Pasargadae

Pasargadae (also Pasargad, Persian: پاسارگاد) was a city in ancient Persia, and is today an archaeological site and one of Iran's UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Its ruins lie 87 km (54 mi) northeast of Persepolis, in present Fars province of Iran, and was the first capital of the Achaemenid Empire. The construction of the capital city by Cyrus the Great, begun in around 546 BCE, was left unfinished, for Cyrus died in battle in 530 BCE or 529 BCE. Pasargadae remained the Persian capital until Darius began assembling another in Persepolis. The modern name comes from the Greek, but may derive from an earlier one used during Achaemenid times, Pâthragâda. (meaning the garden of Pars)

The archaeological site covers 1.6 square kilometres and includes a structure commonly believed to be the mausoleum of Cyrus, the fortress of Toll-e Takht sitting on top of a nearby hill, and the remains of two royal palaces and gardens. The gardens provide the earliest known example of the Persian "Chahar Bagh", or four-fold garden design.

Latest research on Pasargadae’s structural engineering has shown the Achaemenid engineers constructed the city to withstand a severe earthquake, at what would today be classified as a '7.0' on the Richter magnitude scale. The foundations are today classified as having a "Base Isolation" design, much the same as what is presently used in countries for the construction of facilities - such as nuclear power plants - that require insulation from the effects of a seismic activity.

The most important monument in Pasargadae is the tomb of Cyrus the Great. It has six broad steps leading to the sepulchre, the chamber of which measures 3.17 m long by 2.11 m wide by 2.11 m high, and has a low and narrow entrance. Though there is no firm evidence identifying the tomb as that of Cyrus, Greek historians tell us that Alexander the Great believed it was so.

During the Islamic conquest of Iran, the Arab army came upon the tomb and planned to destroy it, considering it to be in direct violation of the tenets of Islam. The caretakers of the grave managed to convince the Arab command that the tomb was not built to honor Cyrus, but instead housed the mother of King Solomon, thus sparing it from destruction. As a result, the inscription in the tomb was replaced by a verse of the Qur'an, and the tomb became known as "Qabr-e Madar-e Sulaiman," or the tomb of the mother of Solomon.

UNESCO World Heritage: whc.unesco.org/en/list/1106
(360 virtual tour) www.world-heritage-tour.org/asia/central-asia/iran/pars...

 museumplace with historical importancearchaeological siteinteresting placeUNESCO World Heritage Site