Lecture Series on World Heritage and Culture

152 Nd Lecture On Persian Art And Culture

Dr G Sethuraman Art Historian & Dr V Vedachalam Archaeologist

Ancient Persia, now known as Iran, was one of the dominant nations of Western Asia for about twelve centuries, with three successive native dynasties- the Achaemenid, the Parthian, and the Sasanian – controlling an empire of unprecedented size and complexity. It was one of the great civilizations of the Near East, ranking alongside Mesopotamia, Anatolia, the Levant and Egypt. “From prehistoric times onwards many parts of the country were home to rich and prosperous cultures, and in the sixth and fifth centuries BCE the kings of Persia conquered the whole of the Near East. The westward expansion brought them into conflict with Greece, and the ensuing Graeco- Persian wars are recorded at length in classical sources.

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