The historical setting
Persepolis or Parseh, also known in modern Persian as Takht-e Jamshid, was the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire (c. 550–330 BC). It is situated in the plains of Marvdasht, encircled by the southern Zagros Mountains, in Fars province of Iran. It is one of the key Iranian cultural heritage sites and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979. The earliest remains of Persepolis date back to 515 BC. The city, acting as a major centre of the empire, housed a palace complex and citadel designed to serve as the focal point for governance and ceremonial activities. It exemplifies the Achaemenid style of architecture.
The complex was taken by the army of Alexander the Great in 330 BC, and soon after, its palaces were destroyed by fire. According to one account, Alexander deliberately set fire to Persepolis to avenge the destruction of Athens by the Persians; according to another, the fire was started at the urging of Thaïs, a courtesan, during a feast when Alexander was intoxicated.
Construction
There are some indications that the site of Persepolis was already a government centre under Cyrus the Great and his son Cambyses II, but no archaeological traces of this older phase have been found. It was Darius I who created Persepolis as the splendid seat of the government of the Achaemenid Empire and as its centre for receptions and festivals. The earliest remains date back to 515 BC, and inscriptions on the buildings support the view that the terrace and the first palaces were built by Darius. Under his successors Xerxes I and Artaxerxes I the complex was extended in several building phases, and further buildings were added in the 4th century BC.
With Darius I, the sceptre passed to a new branch of the royal house. The administrative capitals of the empire 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. Darius I's construction of Persepolis was carried out parallel to that of the Palace of Susa. According to Gene R. Garthwaite, the Susa Palace served as Darius' model for Persepolis. 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.
The Apadana Palace
The Gate of All Nations, referring to subjects of the empire, consisted of a grand hall that was a square of approximately 25 m (82 ft) in length, with four columns and its entrance on the Western Wall. Darius I built the greatest palace at Persepolis on the western side of the platform. This palace was called the Apadana. The King of Kings used it for official audiences. 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". Next to the Apadana, the second largest building of the terrace is the Throne Hall or the Imperial Army's Hall of Honour (also called the Hundred-Columns Palace).
This 70 m × 70 m (750 sq ft × 750 sq ft) hall was begun 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.
Conquest by Alexander the Great
After his victory over Darius III at the Battle of Gaugamela in 331 BC, Alexander the Great took Susa, which surrendered without resistance, and then marched towards Persepolis. In the winter of 331/330 BC he forced the Persian Gates, a pass through the Zagros Mountains, where Ariobarzanes of Persis had held off his army for some time. Some sources indicate that a local guide showed the Macedonians a path that allowed them to outflank the defenders, in a reversal of Thermopylae. Ariobarzanes was killed either during the battle or during the retreat. During his advance, Alexander received a letter from Tiridates, the guardian of the royal treasury at Persepolis.
Tiridates warned him that Persians loyal to Darius III were on their way to fortify the city, and offered to surrender it to him if he arrived first. Alexander accepted, crossed the Araxes river (the modern Kur) by forced march and took the city. On his way, according to Diodorus, he was met by some 800 Greek artisans who had been captured by the Persians. Most were elderly and had been mutilated, with a hand or foot cut off, so that they could still practise their crafts but not easily escape.