Ancient

Achaemenid foundations, ceremonial complexes and royal tombs.

6 entries

Persepolis — Ceremonial capital of the Achaemenids with grand staircases and iconic bas-reliefs.

Pasargadae — Early imperial capital featuring the Tomb of Cyrus the Great and proto-Persian garden layout.

Naqsh-e Rostam — Royal necropolis with cliff-cut tombs and Sasanian investiture reliefs.

Chogha Zanbil — The great stepped temple of the Elamite king Untash-Napirisha, one of the best-preserved ziggurats in the world.

Takht-e Soleyman — The great fire temple of the Sasanian kings, built around a deep spring-fed lake on a volcanic plateau.

Bisotun — Darius the Great's relief and trilingual inscription, carved high on a cliff on the road from Mesopotamia to the plateau.