Burning Persepolis

[Cyrus]

http://www.chn.ir/english/eshownews.asp?no=4593I think it shows Alexander didn't burn Persepolis!

[marcus]

Hi Cyrus,Do you mean that, because of the lack of carbon, the palace wasn't burned?I thought there was definite fire damage in parts of the complex, which are clear indications of the burning. But if Alexander's burning was limited to only certain parts of the complex, maybe these guys are talking about the other bits?After all, I don't think there can be any doubt that the burning happened, can there?All the bestMarcus

[jona]

There is evidence for destruction from three buildings: Apadana and Treasuty (the symbols of the gift exchange system that lies as the heart of the Achaemenid political system) and the palace of Xerxes. In the latter, a "flash over" took place and the consequences were extreme: the palace _exploded_ and none of the column bases from the palace was found within a range of 100 meters from the building. On the other hand, buildings like the palace of Darius and the Gate of All Nations remained more or less intact, and Persepolis was still in use in the mid-second century.Jona

[marcus]

Hi Jona,Thanks - that's what I thought.I'm assuming that the article Cyrus showed is talking about the other parts of the complex, if burn marks (or not) are at all relevant! :-)MarcusPS: Are you having fun?

[jona]

Having fun? Well - Iran was great, although we experienced a lot of trouble because a couple of people of my group were ill. Yet, we saw what we wanted to see and made more than 2,000 pictures. I guess that even if I keep 10%, I will be quite occupied for some time.Here are two first examples:http://www.livius.org/a/1/alexander/das ... ir.jpgThis is the plain near Damghan where Darius was murdered, of course in the summer when there was no snow. I could not find a sources, but the area is artesic and there may have been wells almost everywhere.http://www.livius.org/a/1/iran/hyrcania_terrace.JPGThis is the agricultural landscape of eastern Hyrcania. It is easy to imagine the fertility of the area.Jona

[beausefaless]

Thank you so much Jona. these pictures and many of your others are priceless to me. I know I'll never see these historical sites but through your photos I'm there!All the best, Andrew

[marcus]

Hey, thanks, Jona.Excellent photos - I particularly like the Hyrcanian one (I *do* like mountains!).All the bestMarcus

[chris]

Thanks for photos. What magical places ATG saw.