Persepolis means Persian City and is situated 58 Kilometers from Shiraz. Persepolis was developed mainly by Dariush I The Great (~500 B.C.) and turned to a modern city with running tab water, drainage system, postal service and highways connecting it to other cities of the Persian empire.
(There is another theory saying that Cyrus The Great chose the site of Persepolis, which was originally named Parsa, and the works started in 518 BC by Dariush I.) If the traveler to Iran visited only the provinces of Khuzestan and Fars, he/she would have seen what is virtually the essential heart of Iranian history. Fars (ancient Parsa) - homeland of the Persians and the source of the name so often given to the entire land -contains not only an enormous number of prehistoric sites with nearly 1,000 identified in the Marv Dasht alone, but the major Achaemenian and Sassanian remains in the country. There was probably a sizeable settlement on the site of Shiraz in the prehistoric period and cuneiform records from the great ceremonial capital of Persepolis, some 58 km. to the north, show that it was a significant township in Achaemenian times. As a city, however, it was founded in A.D. 684, after the Arab armies conquered the Sassanian provincial capital of Istakhr near Persepolis. Shiraz-Isfahan Highway approaches Persepolis or Takht-e Jamshid as it is known locally, from the west and turns sharp towards the north at the main staircase and the Gate of All Nations. The mountains behind Persepolis are in the east.
Persepolis was first scientifically excavated under the direction of Ernst Herzfeld, and later by E.F. Schmidt on behalf of the Oriental Institute of Chicago, from 1931 to 1939. In the 1940s the excavations were continued by the Iranian Archaeological Service, directed first by Andre Godard and later by Ali Sami. More recently, the excavations of the Iranian Archaeological Service have been renewed under the direction of Mr. A. Tajvidi, while, in cooperation with the Iranian authorities. Giuseppe and Ann Britt Tilia of the Istituto Italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente (ISMEO) have been patiently restoring the damaged structure. It is perhaps possible that it was Cambyses II, the son of Cyrus the Great, who chose the rock outcrops at the foot of Kuh-e Rahmat as the site of a new dynastic home. According to Professor Pope, the complex of buildings formed a ritual city whose very existence was kept secret from the outside world at a time when the glories of the other, secular, Achaemenian capitals of Susa, Babylon and Ecbatana were well known. But in fact it must be by some strange accident of history that Persepolis - know as Parsa to the Achaemenians - was never mentioned in foreign records, for it was here after all that representatives of all the varied peoples of the empire gathered to pay homage, and bring tribute, to the King of Kings, probably each spring, at the time of the ancient Nowrooz (New Year) festival. It was Alexander who destroyed the magnificent palaces, not long before the death of the last of the Achaemenians, Dariush III, in 330 B.C. A complex system of drainage and water channels cut into the foundations of the terrace suggests that the entire layout of the complex was designed in detail before any other construction work was begun. The palaces on the platform are arranged in four separate levels, each being two meters higher. On entering the platform one stands on the level reserved for the delegations. The Apadana palace and surrounding structures for the nobles are higher. The royal quarter is again a step higher. The storage rooms and administrative offices on the back are the lowest. The royal quarter is visible from all areas and should therefore be used as reference.
The arrival of the delegations was announced by trumpeters who stood at the top of the staircase in front of the Gate of All Nations. Portions of the bronze trumpets are preserved in the Persepolis Museum. The Persian and Median ushers received the delegations, led them through the Gate of All Nations to the Hundred Column Palace to the presence of the king.
Within the entrance hall which was originally roofed, well-polished black marble benches line the walls. The roof was supported by four columns. The capitals are stylized representations of pendants of date palm leaves and represent therefore the trunks of holy palms. Everybody Participating in the festivities entered through this gate. The nobles left through the southern doorway facing the Apadana palace, the delegations through the eastern gate which faces the mountain- The winged man-bull figures are only along the path of the Subject Nations. The narrow roadway connects the Gate of All Nations to a similar palace with four columns which probably was used as a waiting hall for the delegations before they entered the Hundred Column Palace. This roadway was walled off with a high double retaining wall of mud-brick, which obstructed any view of the Apadana and the private palaces. Only the lower remnants of this wall are preserved. If one can imagine these walls to reach the level of the head of the man-bull figure, then the massiveness and power of the structure of the Gate of All Nations will become more apparent, heightened by a narrow enclosure. Guard rooms and storage areas were on both sides of the road. A recess to the left contains two partially restored griffin capitals. These were never put on top of columns and remained in situ for unknown reasons, possibly intended for buildings yet unfinished when Alexander attacked. In a pit towards the mountain, in front of the wail separating the Apadana from the Hundred Column Palace court, rests a magnificent lion capital. Nobody knows how it got there and why it is below ground level. The function of this capital was to cradle the main roof beam. The columns were probably raised with the help of earth ramps, up which the stones were pulled to the desired height and positioned. More earth was added and the ramp heightened, until the capital could be positioned on top of the column. The earth was then dug away. The roof was then carried by the capitals in a fashion as illustrated on the royal tombs at Naqsh-e Rustam or behind Persepolis. A wooden replica has been constructed in the portico of the Persepolis Museum. A heavy cedarwood crossbeam was laid across the saddle between the two heads, protruding about 1 m. on each side. Two long beams were laid on each side, connecting two neighboring columns. The inter-space was covered with secondary wood beams, finally matting and a thick layer of earth was rolled over this construction, to form the mud roof. Lateral stabilizers fitted between the lion's ears. Everything was brightly painted. When Alexander burned Persepolis the Apadana roof fell eastwards, covering and preserving the eastern reliefs for 2100 years.
(There is another theory saying that Cyrus The Great chose the site of Persepolis, which was originally named Parsa, and the works started in 518 BC by Dariush I.) If the traveler to Iran visited only the provinces of Khuzestan and Fars, he/she would have seen what is virtually the essential heart of Iranian history. Fars (ancient Parsa) - homeland of the Persians and the source of the name so often given to the entire land -contains not only an enormous number of prehistoric sites with nearly 1,000 identified in the Marv Dasht alone, but the major Achaemenian and Sassanian remains in the country. There was probably a sizeable settlement on the site of Shiraz in the prehistoric period and cuneiform records from the great ceremonial capital of Persepolis, some 58 km. to the north, show that it was a significant township in Achaemenian times. As a city, however, it was founded in A.D. 684, after the Arab armies conquered the Sassanian provincial capital of Istakhr near Persepolis. Shiraz-Isfahan Highway approaches Persepolis or Takht-e Jamshid as it is known locally, from the west and turns sharp towards the north at the main staircase and the Gate of All Nations. The mountains behind Persepolis are in the east.
Persepolis was first scientifically excavated under the direction of Ernst Herzfeld, and later by E.F. Schmidt on behalf of the Oriental Institute of Chicago, from 1931 to 1939. In the 1940s the excavations were continued by the Iranian Archaeological Service, directed first by Andre Godard and later by Ali Sami. More recently, the excavations of the Iranian Archaeological Service have been renewed under the direction of Mr. A. Tajvidi, while, in cooperation with the Iranian authorities. Giuseppe and Ann Britt Tilia of the Istituto Italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente (ISMEO) have been patiently restoring the damaged structure. It is perhaps possible that it was Cambyses II, the son of Cyrus the Great, who chose the rock outcrops at the foot of Kuh-e Rahmat as the site of a new dynastic home. According to Professor Pope, the complex of buildings formed a ritual city whose very existence was kept secret from the outside world at a time when the glories of the other, secular, Achaemenian capitals of Susa, Babylon and Ecbatana were well known. But in fact it must be by some strange accident of history that Persepolis - know as Parsa to the Achaemenians - was never mentioned in foreign records, for it was here after all that representatives of all the varied peoples of the empire gathered to pay homage, and bring tribute, to the King of Kings, probably each spring, at the time of the ancient Nowrooz (New Year) festival. It was Alexander who destroyed the magnificent palaces, not long before the death of the last of the Achaemenians, Dariush III, in 330 B.C. A complex system of drainage and water channels cut into the foundations of the terrace suggests that the entire layout of the complex was designed in detail before any other construction work was begun. The palaces on the platform are arranged in four separate levels, each being two meters higher. On entering the platform one stands on the level reserved for the delegations. The Apadana palace and surrounding structures for the nobles are higher. The royal quarter is again a step higher. The storage rooms and administrative offices on the back are the lowest. The royal quarter is visible from all areas and should therefore be used as reference. The Staircase
Access to the Platform is by a monumental double-ramped ceremonial staircase, carved from massive blocks of stone (five steps are carved from a single block 7m. long), and shallow enough for the most important guests to be able to take their horses up. The stairs were closed at the top with gates whose hinges fitted into sockets in the floor, seen at the top of the northern flight.The arrival of the delegations was announced by trumpeters who stood at the top of the staircase in front of the Gate of All Nations. Portions of the bronze trumpets are preserved in the Persepolis Museum. The Persian and Median ushers received the delegations, led them through the Gate of All Nations to the Hundred Column Palace to the presence of the king.
The Gate of All Nations
At the head of staircase is the Gateway of All Nations, built by Xerxes I and guarded at east and west by vast bull-like colossi closely akin to the bull figures of Assyria. Above the bulls, on the inner side of the Gateway is a three-language cuneiform inscription in the main languages of the realm: Persian, Babylonian and Elamite. It says:| Great God is Ahuramazda, who has created this Earth, who has created the heaven, who has created man, who has created good things for man, who has made Xerxes King, sole King of many, sole Commander of many. I am Xerxes, Great King, King of Kings, King of lands, King of many races, King of this earth reaching even far off, son of Dariush the King, the Achaemenian. King Xerxes says: By the grace of Ahuramazda I constructed this Gateway of All Nations. Many other beautiful things were constructed in Persia. I constructed them and my father constructed them. Everything we have constructed which looks beautiful we have constructed by the grace of Ahuramazda. King Xerxes says: May Ahuramazda protect me and my kingdom and whatever is constructed by me as well as what has been constructed by may father. |
Within the entrance hall which was originally roofed, well-polished black marble benches line the walls. The roof was supported by four columns. The capitals are stylized representations of pendants of date palm leaves and represent therefore the trunks of holy palms. Everybody Participating in the festivities entered through this gate. The nobles left through the southern doorway facing the Apadana palace, the delegations through the eastern gate which faces the mountain- The winged man-bull figures are only along the path of the Subject Nations. The narrow roadway connects the Gate of All Nations to a similar palace with four columns which probably was used as a waiting hall for the delegations before they entered the Hundred Column Palace. This roadway was walled off with a high double retaining wall of mud-brick, which obstructed any view of the Apadana and the private palaces. Only the lower remnants of this wall are preserved. If one can imagine these walls to reach the level of the head of the man-bull figure, then the massiveness and power of the structure of the Gate of All Nations will become more apparent, heightened by a narrow enclosure. Guard rooms and storage areas were on both sides of the road. A recess to the left contains two partially restored griffin capitals. These were never put on top of columns and remained in situ for unknown reasons, possibly intended for buildings yet unfinished when Alexander attacked. In a pit towards the mountain, in front of the wail separating the Apadana from the Hundred Column Palace court, rests a magnificent lion capital. Nobody knows how it got there and why it is below ground level. The function of this capital was to cradle the main roof beam. The columns were probably raised with the help of earth ramps, up which the stones were pulled to the desired height and positioned. More earth was added and the ramp heightened, until the capital could be positioned on top of the column. The earth was then dug away. The roof was then carried by the capitals in a fashion as illustrated on the royal tombs at Naqsh-e Rustam or behind Persepolis. A wooden replica has been constructed in the portico of the Persepolis Museum. A heavy cedarwood crossbeam was laid across the saddle between the two heads, protruding about 1 m. on each side. Two long beams were laid on each side, connecting two neighboring columns. The inter-space was covered with secondary wood beams, finally matting and a thick layer of earth was rolled over this construction, to form the mud roof. Lateral stabilizers fitted between the lion's ears. Everything was brightly painted. When Alexander burned Persepolis the Apadana roof fell eastwards, covering and preserving the eastern reliefs for 2100 years.
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