Cyrus Building Programme

• Pasargadae → located in heart of Persia in fertile valley in Zagros Mountains (near important trade route)
• Pasargadae architecture promoted king’s power and ideology
• Tomb of Cyrus shaped like a house with a saddle-roof standing on stepped plinth
• Citadel sat on top of nearby hill, overlooking palace complex
• Royal gardens - stone lines water channels intersected the gardens to provide irrigation - garden had 2 pavilions
• End of gardens was Palace P - built in white stone
• 2 palaces in Pasargadae - entry controlled by gatehouse - stone buildings instead of traditional mudbrick and wood - both palaces had a rectangular columned hall surrounded by porticoes
• Beyond Palace S there are 2 pavilions (2/3 entrance to royal gardens)
• Reference/influence of other cultures in architecture (e.g. there is stone relief with a figure wearing an Egyptian crown, there were Assyrian Style Statues in Palace S)
• Stone platform which could have been a sanctuary or had military origins
• Structure called Zendan suggested to play role in coronation ceremonies of new king