text:
Constantine the Great and Christianity
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Raphael's The Baptism of Constantine depicts Sylvester I instead of Arian bishop Eusebius of Nicomedia, Constantine's actual baptizer.
During the reign of the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great (AD 306–337), Christianity began to transition to the dominant religion of the Roman Empire. Historians remain uncertain about Constantine's reasons for favoring Christianity, and theologians and historians have often argued about which form of early Christianity he subscribed to. There is no consensus among scholars as to whether he adopted his mother Helena's Christianity in his youth, or, as claimed by Eusebius, encouraged her to convert to the faith himself. Some scholars question the extent to which he should be considered a Christian emperor: "Constantine saw himself as an 'emperor of the Christian people'. If this made him a Christian is the subject of ... debate,"[1][2][attribution needed] although he allegedly received a baptism shortly before his death.[3]
Constantine's decision to cease the persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire was a turning point for early Christianity, sometimes referred to as the Triumph of the Church, the Peace of the Church or the Constantinian shift. In 313, Constantine and Licinius issued the Edict of Milan decriminalizing Christian worship. The emperor became a great patron of the Church and set a precedent for the position of the Christian emperor within the Church and the notion of orthodoxy, Christendom, ecumenical councils, and the state church of the Roman Empire declared by edict in 380. He is revered as a saint and isapostolos in the Eastern Orthodox Church, Oriental Orthodox Church, and various Eastern Catholic Churches for his example as a "Christian monarch."
Contents
[hide]
1 Before Constantine
2 Conversion
2.1 Battle of Milvian Bridge
2.2 Edict of Milan
3 Patronage of the Church
3.1 Public office
3.2 Legal reforms
3.3 Early Christian Bibles
4 Christian emperorship
4.1 Enforcement of doctrine
4.2 Suppression of other religions
4.3 Persian relations
5 Constantinian shift
6 See also
7 Notes and references
8 Further reading
9 External links
Before Constantine[edit]
Main article: Early Christianity
See also: Persecution of early Christians in the Roman Empire and Diocletianic Persecution
The first recorded official persecution of Christians on behalf of the Roman Empire was in AD 64, when, as reported by the Roman historian Tacitus, Emperor Nero attempted to blame Christians for the Great Fire of Rome. According to Church tradition, it was during the reign of Nero that Peter and Paul were martyred in Rome. However, modern historians debate whether the Roman government distinguished between Christians and Jews prior to Nerva's modification of the Fiscus Judaicus in 96, from which point practicing Jews paid the tax and Christians did not.[4]
Christians suffered from sporadic and localized persecutions over a period of two and a half centuries. Their refusal to participate in Imperial cult was considered an act of treason and was thus punishable by execution. The most widespread official persecution was carried out by Diocletian. During the Great Persecution (303–311), the emperor ordered Christian buildings and the homes of Christians torn down and their sacred books collected and burned. Christians were arrested, tortured, mutilated, burned, starved, and condemned to gladiatorial contests to amuse spectators.[5] The Great Persecution officially ended in April 311, when Galerius, senior emperor of the Tetrarchy, issued an edict of toleration, which granted Christians the right to practice their religion, though it did not restore any property to them.[6] Constantine, Caesar in the Western empire, and Licinius, Caesar in the East, also were signatories to the edict of toleration.[7] It has been speculated that Galerius' reversal of his long-standing policy of Christian persecution has been attributable to one or both of these co-Caesars.[8]
Conversion[edit]
Constantine's conversion, as imagined by Rubens.
It is possible (but not certain) that Constantine's mother, Helena, exposed him to Christianity; in any case he only declared himself a Christian after issuing the Edict of Milan.[9][10] Writing to Christians, Constantine made clear that he believed that he owed his successes to the protection of that High God alone.[11]
Battle of Milvian Bridge[edit]
Eusebius of Caesarea and other Christian sources record that Constantine experienced a dramatic event in 312 at the Battle of the Milvian Bridge, after which Constantine claimed the emperorship in the West. According to these sources, Constantine looked up to the sun before the battle and saw a cross of light above it, and with it the Greek words "Ἐν Τούτῳ Νίκα" (in this sign, conquer), often rendered in a Latin version, "in hoc signo vinces" (in this sign, you will conquer). Constantine commanded his troops to adorn their shields with a Christian symbol (the Chi-Rho), and thereafter they were victorious.[2][12]
Following the battle, the new emperor ignored the altars to the gods prepared on the Capitoline and did not carry out the customary sacrifices to celebrate a general's victorious entry into Rome, instead heading directly to the imperial palace.[11] Most influential people in the empire, however, especially high military officials, had not been converted to Christianity and still participated in the traditional religions of Rome; Constantine's rule exhibited at least a willingness to appease these factions. The Roman coins minted up to eight years after the battle still bore the images of Roman gods.[2] The monuments he first commissioned, such as the Arch of Constantine, contained no reference to Christianity.[11][13]
Edict of Milan[edit]
In 313 Constantine and Licinius announced "that it was proper that the Christians and all others should have liberty to follow that mode of religion which to each of them appeared best,"[14] thereby granting tolerance to all religions, including Christianity. The Edict of Milan went a step further than the earlier Edict of Toleration by Galerius in 311, returning confiscated Church property. This edict made the empire officially neutral with regard to religious worship; it neither made the traditional religions illegal nor made Christianity the state religion, as occurred later with the Edict of Thessalonica of 380. The Edict of Milan did, however, raise the stock of Christianity within the empire and it reaffirmed the importance of religious worship to the welfare of the state.[15]
Patronage of the Church[edit]
Hagia Eirene, the first church commissioned by Constantine in Constantinople.
See also: State church of the Roman Empire
The accession of Constantine was a turning point for early Christianity. After his victory, Constantine took over the role of patron of the Christian faith. He supported the Church financially, had an extraordinary number of basilicas built, granted privileges (e.g., exemption from certain taxes) to clergy, promoted Christians to high-ranking offices, returned property confiscated during the Great Persecution of Diocletian,[16] and endowed the church with land and other wealth.[17] Between 324 and 330, Constantine built a new imperial capital at Byzantium on the Bosporos, which would be named Constantinople for him. Unlike "old" Rome, the city began to employ overtly Christian architecture, contained churches within the city walls, and had no pre-existing temples from other religions.[18]
In doing this, however, Constantine required those who had not converted to Christianity to pay for the new city.[17] Christian chroniclers tell that it appeared necessary to Constantine "to teach his subjects to give up their rites ... and to accustom them to despise their temples and the images contained therein,"[19] This led to the closure of temples because of a lack of support, their wealth flowing to the imperial treasure;[20] Constantine did not need to use force to implement this.[17] Only the chronicler Theophanes has added that temples "were annihilated", but this was considered "not true" by contemporary historians.[21]
Public office[edit]
Many times imperial favor was granted to Christianity by the Edict; new avenues were opened to Christians, including the right to compete with other Romans in the traditional cursus honorum for high government positions, and greater acceptance into general civil society.[citation needed] Constantine respected cultivated persons, and his court was composed of older, respected, and honored men. Men from leading Roman families who declined to convert to Christianity were denied positions of power yet still received appointments; even up to the end of his life, two-thirds of his top government were non-Christian.[citation needed]
Legal reforms[edit]
Constantine's laws enforced and reflected his Christian attitudes. Crucifixion was abolished for reasons of Christian piety, but was replaced with hanging, to demonstrate the preservation of Roman supremacy. On March 7, 321, Sunday, already sacred to Christians and to the Roman Sun God Sol Invictus, was declared an official day of rest. On that day markets were banned and public offices were closed,[22] except for the purpose of freeing slaves.[23] There were, however, no restrictions on performing farming work, which was the work of the great majority of the population, on Sundays.[24]
Some laws made during his reign were even humane in the modern sense, possibly inspired by his Christianity:[25] a prisoner was no longer to be kept in total darkness but must be given the outdoors and daylight; a condemned man was allowed to die in the arena, but he could not be branded on his "heavenly beautified" face, since God was supposed to have made man in his image, but only on the feet.[26] Publicly displayed gladiatorial games were ordered to be eliminated in 325.
Early Christian Bibles[edit]
Main article: Fifty Bibles of Constantine
In 331, Constantine commissioned Eusebius to deliver fifty Bibles for the Church of Constantinople. Athanasius (Apol. Const. 4) recorded around 340 Alexandrian scribes preparing Bibles for Constans. Little else is known. It has been speculated that this may have provided motivation for canon lists, and that Codex Vaticanus and Codex Sinaiticus are examples of these Bibles. Together with the Peshitta and Codex Alexandrinus, these are the earliest extant Christian Bibles.[27]
Christian emperorship[edit]
Enforcement of doctrine[edit]
The reign of Constantine established a precedent for the position of the Christian emperor in the Church. Emperors considered themselves responsible to the gods for the spiritual health of their subjects, and after Constantine they had a duty to help the Church define orthodoxy and maintain orthodoxy.[28] The Church generally regarded the definition of doctrine as the responsibility of the bishops; the emperor's role was to enforce doctrine, root out heresy, and uphold ecclesiastical unity.[29] The emperor ensured that God was properly worshiped in his empire; what proper worship (orthodoxy) and doctrines and dogma consisted of was for the Church to determine.[30]
Constantine had become a worshiper of the Christian God, but he found that there were many opinions on that worship and indeed on who and what that God was. In 316, Constantine was asked to adjudicate in a North African dispute between the Donatist sect (who began by refusing obedience to any bishops who had yielded in any way to persecution, later regarding all bishops but their own sect as utterly contaminated). More significantly, in 325 he summoned the First Council of Nicaea, effectively the first Ecumenical Council (unless the Council of Jerusalem is so classified).[31] The Council of Nicaea is the first major attempt by Christians to define orthodoxy for the whole Church. Until Nicaea, all previous Church Councils had been local or regional synods affecting only portions of the Church.
Nicaea dealt primarily with the Arian controversy. Constantine himself was torn between the Arian and Trinitarian camps. After the Nicene council, and against its conclusions, he eventually recalled Arius from exile and banished Athanasius of Alexandria to Trier.
Just before his death in May 337, Constantine was baptised into Christianity. Up until this time he had been a catechuman for most of his adult life. He believed that if he waited to get baptized on his death bed he was in less danger of polluting his soul with sin and not getting to heaven. He was baptized by his distant relative Arian Bishop Eusebius of Nicomedia. During Eusebius of Nicomedia's time in the Imperial court, the Eastern court and the major positions in the Eastern Church were held by Arians or Arian sympathizers.[32] With the exception of a short period of eclipse, Eusebius enjoyed the complete confidence both of Constantine and Constantius II and was the tutor of Emperor Julian the Apostate.[33] After Constantine's death, his son and successor Constantius II was an Arian, as was Emperor Valens.
Suppression of other religions[edit]
Main article: Constantine I's turn against Paganism
See also: Decline of Greco-Roman polytheism
Constantine's position on the religions traditionally practiced in Rome evolved during his reign. In fact, his coinage and other official motifs, until 325, had affiliated him with the pagan cult of Sol Invictus. At first, Constantine encouraged the construction of new temples[34] and tolerated traditional sacrifices;[11] by the end of his reign, he had begun to order the pillaging and tearing down of Roman temples.[35][36][37]
Persian relations[edit]
Beyond the limes, east of the Euphrates, the Sasanian rulers of the Persian Empire, perennially at war with Rome, had usually tolerated Christianity. Constantine is said to have written to Shapur II in 324 and urged him to protect Christians under his rule.[38] With the establishment of Christianity as the state religion of the Roman Empire, Christians in Persia would be regarded as allies of Persia's ancient enemy. According to an anonymous Christian account, Shapur II wrote to his generals:[39][40]
You will arrest Simon, chief of the Christians. You will keep him until he signs this document and consents to collect for us a double tax and double tribute from the Christians … for we Gods [41] have all the trials of war and they have nothing but repose and pleasure. They inhabit our territory and agree with Caesar, our enemy.
—  Shapur II, A History of Christianity in Asia: Beginnings to 1500
Constantinian shift[edit]
Constantinian shift is a term used by some theologians and historians of antiquity to describe the political and theological aspects and outcomes of the 4th-century process of Constantine's integration of the Imperial government with the Church that began with the First Council of Nicaea.[42] The term was popularized by the Mennonite theologian John H. Yoder.[43]
The claim that there ever was Constantinian shift has been disputed; Peter Leithart argues that there was a "brief, ambiguous 'Constantinian moment' in the fourth century," but that there was "no permanent, epochal 'Constantinian shift'."[44]
See also[edit]
Constantinianism
Constantine I and the bishops of Rome
Christian pacifism
Labarum
List of rulers who converted to Christianity
Philip the Arab and Christianity
Notes and references[edit]
Jump up ^ Roman-Empire.net retrieved 19 September 2011
^ Jump up to: a b c R. Gerberding and J. H. Moran Cruz, Medieval Worlds (New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2004) p. 55.
Jump up ^ About.com retrieved 19 September 2011
Jump up ^ Wylen, Stephen M., The Jews in the Time of Jesus: An Introduction, Paulist Press (1995), ISBN 0-8091-3610-4, Pp 190-192.; Dunn, James D.G., Jews and Christians: The Parting of the Ways, A.D. 70 to 135, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing (1999), ISBN 0-8028-4498-7, Pp 33-34.; Boatwright, Mary Taliaferro & Gargola, Daniel J & Talbert, Richard John Alexander, The Romans: From Village to Empire, Oxford University Press (2004), ISBN 0-19-511875-8, p. 426.;
Jump up ^ Bomgardner, D. L. The Story of the Roman Amphitheatre. New York: Routledge, 2000. p. 142.
Jump up ^ Lactantius, De Mortibus Persecutorum ("On the Deaths of the Persecutors") ch. 35–34.
Jump up ^ Galerius, "Edict of Toleration", in Documents of the Christian Church, trans. and ed. Henry Bettenson (London: Oxford University Press, 1963), 21.
Jump up ^ H. A. Drake, Constantine and the Bishops: The Politics of Intolerance (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2000), 149.
Jump up ^ Brown, Peter (2012-12-18). The Rise of Western Christendom: Triumph and Diversity, A.D. 200-1000, 10th Anniversary Revised Edition: Triumph and Diversity, A.D. 200-1000. Making of Empire. 3 (3 ed.). John Wiley & Sons (published 2012). ISBN 9781118338841. Retrieved 2012-08-08. Constantine was not a young convert. He was over 40 and an experienced politician when he finally declared himself a Christian. He had had time to take the measure of the new religion and the difficulties which emperors had experienced in suppressing it. He decided that Christianity was a religion fit for a new empire.
Jump up ^ Peter Brown, The Rise of Christendom 2nd edition (Oxford, Blackwell Publishing, 2003) p. 61.
^ Jump up to: a b c d Peter Brown, The Rise of Christendom 2nd edition (Oxford, Blackwell Publishing, 2003) p. 60.
Jump up ^ Eusebius, Life of Constantine.
Jump up ^ J.R. Curran, Pagan City and Christian Capital. Rome in the Fourth Century (Oxford, 2000) pp. 70–90.
Jump up ^ Lactantius, De Mortibus Persecutorum ("On the Deaths of the Persecutors") ch. 48.
Jump up ^ Constantine and Licinius, "The 'Edict of Milan'", in Documents of the Christian Church, trans. and ed. Henry Bettenson (London: Oxford University Press, 1963), 22.
Jump up ^ R. Gerberding and J. H. Moran Cruz, Medieval Worlds (New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2004) pp. 55-56
^ Jump up to: a b c MacMullan 1984:49.
Jump up ^ R. Gerberding and J. H. Moran Cruz, Medieval Worlds (New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2004) p. 56
Jump up ^ quoted after MacMullan 1984:49.
Jump up ^ MacMullan 1984:50.
Jump up ^ MacMullan 1984: 141, Note 35 to Chapter V; Theophanes, Chron. a. 322 (PG 108.117)
Jump up ^ Corpus Juris Civilis 3.12.2 https://web.archive.org/web/20130727022718/http://www.freewebs.com/vitaphone1/history/justinianc.html accessed 20 April 2016
Jump up ^ Carson, Don A. From Sabbath to Lord's Day. Wipf & Stock Publishers/Zondervan. pp. 252–98. ISBN 9781579103071.
Jump up ^ MacMullen 1969; New Catholic Encyclopedia, 1908; Theodosian Code.
Jump up ^ Norwich, John Julius, A Short History of Byzantium. Alfred A. Knopf, 1997, p. 8. ISBN 0-679-77269-3.
Jump up ^ Miles, Margaret Ruth, The Word Made Flesh: A History of Christian Thought. Blackwell Publishing, 2004, p. 70, ISBN 1-4051-0846-0.
Jump up ^ The Canon Debate, McDonald & Sanders editors, 2002, pages 414-415, for the entire paragraph
Jump up ^ Richards, Jeffrey. The Popes and the Papacy in the Early Middle Ages 476–752 (London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1979) pp. 14–15.
Jump up ^ Richards, Jeffrey. The Popes and the Papacy in the Early Middle Ages 476–752 (London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1979) p. 15.
Jump up ^ Richards, Jeffrey. The Popes and the Papacy in the Early Middle Ages 476–752 (London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1979) p. 16.
Jump up ^ Pre-Ecumenical councils include the Council of Rome (155), Second Council of Rome 193, Council of Ephesus (193), Council of Carthage (251), Council of Iconium 258, Council of Antioch (264), Council of Elvira 306, Council of Carthage (311), Council of Ancyra 314, Council of Arles (314) and the Council of Neo-Caesarea 315.
Jump up ^ Drake, "Constantine and the Bishops", pp.395.
Jump up ^ Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Eusebius of Nicomedia". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
Jump up ^ Gerberding, R. and J. H. Moran Cruz, Medieval Worlds (New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2004) p. 28.
Jump up ^ R. MacMullen, "Christianizing The Roman Empire A.D.100-400, Yale University Press, 1984, ISBN 0-300-03642-6
Jump up ^ "A History of the Church", Philip Hughes, Sheed & Ward, rev ed 1949, vol I chapter 6.[1]
Jump up ^ Eusebius Pamphilius and Schaff, Philip (Editor) and McGiffert, Rev. Arthur Cushman, Ph.D. (Translator) NPNF2-01. Eusebius Pamphilius: Church History, Life of Constantine, Oration in Praise of Constantine quote: "he razed to their foundations those of them which had been the chief objects of superstitious reverence".
Jump up ^ Eusebius, vita Constantini IV, 8-13
Jump up ^ Moffett, Samuel H. (1992). A History of Christianity in Asia: Beginnings to 1500. p. 140.
Jump up ^ "After Constantine". gnosis.org. Retrieved 2017-07-11.
Jump up ^ In general, there is a "silence of the Perso-Arab and classical historians on any claim by Iranian kings to divinity". The Cambridge history of Iran: The Seleucid, Parthian and Sasanian ...: Volume 1 – Page xxxiii.
Jump up ^ Clapp, Rodney (1996). A Peculiar People. InterVarsity Press. p. 23. What might be called the Constantinian shift began around the year 200 and took more than two hundred years to grow and unfold to full bloom. |access-date= requires |url= (help)
Jump up ^ e.g. in Yoder, John H. (1996). "Is There Such a Thing as Being Ready for Another Millennium?". In Miroslav Volf; Carmen Krieg; Thomas Kucharz. The Future of Theology: Essays in Honor of Jurgen Moltmann. Eerdmanns. p. 65. The most impressive transitory change underlying our common experience, one that some thought was a permanent lunge forward in salvation history, was the so-called Constantinian shift. |access-date= requires |url= (help)
Jump up ^ Peter Leithart, Defending Constantine: The Twilight of an Empire and the Dawn of Christendom, p 287.
Further reading[edit]
Eusebius, Life of Constantine, Introduction, translation, and commentary by Averil Cameron and Stuart G. Hall, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1999.
Ramsay MacMullen, Christianizing The Roman Empire A.D. 100-400, Yale University Press, 1984 ISBN 0-300-03642-6,
External links[edit]
The Full Text of the "Edict of Milan"
[show]
v
t
e
History of Christianity
Centuries:1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th 11th 12th 13th 14th 15th 16th 17th 18th 19th 20th 21st
Ministry of Jesus
and Apostolic Age
Jesus
Ministry
Crucifixion
Resurrection
Holy Spirit
Leadership
Apostles
Seventy disciples
Paul the Apostle
Council of Jerusalem
Great Commission
New Testament
Background
Gospels
Acts
Pauline epistles
General epistles
Revelation
Ante-Nicene Period
Judaism split
Justin Martyr
Ignatius
Persecution
Fathers
Irenaeus
Marcionism
Canon
Tertullian
Montanism
Origen
Late ancient
Constantine
Monasticism
Councils: Nicaea I
Creed
Athanasius
Arianism
Jerome
Augustine
Constantinople I
Ephesus I
Chalcedon
Eastern Christianity
Eastern Orthodoxy
Church of the East
Oriental Orthodoxy
Chrysostom
Nestorianism
Iconoclasm
Great Schism
Fall of Constantinople
Armenia
Georgia
Greece
Egypt
Syria
Ethiopia
Bulgaria
Ottoman Empire
Russia
America
Middle Ages
Pelagianism
Gregory I
Celtic
Germanic
Scandinavian
Kievan Rus'
Investiture
Anselm
Abelard
Bernard of Clairvaux
Bogomils
Cathars
Crusades
Waldensians
Inquisition
Scholasticism
Dominic
Francis
Bonaventure
Aquinas
Wycliffe
Avignon
Papal Schism
Bohemian Reformation
Hus
Conciliarism
Catholicism
Primacy development
Papacy
Timeline
Lateran IV
Trent
Counter-Reformation
Thomas More
Leo X
Guadalupe
Jesuits
Jansenists
Xavier
Monastery dissolution
Wars
Teresa
Vatican I and II
Modernism
Reformation
Protestantism
Erasmus
Five solae
Eucharist
Calvinist–Arminian debate
Arminianism
Dort
Wars
Lutheranism
Martin Luther
95 Theses
Diet of Worms
Melanchthon
Orthodoxy
Eucharist
Book of Concord
Calvinism
Zwingli
Calvin
Presbyterianism
Scotland
Knox
TULIP
Dort
Three Forms of Unity
Westminster
Anglicanism
Timeline
Henry VIII
Cranmer
Settlement
39 Articles
Common Prayer
Puritans
Civil War
Anabaptism
Radical Reformation
Grebel
Swiss Brethren
Müntzer
Martyrs' Synod
Menno Simons
Smyth
1640–1789
Revivalism
English denominations
Baptists
Congregationalism
First Great Awakening
Methodism
Millerism
Pietism
Neo- and Old Lutherans
1789–present
Camp meeting
Holiness movement
Independent Catholic denominations
Second Great Awakening
Restoration Movement
Jehovah's Witnesses
Mormonism
Seventh-day Adventist
Adventism
Third Great Awakening
Azusa Revival
Fundamentalism
Ecumenism
Evangelicalism
Jesus movement
Mainline Protestant
Pentecostalism
Charismatics
Liberation theology
Christian right
Christian left
Genocide by ISIL
Timeline
Missions Timeline
Martyrs
Theology
Eastern Orthodoxy
Oriental Orthodoxy
Protestantism
Catholicism
[show]
v
t
e
Christianity
Jesus
Christ
Jesus in Christianity
Virgin birth
Crucifixion
Resurrection
Son of God
Foundations
Church
Creed
Gospel
New Covenant
Bible
Books
Canon
Old Testament
New Testament
Theology
God
Trinity
Father
Son
Holy Spirit
Apologetics
Baptism
Christology
Ecclesiology
History of theology
Mission
Salvation
History
Mary
Apostles
Peter
Paul
Fathers
Early
Constantine
Ecumenical councils
Augustine
East–West Schism
Crusades
Aquinas
Reformation
Luther
Denomi-
nations
and
traditions
(list/list by members)
Western
Adventist
Anabaptist
Anglican
Baptist
Calvinist
Catholic
Charismatic
Evangelical
Holiness
Lutheran
Methodist
Pentecostal
Protestant
Eastern
Eastern Orthodox
Oriental Orthodox (Miaphysite)
Assyrian Church of the East ("Nestorian")
Eastern Catholic Churches
Nontrinitarian
Christadelphians
Iglesia ni Cristo
Jehovah's Witnesses
Latter Day Saint movement
Oneness Pentecostalism
Unitarianism
Related topics
Art
Criticism
Culture
Ecumenism
Liturgy
Music
Other religions
Prayer
Sermon
Symbolism
Category
Christianity portal
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Constantine_the_Great_and_Christianity&oldid=843596468"
Categories:
Constantine the Great and Christianity
4th-century Christianity
Ancient Christian controversies
Christianization
Religious views by individual
Hidden categories:
Articles incorporating a citation from the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia with Wikisource reference
Pages using citations with accessdate and no URL
All Wikipedia articles needing words, phrases or quotes attributed
Wikipedia articles needing words, phrases or quotes attributed from March 2017
Articles containing Ancient Greek-language text
All articles with unsourced statements
Articles with unsourced statements from October 2016
Navigation menu
Personal tools
Not logged in
Talk
Contributions
Create account
Log in
Namespaces
Article
Talk
Variants
Views
Read
Edit
View history
More
Search
Navigation
Main page
Contents
Featured content
Current events
Random article
Donate to Wikipedia
Wikipedia store
Interaction
Help
About Wikipedia
Community portal
Recent changes
Contact page
Tools
What links here
Related changes
Upload file
Special pages
Permanent link
Page information
Wikidata item
Cite this page
Print/export
Create a book
Download as PDF
Printable version
Languages
العربية
Bahasa Indonesia
Македонски
Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски
Українська
Edit links
This page was last edited on 30 May 2018, at 05:18.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.
Privacy policy
About Wikipedia
Disclaimers
Contact Wikipedia
Developers
Cookie statement
Mobile view
Enable previews

values: mw-page-base noprint

values: mw-head-base noprint

values: firstHeading firstHeading en

values: siteSub noprint

values: jump-to-nav mw-jump

values:
/wiki/Roman_Emperor
mw-redirect
Roman Emperor

values: not sufficient to provide ref tags (March 2017)

values:
noprint Inline-Template
margin-left:0.1em; white-space:nowrap;

values: Persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire

values:
/wiki/Ecumenical_councils
mw-redirect
Ecumenical councils

values:
/wiki/Oriental_Orthodox_Church
mw-redirect
Oriental Orthodox Church

values:
/wiki/Imperial_cult_(Ancient_Rome)
mw-redirect
Imperial cult (Ancient Rome)

values:
/wiki/Eusebius_of_Caesarea
mw-redirect
Eusebius of Caesarea

values:
/wiki/Edict_of_Toleration_by_Galerius
mw-redirect
Edict of Toleration by Galerius

values:
/wiki/Hagia_Eirene
mw-redirect
Hagia Eirene

values: This claim needs references to reliable sources. (October 2016)

values:
noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact
white-space:nowrap;

values:
/wiki/Church_of_Constantinople
mw-redirect
Church of Constantinople

values: Development of the Christian Biblical canon

values:
/wiki/Codex_Vaticanus_Graecus_1209
mw-redirect
Codex Vaticanus Graecus 1209

values:
/wiki/Ecumenical_Council
mw-redirect
Ecumenical Council

values:
/wiki/Julian_the_Apostate
mw-redirect
Julian the Apostate

values: Edit section: Suppression of other religions

values:
/wiki/Roman-Persian_Wars
mw-redirect
Roman-Persian Wars

values:
/wiki/Sasanian_Church
mw-redirect
Sasanian Church

values:
/wiki/Constantine_I_and_Christianity
mw-redirect
Constantine I and Christianity

values:
/wiki/John_H._Yoder
mw-redirect
John H. Yoder

values: List of rulers who converted to Christianity

values: Council of Rome (155) (page does not exist)

values: Second Council of Rome (page does not exist)

values: Council of Ephesus (193) (page does not exist)

values:
/wiki/Council_of_Carthage_(251)
mw-redirect
Council of Carthage (251)

values: Council of Iconium (page does not exist)

values:
/wiki/Council_of_Antioch_(264)
mw-redirect
Council of Antioch (264)

values:
/wiki/Council_of_Elvira
mw-redirect
Council of Elvira

values:
/wiki/Council_of_Carthage_(311)
mw-redirect
Council of Carthage (311)

values:
/wiki/Council_of_Ancyra
mw-redirect
Council of Ancyra

values:
/wiki/Council_of_Arles_(314)
mw-redirect
Council of Arles (314)

values: wikisource:Catholic Encyclopedia (1913)/Eusebius of Nicomedia

values:
nofollow
external text
http://gnosis.org/thomasbook/ch13.html

values: -moz-column-width: 30em; -webkit-column-width: 30em; column-width: 30em; list-style-type: decimal;

values:
/wiki/Eusebius_of_Cesarea
mw-redirect
Eusebius of Cesarea

values: Historical background of the New Testament

values: The Nicene Creed at the First Council of Nicaea

values:
navbox-image
9
width:1px;padding:0px 0px 0px 2px

values:
/wiki/First_seven_Ecumenical_Councils
mw-redirect
First seven Ecumenical Councils

values: History of the Eastern Orthodox Church under the Ottoman Empire

values: Timeline of Eastern Orthodoxy in North America

values: History of Christianity during the Middle Ages

values: Historical development of the doctrine of papal primacy

values: History of the Calvinist–Arminian debate

values: History of the Latter Day Saint movement

values: History of the Seventh-day Adventist Church

values:
/wiki/Genocide_of_Christians_by_ISIL
mw-redirect
Genocide of Christians by ISIL

values:
navbox-abovebelow
3
background:#F5DEB3;;font-size: smaller;

values: nowraplinks hlist collapsible autocollapse navbox-inner

values:
/wiki/File:Christian_cross.svg
image
Principal symbol of Christianity

values:
navbox-image
7
width:1px;padding:0px 0px 0px 2px

values: List of Christian denominations by number of members

values: navigation navbox Christianity padding:3px

values: Category:Constantine the Great and Christianity

values: Category:Articles incorporating a citation from the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia with Wikisource reference

values: Category:Pages using citations with accessdate and no URL

values: Category:All Wikipedia articles needing words, phrases or quotes attributed

values: Category:Wikipedia articles needing words, phrases or quotes attributed from March 2017

values: Category:Articles containing Ancient Greek-language text

values: Category:All articles with unsourced statements

values: Category:Articles with unsourced statements from October 2016

values: Discussion about edits from this IP address [ctrl-alt-n]

values: A list of edits made from this IP address [ctrl-alt-y]

values: You are encouraged to create an account and log in; however, it is not mandatory

values: You're encouraged to log in; however, it's not mandatory. [ctrl-alt-o]

values: Discussion about the content page [ctrl-alt-t]

values: A list of recent changes in the wiki [ctrl-alt-r]

values: portal navigation p-interaction p-interaction-label

values: List of all English Wikipedia pages containing links to this page [ctrl-alt-j]

values: Recent changes in pages linked from this page [ctrl-alt-k]

values:
/wiki/Wikipedia:File_Upload_Wizard
Upload files [ctrl-alt-u]
u

values: A list of all special pages [ctrl-alt-q]

values: Permanent link to this revision of the page

values: Link to connected data repository item [ctrl-alt-g]

values: Printable version of this page [ctrl-alt-p]

values: قسطنطين العظيم والمسيحية – Arabic

values: Konstantinus Agung dan Kekristenan – Indonesian

values: Константин I и христијанството – Macedonian

values: Konstantin I i kršćanstvo – Serbo-Croatian

values: Костянтин Великий і християнство – Ukrainian

values: /static/images/wikimedia-button-1.5x.png 1.5x, /static/images/wikimedia-button-2x.png 2x

values: /static/images/poweredby_mediawiki_132x47.png 1.5x, /static/images/poweredby_mediawiki_176x62.png 2x

values: mediawiki ltr sitedir-ltr mw-hide-empty-elt ns-0 ns-subject page-Constantine_the_Great_and_Christianity rootpage-Constantine_the_Great_and_Christianity skin-vector action-view


text:
Persepolis
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire
This article is about the ancient city. For other uses, see Persepolis (disambiguation).
Persepolis
𐎱𐎠𐎼𐎿 Pārsa (Old Persian)
تخت جمشید Takht-e Jamshid (Persian)
Ruins of the Gate of All Nations, Persepolis.
Shown within Iran
Location
Marvdasht, Fars Province, Iran[1]
Coordinates
29°56′04″N 52°53′29″E / 29.93444°N 52.89139°E / 29.93444; 52.89139Coordinates: 29°56′04″N 52°53′29″E / 29.93444°N 52.89139°E / 29.93444; 52.89139
Type
Settlement
History
Builder
Darius I, Xerxes I and Artaxerxes I
Material
Limestone, mud-brick, cedar wood
Founded
6th century BC
Periods
Achaemenid Empire
Cultures
Persian
Events
Nowruz, The 2,500 Year Celebration of the Persian Empire
Site notes
Condition
in ruins
Management
Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization of Iran
Public access
open
Architecture
Architectural styles
Achaemenid
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Official name
Persepolis
Type
Cultural
Criteria
i, iii, vi
Designated
1979 (3rd session)
Reference no.
114
State Party
Iran
Region
Asia-Pacific
Persepolis (Old Persian: 𐎱𐎠𐎼𐎿, Pārsa) was the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire (ca. 550–330 BC). It is situated 60 km northeast of the city of Shiraz in Fars Province, Iran. The earliest remains of Persepolis date back to 515 BC. It exemplifies the Achaemenid style of architecture. UNESCO declared the ruins of Persepolis a World Heritage Site in 1979.[2]
Contents
1 Name
2 Geography
3 History
3.1 Function
3.2 Destruction
3.3 After the fall of the Achaemenid Empire
4 Archaeological research
4.1 Architecture
5 Ruins and remains
5.1 Gate of All Nations
5.2 The Apadana
5.3 The Throne Hall
5.4 Other palaces and structures
5.5 Tombs
5.6 Ancient texts
6 Modern events
6.1 The controversy of the Sivand Dam
7 Museums (outside Iran) that display material from Persepolis
8 Aerial views
9 See also
10 Notes
11 References
12 Further reading
13 External links
Name[edit]
The English word Persepolis is derived from Greek Persépolis (Περσέπολις), a compound of Pérsēs (Πέρσης) and pólis (πόλις), meaning "the Persian city" or "the city of the Persians". To the ancient Persians, the city was known as Pārsa (Old Persian: 𐎱𐎠𐎼𐎿), which is also the word for the region of Persia.[3][4]
An inscription left by Sasanian prince Shapur Sakanshah, the son of Hormizd II, refers to the site as Sad-stūn, meaning "Hundred Pillars".[5] Because medieval Persians attributed the site to Jamshid,[6] an Iranian mythological king, it has been referred to as Takht-e-Jamshid (Persian: تخت جمشید, Taxt e Jamšīd; [ˌtʰæxtʰed͡ʒæmˈʃiːd]), literally meaning "Throne of Jamshid". Another name given to the site in the medieval period was Čehel Menār, literally meaning "Forty Minarets".[5]
Geography[edit]
Persepolis is near the small river Pulvar, which flows into the Kur River.
Ruins of the "Palace of Artaxerxes I", Persepolis. As is typical of Achaemenid cities, Persepolis was built on a (partially) artificial platform.
The site includes a 125,000 square meter terrace, partly artificially constructed and partly cut out of a mountain, with its east side leaning on Rahmat Mountain. The other three sides are formed by retaining walls, which vary in height with the slope of the ground. Rising from 5–13 metres (16–43 feet) on the west side was a double stair. From there, it gently slopes to the top. To create the level terrace, depressions were filled with soil and heavy rocks, which were joined together with metal clips.
History[edit]
Archaeological evidence shows that the earliest remains of Persepolis date back to 515 BC. André Godard, the French archaeologist who excavated Persepolis in the early 1930s, believed that it was Cyrus the Great who chose the site of Persepolis, but that it was Darius I who built the terrace and the palaces. Inscriptions on these buildings support the belief that they were constructed by Darius.
With Darius I, the scepter passed to a new branch of the royal house. Persepolis probably became the capital of Persia proper during his reign. However, the city's location in a remote and mountainous region made it an inconvenient residence for the rulers of the empire. The country's true capitals were Susa, Babylon and Ecbatana. This may be why the Greeks were not acquainted with the city until Alexander the Great took and plundered it.
Aerial architectural plan of Persepolis.
Darius I's construction of Persepolis were carried out parallel to those of the Palace of Susa.[7] According to Gene R. Garthwaite, the Susa Palace served as Darius' model for Persepolis.[8] Darius I ordered the construction of the Apadana and the Council Hall (Tripylon or the "Triple Gate"), as well as the main imperial Treasury and its surroundings. These were completed during the reign of his son, Xerxes I. Further construction of the buildings on the terrace continued until the downfall of the Achaemenid Empire.[9] According to the Encyclopædia Britannica, the Greek historian Ctesias mentioned that Darius I's grave was in a cliff face that could be reached with an apparatus of ropes.[10]
Around 519 BC, construction of a broad stairway was begun. The stairway was initially planned to be the main entrance to the terrace 20 metres (66 feet) above the ground. The dual stairway, known as the Persepolitan Stairway, was built symmetrically on the western side of the Great Wall. The 111 steps measured 6.9 metres (23 feet) wide, with treads of 31 centimetres (12 inches) and rises of 10 centimetres (3.9 inches). Originally, the steps were believed to have been constructed to allow for nobles and royalty to ascend by horseback. New theories, however, suggest that the shallow risers allowed visiting dignitaries to maintain a regal appearance while ascending. The top of the stairways led to a small yard in the north-eastern side of the terrace, opposite the Gate of All Nations.
Grey limestone was the main building material used at Persepolis. After natural rock had been leveled and the depressions filled in, the terrace was prepared. Major tunnels for sewage were dug underground through the rock. A large elevated water storage tank was carved at the eastern foot of the mountain. Professor Olmstead suggested the cistern was constructed at the same time that construction of the towers began.
The uneven plan of the terrace, including the foundation, acted like a castle, whose angled walls enabled its defenders to target any section of the external front. Diodorus Siculus writes that Persepolis had three walls with ramparts, which all had towers to provide a protected space for the defense personnel. The first wall was 7 metres (23 feet) tall, the second, 14 metres (46 feet) and the third wall, which covered all four sides, was 27 metres (89 feet) in height, though no presence of the wall exists in modern times.
Function[edit]
The function of Persepolis remains rather unclear. It was not one of the largest cities in Persia, let alone the rest of the empire, but appears to have been a grand ceremonial complex, that was only occupied seasonally; it is still not entirely clear where the king's private quarters actually were. Until recent challenges, most archaeologists held that it was especially used for celebrating Nowruz, the Persian New Year, held at the spring equinox, and still an important annual festivity in modern Iran. The Iranian nobility and the tributary parts of the empire came to present gifts to the king, as represented in the stairway reliefs.[11]
Destruction[edit]
After invading Achaemenid Persia in 330 BC, Alexander the Great sent the main force of his army to Persepolis by the Royal Road. He stormed the "Persian Gates", a pass through modern-day Zagros Mountains. There Ariobarzanes of Persis successfully ambushed Alexander the Great's army, inflicting heavy casualties. After being held off for 30 days, Alexander the Great outflanked and destroyed the defenders. Ariobarzanes himself was killed either during the battle or during the retreat to Persepolis. Some sources indicate that the Persians were betrayed by a captured tribal chief who showed the Macedonians an alternate path that allowed them to outflank Ariobarzanes in a reversal of Thermopylae. After several months, Alexander allowed his troops to loot Persepolis.
Alexander the Great ordering Persepolis to be set on fire; Italian plate, 1534 (although it may be a depiction of the burning of Rome by Nero).
Around that time, a fire burned "the palaces" or "the palace". Scholars agree that this event, described in historic sources, occurred at the ruins that have been now re-identified as Persepolis. From Stolze's investigations, it appears that at least one of these, the castle built by Xerxes I, bears traces of having been destroyed by fire. The locality described by Diodorus Siculus after Cleitarchus corresponds in important particulars with the historic Persepolis, for example, in being supported by the mountain on the east.
It is believed that the fire which destroyed Persepolis started from Hadish Palace, which was the living quarters of Xerxes I, and spread to the rest of the city.[12] It is not clear if the fire was an accident or a deliberate act of revenge for the burning of the Acropolis of Athens during the second Persian invasion of Greece. Many historians argue that, while Alexander's army celebrated with a symposium, they decided to take revenge against the Persians.[13] If that is so, then the destruction of Persepolis could be both an accident and a case of revenge.
The Book of Arda Wiraz, a Zoroastrian work composed in the 3rd or 4th century, describes Persepolis' archives as containing "all the Avesta and Zend, written upon prepared cow-skins, and with gold ink", which were destroyed. Indeed, in his Chronology of the Ancient Nations, the native Iranian writer Biruni indicates unavailability of certain native Iranian historiographical sources in the post-Achaemenid era, especially during the Parthian Empire. He adds: "[Alexander] burned the whole of Persepolis as revenge to the Persians, because it seems the Persian King Xerxes had burnt the Greek City of Athens around 150 years ago. People say that, even at the present time, the traces of fire are visible in some places."[13][14]
Paradoxically, the event that caused the destruction of these texts may have resulted in the preservation of the Persepolis Administrative Archives, which might otherwise have been lost over time to natural and man-made events.[15] According to archaeological evidence, the partial burning of Persepolis did not affect what are now referred to as the Persepolis Fortification Archive tablets, but rather may have caused the eventual collapse of the upper part of the northern fortification wall that preserved the tablets until their recovery by the Oriental Institute's archaeologists.[16]
A general view of Persepolis.
After the fall of the Achaemenid Empire[edit]
Ruins of the Western side of the compound at Persepolis.
In 316 BC, Persepolis was still the capital of Persia as a province of the great Macedonian Empire (see Diod. xix, 21 seq., 46; probably after Hieronymus of Cardia, who was living about 326). The city must have gradually declined in the course of time. The lower city at the foot of the imperial city might have survived for a longer time;[17] but the ruins of the Achaemenids remained as a witness to its ancient glory. It is probable that the principal town of the country, or at least of the district, was always in this neighborhood.
About 200 BC, the city of Estakhr, five kilometers north of Persepolis, was the seat of the local governors. From there, the foundations of the second great Persian Empire were laid, and there Estakhr acquired special importance as the center of priestly wisdom and orthodoxy. The Sasanian kings have covered the face of the rocks in this neighborhood, and in part even the Achaemenid ruins, with their sculptures and inscriptions. They must themselves have been built largely there, although never on the same scale of magnificence as their ancient predecessors. The Romans knew as little about Estakhr as the Greeks had known about Persepolis, despite the fact that the Sasanians maintained relations for four hundred years, friendly or hostile, with the empire.
At the time of the Muslim invasion of Persia, Estakhr offered a desperate resistance. It was still a place of considerable importance in the first century of Islam, although its greatness was speedily eclipsed by the new metropolis of Shiraz. In the 10th century, Estakhr dwindled to insignificance, as seen from the descriptions of Estakhri, a native (c. 950), and of Al-Muqaddasi (c. 985). During the following centuries, Estakhr gradually declined, until it ceased to exist as a city.
Archaeological research[edit]
See also: Nowruz § Achaemenid period
Odoric of Pordenone passed through Persepolis on his way to China in 1320. In 1474, Giosafat Barbaro visited the ruins of Persepolis, which he incorrectly thought were of Jewish origin.[18] António de Gouveia from Portugal wrote about cuneiform inscriptions following his visit in 1602. His first written report on Persia, the Jornada, was published in 1606.
In 1618, García de Silva Figueroa, King Philip III of Spain's ambassador to the court of Abbas I, the Safavid monarch, was the first Western traveler to correctly identify the ruins of Persepolis as the location of Persepolis.[19]
Pietro Della Valle visited Persepolis in 1621, and noticed that only 25 of the 72 original columns were still standing, due to either vandalism or natural processes.[20] The Dutch traveler Cornelis de Bruijn visited Persepolis in 1704.[21]
Sketch of Persepolis from 1704
by Cornelis de Bruijn.
Drawing of Persepolis in 1713
by Gérard Jean-Baptiste.
Drawing of the Tachara
by Charles Chipiez.
The Apadana by Charles Chipiez.
Apadana detail by Charles Chipiez.
The fruitful region was covered with villages until its frightful devastation in the 18th century; and even now it is, comparatively speaking, well cultivated. The Castle of Estakhr played a conspicuous part as a strong fortress, several times, during the Muslim period. It was the middlemost and the highest of the three steep crags which rise from the valley of the Kur, at some distance to the west or northwest of the necropolis of Naqsh-e Rustam.
French voyagers Eugène Flandin and Pascal Coste are among the first to provide not only a literary review of the structure of Persepolis, but also to create some of the best and earliest visual depictions of its structure. In their publications in Paris, in 1881 and 1882, titled Voyages en Perse de MM. Eugene Flanin peintre et Pascal Coste architecte, the authors provided some 350 ground breaking illustrations of Persepolis.[22] French influence and interest in Persia's archaeological findings would not end until the time of Reza Shah, when such distinguished figures as André Godard helped create Iran's first heritage museum.
Throughout the 1800s and early 1900s, a variety of amateur digging occurred at the site, in some cases on a large scale.[22]
The first scientific excavations at Persepolis were carried out by Ernst Herzfeld and Erich Schmidt representing the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. They conducted excavations for eight seasons, beginning in 1930, and included other nearby sites.[23][24][25][26][27]
Achaemenid frieze designs at Persepolis.
Herzfeld believed that the reasons behind the construction of Persepolis were the need for a majestic atmosphere, a symbol for the empire, and to celebrate special events, especially the Nowruz.[4] For historical reasons, Persepolis was built where the Achaemenid dynasty was founded, although it was not the center of the empire at that time.
Excavations of plaque fragments hint at a scene with a contest between Herakles and Apollo, dubbed A Greek painting at Persepolis.[28]
Architecture[edit]
Persepolitan architecture is noted for its use of the Persian column, which was probably based on earlier wooden columns. Architects resorted to stone only when the largest cedars of Lebanon or teak trees of India did not fulfill the required sizes. Column bases and capitals were made of stone, even on wooden shafts, but the existence of wooden capitals is probable.
The buildings at Persepolis include three general groupings: military quarters, the treasury, and the reception halls and occasional houses for the King. Noted structures include the Great Stairway, the Gate of All Nations, the Apadana, the Hall of a Hundred Columns, the Tripylon Hall and the Tachara, the Hadish Palace, the Palace of Artaxerxes III, the Imperial Treasury, the Royal Stables, and the Chariot House.[29]
Ruins and remains[edit]
Reliefs of lotus flowers are frequently used on the walls and monuments at Persepolis.
Ruins of a number of colossal buildings exist on the terrace. All are constructed of dark-grey marble. Fifteen of their pillars stand intact. Three more pillars have been re-erected since 1970. Several of the buildings were never finished. F. Stolze has shown that some of the mason's rubbish remains.
Since the time of Pietro Della Valle, it has been beyond dispute that these ruins represent the Persepolis captured and partly destroyed by Alexander the Great.
Behind the compound at Persepolis, there are three sepulchers hewn out of the rock in the hillside. The facades, one of which is incomplete, are richly decorated with reliefs. About 13 km NNE, on the opposite side of the Pulvar River, rises a perpendicular wall of rock, in which four similar tombs are cut at a considerable height from the bottom of the valley. Modern-day Iranians call this place Naqsh-e Rustam ("Rustam Relief"), from the Sasanian reliefs beneath the opening, which they take to be a representation of the mythical hero Rostam. It may be inferred from the sculptures that the occupants of these seven tombs were kings. An inscription on one of the tombs declares it to be that of Darius I, concerning whom Ctesias relates that his grave was in the face of a rock, and could only be reached by the use of ropes. Ctesias mentions further, with regard to a number of Persian kings, either that their remains were brought "to the Persians," or that they died there.
A bas-relief at Persepolis, representing a symbol in Zoroastrianism for Nowruz.[1]
A bas-relief from the Apadana depicting Armenians bringing their famous wine to the king.
Achaemenid plaque from Persepolis, kept at the National Museum, Tehran.
Relief of a Median man at Persepolis.
Objects from Persepolis kept at the National Museum, Tehran.
Gate of All Nations[edit]
Main article: Gate of All Nations
The Gate of All Nations, referring to subjects of the empire, consisted of a grand hall that was a square of approximately 25 metres (82 ft) in length, with four columns and its entrance on the Western Wall. There were two more doors, one to the south which opened to the Apadana yard and the other opened onto a long road to the east. Pivoting devices found on the inner corners of all the doors indicate that they were two-leafed doors, probably made of wood and covered with sheets of ornate metal.
A pair of lamassus, bulls with the heads of bearded men, stand by the western threshold. Another pair, with wings and a Persian Head (Gopät-Shäh), stands by the eastern entrance, to reflect the power of the empire.
The name of Xerxes I was written in three languages and carved on the entrances, informing everyone that he ordered it to be built.
A lamassu at the Gate of All Nations.
Ruins of the Gate of All Nations, Persepolis.
The Great Double Staircase at Persepolis.
Bas-relief on the staircase of the palace.
The Apadana[edit]
Main article: Apadana
Statue of a Persian Mastiff found at the Apadana, kept at the National Museum, Tehran.
Darius I built the greatest palace at Persepolis on the western side of platform. This palace was called the Apadana.[30] The King of Kings used it for official audiences. The work began in 518 BC, and his son, Xerxes I, completed it 30 years later. The palace had a grand hall in the shape of a square, each side 60 metres (200 ft) long with seventy-two columns, thirteen of which still stand on the enormous platform. Each column is 19 metres (62 ft) high with a square Taurus (bull) and plinth. The columns carried the weight of the vast and heavy ceiling. The tops of the columns were made from animal sculptures such as two-headed lions, eagles, human beings and cows (cows were symbols of fertility and abundance in ancient Iran). The columns were joined to each other with the help of oak and cedar beams, which were brought from Lebanon. The walls were covered with a layer of mud and stucco to a depth of 5 cm, which was used for bonding, and then covered with the greenish stucco which is found throughout the palaces.
At the western, northern and eastern sides of the palace, there were three rectangular porticos each of which had twelve columns in two rows of six. At the south of the grand hall, a series of rooms were built for storage. Two grand Persepolitan stairways were built, symmetrical to each other and connected to the stone foundations. To protect the roof from erosion, vertical drains were built through the brick walls. In the four corners of Apadana, facing outwards, four towers were built.
The walls were tiled and decorated with pictures of lions, bulls, and flowers. Darius ordered his name and the details of his empire to be written in gold and silver on plates, which were placed in covered stone boxes in the foundations under the Four Corners of the palace. Two Persepolitan style symmetrical stairways were built on the northern and eastern sides of Apadana to compensate for a difference in level. Two other stairways stood in the middle of the building. The external front views of the palace were embossed with carvings of the Immortals, the Kings' elite guards. The northern stairway was completed during the reign of Darius I, but the other stairway was completed much later.
The reliefs on the staircases allow one to observe the people from across the empire in their traditional dress, and even the king himself, "down to the smallest detail".[31]
Ruins of the Apadana, Persepolis.
Depiction of united Medes and Persians at the Apadana, Persepolis.
Ruins of the Apadana's columns.
Depiction of trees and lotus flowers at the Apadana, Persepolis.
Depiction of figures at the Apadana.
The Throne Hall[edit]
Next to the Apadana, second largest building of the Terrace and the final edifices, is the Throne Hall or the Imperial Army's Hall of Honor (also called the Hundred-Columns Palace). This 70x70 square meter hall was started by Xerxes I and completed by his son Artaxerxes I by the end of the fifth century BC. Its eight stone doorways are decorated on the south and north with reliefs of throne scenes and on the east and west with scenes depicting the king in combat with monsters. Two colossal stone bulls flank the northern portico. The head of one of the bulls now resides in the Oriental Institute in Chicago.[32]
At the beginning of the reign of Xerxes I, the Throne Hall was used mainly for receptions for military commanders and representatives of all the subject nations of the empire. Later, the Throne Hall served as an imperial museum.
Other palaces and structures[edit]
Other palaces included the Tachara, which was built under Darius I, and the Imperial treasury, which was started by Darius I in 510 BC and finished by Xerxes I in 480 BC. The Hadish Palace of Xerxes I occupies the highest level of terrace and stands on the living rock. The Council Hall, the Tryplion Hall, the Palaces of D, G, H, storerooms, stables and quarters, the unfinished gateway and a few miscellaneous structures at Persepolis are located near the south-east corner of the terrace, at the foot of the mountain.
Ruins of the Tachara, Persepolis.
Zoomorphic griffin capital at Persepolis.
Bull capital at Persepolis.
Ruins of the Hall of the Hundred Columns, Persepolis.
Tombs[edit]
Tomb of Artaxerxes II, Persepolis.
It is commonly accepted that Cyrus the Great was buried in Pasargadae, which is mentioned by Ctesias as his own city. If it is true that the body of Cambyses II was brought home "to the Persians," his burying place must be somewhere beside that of his father. Ctesias assumes that it was the custom for a king to prepare his own tomb during his lifetime. Hence, the kings buried at Naghsh-e Rostam are probably Darius I, Xerxes I, Artaxerxes I and Darius II. Xerxes II, who reigned for a very short time, could scarcely have obtained so splendid a monument, and still less could the usurper Sogdianus. The two completed graves behind the compound at Persepolis would then belong to Artaxerxes II and Artaxerxes III. The unfinished tomb, a kilometer away from the city, is debated to who it belongs.[33] It is perhaps that of Artaxerxes IV, who reigned at the longest two years, or, if not his, then that of Darius III (Codomannus), who is one of those whose bodies are said to have been brought "to the Persians." Since Alexander the Great is said to have buried Darius III at Persepolis, then it is likely the unfinished tomb is his.
Another small group of ruins in the same style is found at the village of Haji Abad, on the Pulvar River, a good hour's walk above Persepolis. These formed a single building, which was still intact 900 years ago, and was used as the mosque of the then-existing city of Estakhr.
Ancient texts[edit]
Babylonian version of an Achaemenid royal inscription.[7]
The relevant passages from ancient scholars on the subject are set out below:
(Diod. 17.70.1-73.2) 17.70 (1) Persepolis was the capital of the Persian kingdom. Alexander described it to the Macedonians as the most hateful of the cities of Asia, and gave it over to his soldiers to plunder, all but the palaces. (2) It was the richest city under the sun, and the private houses had been furnished with every sort of wealth over the years. The Macedonians raced into it, slaughtering all the men whom they met and plundering the residences; many of the houses belonged to the common people and were abundantly supplied with furniture and wearing apparel of every kind….
72 (1) Alexander held games in honor of his victories. He performed costly sacrifices to the gods and entertained his friends bountifully. While they were feasting and the drinking was far advanced, as they began to be drunken, a madness took possession of the minds of the intoxicated guests. (2) At this point, one of the women present, Thais by name and Attic by origin, said that for Alexander it would be the finest of all his feats in Asia if he joined them in a triumphal procession, set fire to the palaces, and permitted women's hands in a minute to extinguish the famed accomplishments of the Persians. (3) This was said to men who were still young and giddy with wine, and so, as would be expected, someone shouted out to form up and to light torches, and urged all to take vengeance for the destruction of the Greek temples. (4) Others took up the cry and said that this was a deed worthy of Alexander alone. When the king had caught fire at their words, all leaped up from their couches and passed the word along to form a victory procession [epinikion komon] in honor of Dionysius.
(5) Promptly, many torches were gathered. Female musicians were present at the banquet, so the king led them all out for the komos to the sound of voices and flutes and pipes, Thais the courtesan leading the whole performance. (6) She was the first, after the king, to hurl her blazing torch into the palace. As the others all did the same, immediately the entire palace area was consumed, so great was the conflagration. It was most remarkable that the impious act of Xerxes, king of the Persians, against the acropolis at Athens should have been repaid in kind after many years by one woman, a citizen of the land which had suffered it, and in sport.
(Curt. 5.6.1-7.12) 5.6 (1) On the following day, the king called together the leaders of his forces and informed them that "no city was more mischievous to the Greeks than the seat of the ancient kings of Persia . . . by its destruction they ought to offer sacrifice to the spirits of their forefathers."…
7 (1) But Alexander's great mental endowments, that noble disposition, in which he surpassed all kings, that intrepidity in encountering dangers, his promptness in forming and carrying out plans, his good faith towards those who submitted to him, merciful treatment of his prisoners, temperance even in lawful and usual pleasures, were sullied by an excessive love of wine. (2) At the very time when his enemy and his rival for a throne was preparing to renew the war, when those whom he had conquered were but lately subdued and were hostile to the new rule, he took part in prolonged banquets at which women were present, not indeed those whom it would be a crime to violate, but, to be sure, harlots who were accustomed to live with armed men with more licence than was fitting.
(3) One of these, Thais by name, herself also drunken, declared that the king would win most favor among all the Greeks, if he should order the palace of the Persians to be set on fire; that this was expected by those whose cities the barbarians had destroyed. (4) When a drunken strumpet had given her opinion on a matter of such moment, one or two, themselves also loaded with wine, agreed. The king, too, more greedy for wine than able to carry it, cried: "Why do we not, then, avenge Greece and apply torches to the city?" (5) All had become heated with wine, and so they arose when drunk to fire the city which they had spared when armed. The king was the first to throw a firebrand upon the palace, then the guests and the servants and courtesans. The palace had been built largely of cedar, which quickly took fire and spread the conflagration widely. (6) When the army, which was encamped not far from the city, saw the fire, thinking it accidental, they rushed to bear aid. (7) But when they came to the vestibule of the palace, they saw the king himself piling on firebrands. Therefore, they left the water which they had brought, and they too began to throw dry wood upon the burning building.
(8) Such was the end of the capital of the entire Orient... .
(10) The Macedonians were ashamed that so renowned a city had been destroyed by their king in a drunken revel; therefore the act was taken as earnest, and they forced themselves to believe that it was right that it should be wiped out in exactly that manner.
(Cleitarchus, FGrHist. 137, F. 11 (= Athenaeus 13. 576d-e))
And did not Alexander the Great have with him Thais, the Athenian hetaira? Cleitarchus speaks of her as having been the cause for the burning of the palace at Persepolis. After Alexander's death, this same Thais was married to Ptolemy, the first king of Egypt.
There is, however, one formidable difficulty. Diodorus Siculus says that the rock at the back of the palace containing the royal sepulchers is so steep that the bodies could be raised to their last resting-place only by mechanical appliances. This is not true of the graves behind the compound, to which, as F. Stolze expressly observes, one can easily ride up. On the other hand, it is strictly true of the graves at Naqsh-e Rustam. Stolze accordingly started the theory that the royal castle of Persepolis stood close by Naqsh-e Rustam, and has sunk in course of time to shapeless heaps of earth, under which the remains may be concealed.
Modern events[edit]
In 1971, Persepolis was the main staging ground for the 2,500 Year Celebration of the Persian Empire under the reign of the Pahlavi dynasty. It included delegations from foreign nations in an attempt to advance the Iranian culture and history.
The controversy of the Sivand Dam[edit]
Construction of the Sivand Dam, named after the nearby town of Sivand, began on 19 September 2006. Despite 10 years of planning, Iran's Cultural Heritage Organization was not aware of the broad areas of flooding during much of this time, [34] and there is growing concern about the effects the dam will have on the surrounding areas of Persepolis.
Many archaeologists[who?] worry that the dam's placement between the ruins of Pasargadae and Persepolis will flood both. Engineers involved with the construction deny this claim, stating that it is impossible, because both sites sit well above the planned waterline. Of the two sites, Pasargadae is considered the more threatened.
Archaeologists are also concerned that an increase in humidity caused by the lake will speed Pasargadae's gradual destruction. However, experts from the Ministry of Energy believe this would be negated by controlling the water level of the dam reservoir.
Museums (outside Iran) that display material from Persepolis[edit]
A number of bas-reliefs from Persepolis are kept at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, England.[35] There is also a collection from Persepolis at the British Museum. The Persepolis bull at the Oriental Institute is one of the university's most prized treasures, but it is only one of several objects from Persepolis on display at the University of Chicago. New York City's Metropolitan Museum houses objects from Persepolis,[36] as does the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology of the University of Pennsylvania.[37] The Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon[38] and the Louvre of Paris hold objects from Persepolis as well.
Forgotten Empire Exhibition, the British Museum.
Forgotten Empire Exhibition, the British Museum.
Persepolitan gold objects, kept at the Oriental Institute.
Persepolitan rosette rock relief, kept at the Oriental Institute.
Objects from Persepolis, kept at the Louvre.
Aerial views[edit]
Aerial view of the ruined monuments at Persepolis.
Aerial view of the ruined monuments at Persepolis.
Aerial view of the ruined monuments at Persepolis.
Aerial view of the ruined monuments at Persepolis.
See also[edit]
Iran portal
Persepolis F.C.
Palace of Darius in Susa, similar structure built at the same time
Achaemenid architecture
Naqsh-e Rustam
Pasargadae
Behistun Inscription
Istakhr
Qadamgah (ancient site)
Cities of the Ancient Near East
Persepolis (comics)
Tachara
Notes[edit]
1.^ Eternally fighting bull (personifying the moon), and a lion (personifying the sun) representing the spring.
2.^ Known as XPc (Xerxes Persepolis c), from the portico of the Tachara.
References[edit]
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Persepolis". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
Jump up ^ Google maps. "Location of Persepolis". Google maps. Retrieved 24 September 2013.
Jump up ^ UNESCO World Heritage Centre (2006). "Pasargadae". Retrieved 26 December 2010.
Jump up ^ Bailey, H.W. (1996) "Khotanese Saka Literature", in Ehsan Yarshater (ed), The Cambridge History of Iran, Vol III: The Seleucid, Parthian, and Sasanian Periods, Part 2 (reprint edition), Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, p. 1230.
^ Jump up to: a b Michael Woods, Mary B. Woods (2008). Seven Wonders of the Ancient Middle East. Twenty-First Century Books. pp. 26–8. ISBN 9780822575733.
^ Jump up to: a b Shahbazi, A. Shapur; Bosworth, C. Edmund (15 December 1990). Encyclopædia Iranica. IV. pp. 768–774.
Jump up ^ Holland, Tom (August 2012). In the Shadow of the Sword. Little, Brown. pp. 118–122. ISBN 978-1408700075.
Jump up ^ Perrot, Jean (2013). The Palace of Darius at Susa: The Great Royal Residence of Achaemenid Persia. I.B.Tauris. p. 423. ISBN 9781848856219.
Jump up ^ Garthwaite, Gene R. (2008). The Persians. John Wiley & Sons. p. 50. ISBN 9781405144001.
Jump up ^ 2002. Guaitoli. M.T., & Rambaldi, S. Lost Cities from the Ancient World. White Star, spa. (2006 version published by Barnes & Noble. Darius I founded Persepolis in 500 BC as the residence and ceremonial center of his dynasty. p. 164
Jump up ^ "Persepolis". Encyclopedia Britannica.
Jump up ^ Mousavi, Ali, Persepolis: Discovery and Afterlife of a World Wonder, p. 53, 2012, Walter de Gruyter, ISBN 1614510334, 9781614510338, google books
Jump up ^ "Persepolis". toiran.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2015. Retrieved 2 January 2015.
^ Jump up to: a b Sachau, C. Edward (2004). The Chronology of Ancient Nations. Kessinger Publishing. p. 484. ISBN 978-0-7661-8908-9. p. 127
Jump up ^ Al-Beruni and Persepolis. Acta Iranica. 1. Leiden. 1974. pp. 137–150. ISBN 978-90-04-03900-1.
Jump up ^ Wiesehöfer 10-11.
Jump up ^ Henkelman 2008:Ch 2.
Jump up ^ "Persepolis". Wondermondo.
Jump up ^ Murray, Hugh (1820). Historical account of discoveries and travels in Asia. Edinburgh: A. Constable and Co. p. 15.
Jump up ^ C. Wade Meade (1974). Road to Babylon: Development of U.S. Assyriology. Brill Archive. pp. 5–7. ISBN 978-9004038585.
Jump up ^ M. H. Aminisam (2007). تخت جمشيد (Persepolis). AuthorHouse. pp. 79–81. ISBN 9781463462529.
Jump up ^ Ali Mousavi (2012). Persepolis: Discovery and Afterlife of a World Wonder. Walter de Gruyter. pp. 104–7. ISBN 9781614510284.
^ Jump up to: a b Ali Mousavi, Persepolis in Retrospect: Histories of Discovery and Archaeological Exploration at the ruins of ancient Passch, Ars Orientalis, vol. 32, pp. 209-251, 2002
Jump up ^ [2] Ernst E Herzfeld, A New Inscription of Xerxes from Persepolis, Studies in Ancient Oriental Civilization, vol. 5, 1932
Jump up ^ [3] Erich F Schmidt, Persepolis I: Structures, Reliefs, Inscriptions, Oriental Institute Publications, vol. 68, 1953
Jump up ^ [4] Erich F Schmidt, Persepolis II: Contents of the Treasury and Other Discoveries, Oriental Institute Publications, vol. 69, 1957
Jump up ^ [5] Erich F Schmidt, Persepolis III: The Royal Tombs and Other Monuments, Oriental Institute Publications, vol. 70, 1970
Jump up ^ [6] Erich F Schmidt, The Treasury of Persepolis and Other Discoveries in the Homeland of the Achaemenians, Oriental Institute Communications, vol. 21, 1939
Jump up ^ Roaf, Michael; Boardman, John (1980). "A Greek painting at Persepolis". The Journal of Hellenic Studies. 100: 204–206. doi:10.2307/630751. JSTOR 630751.
Jump up ^ Pierre Briant (2002). From Cyrus to Alexander: A History of the Persian Empire. Eisenbrauns. pp. 256–8. ISBN 9781575061207.
Jump up ^ Penelope Hobhouse (2004). The Gardens of Persia. Kales Press. pp. 177–8. ISBN 9780967007663.
Jump up ^ Garthwaite, Gene R. (2008). The Persians. John Wiley & Sons. p. 50. ISBN 9781405144001.
Jump up ^ "Oriental Institute Highlights". Oi.uchicago.edu. 2007-02-19. Retrieved 2012-12-30.
Jump up ^ Potts, Daniel T (2012-05-21). A Companion to the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East. ISBN 9781405189880.
Jump up ^ Vidal, John (2004-12-23). "Dam is threat to Iran's heritage". the Guardian. Retrieved 2018-06-10.
Jump up ^ A Persepolis Relief in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge. Richard Nicholls and Michael Roaf. Iran, Vol. 15, (1977), pp. 146-152. Published by: British Institute of Persian Studies.
Jump up ^ Harper, Prudence O., Barbara A. Porter, Oscar White Muscarella, Holly Pittman, and Ira Spar. "Ancient Near Eastern Art." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 41, no. 4 (Spring, 1984).
Jump up ^ Relief said to be from Persepolis. Penn Museum Collections.
Jump up ^ (in French) Musée des Beaux-Arts de Lyon website
Further reading[edit]
Curtis, J. and Tallis, N. (eds). (2005). Forgotten Empire: The World of Ancient Persia. University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-24731-0.
Wilber, Donald Newton. (1989). Persepolis: The Archaeology of Parsa, Seat of the Persian Kings. Darwin Press. Revised edition ISBN 0-87850-062-6.
External links[edit]
Find more aboutPersepolisat Wikipedia's sister projects
Definitions from Wiktionary
Media from Wikimedia Commons
Quotations from Wikiquote
Texts from Wikisource
Textbooks from Wikibooks
Persepolis official website Persepolis official website
Persepolis at the Ancient History Encyclopedia with timeline, illustrations, and books
Arthur John Booth The Discovery and Decipherment of the Trilingual Cuneiform Inscriptions 1902
Persepolis Photographs and Introduction to the Persian Expedition,
360 degrees panorama gallery of Persepolis
Google Maps
"Persepolis" at Cultural Heritage Organization of Iran
Greek Art And Architecture In Iran (Mentions Ionian work in Persepolis)
Shiraz Attractions
show
v
t
e
World Heritage Sites in Iran
List of World Heritage Sites in Iran
The Armenian Monastic Ensembles
St. Thaddeus Monastery
St. Stepanos Monastery
Chapel of Dzordzor
Chapel of Chupan
Church of the Holy Mother of God
Bam and its cultural landscape
Behistun
Chogha Zanbil
Cultural landscape of Maymand
Golestan Palace
Gonbad-e Qabus
Jameh Mosque of Isfahan
Naqsh-e Jahan Square
Pasargadae
Persepolis
The Persian gardens
Pasargadae
Chehel Sotoun
Fin
Eram
Shazdeh
Dolatabad
Abbasabad
Akbarieh
Pahlevanpour
Shahr-e Sukhteh
Sheikh Safi's Tomb
Dome of Soltaniyeh
Shushtar Historical Hydraulic System
Susa
Bazaar of Tabriz
Takht-e Soleymān
The Persian qanats
Gonabad
Baladeh
Zarch
Hassan Abad Moshir
Goharriz
Akbarabad
Ghasemabad
Moun
Vazvan
Mozdabad
Ebrahimabad
Dasht-e Loot
Historic city of Yazd
Sassanid Archaeological Landscape of Fars Region
Qal'eh Dokhtar
Ardashir Investiture Relief
Victory Relief of Ardashir
Ardashir Khurreh
Palace of Ardashir
City of Bishapur
Shapur cave
Sarvestan Palace
show
v
t
e
Iranian architecture
Styles
Parsian
Achaemenid
pre-Parsian
Parthian
Khorasani
Sasanian
Other
Azeri
Isfahani
Razi
Types
Bazaars
Caravanserais
Khaneqah
Mosques
Tekyeh
Elements
Ab anbar
Andaruni
Biruni
Burj
Chahartaq
Dalan e Vorudi
Gonbad
Hashti
Howz
Imamzadeh
Iwan
Kariz
Kucheh
Panjdari
Persian Garden (hayāt)
Qanat
Robats
Sahn
Shabestan
Talar
Windcatchers
Yakhchal
Traditional cities
Amol
Andijan
Baku
Bam
Bukhara
Ctesiphon
Derbent
Ganja
Gur-e-Amir
Hatra
Herat
Isfahan
Kashan
Khiva
Khorramabad
Mashhad
Merv
Nakhchivan
Nishapur
Persepolis
Qazvin
Qom
Samarkand
Shahrisabz
Shiraz
Susa
Tabriz
Takht-e Soleymān
Tehran
Yazd
Theory and analysis
Islamic architecture
Traditional Persian residential architecture
Traditional water sources of Persian antiquity
Lists
Architects of Iran
Args, castles, and ghal'ehs
List of ab anbars of Qazvin
List of mosques
List of ziyarat-gahs
show
v
t
e
Fars Province
Capital
Shiraz
Counties
and cities
Abadeh County
Abadeh
Bahman
Izadkhvast
Soghad
Surmaq
Arsanjan County
Arsanjan
Bavanat County
Surian
Korehi
Darab County
Darab
Jannat Shahr
Eqlid County
Eqlid
Sedeh
Estahban County
Estahban
Ij
Runiz
Farashband County
Farashband
Dehram
Nujin
Fasa County
Fasa
Now Bandegan
Sheshdeh
Zahedshahr
Firuzabad County
Firuzabad
Meymand
Gerash County
Gerash
Arad
Jahrom County
Jahrom
Bab Anar
Duzeh
Khavaran
Qotbabad
Kavar County
Kavar
Kazerun County
Kazerun
Baladeh
Khesht
Konartakhteh
Nowdan
Qaemiyeh
Kharameh County
Kharameh
Khonj County
Khonj
Khorrambid County
Safashahr
Qaderabad
Lamerd County
Lamerd
Ahel
Alamarvdasht
Eshkanan
Larestan County
Lar
Beyram
Banaruiyeh
Evaz
Fishvar
Juyom
Khur
Latifi
Mamasani County
Nurabad
Khumeh Zar
Marvdasht County
Marvdasht
Kamfiruz
Ramjerd
Seyyedan
Mohr County
Mohr
Asir
Galleh Dar
Varavi
Neyriz County
Neyriz
Abadeh Tashk
Meshkan
Qatruyeh
Pasargad County
Saadat Shahr
Qir and Karzin County
Qir
Efzar
Karzin
Rostam County
Masiri
Sarvestan County
Sarvestan
Sepidan County
Ardakan
Beyza
Hamashahr
Shiraz County
Shiraz
Darian
Lapui
Zarqan
Zarrin Dasht County
Hajjiabad
Dowbaran
Shahr-e Pir
Landmarks
Afif-Abad Garden
Amir's dam
Arg of Karim Khan
Barmdelak lagoon
Bishapur
Delgosha Garden
Eram Garden
Istakhr
Ghal'eh Dokhtar
Ka'ba-ye Zartosht
Kazerun fire temple
Lake Parishan
Naqsh-e Rajab
Naqsh-e Rustam
Palace of Ardashir
Pars Museum
Pasargadae
Persepolis
Qavam House
Qur'an Gate
Saadi's mausoleum
Sarvestan Sassanian palace
Shah Cheragh
Colossal Statue of Shapur I in Shapur cave
Tangeh Bolaghi
Hāfezieh
Tounbbot
Vakil Bath
Vakil Bazaar
Vakil Mosque
Populated places
List of cities, towns and villages in Fars Province
Authority control
WorldCat Identities
GND: 4045231-1
LCCN: n80063345
NDL: 00629207
SELIBR: 307591
VIAF: 145742096
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Persepolis&oldid=865772238"
Categories:
Persepolis
Buildings and structures completed in the 6th century BC
Achaemenid cities
Archaeological sites in Iran
Former populated places in Fars Province
Ancient Iranian cities
Achaemenid architecture
Iranian culture
Ruins in Iran
World Heritage Sites in Iran
Buildings and structures in Fars Province
Tourist attractions in Fars Province
Persian art
Establishments in the Achaemenid Empire
Hidden categories:
Articles with French-language external links
Articles with short description
Use dmy dates from November 2012
Articles containing Old Persian-language text
Articles containing Persian-language text
Coordinates on Wikidata
Articles containing explicitly cited English-language text
Articles containing Ancient Greek-language text
All articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases
Articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases from May 2010
Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica with Wikisource reference
Wikipedia articles incorporating text from the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica
Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers
Wikipedia articles with LCCN identifiers
Wikipedia articles with NDL identifiers
Wikipedia articles with SELIBR identifiers
Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers
Navigation menu
Personal tools
Not logged in
Talk
Contributions
Create account
Log in
Namespaces
Article
Talk
Variants
Views
Read
Edit
View history
More
Search
Navigation
Main page
Contents
Featured content
Current events
Random article
Donate to Wikipedia
Wikipedia store
Interaction
Help
About Wikipedia
Community portal
Recent changes
Contact page
Tools
What links here
Related changes
Upload file
Special pages
Permanent link
Page information
Wikidata item
Cite this page
Print/export
Create a book
Download as PDF
Printable version
In other projects
Wikimedia Commons
Wikiquote
Wikivoyage
Languages
العربية
Asturianu
Azərbaycanca
تۆرکجه
বাংলা
Башҡортса
Беларуская
Български
Brezhoneg
Català
Cebuano
Čeština
Cymraeg
Dansk
Deutsch
Ελληνικά
Español
Esperanto
Euskara
فارسی
Français
Galego
한국어
Հայերեն
हिन्दी
Hrvatski
Bahasa Indonesia
Italiano
עברית
Basa Jawa
ქართული
Қазақша
Kurdî
Кыргызча
Latina
Latviešu
Lietuvių
Magyar
Македонски
മലയാളം
Bahasa Melayu
Монгол
မြန်မာဘာသာ
Nederlands
नेपाली
日本語
Norsk
Occitan
Oʻzbekcha/ўзбекча
پنجابی
پښتو
Polski
Português
Română
Русский
Scots
Sicilianu
Simple English
سنڌي
Slovenčina
Slovenščina
Српски / srpski
Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски
Suomi
Svenska
Tagalog
தமிழ்
ไทย
Türkçe
Українська
اردو
Tiếng Việt
Zazaki
中文
65 more
Edit links
This page was last edited on 26 October 2018, at 01:41 (UTC).
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.
Privacy policy
About Wikipedia
Disclaimers
Contact Wikipedia
Developers
Cookie statement
Mobile view
Enable previews

key: html

type: local

value: div

attrs: id class

values: mw-page-base noprint

values: mw-head-base noprint

value: a

attrs: id class lang

values: firstHeading firstHeading en

values: siteSub noprint

attrs: class href

values: mw-jump-link #mw-head

values: mw-jump-link #p-search

attrs: class style

values: shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux

attrs: href class title

values:
/wiki/Persepolis_(disambiguation)
mw-disambig
Persepolis (disambiguation)

attrs: role class

values:
note
hatnote navigation-not-searchable

value: p

value: caption

value: span

attrs: lang title

values:
peo
Old Persian language text

value: i

values:
peo-Latn
Old Persian-language transliteration

attrs: href title

attrs: lang dir title

values:
fa
rtl
Persian language text

value: td

attrs: colspan style

value: tr

attrs: alt src width height srcset data-file-width data-file-height

values:
/wiki/File:Iran_location_map.svg
image
Persepolis is located in Iran

attrs: alt src title width height srcset data-file-width data-file-height

values: Maps, aerial photos, and other data for this location

values: 2,500 year celebration of the Persian Empire

values:
/wiki/World_Heritage_Site
mw-redirect
World Heritage Site

values: border:4px solid #FFE153; line-height: 1.5; text-align: center;

values:
nofollow
external text
http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/114

values: List of World Heritage Sites in Asia and Australasia

values:
/wiki/Old_Persian_language
mw-redirect
Old Persian language

values: checkbox button toctogglecheckbox toctogglecheckbox display:none

values: wikt:Περσέπολις

values:
pal-Latn
Middle Persian-language transliteration

values: wikt:تخت جمشید

values: Representation in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)

attrs: alt src width height class srcset data-file-width data-file-height

values: University of Chicago Oriental Institute

values: Edit section: After the fall of the Achaemenid Empire

values:
/wiki/Cuneiform_script
mw-redirect
Cuneiform script

values:
/wiki/Immortals_(Persian_Empire)
mw-redirect
Immortals (Persian Empire)

values: Edit section: Other palaces and structures

values:
/wiki/Naghsh-e_Rostam
mw-redirect
Naghsh-e Rostam

values:
/wiki/Darius_III_of_Persia
mw-redirect
Darius III of Persia

values: Edit section: The controversy of the Sivand Dam

values: The material near this tag possibly uses too-vague attribution or weasel words. (May 2010)

values: Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Words to watch

values: Edit section: Museums (outside Iran) that display material from Persepolis

values: University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology

values: display:table-cell;padding:0.2em 0.2em 0.2em 0.3em;vertical-align:middle

values: margin:0.5em 0 0.5em 1em;border:solid #aaa 1px

values:
/wiki/Cities_of_the_Ancient_Near_East
mw-redirect
Cities of the Ancient Near East

values: Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition

values:
nofollow
external text
http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1106

values:
nofollow
external autonumber
http://oi.uchicago.edu/pdf/saoc5.pdf

values:
nofollow
external autonumber
http://oi.uchicago.edu/pdf/oip68.pdf

values:
nofollow
external autonumber
http://oi.uchicago.edu/pdf/oip69.pdf

values:
nofollow
external autonumber
http://oi.uchicago.edu/pdf/oip70.pdf

values:
nofollow
external autonumber
http://oi.uchicago.edu/pdf/oic21.pdf

values:
nofollow
external text
//doi.org/10.2307%2F630751

values:
nofollow
external text
//www.jstor.org/stable/630751

values: -moz-column-width: 30em; -webkit-column-width: 30em; column-width: 30em; list-style-type: decimal;

values: padding-bottom: 0.75em; text-align: center;

attrs: alt src width height style srcset data-file-width data-file-height

values: display: inline-block; width: 31px; line-height: 31px; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center;

values: display: inline-block; margin-left: 4px; width: 182px; vertical-align: middle;

values: border-top:1px solid #aaa; padding-top: 0.75em;

values: metadata plainlinks plainlist mbox-small

values: border:1px solid #aaa; padding:0.75em; background:#f9f9f9;

values: Template talk:World Heritage Sites in Iran

values: Church of the Holy Mother of God, Darashamb

values:
/wiki/Arg-%C3%A9_Bam
mw-redirect
Arg-é Bam

values: Pasargadae Persian Garden (page does not exist)

values: Pahlevanpour Garden (page does not exist)

values: Sheikh Safi al-Din Khānegāh and Shrine Ensemble

values: Hassan Abad Moshir qanat (page does not exist)

values:
/wiki/Dasht-e_Loot
mw-redirect
Dasht-e Loot

values: Sassanid Archaeological Landscape of Fars Region

values: Ardashir Investiture Relief (page does not exist)

values: Victory Relief of Ardashir (page does not exist)

values:
/wiki/File:Flag_of_Iran.svg
image
Flag of Iran

values:
navbox-image
1
width:1px;padding:0px 0px 0px 2px

values: nowraplinks collapsible autocollapse navbox-inner mw-collapsible mw-made-collapsible mw-collapsed

values:
navbox-image
6
width:1px;padding:0px 0px 0px 2px

values: Biruni (Persian architecture) (page does not exist)

values: Traditional Persian residential architecture

values: Traditional water sources of Persian antiquity

values: nowraplinks collapsible collapsed navbox-inner mw-collapsible mw-collapsed mw-made-collapsible

values:
/wiki/Capital_(political)
mw-redirect
Capital (political)

values:
navbox-image
4
width:1px;padding:0px 0px 0px 2px

values:
/wiki/List_of_cities_in_Iran
mw-redirect
List of cities in Iran

values:
/wiki/Ghal%27eh_Dokhtar
mw-redirect
Ghal'eh Dokhtar

values: List of cities, towns and villages in Fars Province

values:
nofollow
external text
https://d-nb.info/gnd/4045231-1

values:
nofollow
external text
https://libris.kb.se/auth/307591

values:
nofollow
external text
https://viaf.org/viaf/145742096

values: Category:Buildings and structures completed in the 6th century BC

values: Category:Former populated places in Fars Province

values: Category:Buildings and structures in Fars Province

values: Category:Tourist attractions in Fars Province

values: Category:Establishments in the Achaemenid Empire

values: Category:Articles with French-language external links

values: Category:Articles with short description

values: Category:Use dmy dates from November 2012

values: Category:Articles containing Old Persian-language text

values: Category:Articles containing Persian-language text

values: Category:Articles containing explicitly cited English-language text

values: Category:Articles containing Ancient Greek-language text

values: Category:All articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases

values: Category:Articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases from May 2010

values: Category:Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica with Wikisource reference

values: Category:Wikipedia articles incorporating text from the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica

values: Category:Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers

values: Category:Wikipedia articles with LCCN identifiers

values: Category:Wikipedia articles with NDL identifiers

values: Category:Wikipedia articles with SELIBR identifiers

values: Category:Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers

values: Discussion about edits from this IP address [ctrl-alt-n]

values: A list of edits made from this IP address [ctrl-alt-y]

values: You are encouraged to create an account and log in; however, it is not mandatory

values: You're encouraged to log in; however, it's not mandatory. [ctrl-alt-o]

values:
/wiki/Persepolis
View the content page [ctrl-alt-c]
c

values: Discussion about the content page [ctrl-alt-t]

values: p-namespaces navigation vectorTabs p-namespaces-label

values:
p-variants
navigation
vectorMenu emptyPortlet
p-variants-label

values: Past revisions of this page [ctrl-alt-h]

values: p-views navigation vectorTabs p-views-label

values:
p-cactions
navigation
vectorMenu emptyPortlet
p-cactions-label

values:
mw-wiki-logo
/wiki/Main_Page
Visit the main page

values:
/wiki/Main_Page
Visit the main page [ctrl-alt-z]
z

values: Featured content – the best of Wikipedia

values: Find background information on current events

values:
/wiki/Special:Random
Load a random article [ctrl-alt-x]
x

values: portal navigation p-navigation p-navigation-label

values: Guidance on how to use and edit Wikipedia

values: About the project, what you can do, where to find things

values: portal navigation p-wikibase-otherprojects p-wikibase-otherprojects-label

values: تخت جمشيد – Arabic

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-ar
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-ast
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-az
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-azb
display: none;

values: পার্সেপোলিস – Bangla

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-bn
display: none;

values: Персеполь – Bashkir

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-ba
display: none;

values: Персепаліс – Belarusian

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-be
display: none;

values: Персеполис – Bulgarian

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-bg
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-br
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-ca
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-ceb
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-cs
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-cy
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-da
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-de
display: none;

values: Περσέπολη – Greek

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-el
display: none;

values: interlanguage-link interwiki-es badge-Q17437796 badge-featuredarticle

values:
https://eo.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persepolo
Persepolo – Esperanto
eo
eo
interlanguage-link-target

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-eo
display: none;

values: interlanguage-link interwiki-eu badge-Q17437796 badge-featuredarticle

values: تخت جمشید – Persian

values: interlanguage-link interwiki-fr badge-Q17437796 badge-featuredarticle

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-gl
display: none;

values: 페르세폴리스 – Korean

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-ko
display: none;

values: Պերսեպոլիս – Armenian

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-hy
display: none;

values: पर्सेपोलिस – Hindi

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-hi
display: none;

values: interlanguage-link interwiki-hr badge-Q17437796 badge-featuredarticle

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-id
display: none;

values:
https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persepoli
Persepoli – Italian
it
it
interlanguage-link-target

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-it
display: none;

values: פרספוליס – Hebrew

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-he
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-jv
display: none;

values: პერსეპოლისი – Georgian

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-ka
display: none;

values: Персеполис – Kazakh

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-kk
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-ku
display: none;

values: Персеполь – Kyrgyz

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-ky
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-la
display: none;

values:
https://lv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persepole
Persepole – Latvian
lv
lv
interlanguage-link-target

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-lv
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-lt
display: none;

values: interlanguage-link interwiki-hu badge-Q17437796 badge-featuredarticle

values: Персеполис – Macedonian

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-mk
display: none;

values: പേർസെപൊലിസ് – Malayalam

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-ml
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-ms
display: none;

values: Персеполь – Mongolian

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-mn
display: none;

values: ပါဆီပိုးလစ် – Burmese

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-my
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-nl
display: none;

values: पर्सेपोलिस – Nepali

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-ne
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-ja
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-no
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-oc
display: none;

values:
https://uz.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persepol
Persepol – Uzbek
uz
uz
interlanguage-link-target

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-uz
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-pnb
display: none;

values: د جمشید پلاز – Pashto

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-ps
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-pl
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-pt
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-ro
display: none;

values: Персеполь – Russian

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-ru
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-sco
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-scn
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-simple
display: none;

values: تخت جمشيد – Sindhi

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-sd
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-sk
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-sl
display: none;

values: Персепољ – Serbian

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-sr
display: none;

values: interlanguage-link interwiki-sh badge-Q17437796 badge-featuredarticle

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-fi
display: none;

values: interlanguage-link interwiki-sv badge-Q17437798 badge-goodarticle

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-tl
display: none;

values: பெர்சப்பொலிஸ் – Tamil

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-ta
display: none;

values: แพร์ซโพลิส – Thai

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-th
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-tr
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-uk
display: none;

values: تخت جمشید – Urdu

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-ur
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-vi
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-diq
display: none;

values: All languages (initial selection from common choices by you and others)

values:
suggestions
display: none; font-size: 13px;

values: mediawiki ltr sitedir-ltr mw-hide-empty-elt ns-0 ns-subject page-Persepolis rootpage-Persepolis skin-vector action-view