DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.26747#0254
190
PERSIAN ARCHITECTURE.
Book: 1Y.
The general appearance of the rnins, as they at present stand, will
be seen from the woodcnt (No. 131). The principal mass in the fore-
gronnd on the left is the Propyla^a of Xerxes, and behind that and to
the right stand the pillars of the Chehil Minar, or Great Idall of Xerxes.
Between these are seen in the distance the remains of the smaller halls
of Darius and Xerxes.
One of the most striking points in this -view is the staircase that
led from the plain to the platform, and also that leading from the lower
level to that on wliich the great hall stood. Indeed, among these ruins,
nothing is so remarkable as these great flights of steps. The builders
of those days were, so far as we know, the only people who really
understood the value of this feature. The Egyptians seem wholly to
liave neglected it, and the Greeks to have cared little about it: but it
was not so at Nineveh, Avhere, so far as we can understand from the
indistinct traces left, the stairs must have been an important part of the
design. But they were so situated that they were not buried when the
buildings were ruined, and consequently have been removed. At
Jerusalem too we read that, when the Queen of Sheba saw “the ascent
by which Solomon went up to the house of the Lord, there was no
more spirit in her.” Indeed, in all the ancient temples and palaces
of this district, more attention is paid to this feature than to almost
any other; and from the favourable situation of all these palaces on
artificial terraces, tlie builders were enabled to do this with far more
effect than any otliers in ancient or in modern times.
The lower or great staircase at Persepolis is plain, and without. any
sculpture, but built of the most, massive Cyclopean masonry, and of
great width and very easy ac-clivity. That in front of the great hall
is ornamented with sculpture in three tiers, representing the people of
the land bringing presents, and the subject nations tribute, to lay at the
feet of the monarch, combined witli mythological representations ; the
whole bearing a very considerable resemblance to the sculptures on the
walls of the Assyrian palaces, though the position is different. The
arrangement of these stairs, too, is peculiar, none of them being at right
angles to the buildings they approach, but allbeing double, apparently
to allow processions to pass the throne, situated in tlie porches at their
summit, without interruption, and without altering the line of march.
One of these flights, leading to the platform of Xerxes’ palace, is
shown in the woodcut (Xo. 132). In arrangement it is like the stairs
leading to the great terrace, but very much smaller, and profusely
adorned with sculpture.
The principal apartment in all the buildings situated on the plat-
form is a central square hall, whose floor is studded with pillars placed
equidistant tlie one from the other. The smallest have I pillars, the
next 16, then 36, and one lias 100 pillars on its floor; but to avoid
inventing new names, we may call these respectively, distyle, tetrastyle,
hexastyle, and decastyle halls, from their having 2, 4, 6, or 10 pillars
on each face of the phalanx, and because that is the number of tlie
pillars in their porticos when they have any.
The building at tlie head of thc great stairs is a distyle liall, liaving
PERSIAN ARCHITECTURE.
Book: 1Y.
The general appearance of the rnins, as they at present stand, will
be seen from the woodcnt (No. 131). The principal mass in the fore-
gronnd on the left is the Propyla^a of Xerxes, and behind that and to
the right stand the pillars of the Chehil Minar, or Great Idall of Xerxes.
Between these are seen in the distance the remains of the smaller halls
of Darius and Xerxes.
One of the most striking points in this -view is the staircase that
led from the plain to the platform, and also that leading from the lower
level to that on wliich the great hall stood. Indeed, among these ruins,
nothing is so remarkable as these great flights of steps. The builders
of those days were, so far as we know, the only people who really
understood the value of this feature. The Egyptians seem wholly to
liave neglected it, and the Greeks to have cared little about it: but it
was not so at Nineveh, Avhere, so far as we can understand from the
indistinct traces left, the stairs must have been an important part of the
design. But they were so situated that they were not buried when the
buildings were ruined, and consequently have been removed. At
Jerusalem too we read that, when the Queen of Sheba saw “the ascent
by which Solomon went up to the house of the Lord, there was no
more spirit in her.” Indeed, in all the ancient temples and palaces
of this district, more attention is paid to this feature than to almost
any other; and from the favourable situation of all these palaces on
artificial terraces, tlie builders were enabled to do this with far more
effect than any otliers in ancient or in modern times.
The lower or great staircase at Persepolis is plain, and without. any
sculpture, but built of the most, massive Cyclopean masonry, and of
great width and very easy ac-clivity. That in front of the great hall
is ornamented with sculpture in three tiers, representing the people of
the land bringing presents, and the subject nations tribute, to lay at the
feet of the monarch, combined witli mythological representations ; the
whole bearing a very considerable resemblance to the sculptures on the
walls of the Assyrian palaces, though the position is different. The
arrangement of these stairs, too, is peculiar, none of them being at right
angles to the buildings they approach, but allbeing double, apparently
to allow processions to pass the throne, situated in tlie porches at their
summit, without interruption, and without altering the line of march.
One of these flights, leading to the platform of Xerxes’ palace, is
shown in the woodcut (Xo. 132). In arrangement it is like the stairs
leading to the great terrace, but very much smaller, and profusely
adorned with sculpture.
The principal apartment in all the buildings situated on the plat-
form is a central square hall, whose floor is studded with pillars placed
equidistant tlie one from the other. The smallest have I pillars, the
next 16, then 36, and one lias 100 pillars on its floor; but to avoid
inventing new names, we may call these respectively, distyle, tetrastyle,
hexastyle, and decastyle halls, from their having 2, 4, 6, or 10 pillars
on each face of the phalanx, and because that is the number of tlie
pillars in their porticos when they have any.
The building at tlie head of thc great stairs is a distyle liall, liaving