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Persepolis - Palace of Xerxes |
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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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The palace of Xerxes at Persepolis, called Hadiš in Persian, 'dwelling place', was twice as large as the Palace of Darius. A terrace connected the two royal houses. This picture shows Xerxes' palace (to the right), seen from the palace of Darius. The stairs are the best-preserved part of the complex. Here you can see it on a satellite photo. |
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The central part of the stairs show Ahuramazda, flanked by two sphinxes, an inscription and several soldiers, which are sometimes called "apple bearers" or Immortals. | |
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Faravahar, the visual aspect of Ahuramazda. | |
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One of the sphinxes. | |
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An inscription. The remainder of the palace is, compared to the palace of Darius, badly damaged. A likely explanation is that it received a special treatment when the Macedonian king Alexander the Great destroyed Persepolis in 330. His men were especially interested in the palace of the man who had once sacked Athens. | |
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This relief of the great king leaving the palace is an example of the destruction. The damages from the right are partly due to natural causes, but the face has been destroyed with a hammer, and someone must have made a great effort to create a hole near the king's ear. It was probably meant for a piece of cork that would have been wetted with vinegar. When heated, the cork would start to dilate and would ultimately blow the stone to pieces - a common practice in ancient stone quarries. For one reason or another, the cork and vinegar were never used. | |
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Yet, not everything is destroyed. This picture shows the main room, seen from the southeast. It had 36 columns and was surrounded by six smaller rooms: three to the east, and three to the west. The columns on the right-hand side of this picture belong to the Apadana. | |
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To the north of Xerxes' palace was a portico, facing the Apadana. (Later, king Artaxerxes III Ochus constructed a palace between the two buildings.) This is the entrance to Xerxes' palace. The portico is to the left, the central hall to the right. The relief shows how the king leaves the building, attended by people carrying a parasol and a fan. Comparable reliefs can be found in the Palace of Darius. | |
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The inscription (XPe),
in Persian, Elamite and Babylonian,
says:
Xerxes, the great king, the king of kings,There are almost similar inscriptions which mention Xerxes' father Darius (DPb). According to the inscription known as A1Pa, the palace was completed by Artaxerxes I Makrocheir, the son and successor of Xerxes. |
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