Arts of Archaemenians
The Achaemenian
period may be said to begin in 549 BC when Cyrus the Great deposed the Median
king Astyages. Cyrus (559-530 BC), the first great Persian king, created an
empire extending from Anatolia to the Persian Gulf incorporating the former
realms of both Assyria and Babylonia; and Darius the Great (522-486 BC), who
succeeded him after various disturbances, extended the boundaries of the empire
further still.
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Stone relief
of gate at Pasargad
(showing a
four-winged guardian figure
Watercolour painted by Sir Robert Ker Porter, 1818.) |
Fragmentary remains of
Cyrus' Palace at Pasargad in Fars indicate that Cyrus favored a
monumental style of building. He incorporated decoration based partly on
Urartian, partly on the older Assyrian and Babylonian art, as he wished
his empire to seem to be the rightful heir of Urartu, Assur, and
Babylon.
Pasargad covered an area almost 1.5 miles in length and included
palaces, a temple and the tomb of the king of kings. Enormous winged
bulls, which no longer survive flanked the entrance to the gate-house,
but a stone relief on one of the door jams is still preserved. It is
adorned with a bas-relief representing a four-winged guardian spirit in
a long garment of Elamite type, whose head is surmounted by a
complicated headdress of Egyptian origin. In the early 19th
century an inscription over the figure could still be seen and
deciphered: "I, Cyrus, king, the Achaemenian [have done this]."
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The central hall in one of the
palaces had bas-reliefs showing the king followed by a pastoral bearer. Here for
the first time on an Iranian sculpture appear garments with folds, in contrast
to the straight-falling robe of the four winged guardian spirit, executed
according to the traditions of ancient oriental art, which did not allow the
slightest movement or life. Achaemenian art here marks the first step in the
exploration of a means of expression that was to be developed by the artists of
Persepolis.
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The rock cut tombs in
Pasargad, Naqsh-e Rustam, and elsewhere are a valuable source of
information about the architectural forms used in the Achaemenian
period. The presence of Ionic capitols in one of the earliest of these
tombs suggests the serious possibility that this important architectural
form was introduced into Ionian Greece from Persia, contrary to what is
commonly supposed.
Under Darius, the
Achaemenian Empire embraced Egypt and Libya in the west and extended to
the river Indus in the east. During his rule, Pasargad was relegated to
a secondary role and the new ruler quickly began to build other palaces,
first at Susa and then at Persepolis. |
A view of the
cliff at Naqsh-e Rustam
(showing the
tombs of Artaxerxes on the left, and Darius.
In the center at the base of the cliff is a Sassanian relief
showing Shapur triumphing over the Roman Emperor Valerian. |
Susa was the most important
administrative center in Darius' Empire, its geographical location halfway
between Babylon and Pasargad was very favorable. The palace structure built at
Susa was based on a Babylonian principle, with three large interior courts,
around which were reception and living rooms. In the palace courtyard panels of
polychrome glazed bricks decorated the walls. These included a pair of winged
human-headed lions beneath a winged disk, and the so-called "Immortals". The
craftsmen who made and arranged these bricks came from Babylon, where there was
a tradition for this sort of architectural decoration.
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A Pair
of winged human-headed lions beneath a winged disk,
(from the Palace of Darius at Susa. Now held at The Louvre, Paris.) |
Part of
a polychrome glazed brick frieze
(showing the
procession of Persian guards, the 'Immortals'.
Now held at The Louvre, Paris.) |
Although Darius constructed a
number of buildings at Susa, he is better known for his work at Persepolis (the
palace at Persepolis built by Darius and completed by Xerxes), 30-km south-west
of Pasargad.
A view over Persepolis from
the mountain Kuh-i-Rahmat
The decoration includes the
use of carved wall slabs representing the endless processions of courtiers,
guards, and tributary nations from all parts of the Persian Empire. Sculptors
working in teams carved these relieves, and each team signed its work with a
distinctive mason's mark.
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These relieves are executed
in a dry and almost coldly formal, though neat and elegant, style which
was henceforth characteristic of Achaemenian art and contrasts with the
movement and zest of Assyrian and neo-Babylonian art. This art was
supposed to capture the spectator by its symbolism, and convey a sense
of grandeur; artistic values were therefore relegated to second place.
The king is the dominant
figure in the sculpture at Persepolis, and it seems that the whole
purpose of the decorative scheme was to glorify the king, his majesty
and his power. |
A Section of the
relief
(on the south
wing of the east side of the Apadana at Persepolis,
showing delegations of Babylonians, Lydians, etc.) |
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Detail of an Assyrian
relief carving
(from the palace
of Ashurbanipal, Nineveh showing
Ashurbanipal's defeat of the Elamites at the river Ulai.) |
Here, also we can see that
the Persepolis sculptures differ from the Assyrian reliefs, which are
essentially narrative and aim to illustrate the achievements of the
king. The similarities are such, though, that it is obvious much of the
inspiration for this sort of relief must have come from Assyria. Greek,
Egyptian, Urartian, Babylonian, Elamite and Scythian influences can also
been seen in Achaemenian art. This is perhaps not surprising, in view of
the wide range of people employed in the construction of Persepolis.
Achaemenian art,
however, was also capable of influencing that of others and its impress
is most noticeable in the early art of India, with which it probably
came into contact through Bactria. |
The realism of Achaemenian art
manifests its power in the representation of animals, as can be seen in the many
relieves at Persepolis. Carved in stone or cast in bronze, the animals served as
guardians to the entrances or, more often as supports for vases, in which they
were grouped by threes, their union a revival of the old traditions of tripods
with legs ending in a hoof or a lion's paw. The Achaemenian artists were worthy
descendants of the animal sculptors of Luristan.
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The
capitals of the Apadana at Persepolis
are crowned with stylized animal heads - bulls, griffins, ... |
Griffin's head
(detail from
a capital at the Apadana, Persepolis.) |
Silver-work, glazing,
goldsmiths' work, bronze casting, and inlay work are all well represented in
Achaemenian art. The Oxus treasure, a collection of 170 items of gold and silver
found by the Oxus river date from the 5th to the 4th
century BC. Among the best-known piece is a pair of gold armlets with terminals
in the shape of horned griffins, originally inlaid with glass and coloured
stones.
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Massive gold armlet from the Oxus Treasure
(with
terminals in the form of winged griffins.
Originally inlaid with glass and coloured stones.) |
Sumptuous golden drinking cup
(from the
Achaemenian period, found in Hamadan.
Ornamented with a stylized winged lion.) |
Achaemenian art
is a logical continuation of what preceded it, culminating in the superb
technical skill and unprecedented splendour so evident at Persepolis. The art of
the Achaemenians is deeply rooted in the era when the first Iranians arrived on
the plateau, and its wealth has accumulated throughout the centuries to
constitute at last, the splendid realisation of Iranian art today.
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