: Iran : photos Persepolis : text Persepolis : photos by Marco Prins; text Jona Lendering ©
Persepolis - Terrace
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Persepolis - Terrace |
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| Unless otherwise indicated, pictures on this page © Marco Prins and Jona Lendering. Photos can be downloaded and used for non-commercial purposes, but you have to acknowledge Livius. | ||
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This picture shows the terrace of Persepolis, seen from the southwest. This enormous artificial platform measures 450x300 meters and the central part (to the left on this photo) is 18 meters high. It belongs to the first building phase of the city, which is usually dated to 518-490. The Treasury and the Apadana belong to the same period. | |
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Persepolis is built on the spur of a rock called Mount Mercy. This picture shows how the original rock (with the diagonal layers) was cut away and how the terrace, made of square blocks, was built on top of it. The inner core of the terrace was made of boulders, pieces of rock, and other stones. You can see the core in the center of the first picture. | |
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This photo, from the west, tells more or less the same story. The spur of rock was cut away, large square blocks were erected on top of it, creating an impressive wall. Similar structures can be seen at Dascylium, although the stones in the satrapal capital of Hellespontine Phrygia are more regular. The columns on this picture belong to the Apadana. | |
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The southern part of the terrace is lower. The buildings over here, sometimes called Harem, were used by personnel. They are lower than the palaces - out of sight. (The same applies for the villa of the Roman emperor Hadrian at Tivoli: the store rooms and slaves' appartments are at the lower level.) The structure on the upper terrace is the Palace of Xerxes. | |
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The platform, seen from the southeast. | |
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On the southern retaining wall, an inscription was made: two parts (DPd and DPe) are in Persian, and describe the building project and the dimensions of the Achaemenid Empire. They are summarized in Elamite and Babylonian (DPf and DPg). Probably, this was the original entrance of the complex. | |
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The terrace wall seen from above, close to the Apadana. | |
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The "horns" at the terrace wall near the Palace of Artaxerxes I. No one knows the significance of these, but perhaps looking for significance is just a wrong approach. Maybe the horns are just decoration without any deeper meaning. | |
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This is one of the canals in the terrace. The water supply was among the first things that was created. | |
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One of the water conduits, now in the museum of Persepolis. | |
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The terrace from the north. | |
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Two final images: the entire terrace, seen from the air. And a satellite photo can be found here. |
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