Persepolis
Pārsa
Iran · Fars
In brief
The palace complex, begun by Darius I around 518 BC, was one of the important centers of Achaemenid rule. Excavations revealed palaces, fortifications and tablet archives documenting the administration of the empire.
What was found?
- 1Administrative clay tablets
Tablets from the fortification and treasury archives record the distribution of goods and food, as well as payments. The Elamite documents in particular illuminate the everyday workings of imperial administration.
- 2Apadana stairway reliefs
The reliefs depict gift-bearing delegations representing different communities. They show how the monarchy represented the peoples of the empire.
- 3Gold and silver foundation plaques
Plaques bearing Darius's trilingual inscriptions were found in stone boxes in the foundations of Apadana. The inscriptions document the king's identity and the extent of his dominion in his own words.
- 4Monumental terrace and palace remains
Large palace buildings stood on a terrace that was partly natural and partly human-made. The remains show the monumental architecture of the Achaemenids and their ability to combine different building traditions.
What does it point to?
Persepolis suggests that a detailed system of recordkeeping and distribution lay behind the monarchy's magnificent public representation. The reliefs show how the monarchy presented itself, while the tablets show the practical arrangements made for workers and travelers.
What did it teach us?
- It revealed that the distribution of provisions to workers, officials, and travelers was recorded in detail.
- It enabled researchers to study Achaemenid administration through everyday administrative documents as well as royal inscriptions.
- The architecture and reliefs showed that different cultural traditions were combined in a shared royal art.
Images
Record
- Culture
- Achaemenid
- First modern dig
- 1874
- Team / historical
- Parsa-Pasargadae Research Foundation; Iranian-French and Iranian-Italian research missions
- Coordinates
- 29.9344°, 52.8903°
Sources
- whc.unesco.org
- iranicaonline.org
- archeologie.culture.gouv.fr
- UNESCO Dünya Mirası Merkezi
- University of Chicago ISAC — Persepolis Fortification Tablets
- University of Chicago ISAC — Ancient Iran in the ISAC Museum
Nearby excavations
- Pasargadae 39 km
- Tepe Yahya 425 km
- Tepe Sialk 470 km
- Chogha Zanbil 476 km
- Konar Sandal 502 km
- Susa 508 km
- —
- —
- 12.000
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All excavation sites (395)
Türkiye
- Acemhöyük
- Aizanoi
- Alabanda
- Alacahöyük
- Amos
- Ani
- Aphrodisias
- Arslantepe Mound
- Aspendos
- Assos
- Ayanis Fortress
- Aşıklı Höyük
- Barcın Höyük
- Blaundus
- Boncuklu Höyük
- Can Hasan I
- Carchemish
- Claros Sanctuary
- Clazomenae
- Domuztepe
- Ephesus
- Euromus
- Gordion
- Göbekli Tepe
- Hadrianopolis in Paphlagonia
- Hattusha
- Hierapolis
- Iasos
- Kaman-Kalehöyük
- Karahantepe
- Karatepe-Aslantaş
- Kaunos
- Kibyra
- Knidos
- Kültepe-Kanesh
- Laodicea on the Lycus
- Letoon Sanctuary
- Limyra
- Magnesia on the Maeander
- Medieval City of Beçin
- Metropolis in Ionia
- Miletus
- Myra
- Nemrut Dağ
- Nysa on the Maeander
- Olympus in Lycia
- Oymaağaç Höyük — Nerik
- Patara
- Pergamon
- Perge
- Phaselis
- Priene
- Sagalassos
- Sanctuary of Apollo at Didyma
- Sanctuary of Labraunda
- Sapinuwa
- Sardis
- Sayburç
- Side
- Stratonikeia
- Tell Atchana – Alalakh
- Teos
- Tripolis on the Meander
- Troy
- Uluburun Shipwreck
- Xanthos
- Yenikapı – Theodosian Harbour Excavations
- Yeşilova Höyük
- Yumuktepe
- Zerzevan Castle
- Zeugma
- Zincirli Höyük — Sam'al
- Çatalhöyük
- Çavuştepe Fortress
- Çayönü
- Çukuriçi Höyük

