5/5 Pejman 1 year ago on Google • 79 reviews
By
far
the
largest
and
most
magnificent
building
is
the
Apadana,
begun
by
Darius
and
finished
by
Xerxes,
that
was
used
mainly
for
great
receptions
by
the
kings.
Thirteen
of
its
seventy-two
columns
still
stand
on
the
enormous
platform
to
which
two
monumental
stairways,
on
the
north
and
on
the
east,
give
access.
They
are
adorned
with
rows
of
beautifully
executed
reliefs
showing
scenes
from
the
New
Year’s
festival
and
processions
of
representatives
of
twenty-three
subject
nations
of
the
Achaemenid
Empire,
with
court
notables
and
Persians
and
Medes,
followed
by
soldiers
and
guards,
their
horses,
and
royal
chariots.
Delegates
in
their
native
attire,
some
completely
Persian
in
style,
carry
gifts
as
token
of
their
loyalty
and
as
tribute
to
the
king.
These
gifts
include
silver
and
gold
vessels
and
vases,
weapons,
woven
fabrics,
jewelry,
and
animals
from
the
delegates’
own
countries.
Although
the
overall
arrangement
of
scenes
seems
repetitive,
there
are
marked
differences
in
the
designs
of
garments,
headdresses,
hair
styles,
and
beards
that
give
each
delegation
its
own
distinctive
character
and
make
its
origin
unmistakable.
Another
means
by
which
the
design
achieves
diversity
is
by
separating
various
groups
or
activities
with
stylized
trees
or
by
using
these
trees
alone
to
form
ornamental
bands.
There
is
also
an
intentional
usage
of
patterns
and
rhythms
that,
by
repeating
figures
and
groups,
conveys
a
grandiose
ornamental
impression.
