http://www.livius.org/a/1/mesopotamia/ctesiphon.jpg
http://aeeneh.com/images/history-images/Ctesiphon.jpeg
http://www.atlastours.net/iraq/ctesiphon.jpg
http://www.shunya.net/Text/Islam/Maps/Ctesiphon.jpg
http://i-cias.com/e.o/ill/ctesiphon01.jpg
http://www.gardenvisit.com/je/ctesiphon1.jpg
http://perso.wanadoo.fr/spqr/Images/ctesiphon02.jpg
http://ddc.aub.edu.lb/projects/infirmary/hamadeh/images/ctesiphon.jpg
http://www.iranchamber.com/history/sassanids/images/sassanid_empire_map.gif

looooooooool jamshid is a very funny name

looooooooool jamshid is a very funny name

how so? :?

is that arc thing tagh bostan?

Wasn't Ctesiphon also a Parthian capital before becoming a Sassanid capital?

Ctesiphon

Ctesiphon (Parthian: Tyspwn as well as Tisfun) is one of the great cities of ancient Mesopotamia and the capital of the Parthian Empire and its successor, the Sassanid Empire, for more than 800 years located in the ancient Iranian province of Khvarvaran.

Located approximately 20 miles southeast of the modern city of Baghdad, along the river Tigris, it rose to prominence along with the Parthian Empire in the first century BC, and was the seat of government for most of its rulers. Ctesiphon measured 30 square kilometers (cf. the 13,7 square kilometers of imperial Rome).

The splendor of Khosrau's palace (Shâhigân-e Sepid = the white palace, later Taq-i Kasra) at Ctesiphon is legendary. The Throne room was more than 110 ft high. The massive barrel vault covered an area 80ft wide by 160 ft long, and was the largest vault ever constructed in Persia.

The arch of Ctesiphon, or Taq-e Kasra, is now all that remains of a city that was, for seven centuries, the main capital of the successor dynasties of the Achaemenids, Parthians and Sassanians. The structure left today was the main portico of the audience hall of the Sassanians who maintained the same site chosen by the Parthians and for the same reason, namely proximity to the Roman Empire whose expansionist aims could be better contained at the point of contact.

The arch is located in what is now the Iraqi city of Mada'en (also referred to as Iwan-e Mada'en and formerly called Madayn by Europeans), near the capital, Baghdad. The monument has been greatly neglected in recent years and is now on the verge of collapse.


Because of its importance, Ctesiphon was a major military objective for the leaders of the Roman Empire in its eastern wars. The city was captured by Roman or Byzantine forces five times in its history, three times in the second century alone. The emperor Trajan captured Ctesiphon in 116, after one year of occupation his successor Hadrian had no choice but to return it in 117 as part of a peace settlement. The Roman general Avidius Cassius captured Ctesiphon during another Parthian war in 164, but abandoned it when peace was concluded. In 197, the emperor Septimius Severus sacked Ctesiphon and carried off thousands of its inhabitants, possibly as many as 100,000, whom he sold into slavery.

Late in the third century, after the Parthians had been supplanted by the Sassanids, the city again became a source of conflict with Rome. In 295, Galerius was defeated by the Persians outside the city. Humiliated, he returned a year later and won a tremendous victory which ended in the fourth and final capture of the city by a Roman army. He returned it to the Persian king Narses in exchange for Armenia.

Emperor Julian was killed outside of the city walls in 363 during his war against Shapur II.

Finally, in 627, the eastern Roman emperor Heraclius took the city, then capital of the Sassanid empire, leaving it after the Persians accepted his peace terms.

Ctesiphon fell to the Arabs during the Islamic conquest of Iran in 637 and went into a rapid decline, especially after the founding of the Abbasid capital at Baghdad in the 8th century. It is believed to be the basis for the city of Isbanir in the Thousand and One Nights.

The ruins of Ctesiphon were the site of a major battle of World War I in November of 1915. The Ottoman Empire defeated troops of Britain attempting to capture Baghdad, and drove them back some 40 miles before trapping the British force and compelling it to surrender.

http://img88.imageshack.us/img88/1643/stampiraq19233a5or.jpg
Ruins of Ctesiphon depicted on a 1923 postage stamp of Iraq.

http://img88.imageshack.us/img88/1131/tagkasra8xz.jpg
Ctesiphon (Tâgh-i Kasrâ). Drawn 1824 by Captain Hart.

Wasn't Ctesiphon also a Parthian capital before becoming a Sassanid capital?

Yes, it was!

Ctesiphon (Parthian: Tyspwn), ancient city on the Tigris, founded by the Parthians. The city was the capital of the Parthian and the Sassanid empires.

Ctesiphon was built on the site of an older town, Opis, not far from the confluence of Tigris and Diyala. This city was situated on the so-called Royal Road, which connected Elam's capital Susa with the Assyrian heartland and -later- the Lydian capital Sardes.

At the end of the fourth century, king Seleucus, the successor of Alexander the Great and founder of the Seleucids empire, built Seleucia on the opposite bank of Opis. From now on, Opis was a mere suburb. The Roman historian Tacitus informs us that in the first century, Greek and native inhabitants were still recognizable and had institutions of their own. The Parthians, who took over the country in the second century BCE, had hardly any cultural influence.


Tagh-e Kasra in ancient city of Ctesiphon

However, the Parthians needed a western capital, and therefore, they moved the goverment center from Seleucia to the eastern bank, and renamed ancient Opis Tyspwn or Ctesiphon. The city served as winter residence of the kings after 129 BCE. It is not clear when Ctesiphon became the most important city in the Parthian empire, but what is reasonably clear is that the spoils of a large campaign against the Roman empire in 41 BCE were invested in the new capital, which became one of the greatest cities in the ancient world.

The city became even more important after a rebellion of Seleucia against king Vardanes, which ended in 43 CE. The Roman historian Ammianus Marcellinus calls Vardanes the founder of Ctesiphon, which suggests that he did something to improve the status of this city. A generation later, king Pacorus is said to have increased its inhabitants and built its walls. Ctesiphon measured 30 square kilometers (cf. the 13,7 square kilometers of imperial Rome).

In the second century CE, the large city became the natural target for Roman aggression, because the Romans thought that the capture of the Parthian capital would inevitably result in the fall of the eastern empire. In 116, 165, and 198, the emperors Trajan, Lucius Verus, and Septimius Severus took Seleucia and Ctesiphon. But the Parthian state was organized in a very loose fashion, which gave it a certain resilience.

However, in the long run, the capture by Septimius Severus had a disastrous result. According to a modern estimate, the Romans took away so much gold and silver that they were able to postpone a European economic crisis for three or four decades, and we can imagine the consequences for the Parthians. Their empire was seriously weakened and in 224 CE, the Persian vassal king Ardašir revolted. Two years later, he took Ctesiphon, and this time, it meant the end of Parthia. It also marked the beginning of the second Persian empire, ruled by the Sassanid kings.

Although Ctesiphon was the capital of the Sassanid empire, Seleucia was not forgotten; it was renamed Veh-Ardašir ("the good city of Ardašir"). The cities remained a military target. In 238, he Roman emperor Gordian III wanted to capture Ctesiphon in order to prevent the new Sassanid empire from becoming too powerful, but was murdered before he reached his goal. Odenaethus of Palmyra was more successful in 262 CE, and so was the emperor Carus, who took the city in 283 CE. But when Julian wanted to do the same thing, he was defeated and killed in action (363 CE).

In the fifth century, Ctesiphon became a very important center of Nestorianism, a Christian church that accepts a larger distance between the two natures of Christ than the churches of the West. Missionaries from Ctesiphon christianized many people along the Silk road, e.g., at Rhagae and Maracanda, and in Margiana and Aria. In 635 CE, the first Christians reached China.

In 540 CE, the Sassanid king Khusrau I conquered the capital of Roman Syria, Antioch. The inhabitants were deported and settled in a new city near Ctesiphon and Veh-Ardašir, which was called Khusrau's Antioch. There were perhaps four comparable settlements. As a consequence, the Arabs started to call the place Al-Madain, "the cities".

In 637 CE, the Muslims took and looted Ctesiphon and the other cities. This was the beginning of their conquest of Mesopotamia. In 762 CE, they built a new government center, 35 kilometers upstream: Baghdad.

http://www.geocities.com/abu_musa_town/Iran_during_Sasanian.gif

^^ that map is wrong, the sassanids also controlled all of oman and yemen.

The map shows control of Oman! and Yemen is cut off, i donnu why.

Here is another map:

http://depts.washington.edu/uwch/silkroad/exhibit/sassanians/images/map.jpg

http://www.geocities.com/abu_musa_town/Iran_during_Sasanian.gif

Amazing!!!
I see my nickname on this map (near shiraz) :)
well somebody say that persis is Pars (in ancient greek language) and somebody else say that persis is Zagros ...
anyway ... I'm on the map :D It's Fantastic, isn't it? :D

Yeah :D my city is also on the map Shiraz baba! Shirazehmoen nesweh jahoen!

Why is Qatar in there?

because you where part of that empire ?

The southern shores of the Persian Gulf were a part of the Persian Empire for centuries. Even in the last 300 years, many parts of it were a part of Iran. Bahrain, for example, was a part of Iran, until 30 years ago. That is one reason for the high percentage of Persian speakers in those Persian Gulf states.

http://www.chn.ir/en/news/?section=2&id=6314


Preserving the Kasra Arch, Protecting the National Identity

Participants of the 3rd conference of Iran’s History of Architectural Style called on international organizations to inscribe the Kasra Arch in World’s endangered heritage list.

Tehran, 17 April 2006 (CHN) -- Preserving the historic Kasra Arch as a Persian heritage in danger and inscribing its name in UNESCO’s list of endangered heritage were discussed during the third conference of Iran’s History of Architectural Style and City Planning currently held in the city of Bam in Kerman province. The participants of this conference also called on immediate action to save the historical cities of Jondi Shapour, Ivan Karkheh, and Tisfoon.

In an interview with CHN, Faramarz Tathir Moqadam, member of managing board of Institute for Tehran University Graduate Engineers said, “In an official statement, our institute has requested the coordinators and participants of the third conference of Iran’s History of Architectural Style and City Planning to call on all related world organizations to put their maximum efforts into renovating the Kasra Arch which is not only considered a national treasure, but is also a world heritage currently in real jeopardy.”

According to Tathir Moqadam, inscribing this architectural masterpiece in UNESCO’s List of Endangered Heritage will draw the attention of the world and would result in both financial and moral support from world organizations to preserve this ancient monument.

The Institute for Tehran University Graduate Engineers which is partly engaged with the condition of endangered historic monuments both inside Iran and abroad is one of the institutions that have taken part in this year’s architectural style conference of Iran.

For more than 12 centuries the city of Tisfoon with its huge castles and magnificent buildings was the capital city of Persian Emperors until 642 AD when Arabs seized and destroyed all its castles and buildings except for one which is named Taq-e Kasra or Kasra Arch.

The Kasra Arch was located within the Persian Empire in the present-day Iraq when Baghdad and its suburbs used to be part of the Persian Sassanid capital city of Tisfoon. The remains of this castle can still be seen 38 km from Baghdad. It is still alive and speaks of the great and magnificent Persian civilization and culture. This magnificent example of Persian architectural style has seen a lot of harm during the past few centuries, especially during the Iran-Iraq war. Also, the ancient city of Tisfoon was completely abandoned during Saddam’s regime in Iraq. “This world heritage does not at all deserve such a destiny,” said Tathir Moqadam with regret.

Tathir Moqadam also talked about Iraq’s National Museum which was once host of the most valuable historic artifacts from the Mesopotamian region which were considered part of the people’s identity but unfortunately were stolen from this museum after the recent US military attack to Iraq. “It is quite odd to see huge historic artifacts being taken out from this museum so easily during the day and while the American troops were present at the scene. It is rather unfortunate that none of those who once claimed to be the sole protectors of culture, freedom, and democracy ever bothered to stop this open plundering of our cultural heritage. I must remind you that nearly two years earlier we were faced with almost the same situation in Afghanistan,” he commented on the endangered condition of world heritage in the Middle East.

Part of the official statement sent to this year’s conference of Iran’s History of Architectural Style and City Planning by the said institute reads: “We must pay attention that cities such as Tisfoon with monuments like the Kasra Arch are examples of Persian culture, art, and architectural style in this region which must receive a continuous attention should they need to be renovated and preserved so that we may not only introduce them to the world this way but also let the world experts conduct their studies on these sites and bring them under protection of world organizations devoted to preservation of culture.”

Regarding the pictures, slides, and short movies which were displayed during this conference about the present condition of the Kasra Arch, Tathir Moqadam said, “These pictures very well show the critical condition of this giant monument which is not so far from complete devastation. Iran must at least pay as much attention it does to the existing religious cultural heritage in Iraq to preserve such valuable historic remains through which it can establish more cultural bonds with its neighboring countries.”

The Third International Conference of Iran’s History of Architectural Style and City Planning is currently held in the city of Bam in Kerman province and will run to 19 of April 2006.

From 1922
http://img228.imageshack.us/img228/6817/3207924506b53d7e000co.jpg

http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/1160/2308222392602b3187e5b.jpg

http://img219.imageshack.us/img219/1692/3405561207a92bb2acc8o.jpg

http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/451/3177711661aaba9dc37ao.jpg

http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/6951/2157493523392668ab07.jpg

http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=Ctesiphon

Thats so beautiful, I can imagine how it looked like at its time..
Thanks for posting

Too many of Iran's great monuments, cities and pieces of architecture are outside its current borders. It's quite unfortunate.