SHIRAZ

Welcome to Shiraz, the present-day capital of Fars Province, and the heartland of Iran, which gave its name to the Persian language: Farsi. Welcome to Shiraz, the city of historic monuments, poets and philosophers, warriors and kings, orchards, orangeries, roses, Adonises and fragrant blossoms, in southern Iran. Nearly 8-km long uninterrupted rose gardens are what you will see on both sides of a highway to the same length connecting the Shiraz Airport to outskirts of the town. Shiraz is located in an altitude of 1,600 m, and 895 km to the south of Tehran, being accessible both by road and an airport for domestic and local flights.

Spring and autumn, particularly from early February till May and then from October till ate November, are the most delightful and exhilarating seasons accompanied by the warmth and passion of its people, parks with magnificent trees, and long wide shady avenues leading from one end of the town to the other end, apart from being an incitement to leisurely wanderings during siesta time have always lured famous scholars and travelers to visit Shiraz. So much so that:

"The visitor forgets his homeland When in May he comes to Shiraz"

Sa’di

Shiraz with a population of 973,161 inhabitants lies in a pleasant green valley surrounded by high mountains, in the vicinity of Lake Maharlou. Its climate is extremely agreeable and generally temperate because of the city’s altitude (1,600m). During Now Ruz (the Iranian New Year beginning on 21st March) the city becomes a field of flowers and greenery, heady with scent of orange blossom. The heat on very hot summer days does not exceed 40 degrees centigrade nor does the cold on winter days drop below minus 3 degrees centigrade.

On coming from Esfahan "suddenly we turned a corner", EG Browne relates in his fascinating Year Among the Persians, "and in that moment – a moment of which the recollection will never fade from my mind – there burst upon my delighted gaze a view the like of which (in its way) I never saw. We were now at that point known to all students of Hafez, called Tang-e Allahu Akbar, because whoever first beholds Shiraz here is constrained by the exceeding beauty of the sight to cry in admiration Allahu Akbar! – God is most Great! And the inimitable Hafez cried: Delightful is Shiraz and its incomparable situation – Oh God! Preserve it from decay!" This might have held true for the Shiraz of at least 60 years ago, but today with the town growing westwards, a much better view of the town can be obtained anywhere after passing through the Koran Gate.

But, like all Iranian cities south of the Caspian belt, all its luxuriance is man made. There exist first-class commercial lifelines to Esfahan, Tehran, Kerman, Bandar Abbas and Ahwaz. Shiraz is an oasis in both the literal and the metaphorical senses of the word; it s numerous gardens are miraculous havens after tiring drive from any direction.

The home of Sa’di and Hafez has seen many an ancient day, the clay tablets at Persepolis referring to wages paid to workers from Shi-Razi-Ish, or what is known today as Shiraz. The prosperity and magnificence of Shiraz are, however, products of the Islamic era.

The 9th century AD saw developments in Shiraz, the pace accelerated during the 10th century, when the town was promoted to the status of capital of Persia. During the Atabakan-e Fars period (12-13th centuries) and continuing through to the 14th century, Shiraz was one of the largest and most populous Islamic cities.

During the reign of Shah Abbas the Great (turn of the 17th century) and the emirate of his celebrated general, in Fars, Imam Gholi Khan, Shiraz once again enjoyed peace and prosperity.

Karim Khan Zand (18th century), the righteous king, promoted Shiraz once more to become the capital of the empire, contributing greatly to its prosperity by building mosques, bazaars, roads, citadels and other structures in the town.

With the termination of the Zand era, Shiraz too, began to decline. Today, however, the famous Shiraz University and Hospital, as well as the various electronic, chemical, spinning, weaving and cement factories in addition to the flourishing agriculture of the environs of Shiraz, contribute towards making the city a place of considerable standing and prosperity.

The following is a brief description of the places of interest in Shiraz, with the historic sites such as the Persepolis, Nawsh-e Rostam, and Naqsh-e Rajab being separately treated under the heading EXCURSIONS AROUND SHIRAZ.

The Koran Gate

The Koran Gate was originally built as an ornamental entrance to the north of the town by the Buyvayhids about 1,000 years ago. Karim Khan Zand placed a volume of the holy Koran in the small room built on top of the gate, for the blessing. By the sanction of the same Koran, the gate guarantees safe return to all Shirazis, who pass under it. The original gate was demolished nearly in the 50’s and a local merchant erected the present one on its site

GARDENS AND OLD HOUSES IN SHIRAZ

Gardens
During all its periods of glory and prosperity, Shiraz was renowned for its large and pleasant gardens. No traveler, even to this day, can forget the emerald green gardens of Shiraz and their cool and shady Boneh-Gah ( an area in a garden where a mass of trees form a dome-like structure). At the bottom of the most of these gardens in a circular area, where the multitude of thick, bushy maple and plane trees join their heads together to provide a cool, shady spot for resting. The Boneh-Gah is, in fact, a garden within a garden.

Since a visit to Shiraz would be incomplete without a look at the gardens, which present all the art and skill of landscape planning, some famous examples are listed below. You can easily locate all these places on a tourist map of Shiraz:

The Khalili Garden: This is a spacious garden overflowing with flowers. Geraniums, sweetbriers, bougainvillea, yellow roses, blue water lilies and ornamental trees cover a large area of the garden. Lofty plane trees line both sides of the main walk, and thick, bushy maples from a round and cool Boneh-Gah in the north-eastern corner. Through the graciousness of the owner, a tour of the garden has become possible for all.
Bagh-e Eram (the Garden of Paradise): This is a large garden to the west of the city. It dates from the time of Qajars, when Mohammad Gholi Khan Illkhani ordered its construction; Mohammad Hassan, the noted architect, built the handsome two-story structure in it. In the center of the building is a gallery overlooking the garden and all around are various rooms, with orris and alcove and a beautiful hall of mirrors.
Facing the gallery is the main walk of the garden with small ponds bordered on both sides by fine cypress trees. The most beautiful of all the trees in this garden – and the most famous tree of Shiraz – is a lofty cypress named Sarv-e Naaz (the sweet cypress), which indeed, seems a work of art.

Bagh-e Delgosha (the Garden of Heart’s-ease): To the northeast of Shiraz, near the mausoleum of Sa’di, is the large and pleasant Delgosha Garden. Flower-beds decorate Delgosha Garden. Flowerbeds decorate the center of the wide main walk of the garden and a mass of orange trees borders the two sides. The walk leads to a residential home, standing in the center of the garden dating from the Zand and Qajar eras. The building has a verandah supported by two monolithic pillars. Its facade is covered with glazed tiles and plaster moldings, its doors are fine examples of inlay work and mirrorwork, and there are some lovely paintings on wood with flower, shrub and bird designs.
Old Houses
Takieh Haft Tanan (Resting Place of the Seven): At the foot of the mountain, to the north of the mausoleum of Hafez, stands a pavilion dating from the period of Karim Khan Zand. Under the ancient cypress and pine trees in the pleasant garden surrounding the pavilion, lie buried seven learned men – thus explaining the origin of the name Resting Place of the Seven.
The pavilion, in the form of a large hall, has two monolithic columns and two rooms on either side. The walls of the hall are decorated with fine pictures of flowers, shrubs and birds; and below the ceiling are paintings of Rostam, Ashkabus and a lion in the process of devouring a deer.

The tomb of Shah Shoja’, the 13th century patron of Hafez is to be seen to the west of the building.

Golshan Garden
Being transformed into a military museum by the Islamic Republic of Iran Army in 1988, the Golshan Garden (also called Afif Abad) was founded in the south of Shiraz upon orders by Mirza Ali Mohammad Khan Qavam in 1863. It houses a beautiful two-story edifice following a combination of Achaemenian and Qajar architecture. It was used as the ex-king’s residence whenever he traveled to Shiraz.

Visiting hours: everyday 08:00-12:00 a.m., 15:00-17:30 p.m. Tel: (071) 667343.

Poetical Capital of Persia

Many scholars have justifiably used the term "poetical capital" for the town which gave Iran two of the greatest poets of the world, Sa’di and Hafez.

Sa’di (c 1209-91) was born into a learned and accomplished family, and died in Shiraz. Known as the patron poet of travelers, he was first educated in Baghdad and then traveled in the Middle East, North Africa and India before settling in Shiraz where, drawing on his wide experience, he set down in verse and prose his eminently sensible views on life and human nature. He was taken prisoner by the Crusaders, enslaved and set to manual digging work in Tripoli. While Hafez exemplifies the poet who finds a world in a single city, Sa’di made a single city of the world, wandering from India to Turkey, Lebanon, Ethiopia, and Arabia over a period of thirty years as a dervish – that is to say, relying on haphazard hospitality and undergoing extremes of hunger, thirst and fatigue in a kind of physical allegory of the spiritual quest.

Sa’di’s best known works are the Guilstan (The Rose Garden) and the Bustan (The Orchard). Like Hafez, Sa’di is always being quoted and is popularly referred to by Iranians as the Sheikh of Shiraz.

Sa’dieh: Mausoleum of Sa’di

The tomb of Sa’di of Shiraz will scent of love

Even a thousand years after his death.

This line of poetry by Sa’di, inscribed on the gate leading into the garden surrounding the mausoleum, welcomes all those who enter to pay homage to this unparalleled master of the Persian language and literature.

Even from the very early days after the poet’s death, the mausoleum of Sa’di became a place of pilgrimage to lovers of poetry and literature. In 1808 AD Karim Khan Zand renovated the mausoleum.

His tomb, in the northeast of the city, is as overpowering as that of Hafez is congenially intimate. Tombs of both poets were rebuilt in early ‘50s. Sa’di’s mausoleum stands on the spot that was once the poet’s convent. Though modern in its simplicity, the portico or talar with its tall columns of pinkish marble is a traditional feature of Persian architecture. Steps lead up to the tomb with its turquoise-blue dome. A short double colonnade to the left leads to a tiled sunken enclosure containing a pool filled with voracious fish.

Hafezieh: Mausoleum of Hafez

Hafez (1324-1391), the greatest master of Persian lyric poetry and the literary giant of the 14th century, was born in Shiraz, chose to live there all his life (except for a short journey), sang its praises in incomparable verse and was buried there in a garden known after him as the Hafezieh, in the northeast part of the city. The extraordinary popularity and the wide appeal of this great lyric poet among all Persian speaking people make his tomb a venerated place, visited by all.

The present mausoleum, standing in a lovely garden, dates from 1936-38. It is approached by flights of stone steps, at the top of which a double colonnade is crossed to reach the tomb under a tiled cupola. The cupola resembles a dervish’s hat, is in slabs, and is covered inside with mosaic faience of wonderful design. The alabaster tombstone and four central columns of the colonnade alone date from the reign of Karim Khan Zand. The tombstone is beautifully inscribed with two of Hafez’s Ghazals. Visitors to the tomb can still, as they have done for centuries, take the omens, or faals, by picking a page at random from a volume of Hafez, kept ready for this purpose.

His near-contemporary Jami considered that the virtually untranslatable poetry of Hafez "with all its sweetness, delicacy, freshness, ease, elegance, flow, agreeableness and unaffectedness, is something very near a miracle; it is a just object of pride not only for Persians: it is a source of glory for all mankind."

Hafez is the pen-name of Shams ad-Din Mohammad, and means "he who knows [The Koran] by heart."

Bazaar

The bazaar, which Karim Khan had built in the city, is unique in Iran for its size, solidity and the beauty of its brickwork. The bazaar is located in the city center of the town and has always been the business quarter. Here are the coppersmiths at their craft, makers of fine inlaid woodwork called khatam kari, delicately fashioning mosaics for jewel boxes and fine tribal carpets called kilims of different dimensions.

Emerging from the blazing midday courtyard of the mosque, the visitor will rest his eyes by pursuing the winding lanes of the Regent’s Bazaar. Adjoining the mosque, it may also offer a good hunting ground for keen photographers.

Situated at the end of the bazaar, Saray-e Moshir is a new addition to the city’s tourist attractions. Over the past century, Saray-e Moshir was the center of transactions for the merchants of Vakil Bazaar. Its architecture is that of original Iranian style which has been repaired with certain minor alterations. The restaurant in this place serves the visitors with most delicious Persian dishes. Also, there are some small pavilions where Persian handicrafts are displayed for sale.

Saray-e Moshir

Situated at the end of Vakil Bazaar, Saray-e Moshir (also called Saray-e Golshan or Honar) built by Mirza Abolhassan Khan Moshir ol-Molk (in 1871, according to the inscription on the doorway), is a new addition to the city’s tourist attractions. Over the past century, Saray-e Moshir was the center of transactions for the merchants of Vakil Bazaar. Its architecture is that of original Iranian style, which was repaired and restored before the Islamic Revolution with certain minor alterations. Its brick works closely resemble in design to that of the Vakil Bazaar, but in a smaller scale. In the middle of the structure there is a large basin. The great Talar (hall) in the north, represents the most interesting part of the building, and is already being used both as a restaurant and tea house and serves the visitors with most delicious Persian dishes. Annex, there are small pavilions where Persian handicrafts are displayed for sale.

Vakil Mosque

By far the most impressive Vakil monument in Shiraz, the mosque was completed in 1773 and restored in 1825. It has only two ivans instead of the usual four, on the northern and southern sides of a large open court. The ivans and court are decorated with typical Shirazi haft rangi tiles, a characteristic feature of the art and industry of Shiraz during the latter half of the 18th century. Their gay color and floral designs attracted the admiration of many famous travelers, and give a special charm to this unusual building.

The large winter prayer hall (shabestan) behind the south ivan is supported by a veritable forest of 48 monolithic pillars carved in spirals, each with a capital of acanthus leaves. The minbar, or pulpit, in this hall is cut from a solid piece of marble with a flight of 14 steps.

The mosque, like other Karim Khan Zand structures, is so solid that even after two violent earthquakes it stands as firm and solid as ever.

Shah-e Cheragh Shrine

Seyed Amir Ahmad, known as Shah-e Cheragh, the brother of Imam Reza, came to Shiraz in the latter half of the 8th century. He died in the city and his tomb is now a venerated place of pilgrimage.

The structure, of tilework and the dome of the mausoleum have been rebuilt a number of times over the centuries. The tomb, the beautiful silver doors and the exquisite mirrorwork of the sanctuary are the works of the 19th century Shirazi master and contemporary artists. The simple ivan to the east of the sanctuary adds to the overall beauty of the structure.

Shah-e Cheragh Museum

This museum is founded within the Shah-e Cheragh Complex. It comprises a large hall, wherein priceless Koran, books, coins, textiles, metal and porcelain dishes, enamel ware, marquetry, and artifacts collected through purchase, donation, and endowment are displayed.

Visiting hours: everyday 07:00 a.m. to 22:00 p.m. Tel: (071) 22158

Attiq Friday Mosque

The most interesting and oldest of the buildings in the old town of Shiraz, is the Friday Mosque, also called the Masjid-e Attiq. Begun in 894 by the Saffarid Amr ibn-e Laith, the building has suffered the vicissitudes of earthquake, devastation and restoration, and its earlier element now visible in the curious Khoda Khaneh (House of the God) in the center of the court, added by Is’haq Inju in 1351 (and restored in mid-40s) to house copies of the blessed Koran. It was built in imitation of Ka’ba at Mecca, round which pilgrims were bound as a religious act to circumambulate seven times.

In each corner there stands a tower and on each side an ivan supported by two pillars, forming a room in the center where a Koran is kept. On the exterior of the structure is an inscription in Thulth script, the work of the celebrated calligrapher of the period, Yahya al-Sufi al-Jamali. The inscription in relief is on stone and is the only one of its kind to be found in a mosque in Iran. To the south of the mosque, is a large shabestan (prayer hall) and the facade of the ivan on this side is decorated with delightful mosaic faience dating from the reign of the Safavid Shah Soleiman (16th century).

New Mosque

This is an immense mosque, its rectangular courtyard alone covering an area of 20,000-sq m. The aged plane trees give this spacious courtyard a particular charm and grace, making it pleasant not only in the summer, but also in the winter.

It is believed that Atabak Sa’d Zangui, immortalized by the poet Sa’di, built this mosque in gratitude for the good health bestowed on his only daughter. The construction was undertaken in 1219 AD and completed after 17 years of work.

Pars Museum

The Pars Museum is an octagonal, small and graceful Zand-period structure where Karim Khan received foreign ambassadors. The building was later used, as Karim Khan’s mausoleum according to his last will. However, his rival Aqa Mohammad Khan Qajar desecrated his tomb and took his remains to Gulistan Palace in Tehran.

The rusty sword of Karim Khan Zand lies on the spot where his body was buried; a beautiful and priceless Koran written by Imam Ali the Prophet’s son-in-law adorns a showcase; inside the building which is the form of a Greek Cross you will find many beautiful oil paintings which depict Moses wooing and Abraham sacrificing; tileworks show Solomon’s enthronement, and curious objects from Iran’s 6000 years of civilization – from the prehistoric to modern times – are to be seen in many showcases of the museum, distributed in the four arms of the cross.

Islamic ceramics of the eleventh to thirteenth centuries are the main pride of this museum, though your own preference may be for those fascinating bronzes of Lurestan that still provoke the liveliest controversy among scholars. The tourist will not worry weather these superb creations were by the Kassites or the Cimmerians: he will admire the elaboration of the design, and the consummate workmanship of the many different types of Lurestan art that leads one to the heretical thought that all early bronzes (of whatever origin) found in the Zagros have been labeled uncritically "Lurestan".

The Ghavam Orangery

(Narenjestan Museum)

At the end of the eastern part of Zand Avenue is a large house built in the last century (1881) by Mirza Ebrahim Khan with the assistance of a master mason. Being a significant monument of the Qajar period, it is located on the northern side of the luxuriant Narenjestan (orangery) Garden. In 1965, the Narenjestan was handed over to the Asian Institute and Shiraz University, one of its halls being transformed into a museum. This is the house where Professor Arthur Upham Pope spent 50 years of his life.

The doorway leading into the Narenjestan, covered with delicate glazed tiles, is flanked by small-carved stone platforms; the ceiling and the entrance vestibule are decorated with brickwork and stalactites. Thus the luxury and the elegance of the building catches the attention of the visitor right from the start.

The building, like all Persian houses, faces the Qiblah (direction in which Muslims turn during prayers). Its most outstanding feature is a large crescent-shaped feature is a large crescent shaped tilework on the brow of the structure, depicting a lion and the sun in the center, and two leopards devouring deer on either side. The stone panel bordering the floor of the rooms is carved with pictures of riflemen of the day and, imitating Persepolis, with the immortal guardsmen and the king in the process of killing a bull. The museum’s collection of photographs and slide, initiated by Professor Pope, is also preserved here.

CHURCHES OF SHIRAZ

Armenian Church

Situated in an alley lane which lies east of the Qa’ani Street, there is a very interesting 17th century church built in the Safavid period. The church has a rectangular structure.

At the entrance, there is a small portal, which leads directly to the congregation hall. The ceiling is decorated with floral patterns. It is said that five carpets having exactly the design of the ceiling covered the floor.

Simon the Zealot

This church lies in a small street branching off from Zand Avenue, and bears the name of Saint-Simon the Zealot, one of the twelve apostles and according to an ancient tradition martyred in Iran. This church is one of the most beautiful in the country, and is wholly Persian in details. It contains a unique set of Persian stained glass windows in intricate geometrical patterns. A copy of the first complete translation of the New Testament into Persian, carried out in Shiraz in 1811 AD, is preserved in the church. Services are held in Persian, English, and sometimes in German.

EXCURSIONS AROUND SHIRAZ

Bishapur (Ancient Ruins)

West of Shiraz lies this ancient town of Sassanian origin, and nearby the Shapur Cave with the enormous statue of King Shapur can be visited.

Shapur was the second Sassanian emperor, whose unique achievement was the capture of the Roman Emperor Valerian. This feat consolidated Sassanian government for the next 400 years. The city of Bishapur, his capital, was founded towards the middle of the second century AD, on the site of an older city abandoned in the time of Alexander the Great, and Roman prisoners were instrumental in its construction. The town rapidly became one of the most important cities in Fars Province. Bishapur was taken by the Arabs about the year 637 AD, and then rapidly declined.

The ancient city lies on the left bank of a little stream, on a plain where the river leaves the mountains through a narrow valley. In the valley, Sassanian Kings perpetuated the memory of their victories by having several bas-reliefs carved in the rock. The reliefs show traces of Roman art similar to Trojan’s Column with different tiers of soldiers, prisoners, etc. So do the floor mosaics, which are now in the Louvre and some beautiful ones in the National Museum of Iran in Tehran.

Bishapur follows the pattern of Sassanian cities. Instead of the large circular wall as in Gur or Darab, there is an ovoid valley with a narrow, easily guarded entrance and exit and sheer cliffs on all sides. This is an ideal place to keep the flocks in periods of danger.

To the north are the remains of a fire-temple, which has been almost completely excavated. It is a square building originally built 7 meters below the ground levels. This cellar was used for the ceremonies of the fire cult.

Further on the remains of a palace near the temple can be visited. It consisted largely of one vast room built to a cruciform design and surmounted by a cupola. A high wall, which bounded the four corridors round the central room, enclosed the palace; the cruciform plan of the room was set within a square.

Fasa and Firuzabad (Ruins)

In these two towns in the surroundings ains of the Sassanian period can be visited. The ancient town of Gur lies about 3-km northwest of the present Firuzabad. The circular contours of the town can still be seen; there is a slope where the ramparts of unbaked bricks used to stand and at the bottom of the ramparts there was a deep ditch. The town walls were pierced by four gates, deliberately situated at the four cardinal points of the compass. According to Istakhri (famous historian) the gates were named the Bab-e Mehr to the east, the Bab-e Bahram to the west, the Bab-e Hormoz to the north, and the Bab-e Ardeshir to the south.

According to the same historian, Firuzabad was built by Ardeshir I in the third century AD on a marshy site. He had vowed to build a town and a pyre at the place where he triumphed over his enemy Artabanus V, on whom he was waging war, and he gained his victory exactly on the site of Firuzabad. The town was built to a circular design, and named Gur; it retained this name until the second half of the 10th century AD, when a Buvayid prince, Azod od-Dowleh (949-982 AD) gave it its present name. The town still had its fire altars at which the Iranian population came to pray a considerable time after the Arab invasion. Several Iranian and Arab historians have boasted of the incredible fertility of the plain of Firuzabad and its rose fields, which, they said, were famous throughout the world.

NAQSH-E ROSTAM AND

NAQSH-E RAJAB

Naqsh-e Rostam

A pre-Achaemenian, Achaemenian and Sassanian Persian holy archaeological site 7 km northwest of Persepolis, Naqsh-e Rostam is a sort of "Valley of Kings", dominated by tall ocher-colored cliffs, cracked and wrinkled by the wind through the ages. The Achaemenian and Sassanian kings were forgotten in Islamic times and no mention of the Achaemenian king is made by Ferdowsi in his Shahnameh. Popular superstition linked the rock carvings to the popular hero Rostam, who was so strong that no feat was beyond him. Naqsh-e Rostam means literally the Picture of Rostam.

On the mountainside in Naqsh-e Rostam, the Achaemenian necropolis consists of four hypogea, or rock tombs cut into the cliff sides. These date from the 5th and 4th centuries BC and the most famous is the tomb of Darius I the Great (reigned 552-486 BC). From left to right the four rock tombs cut high into the Kuh-e Hossein are dedicated to Artaxerxes I, Darius the Great, Xerxes, Darius II. Visitors now have access to the earliest, that of Darius I, though the hieratic solemnity of the tombs demands that they be seen only from afar.

Darius was the first King who chose the site of his tomb, having it carved out of the sold rock face here. All the tombs are uniform in plan (in the form of a cross) following the pattern laid down by Darius before his death.

His tomb, clearly modeled on the buildings at Persepolis and Susa, as a concession to the Egyptian spirit of satrapy (after the conquest and subjugation of Egypt by him), and similar to former in its portico, columns, capitals, and other details, served as the prototype for the later Achaemenian tombs cut into the same rocks facing the rising sun, corresponding to the west bank of the Nile.

In the tomb of Darius the Great, there is a long inscription in cuneiform script, the main part of which is in adoration of Ahura Mazda, the remainder giving an account of the religious and moral beliefs of Darius the Great.

In all the tombs there can be seen the Achaemenian king’s figure, seated on the throne, in the state of adoration. Behind him stand the king’s closer courtiers, and the throne is borne by the representatives of the vanquished nations, who bear it upon their hands and shoulders. Facing the king, carvings representing Foruhar and the sacred fire are to be seen.

Stone Tower

In front of the tomb of Artaxerxes is a well-preserved and nicely-proportioned building called Ka’be Zardusht (Zoroaster’s Sanctuary of Cube), which is a square structure built of blocks of white hewn limestone. Wherever knowledge is wanting, theories abound. This is true for this structure.

Theory 1: Fire Temple: Similar building have been shown on coins of a later period, which had on the roof fire altars with flames. This is, however, unlikely since a much higher tower in Firuzabad shows clearly the signs of a spiral staircase. It is unlikely that the purpose of this structure was simply to puzzle later archaeologists and we would assume that there would have been some way for priests to get to the top. The building is specially unsuited as a fire temple.

Theory 2: This building was used by the Zoroastrian high priest to store the holy books of the Zoroastrian faith and recite the text in front of the royal tombs. This is equally likely, since it is not certain that the Achaemenian kings were Zoroastrian and since the similar tower in Pasargadae, far removed from any fire altars, tombs or holy district, makes no sense in such a context.

Theory 3: This was a royal tomb of an Achaemenian king before Darius. A similar structure in Nurabad and the tower in Pasargadae could support this theory. Another foundation of similar type is also found on the other side of the Pulvar River close to Naqsh-e Rajab.

There are many other theories, none of which could give a satisfactory answer to explain the purpose of this unique building. Shapur recorded the treaty with the Romans and the successes of his government in an inscription on the left sidewall of the Ka’be Zardusht. The 500,000 drachma gold ransom received from Philip the Arab for Roman prisoners is mentioned here.

The Ka’be, also called Zendan-e Suleiman (Solomon’s Prison), has got only one opening in an elegant doorway at the head of a flight of stone steps opposite the tomb of Artaxerxes I. Each of the outer walls is decorated with rows of vertical slots cut in the limestone; additionally, all but the door-wall are embellished with six recessed dummy windows of black basalt. There is a single chamber inside with a lofty ceiling spanned by four vast stones.

The Fire Altars

Twin fire altars facing the plain of Marvadasht, can be seen if you walk round the hillside in the same direction that you came. They command a fine view over the latter plain. In the hollowed-out tops of these altars the holy fire was kindled. They are cut from the living rock round the corner of the cliff containing the tombs of four Achaemenian Kings. The old Achaemenian highway, on which they are positioned, runs from Istakhr past the tombs and the table mountains visible in the north, to Susa. The fire altars might have doubled as beacons and lighthouses for the traveler approaching at night. Between these fire altars and the investiture scene of Ardeshir I, is the old stone quarry. Rock next to the carving of Ardeshir’s investure is split which permitted water to cascade down in front of the carving. The water was brought by a water course, which was carved out of the rock underneath the stone quarries.

Sassanian Carvings Beneath the Tombs

Below the four royal tombs of the Achaemenian period are several bas-reliefs of the Sassanian Age (third and fourth centuries AD) and an Elamite relief of a priest datable to about 1,500 BC. From left to right, the first Sassanian relief depicts the investiture of Artaxerxes I who receives the crown of sovereignty from Ahura Mazda. Both are on horseback and are seen trampling down their adversaries – Artaban V, the last Parthian King; and Ahriman, symbol of the forces of darkness. The second and third reliefs show Bahram II successively with his queen and princes (over an Elamite religious scene), and on horseback decipherable, represents Shapur II (conqueror of Julian the Apostate), while the fifth, below the fourth, shows an equestrian victory of Hormuzd II. The sixth portrays the victory of Shapur I, son of Artaxerxes, I, over the Roman Emperor Valerian, who capitulated at Edessa in 260 AD. The seventh relief consists of two more equestrian scenes from a duel between Bahram II and a rival whose identity has been lost. The eighth carving represents the investiture of the later king Nersi by Anahita, at first Goddess of Water, then of fertility, and finally the Persian mother-goddess figure who with the sun god Mithras was to challenge the Achaemenian monotheistic worship of Ahura Mazda.

Naqsh-e Rajab

The best way to find Naqsh-e Rajab is stop at the intersection of Shiraz Esfahan and the Naqsh-e Rostam highway. Go 50 meters to the left, or in the direction of Esfahan. Look to the right and you will see about 50 meters off the road a recess in the rock in which carved figures can be seen. Opposite and a little further towards. Esfahan are some mudwalls ruins of an old caravansary, probably 17th century.

Entering the recess three large carvings will be found. On the right an equestrian investiture scene, and on the left a relief of Shapur surrounded by his generals.

On the latter relief notice the different insignia on the hats of the generals (the clearest, a trefoil sword in a circle, resembles a common Chinese symbol) as well as the variety of cloth and chest buckles. They are arranged in similar fashion as regimental numbers and rank of present-day army detachments. The field signs with tassels are again present.

On the chest of Shapur’s horse is a clearly legible Greek inscription relating his ancestry and hailing him as emperor of the Aryans.

The most important document on this site, however, is the carving of the high priest Karter, Mobad-e Mobadan (Priest of Priests) under three Sassanian emperors: Shapur, Bahram I and II. His head can be seen just behind and above the pedestrian investiture scene, partially covered by branches of a green bush. He has a necklace and his crooked worshipping finger is covered by a Pahlavi inscription of greatest importance. Here it is related how he as high priest has purified religion and cleansed the land of heresy (probably the Manichaens) with fire and sword. He is the only non-royal person appearing on a carving, a significant sign of the impending religious crisis, which continued throughout Sassanian rule. The central relief shows a procession moving in the direction of a previous water source, which is now dried-up. The center is occupied by the usual investiture scene, showing Ardeshir I receiving the wreath of power from the god Hormuzd. The crown prince stands beneath the wreath, a symbolism used with each new line of succession.

There is also a pedestrian investiture scene of Shapur with an angel facing the ravine, possibly the source of water. Another site consisting of a foundation for a tower similar to the Ka'’e Zardusht at Naqsh-e Rostam can be seen opposite Naqsh-e Rajab. It consists of a heap of stones straight south of Naqsh-e Rostam highway. It is situated above the left bank of the Pulvar River, 300 meters downstream from the modern highway bridge. Just below the modern bridge, about 100 meters down river, is a small stone bridge in Achaemenian style.

PASARGADAE

The first capital of the Iranian tribes and the Achaemenian empire, Pasargadae is situated between the present-day Marvdasht and Sa’adat Abad 130 km to the northeast of Shiraz, not far from Esfahan-Shiraz road and less than 50 km from Persepolis. The nearby village is called Madar-e Suleiman (The Mother of Soloman) in much the same legendary ways as Persepolis is known as Takht-e Jamshid (The Throne of Jamshid). But there is no mythology about Cyrus the Great (550-530 BC) and his son Cambyses II (530-521 BC) who created the military encampment and associated buildings that the visitor now sees, with a clear influence of the Mesopotamian ziggurat.

By starting from Shiraz early in the morning, all the separate sites can be seen with much haste in one day. Chronologically it is preferable to visit Pasargadae first, and travelers coming by road from Tehran will automatically do so. Those approaching from Shiraz, with only one day to spare, should go straight to Persepolis and photographers should make for the bas-reliefs on the east wall of the Apadana, then stop at Naqsh-e Rostam, spend the rest of the morning at Pasargadae and return to Persepolis to see Naqsh-e Rajab between 2.30 and 3 p.m. for the best light, then completing the tour of Persepolis.

Cyrus defeated his overlord and grandfather, King Astyages on this field in 550 BC and decided to make his headquarters here. There is a building here which is generally agreed that it is the tomb of Cyrus, built (546 BC) during his lifetime. This 12-m high imposing stepped tomb of Cyrus, symbolizing in its somber linearity the simplicity and greatness that made the man a potential world conqueror, dominates Pasargadae as the Builder deserves. It consists of a small chamber borne by a basement of six courses which diminish upwards, so as to form steps. The tomb is entirely built of megalithic stone.

Originally the Magi, guardians of Cyrus’s tomb, lived within the surrounding gardens in a separate dwelling. The interior of the mausoleum was richly furnished; the embalmed body of the king lay in a golden sarcophagus on a gold couch, with a gold table by its side, on which various treasures were laid. Alexander the Great made several pilgrimages to the tomb, the last after it had been despoiled during his absence in India.

Various classical writers mention an inscription on the tomb, no trace of which remains. According to Strabo this read: "O man, I am Cyrus who founded the Empire of the Persians and was king of Asia. Grudge me therefore not this monument."

In ancient times it was surrounded by a portico, some bases of which can still be seen. The massive monolithic door of the buried chamber (now missing) could only be opened from the inside but the ingenious robbers had prized up a stone at the threshold and wriggled underneath the door. The contents of this tomb which Alexander visited were looted during the disorders which followed the latter’s departure for Bactriana and India, in spite of a permanent guard of magi, who received a sheep daily and a horse Palace on the left, and ending in the Audience Hall. Both palaces were surrounded by protective walls until 1971 and are built on the oblong plan in contrast to the later, square plan of the Persepolis palaces. Only one tapered column of the original eight stands in place in the lofty central hall of the Audience Palace, a stork’s nest in permanent occupation on its top. Originally double-horned lion promotes formed the capitals. Four low-celing porticos were also supported by columns, 48 supporting the northern colonnade.

On the doorways of Palaces bas-reliefs of partly Assyrian inspiration can be seen, while on the southeast corner a stone shaft bears a cuneiform inscription in Old Persian, Elamite and Babylonian, reading " I Cyrus, the King, the Achaemenian" (built this). According to the latest conclusions of Mr David Stronach, Director of the British Institute of Persian Studies, who carried out his excavations from 1961 to 1963, the strangely asymmetrical plan of the Residential Palace, and the inferior quality of the western portico, can both be attributed to the fact the Cyrus never finished the monument – and that Darius, whose main building interests lay elsewhere, was not interested in completing the whole of the concept. Traces have been found of red, white, and blue plaster that was apparently used to cover wooden columns in some part of the structure.

From this palace a footpath on the original Achaemenian road leads north to the remains of the so-called Zendan-e Soleiman (Soloman’s Prison), of which the Ka’be Zardusht in Naqsh-e Rostam is better-preserved replica. A little to the northeast again you reach a large stone platform on a hill known as the Takht-e Madar-e Soleiman ( Throne of the Mother of Solomon), which is fitted without mortar but with metal clamps, mostly now stolen. Latest excavations have revealed imposing stone staircases on the northern side of the platform and four distinct phases of occupation.

At the western end of an enclosure, after crossing a brook, one sees the two freestanding limestone plinths. The southern plinth has a flight of steps to its summit. These have been variously described as twin fire altar supports and as altars to Anahita and Ahura Mazda. A detailed survey and excavation in 1963 revealed the fact that the limestone additions originally embellished the white stone plinths; the northern plinth apparently never had a staircase and it may well be that, as in the scene depicted at Naqsh-e Rostam, the king mounted the steps of the southern plinth in order to worship before the sacred fire placed on the adjoining block.

Pasargadae is open from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. everyday, but it is better not to arrive later than about 3 p.m. in winter (it gets surprisingly cold and windswept soon afterwards) or 4 p.m. in other seasons, and it is difficult to get transport out after dark. Unless you arrive here by private transport, you will have to walk between the remains.

PERSEPOLIS

The center of the great Persian Empire, ceremonial capital of the Achaemenians and the showpiece of Achaemenian art, Persepolis (Capital of Persia, in Greek) is a historic site in Fars Province, 60 km to the northeast of Shiraz by road, for which the Iranians have got their own name: Takht-e Jamshid (The Throne of Jamshid), Jamshid being the first, probably mythical, ruler of Iran. It is 420 km south of Esfahan and 835 km south of Tehran on a first-class asphalt road. It can be reached by air through Shiraz international airport.

The most important source of our knowledge on ancient Iran, its various royal buildings, - palaces, audience halls, treasury, store rooms, stables, etc. – were built, as indicated in an inscription carved on stone, during the reign of Darius the Great (521-486 BC) and by his command, and further developments made under Xerxes I, Artaxerxes, Xerxes II, Darius II, Cyrus II, Artaxerxes II and III, and Darius III (336-331 BC), the whole process taking about one hundred and fifty years. This magnificent court was the summer residence of Achaemenian emperors and their official reception quarters.

The terrace itself covers an area of 450 by 300 meters, and unfired brick wall, possibly at least partly faces with polychrome tiles, and was built on top of the masonry wall. According to Professor Pope, the complex of buildings formed a ritual city whose very existence was kept secret from the outside world at a time when the glories of the other, secular, Achaemenian capitals of Susa, Babylon and Ecbatana were well known. But in fact it must be by some stranger accident of history that Persepolis was never mentioned in foreign records, for it was here after all that representatives of all the varied peoples of the empire gathered to pay homage, and bring tribute, to the King of Kings, probably each spring, at the time of the ancient Now Ruz festival.

Although put on fire and destroyed by Alexander the Great (331 BC) in a gesture symbolizing the destruction of Persian imperial power, its still impressive ruins permit a fairly complete reconstruction of its original appearance.

Backed up against a rugged mountain called Kuh-e Rahmat (Mountain of Mercy), bordering the eastern end of Marvdasht plain, the heavily fortified Persepolis stood on a wide platform overlooking the sunset, commanding a wide, fertile plain. Persepolis may be visited in many ways. However, it is impossible to see such a large site at one time and retain all details.

As an orientation the tourist is reminded that the Shiraz-Esfahan road approaches Persepolis from the west and turns sharp towards the north at the main staircase and the Gate of All Nations. Kuh-e Rahmat behind the site are in the east. Before ascending, familiarize yourself with the basic plan of the palace and its different levels.

The planning of the buildings, though executed during the reign of successive monarchs, was conceived as a whole. This is shown not only in relationship of the various palaces to each other, but also in the arrangement of watercourses, which correspond exactly to the walls of buildings subsequently erected, from the roofs of which they were partly fed. Underground channels extend for more than one and a half kilometers under the platform; they are in places wide enough for two men to walk abreast, and we are told by Curzon that Chardin walked in them for 35 minutes "till compelled to retire by the terror of his attendants". They are not on the ordinary tourist run today.

Another feature of the buildings was that while the foundations, staircases, bases, windows, doorways, and many of the columns of the main places were of stone, the roofs were of wood and the walls of brick. Thus, even had there been no fire, it is conceivable that any single building could have remained intact. What is surprising is that so much has survived so well.

The palaces on the platform are arranged in four separate levels, each being two meters higher. On entering the platform one stands on the level reserved for the delegations. The Apadana palace and surrounding structures for the nobles are higher. The storage rooms and administrative offices on the back are the lowest. It is therefore possible to deduce the purpose of the structures, as they are visited, from their relative levels. The royal quarter is visible from all areas and should therefore be used as reference.

There are two palace structures outside the platform of Persepolis, guarding the access like sentinels, 200 meters to the north and south of the Gate of All Nations and about 100 meters in front of it. Continuing the Esfahan one is visible on the western side of the road, about 100 meters after leaving the last house of the present Persepolis village. The other one is just opposite the southwestern corner of the platform and is best seen from the portico of the Apadana palace. These palaces were probably used to organize the reception, receive delegations of the subject people, and register the grievances, which were forwarded to the king for action. He was briefed and could respond to the wishes of the delegations during the reception, announcing his judgment and distributing his gift, or admonishing the tardy.

The Staircase

Access to the platform is by a monumental double ramped ceremonial staircase, carved from massive blocks of stone (five steps are carved from a single block seven meters long), and shallow enough for the most important guests to be able to ride up on their horses. The stairs were closed at the top with gates whose hinges fitted into sockets in the floor, seen at the top of the left or northern flight. The staircase landing is L-shaped; a corner of the platform jutting into it, reducing its surface by one-forth. This is functionally irrational, but serves a religious purpose, since it forms with the edge of the platform and the Gate of All Nations a ziggurat symbol in bird’s eye view for god to behold.

Trumpeters standing at the top of the staircase in front of the Gate of All Nations announced the arrival of delegations. Portions of the bronze trumpets are preserved in the Persepolis Museum. The Persian and Median ushers received the delegations, led them through the Gate of All Nations to the Hundred Column Palace to the presence of the King.

The Gate of All Nations

At the head of the staircase is the Gate of All Nations, built during the reign of Xerxes I. It impresses with its massiveness. Its Four Corners is oriented to the four cardinal directions; the entrance is through the western doorway. It is guarded at east and west by vast bull-like colossi closely akin to the bull figures of Assyria.

The delegation leaving the platform after the royal reception was confronted with the image of the King on a bull’s body, reinforcing symbolically their strong impressions. Imagine the Gate brightly painted, as were all the palaces. The hall is open to three sides, without bull decoration where the nobles go to the Apadana, with bull and bullmen reliefs where the delegations pass.

On all four sides this hall had stone benches, such as might have been used for waiting visitors. The roof was supported by four columns. The capitals are stylized representations of pendants of date palm leaves and represent therefore the trunks of holy palms.

Continuing towards the mountain, a narrow roadway connects the Gate of All Nations to a similar palace, which probably was used as a waiting hall for the delegations before they entered the 100 Column Palace. This roadway was walled off with a high double retaining wall of mud-brick, which obstructed any view of the Apadana and the private palaces. Only the lower remnants of this wall are preserved. Guard rooms and storage areas were on both sides of the road.

Apadana Palace

Being approached through the southern door, and as the place where the famous gold and silver tablets have been unearthed, it is the palace where the kings (and particularly Darius) once held audience and received visitors. 36 stone columns each supported the roof 20 meters high. Of these, only thirteen remain upright today, most of which have lost their double bull protomes. Another 36 columns on round bases supported the three porticos on east, west, and north (12 columns each). This is the outstanding building of Persepolis and, on account of its staircase, one to which the visitor will return again and again.

The Apadana Staircase

It is well worthwhile to spend all available time studying the eastern staircase of the Apadana. Better preserved, the reliefs are full of religious symbolism as well as being a record in stone of the New Year’s procession. The staircase is best divided into three portions, a central, a northern, and a southern panel. The northern panel shows the reception of the Persians and Medes, the more interesting southern panel the reception of the subject nations. Recent restoration of the palace showed that the original plan and layout was of much more primitive type, the monumental double staircase being added later. It is still undecided if the Apadana was not built over an older cyclopean platform of the type erected by the early Achaemenian kings in Masjid-e Suleiman.

Start at the northern end of the center staircase (the right corner of the central staircase facing the Apadana) and move to the north toward the end of the lateral staircase, to observe the New Year’s reception as it occurred. The imperial guards, who are represented in all three tiers, led off the parade. These are the immortals, whose number was never permitted to fall below the appointed 10,000. They are followed in the upper tier by the royal procession, in the lower two by the Persian (feather headdress) and median (round caps) nobles. The upper tier depicts the personal valets of the king, each carrier preceded by an appointed Median official. On the southern section of the staircase, 23 scenes in three rows depict representatives of various countries in the Achaemenian Empire, carrying or escorting offers and also proceeded by Court officials. Each section is separated from the next by a symbolic Tree of Life, the whole forming a virtual film strip showing us exactly how the peoples of the vast empire dressed, the ornaments, weapons, hairstyles, and the treasures of their homelands.

KEY

Kushyia (Ethiopians), with closely curled hair and Negroid features, carrying a vase and an elephant tusk and leading an okapi.
Putaya (Libyans), escorting a kudu with long curved horns, and horse-drawn chariot.
Zranka (Dranjianians), including a lancer with a shield and a long-horned bull (some believe these are Arachosians, mountain folk from Kerman region, and cattle breeders).
Arabaya (Arabians), with textiles and a dromedary.
Skudra (Skudrians), lancers carrying shields, and a horse led by soldiers who wear classical type Thracian helmets.
The Asagarta (Sagartians), wearing tasseled caps (like those of the Capadoicians and Armenians), two of which are fastened under the chin like Balaclava helmets.
Sogda (Sogdians), or as some believe Chorasmians, holding a short sword, bracelets and axes and leading a horse.
Hindush (Indians), wearing dhotis and one carrying baskets of vases, others with double-headed axes and leading a donkey.
Patrthava (Parthians) wearing tunics and trousers, bearing cups and leading a Bactrian camel.
Gandra (Gandarians) with long capes, offering lances and a round shield and leading a humped bull.
Bakhtrish (Bactrians) in coats full trousers of Median type, carrying bowls and leading a Bactrian camel.
Mudraya (Egyptians), leading a bull and carrying cloth (a badly damaged section).
Saka Tigrakhauda (Pointed-hat Scythians), armed and offering bracelets, folded coats and trousers, and a horse.
Yauna (Ionians) wearing cloaks with tassles over pleated robes and carrying what may be beehives and skeins of wool or folded material.
The Harauvatish or Harakhuvatiya (Arachosians) with a dromedary, and bearing basins and lion skins. They wear knee-length baggy pants under tunics and their heads are swathed like the Aryans.
Suguda (Sogdians or Cicilians), wearing broad cummerbunds round long robes; they offer a length of cloth, cups, an animal skin and a pair of fine rams.
The Katpatuka (Capadocians). They wear cloaks pinned at the shoulders with Phyrgian fibulae and their caps are like those of the Armenians and Sagartians. They bring folded cloaks and trousers and a horse.
The Haraiva (Aryans), their heads swatted in cloth, wearing tunics and boots and leading a Bactrian camel; they carry deep bowls and animal (lion ?) skin.
The Babirush or Babiruviya (Babylonians) wearing conical, long-tasseled caps; they bring a humped bull, woven fringed cloth and cups.
Sparda (Lydians or Syrians), wearing finely pleated robes under cloaks fastened on one shoulder, boots and softly pointed caps. They bring vases, cups, bracelets and a chariot drawn by two small horses. The axle pin of the chariot is fashioned in the shape of the Egyptian god Bes.
Uvja (Susians) wearing the candies and fillet round their hair; they bring a leashed lioness and two cubs, bows with ducks head decoration and sheatheddaggers.
Armina (Armenians) wearing belted and trousers and tasseled caps like those of the Cappadocians; they escort a lively horse and hold a large vessel with griffin handles.
Mada (Medes), carrying a pitcher and bowls, a Median short sword, oval rings and folded overcoats and trousers, probably made of leather.
Winter Palace (Tachara)

The identity of the buildings to the south of the Apadana is best explained by reference to the large mound immediately beyond it, as yet unexcavated. That to the west of the mound is known as Tachara (winter palace) of Darius – according to the trilingual inscription on its southern door jambs – and located on a platform about two meters higher than the Apadana. This alone has windows giving a fine view towards the south. Like all other Persepolis buildings, Tachara had a square plan, but only three rows of four columns (which accordingly were not properly centered) plus two more rows of four in a porch to the south. It was probably intended to be oblong; then the plan was changed. Though begun by Darius, it was only finished by Xerxes. The columns and possibly the capitals also, were of wood. The stonework of doors and windows has remained in good condition.

Hadish

An unfinished palace of Artaxerxes III lies across the courtyard to the south, and to the east of the Tachara, on the highest part of the platform and, like all the palaces, standing on its own terrace, is the main hall of the Hadish (literally, a Dwelling Palace), Xerxes’ private palace which can be reached by a staircase from the courtyard.

The central hall of the Hadish with its 36 columns, approached by the northern porch with 12 columns, is surrounded by small chambers on the east and west, and has five doorways whose portals depict Xerxes entering or leaving the palace, accompanied by attendants.

Not all the columns in the palaces were of stone; where it was possible to find tree trunks tall and strong enough, columns were made of these, standing on stone bases. The trunks themselves would be covered with painted plaster or gold leaf. These, together with the sunbaked walls, roof beams and their mudstraw covering, have all disappeared with time, leaving only the stone elements of the construction.

Excavations carried out by the Italian Archaeologists indicate that a palace at the southern end of the terrace was more or less completely destroyed by fire, however, which possibly suggests that the famous conflagration was started at this spot.

Central Place

North of the Hadish is Tripylon, the small Central Palace with its three entrances. The bas-reliefs on the main double staircase on the north depict Persian and Median guards with, on the inner surfaces, still other attractive reliefs of Median courtiers and nobles on their way to a banquet. There was another staircase on the south side of the Hadish, now moved to the National Museum of Iran. On the portal of the eastern doorway Darius is shown on his throne, supported by representatives of 28 countries, and Xerxes the crown prince stands behind. The Tripylon was certainly not a palace; it was either the main hall giving access to other palaces, or a kind of military headquarters.

Hall of 100 Columns

To the east of Tripylon and the Apadana and immediately to the north of the Treasury, is the largest edifice on the platform the Hall of One Hundred Columns, measuring 70 x 70 meters in area, covered with some three meters of soil and cedar ash when it was first partly excavated by Mo’tamed od-Dowleh Farhad Mirza, governor-general of Fars, in 1878. It was used for the reception of the delegations of the subject peoples and collection of their tribute. It is the most functional building in the complex; it shows the psychology of Persian statecraft at its highest. The king entered the palace through the side door, positioned himself on the throne in the center of the hall, and surrounded by the nobles and the staff of the treasury.

The delegations waited in the small four-column palace opposite the main court. They entered the 100 Column Palace from the north between two large bulls figures carrying the portico. The gate shows rows upon rows of soldiers, indicating the military might of the king, which protects him from the enemies and guarantees their peace, as well as controls their spirit of independence. The king is carried upon the power of the army. He sits surrounded by incense burners, accompanied by his successor and receives the report of the chief of the treasury, a Mede. The gifts were received by the king, appreciated, the delegations admonished or lauded. Petitions, handed in before the reception, were answered. Before the next delegation arrived the gifts were removed through the southern gate to the stores of the Treasury. The delegations returned the way they came or registered at a building at the edge of the platform and the mountain in the extreme northeast. The royal archives of 3,500 cuneiform clay tablets, including pay lists, were found in the vicinity, and it is possible that the delegates received a coin as royal present, a custom continued until the last days of the previous dynasty.

Museum

Museum is reached through the southern gate of the 100 Column Palace. It contains not only objects found in Persepolis but, in the right-hand galleries, prehistoric pottery and artifacts from nearby mounds including Tall-e Bakun, and on the left early Islamic exhibits from Istakhr. On leaving the Museum turn sharp right and follow the outer wall of the Museum until you come to a small covered recess with several office doors. In the wall of this recess are two panels of Achaemenian tile, which, though faded, show the vivid colors used. The entire palace was similarly covered in colored tiles or painted.

Treasury

East of the Museum, at the foot of the mountain face, is a self-contained complex of halls covering over 10,000 Square meters, including two large halls whose roofs were supported respectively by 100 and 99 wooden columns, and which is believed to have been the Treasury begun by Darius. Stone and clay tablets in Akkadian and Elamite found here gave details of exact wages in cash and in kind, paid to the men who built Persepolis, proving that this gigantic undertaking was constructed by free, paid labor, in contrast to contemporary monumental buildings in other countries where slave labor was the rule. According to Plutarch, Alexander the Great required 10,000 mules and 5,000 camels to carry the treasures of Persepolis to Ecbatana. It would indeed take a lot of transport to remove the assembled wealth, which constituted the sacral treasures of 200-year collection. The original golden dedication tablet was found here, carelessly dropped in one of the yards and is displayed in the National Museum of Iran, Tehran.

Persepolis is well worth the effort to visit: the lack of visitors is very pleasant, as you have the site virtually to yourself, except on Fridays and public holidays. In summer it is wise to visit the area early in the morning or late in the afternoon, avoiding the intense midday heat. Sometimes the foreigners are requested to fill out their passport details in a ledger. The site is open daily from 7 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and from 1:30 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Below Persepolis there are the remains of a Tent City which was assembled for the 2,500th anniversary of the Persian Empire in 1971, a swansong of the Shah, attended by a glittering array of ambassadors and international royalty that outstripped even the parades of supplicants depicted in the Achaemenian bas-reliefs.

ADDRESSES AND TELEPHONE NUMBERS

ACCESS AND DISTANCES:

919 km to Tehran, 484 km to Esfahan, 555 km to Kerman, 556 km to Ahwaz, 600 km to Bandar-e Abbas.

ACCIDENTS:

Traffic Department 22285.

AIR AGENT:

There are three ticket offices in town, but the only one dealing with refunds and international flights is the main one on the south side of Zand Blvd about 150 meters northwest of Enghelab Square 30041-9.

AIRPORT:

Tickets for the new airport bus service cost 200 rials at the office in the arrival lounge; there are several routes into town. A taxi between the airport (22061-3) and town costs 5000 rials for a solo passenger.

BANKS AND EXCHANGE OFFICES:

Bank Mellat 41252.
Bank Melli Iran, on the north side of Karim Khan Zand Blvd, just east of the Arg 48042-6.
Bank Saderat Iran 335028
Bank Sepah 42045.
Aali Exchange Office, Shahr-e Shab Shopping Center, Zand Crossroads 54622.
Ansari Exchange Office, Next to Sassan Hotel 339466.
Chah Tussi Exchange Office, Zand Crossroads, 22793.
Nakhili Exchange Office, Zand Crossroads, Next to Municipality 22854, 42065.
Shiraz Exchange Office, Shahr-e Shab Shopping Center, Zand Crossroads 66730.
BUS TERMINAL:

Buses leave for most major towns from the main bus terminal known as the Terminal-e Hafez, in Hafez Street.

CITY DIALING CODE:

The dialing code for Shiraz is 071.

DRUG STORE (24-HOUR):

Shiraz 35272.2 Babak 50492.
EMERGENCIES:

115, 310272-9, 39584.

FIRE STATION:

112, 24444.

GOVERNOR’S OFFICE:

Ostandari 38025-8, on the north side of Enghelab Square. Farmandari 28632, on the east side of Ayatollah Sadr Blvd.

MEDICAL SERVICES:

Shiraz is famous for the standard of its medical training, so this is probably the best place to fall ill outside Tehran. The best-known medical centers are:

Dr. Rastegar Hospital, Fatemi Street 334574.
Hafez Hospital, 16th Azar Square 671531-6.
Khalili Hospital, Jomhuri Square 667363-6.
Moshir Hospital, Imam Khomeini Ave 331635.
Namazi Hospital, Jomhuri Square 663041.
Sa’di Hospital, Karim Khan Zand Blvd 51090-8.
Shiraz Hospital, Zand Ave 41161-4.
MUNICIPALITY:

On the north side of Shohada Square 23624.

POLICE:

A few meters to the northeast of Shohada Square, opposite the west corner of the Arg (now belonging to the police headquarters and inaccessible to visitors). Tel: 22075-6.

POST AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS:

The main post and telegraph office is in an alley behind the Bank Melli Iran central branch. The easiest way to make an international call is at the Honan Hotel, booked an hour or two in advance.

RESTAURANTS:

Most of the cheaper chelo kababis and kababis are around Shohada Square, especially behind the Arg. Most of the best establishments are some way out of the center. North of the river there is several good but rather expensive restaurants around the Homa Hotel and the Gas Square. If you are entering or leaving Shiraz, the restaurants at the bus terminal and the airport are better than most of their kind.

There are many good restaurants all along the Karim Khan-e Zand Blvd (mainly at its intersection with other streets): Habib Eating Salon (not marked in English) at the intersection with Rudaki Street and next to the Hafez Cinema; Golestan Restaurant at the intersection with Anvari Street. If you want to splash out and still get good value for money, the ground-floor restaurant at the Homa Hotel is without doubt one of the best places around which serves some of the best Continental food in Iran, as well as traditional Iranian dishes such as excellent boneless fish kabab or quail kabab.

Iran may not be a country that you would immediately associate with samosas and pakoras, but they are very popular in the southern provinces, and both can be found at the Jalali Samosa Salon off Gas Square in the north of Shiraz.

Don’t forget to try the local faludeh (or paludeh), a difficult-to-describe sweet chilled dish, half drink, half pudding made of rose water and vermicelli, working out as something like a cross between a sorbet and a rice pudding and very refreshing. It can be sampled in several places behind the Arg.

TAXI:

You can get a shared taxi to the north of the river for 100 to 200 rials from Vali Asr, Shohada, and Enghelab squares; or from one end of Zand Blvd to the other for around 100 rials. Most of the sights south of the river can easily be visited on foot.

TOURIST MAP:

Available in English and Persian.

TOURIST OFFICE:

Seyed Jamal od-Din Asadabadi Street, before the second turning to the left 38032-4, 37044, 34080. Although the building is only marked in Persian, the staff inside speak English.

VISA AFFAIRS:

The visa office is on the first floor of the police headquarters to the northeast of Shohada Square.