Tomb of Cyrus the great

Posted by Ardeshir Tayebi (Tehran, Iran) on 9 April 2007 in Lifestyle & Culture and Portfolio.

Cyrus the Great (ca. 576 or 590 BC — August 530 BC), also known as Cyrus II of Persia and Cyrus the Elder, was the founder of the Persian Empire under the Achaemenid dynasty. As leader of the Persian people in Anshan, he conquered the Medes and unified the two separate Iranian kingdoms; as the king of Persia, he reigned over the new empire from 559 BC until his death. The empire expanded under his rule, eventually conquering most of Southwest Asia, much of Central Asia, and much of the region just bordering the powerful Indian empire to create the largest nation the world had yet seen.

When Cyrus was killed while fighting the north iranian Scythians, his mummified body was placed in this chamber in a golden coffin and laid together with his weapon and valuables on a golden throne. During Alexander's invasion of Persia, a Macedonian broke into the tomb, robbed its treasure and destroyed the corpse.

Cyrus is the first king whose name was suffixed with the word "Great", or Vazraka in Old Persian, (Bozorg in modern Persian), a titulary style adopted by his Achaemenid successors including Darius the Great, Xerxes the Great, et al. He is considered by most Persians as the Father of Iran. Beyond his civilization, Cyrus left a lasting legacy on religion, politics (the Declaration of Independence), military strategy, as well as on Middle Eastern and Western civilization.

for more information, please visit:
Historic Personalities - Cyrus the Great
Cyropaedia of Xenophon
PersianDNA Cyrus The Great - Persian Empire & The Greatest King of the History
Cyrus Cylinder Full Babylonian text of the Cyrus Cylinder as it was known in 2001; translation; brief introduction

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