This propagandistic text from the Iranian plateau is a Persian, Elamite and Babylonian account of the deeds of Darius the Great. It was probably aimed at the legitimation of the kingship of Darius, not a direct descendant of Cyrus and Cambyses, and it is a source of primary importance because it compares to the Greek historical account of Herodotus (book III). Given the size of the Persian Empire it is easy to understand why it was written in three languages, but why write it 30 m high?


HD000604

Room 1 - Inscriptions and history: Previous | Next

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Room 0: Introduction

Room 2: Script and Alphabets

Room 3: Objects and the relation between image, text and context

Room 4: Emotions in inscriptions

Room 5: The stone cutter, methods and mistakes

Room 6: Digital technologies for epigraphy

Credits

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