Pasargadae
Pāsārgād · Pasargad · Bath of Pasargadae
Achaemenid (559–530 BCE construction; occupied to Seleucid era)·Achaemenid Persian·🇮🇷 Fars Province, Iran
About
About Pasargadae
Earliest Achaemenid capital built by Cyrus the Great (559–530 BCE) on victory site over Medes. Tomb of Cyrus – gabled limestone chamber on six-stepped plinth – in plain; Audience Palace (Palace P), Gatehouse (Palace R) with winged figure relief, Private Palace (S), Tall-e Takht fortified terrace, and earliest Persian garden (pairidaeza) with water channels – prototype paradise garden. Alexander visited tomb 324 BCE.
Why it mattersCyrus's capital and tomb; birthplace of Persian garden
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Whether Alexander's repair inscription after tomb looting is authentic
- 02Original appearance of unfinished Tall-e Takht fortress
Theories
- 01Four-fold garden with channels is earliest chahar bagh paradise prototype
- 02Pasargadae abandoned as capital when Darius moved to Persepolis 515 BCE
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c.550–530 BCE under Cyrus the Great
- Period
- Achaemenid (559–530 BCE construction; occupied to Seleucid era)
- Culture
- Achaemenid Persian
- Purpose
- Achaemenid dynastic capital, tomb sanctuary and paradise garden legitimating Persian kingship
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
c.550–530 BCE under Cyrus the Great
Initial construction
c. 1406 CE
Rediscovery
On the ground
Structures & features
30.2000° N · 53.1744° E · 1890 m · 3 mapped features
- Tomb of Cyrus the GreattombLimestone gabled tomb 11×12 m base, 6-stepped 6.35 m plinth, epigram 'O man, I am Cyrus'30.1940° N · 53.1674° E
- Audience Palace (Palace P)palaceColumned palace 31×22 m with relief winged figure and trilingual inscription CMa30.2035° N · 53.1785° E
- Paradise Garden (Chahar Bagh)gardenEarliest Persian formal garden with stone watercourses dividing four quarters30.2010° N · 53.1755° E
Gallery