PERSEPOLIS, PERSIAN ANCIENT,THE AUDIENCE HALL OF KINGS DARIUS THE GREAT AND KING XERXES,PERSEPOLIS FROM GREEK LANGUAGE "PERSIAN CITY",THE GLITTERING CAPITAL OF THE ACHAEMENID EMPIRE.PERSEPOLIS WAS CAPTURED BY ALEXANDER THE GREAT ,BEFORE HE LEFT THE CITY,HE ORDERED THE PALACE BURNED TO THE GROUND.(LATER ALEXANDER THE GREAT MARRIED PERSIAN PRINCESS,ROXANA)

Achaemenid Empire was founded by a man of extraordinary leadership abilities – Cyrus the Great and it replaced the previos regional power – the Median Empire. This was the largest empire in its time, stretching from the present day Lybia, Sudan and Greece to India and Uzbekistan. Achaemenid Empire was a multicultural empire with autonomy of satrapies (regions) and freedom of religion. At the times of Cyrus Persians – recent nomadic people – only learned to build monumental structures.The greatest palace in Persepolis, built by Darius I and Xerxes I in 515 – 475 BC. Palace was used for official audiences and could host up to 10,000 people! Grand hall of the palace was 60 by 60 m large, with 72 ornate columns, each 19 m high (13 remain standing). Columns were holding the heavy roof of this enormous structure.

Persepolis is named after the ancient Persian capital, Persepolis. The remains of this capital date back to 515 BC, during Cyrus the Great’s rule over the then country of Persia. To the ancient Persians, the city was known as Pārsa, which means "The City of Persians". Persepolis is the Greek interpretation of the name  (Persēs polis: "Persian city").The Persian history is also known as the Iranian history has its roots spread in the Iran, Iraq, Turkey, and Damascus, etc. The city of Persepolis is the cultural heritage of the Persian culture because it found its roots in King Darius period. It is an architectural heritage.Its earliest name was Parsa in the ancient Persian, while the modern name translated in English means the city of Persia.There is a belief that a mythological figure named as Jamshid built it and it was named at Takht-e- Jamshid on his behalf.The palace was chosen by Cyrus the great, but the palaces and terrace were built originally in the Darius I Era.He ordered the construction of the town hall and the terrace. A large staircase was later built in the era of Darius I’s son. The staircase opened into a yard and was believed to be the stairway that could be used by the nobles and the dignitaries while they are riding on their horseback.The material used in the construction along with stone was the gray limestone. The sewage system consisted of tunnels dug deep down with the help of a rock.The water storage tank was built at the eastern foot of the mountain. Persepolis;The Audience Hall of Darius and Xerxes;Persepolis was once the richest city on earth - the glittering capital of the Achaemenid Empire. At the heart of the city lay the royal palace - a wonder of gold and silver, ivory, and precious stones. From there, Xerxes planned his war against Greece - and the treasure of a vast empire piled up in the store-rooms.In 330 BCE, Persepolis was captured by Alexander the Great. Before he left the city, he ordered the palace burned to the ground .Achaemenid Empire was founded by a man of extraordinary leadership abilities – Cyrus the Great and it replaced the previos regional power – the Median Empire. This was the largest empire in its time, stretching from the present day Lybia, Sudan and Greece to India and Uzbekistan. Achaemenid Empire was a multicultural empire with autonomy of satrapies (regions) and freedom of religion. At the times of Cyrus Persians – recent nomadic people – only learned to build monumental structures.The end of the empire was brought by another distinguished personality – Alexander the Great, who conquered the capitals of Persia – Persepolis, Susa and Ecbatana – in 331 – 330 BC.The magnificent empire needed representative capital city for the ceremonies of imperial importance – and for this there was built entirely new city – Persepolis.The Achaemenid Empire (First Persian Empire) was an imperial state of Western Asia founded by Cyrus the Great and flourishing from c. 550-330 B.C.E. The empire’s territory was vast, stretching from the Balkan peninsula in the west to the Indus River valley in the east. The Achaemenid Empire is notable for its strong, centralized bureaucracy that had, at its head, a king and relied upon regional satraps (regional governors).A number of formerly independent states were made subject to the Persian Empire. These states covered a vast territory from central Asia and Afghanistan in the east to Asia Minor, Egypt, Libya, and Macedonia in the west. The Persians famously attempted to expand their empire further to include mainland Greece but they were ultimately defeated in this attempt. The Persian kings are noted for their penchant for monumental art and architecture. In creating monumental centers, including Persepolis, the Persian kings employed art and architecture to craft messages that helped to reinforce their claims to power and depict, iconographically, Persian rule.Persepolis, the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Persian empire (c. 550-330 B.C.E.), lies some 60 km northeast of Shiraz, Iran. Persepolis was intentionally founded in the Marvdašt Plain during the later part of the sixth century B.C.E. It was marked as a special site by Darius the Great (reigned 522-486 B.C.E.) in 518 B.C.E. when he indicated the location of a “Royal Hill” that would serve as a ceremonial center and citadel for the city. This was an action on Darius’ part that was similar to the earlier king Cyrus the Great who had founded the city of Pasargadae. Darius the Great directed a massive building program at Persepolis that would continue under his successors Xerxes ( 486-466 B.C.E.) and Artaxerxes I (466-424 B.C.E.). Persepolis would remain an important site until it was sacked, looted, and burned under Alexander the Great of Macedon in 330 B.C.E.

The king of the Achaemenid Persian empire is presumed to have received guests and tribute in this soaring, imposing space. To that end a sculptural program decorates monumental stairways on the north and east. The theme of that program is one that pays tribute to the Persian king himself as it depicts representatives of 23 subject nations bearing gifts to the king.Persepolis is named after the ancient Persian capital, Persepolis. The remains of this capital date back to 515 BC, during Cyrus the Great’s rule over the then country of Persia. The Persian history is also known as the Iranian history has its roots spread in the Iran, Iraq, Turkey, and Damascus, etc. The city of Persepolis is the cultural heritage of the Persian culture because it found its roots in King Darius period. It is an architectural heritage.Its earliest name was Parsa in the ancient Persian, while the modern name translated in English means the city of Persia.There is a belief that a mythological figure named as Jamshid built it and it was named at Takht-e- Jamshid on his behalf.Its history dates back to 515 BC. A French archeologist has proposed a theory that the place for the construction of the palace was chosen by Cyrus the great, but the palaces and terrace were built originally in the Darius I Era.He ordered the construction of the town hall and the terrace. A large staircase was later built in the era of Darius I’s son. The staircase opened into a yard and was believed to be the stairway that could be used by the nobles and the dignitaries while they are riding on their horseback.The material used in the construction along with stone was the gray limestone. The sewage system consisted of tunnels dug deep down with the help of a rock.The water storage tank was built at the eastern foot of the mountain. There is a belief that they have built three walls for the defense purposes, though there are no remains of these walls now.The destruction of the palace came when it was attacked by Alexander the Great and his army. At the first attack, they were defeated. After 30 days, another attack was done and this time they conquered. Some say that the alternate route of the palace was given by a tribal leader who was under arrest by the Alexandrian forces. The palace was set on fire and its ruins were discovered and identified later by the historians. It is believed that the fire was revenge from Xerxes, I who burned the Athens about 150 years ago before the burning of Persepolis.The great hall is known as the entrance of the palace and it has a square yard and four pillars. The apadana is the greatest palace that was built on the orders of Xerxes I. It took 30 years to complete and was built to interact with the audiences. It is also a part of the ruins and a statue of Persian mastiff was taken from the palace to the heritage museum of Iran.   By the early fifth century B.C.E. the Achaemenid (Persian) Empire ruled an estimated 44% of the human population of planet Earth. Through regional administrators the Persian kings controlled a vast territory which they constantly sought to expand. Famous for monumental architecture, Persian kings established numerous monumental centers, among those is Persepolis (today, in Iran). The great audience hall of the Persian kings Darius and Xerxes presents a visual microcosm of the Achaemenid empire—making clear, through sculptural decoration, that the Persian king ruled over all of the subjugated ambassadors and vassals.Darius’ program at Persepolis including the building of a massive terraced platform covering 125,000 square meters of the promontory. This platform supported four groups of structures: residential quarters, a treasury, ceremonial palaces, and fortifications. Scholars continue to debate the purpose and nature of the site. Primary sources indicate that Darius saw himself building an important stronghold. Some scholars suggest that the site has a sacred connection to the god Mithra as well as links to the Nowruz, the Persian New Year’s festival. More general readings see Persepolis as an important administrative and economic center of the Persian empire.The Apādana palace is a large ceremonial building, likely an audience hall with an associated portico. The footprint of the Apādana is c. 1,000 square meters; originally 72 columns, each standing to a height of 24 meters, supported the roof (only 14 columns remain standing today). The column capitals assumed the form of either twin-headed bulls (above), eagles or lions, all animals represented royal authority and kingshipThe monumental stairways that approach the Apādana from the north and the east were adorned with registers of relief sculpture that depicted representatives of the twenty-three subject nations of the Persian empire bringing valuable gifts as tribute to the king. The sculptures form a processional scene, leading some scholars to conclude that the reliefs capture the scene of actual, annual tribute processions—perhaps on the occasion of the Persian New Year--that took place at Persepolis. The relief program of the northern stairway was perhaps completed c. 500-490 B.C.E. The two sets of stairway reliefs mirror and complement each other. Each program has a central scene of the enthroned king flanked by his attendants and guards.The relief program of the Apādana serves to reinforce and underscore the power of the Persian king and the breadth of his dominion. The motif of subjugated peoples contributing their wealth to the empire’s central authority serves to visually cement this political dominance. These processional scenes may have exerted influence beyond the Persian sphere, as some scholars have discussed the possibility that Persian relief sculpture from Persepolis may have influenced Athenian sculptors of the fifth century B.C.E. who were tasked with creating the Ionic frieze of the Parthenon in Athens. In any case, the Apādana, both as a building and as an ideological tableau, make clear and strong statements about the authority of the Persian king and present a visually unified idea of the immense Achaemenid empire.In the times of Cyrus the Great (559 – 530 BC) Persepolis did not exist yet (or was rather insignificant) and capital was in Pasargadae.In 450 B.C. a large Athenian fleet made a new attack on Cyprus. It gained a victory but lost its leader Cimon, who died in Citium (Plutarch, Cimon 18.1-19.4). Artaxerxes sent as envoys to Athens his successful generals of the Egyptian campaign, Artabazus and Megabyzus. In reply an Athenian delegation led by Callias came to Susa; in the winter of 449-48 the so-called peace of Callias (or Cimon) was negotiated (Herodotus 7.151; Thucydides 1.112.2-4; Diodorus 12.2.3-4.6, 26.2; Cornelius Nepos, Cimon 3.4; Plutarch, Cimon 13.4-6). The basis for settlement was the status quo ante, whereby Persians and Athenians delimited their respective spheres of rule. Athens gave up Egypt, Cyprus, and the Ionian cities on the Anatolian coast (these being now autonomous), while the Persians promised not to advance an army beyond the Halys river or to send their larger ships beyond Phaselis in Pamphylia or beyond the “dark rocks” at the entrance to the Euxine Sea. Callias regarded this treaty, contrary to common Athenian opinion, as a diplomatic victory. While it manifests the results of Persian diplomacy and Greek corruptibility, it also indicates the decline of the Persian empire. In 440-39 Athens broke the treaty by attacking Samos, then at war with Miletus. Pericles had already sent Athenian reinforcements to the latter state (under democratic government), while the satrap of Lydia, Pissuthnes, had responded by aiding the oligarchic Samos and then Athens tried to enter into relations with the Persian Great King; but no treaty had been achieved when Artaxerxes died in the prime of life in 424-23. The generally accepted date of his death in 425-24 seems based on the Babylonian Nabonassar era; but the sources show some confusion about the length of his reign: Ctesias, for instance, gives 42 years, Diodorus 40. The chronology is complicated by the brief and officially unrecognized reigns of Artapanus before, and of Xerxes II and Sogdianus after his own.Artaxerxes’ queen was Damaspia (Ctesias F 15), who bore his legal heir and successor, Xerxes. The king had 17 other sons by his concubines, who included the Babylonians Alogune, mother of Secudianus/Sogdianus, q.v.); Cosmartidene, mother of Arsites; and Andria [not Andia], mother of Bagapaeus and princess Parysatis. Parysatis married her half brother Darius II Nothus, who was another son of a Babylonian concubine .Artaxerxes’ own building activity included the completion of the throne hall (the “Hall of 100 columns”) in Persepolis—a project begun by his father. His Akkadian and Old Persian inscription.Artaxerxes I (465 – 424 BC) – son of Xerxes – moved the capital of Persia from Persepolis to the ancient metropolis – Babylon. He introduced many faresighted reforms. In his time the main language of the empire became Aramaic instead of the former Elamite, Zoroastrianism became the main religion. When Artaxerxes died in 424 BC, his body was brought to Persepolis – what shows that the city had an important symbolic role anyway.For a few weeks the empire was governed by Xerxes II (424 BC) – son of Artaxerxes. He was assassinated soon after.There is rather little known about the next emperor – Darius II (423 – 404 BC).Artaxerxes II Memnon (404 – 358 BC) – son of Darius II – moved the capital back to Persepolis. He is remembered as treacherous and lewd ruler (f.e. he married several of his own daughters and had more than 115 sons from 350 wives), but he also loved to show off with magnificent construction projects – albeit none in Peresepolis. Zoroastrianism flourished in his times. Inhabitants of the empire had to pay one tenth of income to the nearest temple. In his time there started to appear images of gods – before it was considered that gods are not men and can not be depicted.In the times of Artaxerxes III (358 – 338 BC) – son of Artaxerxes II – the empire became less stable and experienced many revolts. By the end of his reign the true ruler of Persia was the vizier Bagoas – a "grey eminence" of the empire. In the times of Artaxerxes III there was ongoing active construction in Persepolis, but such magnificent structures as the Hall of Thirty Two Columns and the Palace of Artaxerxes III were left unfinished.Artaxerxes IV Arses (338 – 336 BC) was intended as puppet-king by Bagoas – but, as the young king tried to get rid of Bagoas, he was killed.The last emperor of Achaemenid Empire was Darius III (336 – 330 AD). Bagoas installed him as the emperor and soon after tried to poison him. This time the plot was stopped on time and Bagoas was poisoned himself. From the middle of the seventeenth century, when Europeans first began freely to penetrate the East, the Persian ruins, especially those of Persepolis, drew the marked attention of travelers. Some of the more famous sites are .

Second largest structure in Persepolis is the Throne Hall – imperial army’s hall of honour. The construction of this 70 by 70 m large building was started by Xerxes and completed by Artaxerxes I. The remaining ruins of the building are covered with valuable bas-reliefs, showing the scenes of the emperor’s heroic accomplishments.Below the ground are built tunnels for sewage. Aerial photography shows that Persepolis had intricate underground water supply system of quanats – sophisticated underground canals.