Persepolis, Parsa to the Persians, stands on a vast stone terrace at the foot of the Mountain of Mercy. Darius I began it, and Xerxes and Artaxerxes added halls whose cedar roofs were held up by forests of stone columns.
Carved staircases show delegations from across the empire, Indians, Ethiopians, Lydians and many more, carrying gifts. They give us a rare picture of the ancient world's many peoples in one place.
In 330 BCE Alexander the Great's army looted the city and burned its palaces. The columns and reliefs that survived are among the finest works of ancient Persia.
