Persepolis: Ancient Persian Capitals, Architecture & Darius I’s Legacy

The Persians created a world empire, and as part of their administrative system, they created several capitals, the most famous of this was Persepolis. Persepolis, whose name comes from the Greek meaning “city of Persia,” lies southwest of Iran near the Pulvar River, on a natural terrace with additional manmade levels located at the Rahmat Mountain. The earliest remains date to about 515 during the reign of Darius I, although the founder of the Persian Empire, Cyrus, may have decided upon its location. Unlike Greek cities with a civilian population in addition to an administrative component, Persepolis appears to have been only a royal capital, although its remote location did not make it the primary administrative center (that was Susa). The Persians established several capitals, notably Ecbatana and Babylon, as well as Persepolis and Susa. At Persepolis, each of the Persian kings from Darius I on would erect a palace in their name.

Relief of Persian guards, at Persepolis

Darius began the construction of the imperial capital, and his son, Xerxes, finished the major components. The first part of the construction was the broad or double staircase on the western side of the Great Wall, which was probably meant to be the monumental entrance. The 111 stairs were twenty-three feet wide, with a rise of only about four inches to potentially allow guests to enter regally and with dignity. The staircases could accommodate ten horsemen riding abreast. The stairs ended on the terrace opposite a four-column square building, the Gate of All Nations, with an entrance on the west side paired by massive bulls and an eastern gate with two Lamassu, a Sumerian female deity having a human head, the body of a bull or lion, and bird wings. These colossal statues had above the entrance a trilingual inscription stating that Xerxes built the entranceway.

A doorway on the south side was the widest and led to the Apadana. This building by Darius was one of the oldest at Persepolis. It was the main hall of the kings, supported by sixty-five feet -high columns, a hypostyle or a space where the roof rests on columns without arches, where the king received visitors, mainly tribute from the subject nations. The main entrances were marked by staircases on the north and east sides decorated with scenes of the twenty-three subject nations or satrapies to Darius I, who is represented sitting on a throne. The scenes provide insight into the costumes and dress of the various nations. The Apadana was about 11,000 square feet with its roof supported by a total of seventy-two columns, of which only thirteen remained intact by the early twentieth century CE. Each side was about 200 feet long, and the columns had capitals with animal motifs. On the western, northern, and eastern sides were porticoes, each with two rows of six columns; on the south side were storage rooms, while at the far ends were staircases.

At each corner were towers, probably for protection, and under each of the four corners of the palace were tablets of gold and silver detailing its foundation. Staircases were built on all sides and were inlaid with carvings of the Immortals or Royal Guards who protected the king. The remaining building on the terrace was the Throne Room or Hall of Honor, measuring 230 feet by 230 feet , also called the 100-column building east of the Apadana. Its construction was started by Xerxes I and completed by his son, Artaxerxes I. The hall had eight doorways, with those on the east and west depicting the king battling monsters and the north and south showing throne reliefs. Xerxes used it as a reception hall for the military commanders and subject-nations.

To the south of the Apadana, on a terrace, was the Palace of Darius or Tachara, begun by king Darius and completed by his son, Xerxes. Tachara in Persian means “winter palace” and the name may point to its construction as the official home of the king when he visited Persepolis, even for brief periods. It was the smallest building on the terrace and measured about 12,500 square feet. It was the oldest palace and constructed of gray stone with walls of black polished stone.

The main room was fifty feet by fifty feet, with three rows of four columns. The building had reliefs of subjects and depicted Darius at the main door wearing a crenellated crown covered with sheets of gold. Its main function was probably ceremonial. Farther south of the Tachara was the Hadish Palace of Xerxes I, which was twice as large. It had a large room with thirty-six columns and was surrounded by six smaller rooms, three on the east and three on the west. On the north was a portico. This was most likely the living quarters of most of the Persian kings, beginning with Xerxes I, and it was here that the palace fire probably started during the reign of Alexander the Great. The palace is on the highest level of terraces.

Near the palace were tombs dedicated to the Persian kings starting with Darius I, since Cyrus the Great and most likely his son, Cambyses, were buried at the ancient capital of Pasargadae. There were five tombs cut into the rock cliff, which were for Darius I, Xerxes I, Artaxerxes I, Darius II, and probably Darius III (the latter brought back by Alexander the Great from the east). On top of one tomb, a relief stated that it was the tomb of Darius I. The tombs were carved into the side of the mountain, and Darius I’s entrance simulated a palace facade, with four slender columns around the entrance. On the facade’s roof, representations of the subject nations supported a dais with the king worshipping the chief Persian deity Ahura-Mazda and the moon. Behind the palace at Persepolis were two graves, probably for Artaxerxes II and III.

The Medes had dominated the Persians until Cyrus defeated them, took over their related tribe, the Medes, and dominated them. The Median capital was Ecbatana, and under the Persian kings it became the summer palace, as opposed to Persepolis being the winter palace. Ecbatana does not have many remains, but a wall from the Median period existed. According to Herodotus, the city was surrounded by seven concentric walls. During the Persian period, it became the archives for the empire.

Another capital existed at Susa, in the southwestern part near the Zagros Mountains. It originally was the capital of the Elam kingdom. The city was ancient and strategic in the Near East, dating back to at least 4000. The Assyrians controlled Susa from 647 to 617, when the Medes took the city over. The city was captured by Cyrus in 540-539. The conquest of Susa allowed the Persians to move into the rich Mesopotamia region and make it the gateway to Babylon. Cyrus’s son, Cambyses, made the city one of Persia’s four capitals, probably at the expense of Pasargadae. Cambyses’s successor, Darius, began a major construction program, part of which included a new palace that became the primary winter residence for the Persian kings. The city remained important throughout the Persian period.

To the west was the last of the capitals, the city of Babylon. In 539, Cyrus moved from Susa to Babylon and quickly defeated King Nabonidus, who had incurred the wrath of the priests of Marduk. Babylon became the center of Persian culture and a leading city of learning for the empire. Although the city initially attempted to retain its independence, it became disaffected with Persian rule and eagerly accepted Alexander the Great.

The capitals of Persia, including the conquered cities of Ecbatana, Susa, and Babylon, allowed the Persian Empire to maintain control over its major regions.

Babylon controlled the access to Palestine and Egypt; the Royal Road was constructed by Darius I to link the capital of Susa with Sardis in the Asia Minor and the Aegean. The road connected the exterior with the interior, allowing couriers to ride the 1,700 miles in nine days. The road also ran near the third capital, Ecbatana, so that couriers could arrive from the west. Ecbatana allowed access to the north, while Persepolis controlled the regions to the east, most notably Bactria. The Persian capitals allowed its kings to control the vast Persian Empire, the first true world empire, and connected the east and west.