -the largest palace, and beside that to the left is Tachara.

Now the history in Iran is quite long and complex and while most Iranians we met refered with ease to this empire and that era it all got a bit lost on me. So for my own education and perhaps yours too, here is the brief historical context of this great place (read and rehashed from the history section of Iran – Lonely Planet guide)…

Persian Empire beginnings

Settlement in Iran dates back to at least 4000BCE, but the first Persian Empire developed after a unified state in southern Iran was created by the king of one of the Persian tribes, Achaemenes, in the 7th century BCE. His name is given to the first empire, i.e. the Archaemenid Empire. Archaemenes grandson Cyrus II ascended the throne in 559BCE and within 20 years it became the greatest empire the world had known up until that time. Cyrus II became known as Cyrus the Great as he campaigned across much of what is now Turkey, east into Pakistan and then finally defeated the Babylonians. His son Cambyses carried on where his father left off, capturing most of Egypt and coastal regions well into modern Libya.

Cambyses died in mysterious circumstances in 522 BCE while still in Egypt. Darius I, a distant relative, ensured that the minor official Magus Gaumata who had seized the throne was quickly murdered. Word on the street is that Gaumata looked very much like Smerdis, one of Cambyses brothers. Hard to know which story to believe- that Darius had Cambyses brother Smerdis killed so he could take the throne and that he made up the story of the imposter OR that the story is true and he killed someone pretending to be Smerdis.

Cuneiform rock carvings, 5thBC, near Hamadan, promoting the greatness of kings Xerxes & Darius.

Cuneiform rock carvings, 5th century BCE, near Hamadan, promoting the greatness of kings Xerxes & Darius.

We missed the giant relief in Bisotun (near Hamadan) that commemorates Darius serving ‘justice’ to the ‘imposter’ but did see the cuneiform rock carvings that Darius commissioned, also near Hamadan, thanking the Zoroastrian god Ahura Mazda for making him such a wonderful king! ‘...I am Darius, the King. The King of Kings, King of countries containing all kind of men, King in this great earth, far and wide…” The rock carvings are in three languages (Old Persian, Elamite & neo-Babylonian) to make sure everyone could get the point.

Dairus expanded the empire to India and as far north as the Danube river in Europe. It was one of the greatest early civilsations, with paved roads stretching from one end of the empire to the other and the world’s first postal service. It went downhill when Darius invaded mainland Greece and was defeated. He died in 486BCE.

Image by Ian Mladjov, www.geography.name

Image by Ian Mladjov, www.geography.name

Persepolis – the imperial showcase

Darius, as king from 520 BCE, had Persepolis built to serve as a ceremonial and religious hub. It was THE place to be to celebrate Noruz (New Year). The main god worshipped here at that time was the Zoroastrian god- Ahura Mazda.

The building of Persepolis was started during Darius’ reign but subsequent rulers added to it over the next 150 years. The administrative centres of the empire were elsewhere, but Persepolis was built to overwhelm, impress and intimidate visitors with its scale and beauty. Today the ruins are just a shadow of Persepolis’ former glory, but give you a glimpse into the magnificence and also attitudes of the time.

First there is the grand stairway, carved from massive blocks of stone with very shallow steps so Persians with their long robes could walk gracefully up to the palace.

Shallow steps carved out of huge stone slabs. Wood covering the steps to protect the stone originals underneath. Entrance to Persepolis.

Shallow steps carved out of huge stone slabs. Wood covering the steps to protect the stone originals underneath. Entrance to Persepolis.

Next is Xerxes gateway also known as The Gate of All Nations. One of the original three doorways to a 612m square hall towers above you at 10m height, the biggest doorway I’ve been through in a while! The guardian bulls which guard the gateway have the crowned head of a bearded man, the body of a bull, wings of an eagle. Above each figure there is a cuneiform inscription in Old Persian, Neo-Babylonian and Elamite languages saying; ‘By the favour of Ahuramazda this Gate of All Nations I built. Much else that is beautiful was built in this Parsa, which I built and my father built.’

Looking back after walking through the Gate of All Nations, Persepolis.

Looking back after walking through the Gate of All Nations, Persepolis.

The Treasury

Darius the Great started the building of the Treasury making it one of the older parts of Persepolis. It was enlarged by Xerxes. It’s too big to fit in a picture even if all that remains are the bases of the columns. It was a huge fortress like structure with thick mud brick walls and only one entrance. It is believed to have been one of the richest treasuries in the world. When Alexander the Great attacked Persepolis in 330 BCE, he reportedly used 3000 camels and mules to drag away the riches, worth over 120,000 talents of silver (roughly 4 billion USD in today’s money!).

The Treasury was not considered to be an economic distribution centre- more a storehouse for the gift tributes that were brought there, particularly at New Year, by people from around the Empire. (This is depicted on the staircase bas reliefs- details below.)  Some objects have been found from the treasury including stone and clay tablets with Elamite inscriptions concerning payment of workers at Persepolis between 492 and 458. Historians have also gleaned knowledge from the finds regarding the issue of passports, orders for payment of silver and gold, and the dispatching of judges, accountants, caravans and teams of labourers.  Really interesting to get an insight into the administration of the Persian Empire. The tablets for example let us know that in 467BCE no less than 1,348 people were employed at the Treasury! I tell you it was huge!

Part of the Treasury at Persepolis.

Part of the Treasury at Persepolis.

Throne Hall & Tachara

The 70×70 square metre Throne Hall in the heart of Persepolis was started by Xerxes and finished by his son by the end of the 5th century BCE. There are 8 stone doorways in the Throne Hall which is also known as ‘The Imperial Army’s Hall of Honour’ and the ‘Hundred-Columns Palace’. In reliefs in the doorways the King is seen fighting monsters or on his throne.

Reliefs of the King in two of the stone doorways in the Throne Hall.

Reliefs of the King in two of the stone doorways in the Throne Hall.

Throne Hall in foreground, Persepolis.

Throne Hall in foreground, Persepolis.

Inside the Throne Hall, Persepolis.

Inside the Throne Hall, Persepolis.

Tachara, also known as the Palace of Darius the Great, was started under Darius but not completed until after his death. The 1,160 square metre palace was completed in 486 BCE and is the smallest of the palace buildings at Persepolis. Although the mudbrick walls have disintegrated, the palace was created with the highest quality stone so the door and window frames have survived remarkably well.

Tachara, Palace of Darius. Persepolis.

Tachara, Palace of Darius in the foreground. Persepolis.

Reliefs on the outer walls of the Palace of Darius.

Reliefs on the outer walls of the Palace of Darius.

Saving the Best til Last – The Apdana Staircase

My favourite part of this incredible place was the Apadana Staircase. These days it is covered with a permanent shelter to protect it, so it is easy to find in this huge site. The monumental staircase is on the eastern wall of what was once the Apadana Palace, the greatest palace in Persepolis. The palace had three open sides of columned verandahs and its grand hall, 60m on each side, was comprised of 72 columns, 13 of which still stand. The columns are 19m high and had at the tops animal sculptures like two headed bulls or lions. Oak or cedar beams joined columns together- they could be placed between the heads. These columns bore the weight of the huge ceiling. In the first photo on this post you can see how huge these columns are and how big the palace must have been.

19m high Columns, Apadana Palace.

19m high Columns, Apadana Palace.

These were once atop the columns, Persepolis.

These were once atop columns at Persepolis.

On both sides of the staircase that leads to the Apadana Palace, there is a cuniform script where Xerxes gives much glory to himself and also to the god Ahuramazda. There are also striking bas-reliefs of a bull and lion fighting on each side. On the Northern part of the wall are three tiers of figures, representing dignitaries; at the top there’s a royal procession with horses and chariots and the bottom two tiers have lots of officials walking; Persians with their feather headdresses and the Medians in their round caps. Some of them hold hands or have hands on the others’ shoulders.

Wow- Incredibly well preserved bas-reliefs from the 6th C BCE!

Wow- Incredibly well preserved bas-reliefs from the 6th C BCE!

A closer lookA closer look at the bas reliefs: upper and middle tier.

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Persian soldiers.

The coolest part of the staircase though is on the southern side, here the tiers of people show 23 delegations with their gifts in procession toward the Achamenid King, symbolised in the centre of the staircase. Our guide gave us excellent information about each delegation’s gifts, brought from the twenty-three subject nations of the Persian Empire. It was so cool to see their costumes and equipment and what typified the various peoples at the end of the 6th Century BCE.

Unlike other representations of empires (e.g. Roman, Egyptian, Assyrian) which show their subjects as prisoners of war, our guide pointed out that here each delegation is led by the hand of a Persian or Mede courtier, showing an attitude of affection and cordiality. You can see this in most pictures below, i.e. the figure on the right. These photos show a few of the delegations and their gifts, (thanks to www.livius.org for the extra info as I couldn’t remember all that our guide had told us!).

The Medes

The Medes

The first of the Medes is wearing the usual round cap but the others have more interesting headdresses, like turbans. The presents they bring include a pitcher, bowls, a sword, rings, a cloak, a coat and trousers.

The Lydians

The Lydians

The Lydians are at the beginning of the bottom tier, nearest the King, suggesting the importance of their country. Their presents are two metal phials (perhaps filled with gold dust from the Pactolus River), two bowls, two decorated metal rings with griffins heads and a chariot drawn by two stallions. The Lydians wear long garments with stripes, cool conical hats and remarkably pointy shoes!

The Armenians

The Armenians

The Armenians wear horeseman’s dresses and cloaks, like their neighbours the Medes, – their turbans are also similar. The gifts are a bridled stallion and a beautiful metal vase with griffin handles.

The Elamites

The Elamites

The Elamites are dressed in long cloaks. They bring a lioness and two lion cubs – lions being a sign of royalty. They also offer two bows (decorated with ducks heads) and two daggers.

Gandarans & Bactrians

The Gandarans (above) & Bactrians (below)

The Gandarans are from the far East and bring with them a buffalo, five lances and a shield – probably just ornamental weapons as the armies of the Punjab used archery mainly. They are dressed in short armless tunics and capes.

The Bactarians are dressed like the Median cavalry men but their trousers are different. They have a wreath in their hair tied in a knot and also have earrings which is unusual. Often a sign of importance perhaps suggesting that Bactrians had a special position in the Achamenid empire. Their gifts were a Bactarian camel- i.e. a double humped camel, along with two deep and two shallow bowls.

You can see in the picture above how each delegation was seperated on the staircase by a cypress tree.

The Syrians

The Syrians

The Syrians wore smooth cloaks which left the ankles visible, belts, low shoes and on their heads- wreaths. Along with the two ram they bring also two pair of bowls, a bar of copper in the shape of an animal skin and a garment.

The Yauna (Greeks)

The Yauna (Ionian Greeks)

Dressed similarly to the Lydians, the Greeks also have a garment with striped sleeves and low shoes, but no conical hats! They are seen here bringing two ribbed metal cups, two pairs of shallow metal bowls, two sets of folded fabrics (perhaps blankets) and balls of wool.

The Indians

The Indians

Although not so clear you can see one of the Indian contingent carrying bags of gold (or possibly spices). Next to him someone leads a mule and they also present two double bladed axes.

There were other interesting delegations …Uzbeks fully armed, looking quite different to the above people, Arabs (from near Gaza) with sandals and no hats, Arians (from today’s Herat- Afghanistan) with turbans that can protect their faces from sand, and Nubians bringing an elephant’s tusk. The list goes on.

It was amazing to be in Persepolis and imagine all these different delegations converging on what must have been an incredible palace. The whole place must have been humming during the New Year’s celebrations! These days it’s a lot quieter but still well worth the visit 🙂

One of four Lion & Bull fighting reliefs.

One of four Lion & Bull fighting reliefs on the staircases.

A particularly good-looking soldier leading the way, Persepolis.

A particularly good-looking soldier leading the way, Persepolis.

 

 

About the Author

Born and bred in New Zealand's South Island, this Kiwi likes getting 'out there' exploring the world and its wonderful people! I have taught English in South Korea, volunteered in Kyrgyzstan, studied in Denmark, lived in community in Scotland and visited friends and wonderful people all over the world. Now married to Antony the adventures continue together. I have a habit of being notoriously behind in my blog - but will do what I can to record my adventures, as much for my own record as anything (as I have a terrible memory). After an amazing year in Iran and Europe, in 2016, Antony and I are off again September 29 2019 - Feb 1 2020. Hopefully I can blog about most of what we get up to! Enjoy the read! Kate x

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1 Comment

  1. On the following day, the king called together the leaders of his forces and informed them that “no city was more mischievous to the Greeks than the seat of the ancient kings of Persia . . . by its destruction they ought to offer sacrifice to the spirits of their forefathers.”

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