The Achaemenids were the ruling dynasty of Cyrus the Great and his family over the Persian empire, from 550-330 BC, when it was conquered by Alexander the Great. Cyrus’s empire included Libya, Ethiopia, Thrace, Macedonia, Afghanistan, and the Punjab and everything in between. Continue reading Archaeology Achaemenid Dynasty
Tag: Archaeology history
Persian Empire: Timeline and Definition Archaeology
Tomb of Cyrus, Pasargadae (Iran)
Shirley Schermer (c) 2002
Definition:
The Persian Empire included all of what is now Iran, and in fact Persia was the official name of Iran until 1935. At its height about 500 BC, the founding dynasty of the empire, the Achaemenids, had conquered Asia as far as the Indus River, Greece, and North Africa including what is now Egypt and Libya. Continue reading Persian Empire: Timeline and Definition Archaeology
Archaeology Akra (Pakistan)
Definition: Akra is a large important site of the Achaemenid dynasty, located in the Bannu Basin south of Peshawar in what is today Pakistan. The site consists of a series of impressive mounds between 15 and 20 meters in height, and has been recognized as an archaeological site for more than 100 years.
Occupations at Akra date between 2000 BC and AD 1200. Evidence in the form of seals indicates a connection with central Asia by the early second millennium BC. Iron Age occupations at Akra suggest it may have been the capital of the Thatagus region, mentioned in the Behistun Inscription as one of the territories acquired by the Achaemenid King Darius I in the 6th century BC.