United States
Iran Travel and Destination Guide
PERSEPOLIS
57km NE of Shiraz
Persepolis, the Throne of Jamshid, was a massive and magnificent palace complex built from about 512 BC and completed over the next 150 years. This magnificent site embodies the greatest successes of the ancient Achaemenid Empire, exemplified by the monumental staircases, exquisite reliefs, immense columns and imposing gateways.
Persepolis was burnt to the ground during Alexander the Great's time, in 331 BC, although historians are divided about whether it was accidental or in retaliation for the destruction of Athens by Xerxes. The ruins you see today, rediscovered in the early 1930s, are a mere shadow of Persepolis' former glory, but you can still get a great idea of its majesty if you carry a map and use a bit of imagination.
One of the first things you'll see is Xerxes' Gateway, covered with inscriptions and carvings in Elamite and other ancient languages. The gateway leads to the immense Apadana Palace complex, where the kings received visitors and celebrations were held. Plenty of gold and silver was discovered in the palace, but it was predictably looted by Alexander the Great, and what he left behind is in the National Museum in Tehran.
The largest hall in Persepolis was the Palace of 100 Columns, probably one of the biggest buildings constructed during the Achaemenian period, and once used as a reception hall for Darius I.
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