Persepolis (pərsĕp`əlĭs) [Gr.,=city of Persia], ancient city of Persia, ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Achaemenids (ăk'əmĕn`ĭdz), dynasty of ancient Persia.
..... Click the link for more information. empire under Darius I and his successors. The administrative capitals were elsewhere, notably at Susa Susa (s
`zə, –sə), ancient city, capital of Elam .
..... Click the link for more information. and Babylon Babylon (băb`əlŏn), ancient city of Mesopotamia.
..... Click the link for more information. . The ruins of Persepolis lie 30 mi (48 km) NE of Shiraz in a fertile plain of the Pulvar River, with strong natural mountain defenses. There are ruins of the palaces of Darius I, Xerxes, and later kings as well as the citadel that contained the treasury looted by Alexander; the ruins lie on a huge platform constructed of limestone from the adjacent mountain. A few miles distant are the rock-hewn tombs of Achaemenid kings and monuments of the Sassanids on a mountainside called by the natives Naqsh-e-Rostam or Naksh-i Rustam [pictures of Rustam] for the legendary Persian hero Rustam. In the same place there is a 3,000-year-old inscription of Shutruk-Nakhkhunte, a famous Elamite king (c.1207–1171 B.C.). Scattered over the plain, a short distance from the platform of Persepolis, are the ruins of Stakhr or Estakhr, the official capital of the Sassanids Sassanid, Sasanid (both: săs`ənĭd), or Sassanian
..... Click the link for more information. , whose administrative capital was Ctesiphon Ctesiphon (tĕs`ĭfŏn', tē`sĭ–)
..... Click the link for more information. . Excavations have disclosed, 2 mi (3 km) away, a village of the Neolithic period, with mural decorations in red ocher that date back to about 4000 B.C.
Persepolis
..... Click the link for more information. empire under Darius I and his successors. The administrative capitals were elsewhere, notably at Susa Susa (s
`zə, –sə), ancient city, capital of Elam ...... Click the link for more information. and Babylon Babylon (băb`əlŏn), ancient city of Mesopotamia.
..... Click the link for more information. . The ruins of Persepolis lie 30 mi (48 km) NE of Shiraz in a fertile plain of the Pulvar River, with strong natural mountain defenses. There are ruins of the palaces of Darius I, Xerxes, and later kings as well as the citadel that contained the treasury looted by Alexander; the ruins lie on a huge platform constructed of limestone from the adjacent mountain. A few miles distant are the rock-hewn tombs of Achaemenid kings and monuments of the Sassanids on a mountainside called by the natives Naqsh-e-Rostam or Naksh-i Rustam [pictures of Rustam] for the legendary Persian hero Rustam. In the same place there is a 3,000-year-old inscription of Shutruk-Nakhkhunte, a famous Elamite king (c.1207–1171 B.C.). Scattered over the plain, a short distance from the platform of Persepolis, are the ruins of Stakhr or Estakhr, the official capital of the Sassanids Sassanid, Sasanid (both: săs`ənĭd), or Sassanian
..... Click the link for more information. , whose administrative capital was Ctesiphon Ctesiphon (tĕs`ĭfŏn', tē`sĭ–)
..... Click the link for more information. . Excavations have disclosed, 2 mi (3 km) away, a village of the Neolithic period, with mural decorations in red ocher that date back to about 4000 B.C.
Bibliography
See E. F. Schmidt, Persepolis (3 vol., 1953–70); M. Wheeler, Flames over Persepolis (1968); D. N. Wilbur, Persepolis, the Archaeology of Parsa (1969).
Persepolis
Ancient Persian city, northeast of modern Shiraz, Iran. It was built in a remote and mountainous area during the reign of Darius I, who made it the capital of Persia, replacing Pasargadae. In 330 BC Alexander the Great plundered the city and burned the palace of Xerxes I. The city's ruins cover an extensive area and comprise a number of colossal buildings, including palaces of early Persian kings, a great staircase, an audience hall, and a treasury.
Persepolis
the capital of ancient Persia in the Persian Empire and under the Seleucids: founded by Darius; sacked by Alexander the Great in 330 bc
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