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From Cyrus to Alexander

A History of the Persian Empire

PIERRE BRIANT
Translated
by
P E T E R T.

DANIELS

Winona Lake, Indiana

Eisenbrauns
2002

Contents
List of Illustrations
Preface to the English Translation
Translator's Preface

xi
xv
xix

Introduction: On the Trail of an Empire

1. W a s T h e r e a n A c h a e m e n i d E m p i r e ? 1;
Again: F r a g m e n t s of

ego-histoire

4. S p a c e a n d T i m e 9;

1;

2. F r o m A l e x a n d e r to C y r u s a n d Back

3. T h e Historian a n d H i s E v i d e n c e 5;

T o the R c a d e i

J I;

A c k n o w l e d g m e n t s 12

Prologue: The Persians before the Empire

1. W h y C y r u s ? 13;
Ansan

16;

13

2. T h e F o u n d e r L e g e n d s 14;

4. A n s a n a n d S u s a 17;

Herodotus and Archaeology

18;

3. T h e K i n g s of

5. Persian Society before the C o n q u e s t s :

6. A n s a n , E c b a t a n a , B a b y l o n , a n d S u s a 21;

7. F r o m the M e d e s to the Persians 24;

8. C o n c l u s i o n

27

PART 1
T H E E M P I R E - B U I L D E R S : FROM CYRUS TO DARIUS

Chapter 1. The Land-Collectors: Cyrus the Great and Cambyses (559-522)

31

1. M e d o - P e r s i a n Hostilities, the D e f e a t o f Astyages, a n d the Fall o f E c b a t a n a

(553-550)

31;

2. T h e N e w International Situation a n d Cyrus's Projects 33;

3. T h e D e f e a t of C r o e s u s a n d the E s t a b l i s h m e n t of a M e d i t e r r a n e a n F r o n t 35;
4. C y r u s in C e n t r a l Asia 38;

5. T h e C a p t u r e o f B a b y l o n (539) 40;

6. C y r u s , T r a n s - E u p h r a t e s , a n d E g y p t 44;
8. T h e E g y p t i a n C a m p a i g n ( 5 2 5 - 5 2 2 )

50;

7. F r o m C y r u s to C a m b y s e s 49;
9. C a m b y s e s a n d the Egyptian

Traditions 55

Chapter 2. The Conquest and After: An Interim Summary

1. F r o m C y r u s to D a r i u s : S o u r c e s a n d P r o b l e m s 62;
Satrapies 63;

3. Tributes a n d Gifts 67;

4. C o n t i n u i t i e s a n d Adaptations:

T h e C a s e of B a b y l o n i a 70;

5. F r o m Bactra to S a r d i s 76;

C o n q u e r e d P o p u l a t i o n s 79;

7. T h e Seats o f Power 84;

Authority 89;

62

2. Satraps a n d

9. T h e K i n g a n d the G o d s 9 3 ;

6. Persians a n d
8. Royalty and

10. Bardiya's Usurpation

(522) 97

Chapter 3. Trouble, Secession, and Rebuilding (522-518)

1. D a r i u s C o m e s to Power (522) 107;
518)

114;

3. T h e Aftermath of Victory: T h e Official Story 122;

and the Six 128;

107

2. Revolts a n d R e c o n q u e s t s ( 5 2 2 -

5. S u m m a r y a n d Perspectives

vu

137

4. D a r i u s

Contents

viii

Chapter 4. Darius the Conqueror (520-486)

139

1. T h e Pursuit of Territorial E x p a n s i o n ( 5 2 0 - 5 1 3 )
Europe

141;

3. T h e Ionian Revolt ( 5 0 0 - 4 9 3 )

Memphis (492-486)

139;

146;

2. T h e Persians in

4. F r o m T h r a c e to

156

PART 2
T H E G R E A T KING

Chapter 5. Images of the World

1. T h e B u i l d e r - K i n g 165;
Iconography

172;

165
2. T h e K i n g a n d H i s Peoples: Inscriptions a n d

3. An Idealized I m a g e of S p a c e a n d Imperial Power

4. I m a g e s a n d Realities: T h e K i n g . a m o n g His P e o p l e s
Realities: T h e Imperial Festivals 195;

183;

175;

5. I m a g e s a n d

6. Royal T a b l e a n d Royal Paradise:

Exaltation of the C e n t e r a n d Appropriation of S p a c e 200

Chapter 6.

Representations of Royalty and M o n a r c h i c Ideology

1. S o u r c e s a n d P r o b l e m s 204;
3. T h e K i n g in M a j e s t y 216;
E a r t h , and the Water 232;

204

2. T h e P r i n c e in His O w n Mirror 210;

4. T h e G o o d Warrior 225;

6. B e t w e e n M e n a n d G o d s

5. T h e K i n g , the

240

Chapter 7. People and Life at Court

1. S o u r c e s and P r o b l e m s 255;
E u n u c h s 268;
T a b l e 286;

255
2. H o u s e h o l d Staff 258;

4. T h e W o m e n ' s S i d e 277;

6. T h e Royal H u n t s 297;

3. T h e

5. At the G r e a t King's

7. Royal P o m p

299

Chapter 8. The King's Men

302

1. T h e G i v i n g K i n g 302;

2. U n e q u a l E x c h a n g e 316;

Faithful: T h e R a t i o n a l e of the S y s t e m 324;

T h e D y n a m i c of the C o n t r a d i c t i o n s 331;

3. T h e K i n g a n d His

4. T h e K i n g a n d His Faithful:
5. K i n g a n d Satraps 338;

K i n g a n d His Faithful: T h e Persians, the G r e e k s , a n d the O t h e r s

7. A c h a e m e n i d Royalty a n d Persian Aristocracy

6.

The

347;

352

PART 3
TERRITORIES, POPULATIONS, AND THE D E P E N D E N T

ECONOMY

Chapter 9. Territories, Communication, and Trade

1. T h e Network of R o a d s 357;

357

2. C o n t r o l of the Imperial Territory 364;

3. L i n e s of C o m m u n i c a t i o n a n d T r a d e 377

Chapter 10. Royal Assessments and Tribute

1. S o u r c e s a n d P r o b l e m s 388;
T r i b u t e 394;

2. S a t r a p i e s a n d Tributes 390;

4. Tributes, Gifts, a n d Assessments

Tribute: M e t a l a n d C o i n 406;
a n d Adaptations 410;
and T r i b u t e L a n d 415

388
399;

3. Gifts and

5. P a y m e n t s of

6. T h e Administration of Tribute: C o n t i n u i t i e s

7. T r i b u t e E c o n o m y a n d Appropriation: Royal L a n d

Contents

ix

Chapter 11. P e r s i a : E m p i r e a n d T r i b u t e E c o n o m y
1. T h e Persepolis Archives 422;

422

2 . Administrative H i e r a r c h y a n d

O r g a n i z a t i o n o f Production 425;

3. T h e World of Work: T h e kurtas 429;

4. Agriculture: P r o d u c e a n d L e v i e s 439;

5. L a n d s a n d E s t a t e s 442;

6. T h e Persepolis T a b l e t s a n d the Imperial Administration: S o u r c e s and

P r o b l e m s 447;
E g y p t 448;

7. T h e M a n a g e m e n t of Property a n d the Royal W a r e h o u s e s in

8. M a n a g e m e n t of S u r p l u s e s 4 5 1 ;

10. T h e King's H o u s e 463;

9. L a n d s a n d Peasants 456;

11. Transition 471

Chapter 12. T h e K i n g o f the L a n d s

1. D a r i u s a n d E g y p t 472;
E u p h r a t e s 487 ;

472

2. B a b y l o n i a u n d e r D a r i u s 484;

3. Trans-

4. F r o m J e r u s a l e m to M a g n e s i a on the M e a n d e r 491;

5. Western Asia M i n o r : C i t i e s , Dynasts, and E m p i r e after the I o n i a n

Revolt 493;

6. Population R e s e t t l e m e n t a n d D e p o r t a t i o n

505;

7. Unity

a n d Diversity 507

PART 4
FROM X E R X E S TO DARIUS I I I : AN EMPIRE IN TURMOIL
Chapter 13. X e r x e s t h e G r e a t K i n g ( 4 8 6 - 4 6 5 )
1. S o u r c e s a n d P r o b l e m s 515;
Sardis to Sardis (480) 528;

515

2. F r o m D a r i u s to X e r x e s 518;

5. T h e Persian Defeat: Its C a u s e s a n d C o n s e q u e n c e s

Peoples

543;

535;

7. X e r x e s , A h u r a - M a z d a , and Persia 550;

Offensives a n d Royal Territories ( 4 7 8 - 4 6 6 )

Strategy 559;

3. F r o m

4. X e r x e s b e t w e e n T w o Fronts ( 4 8 0 - 4 7 9 )

554;

531;

6. Xerxes and His

8. Athenian

9. X e r x e s ' W e s t e r n

10. F r o m X e r x e s to Artaxerxes 563;

I I . An Assessment 567

C h a p t e r 14. F r o m t h e A c c e s s i o n o f A r t a x e r x e s I t o t h e D e a t h o f
D a r i u s II ( 4 6 5 - 4 0 5 / 4 0 4 )

569

1. O n e K i n g after Another (465) 569;

454) 573;

2. T h e E g y p t i a n Revolt (ca. 4 6 4 -

3. T r a n s - E u p h r a t e s Matters 577;

A e g e a n F r o n t 579;

4. T h e Asia M i n o r - E a s t e r n

5. E z r a and N e h e m i a h in J e r u s a l e m 583;

K i n g aftei Another ( 4 2 5 - 4 2 4 )

588;

6. O n e

7. Affairs on the Western Front 591;

8. T h e G r e a t K i n g in His C o u n t r i e s 6 0 0
C h a p t e r 15. A r t a x e r x e s II ( 4 0 5 / 4 0 4 - 3 5 9 / 3 5 8 ) a n d A r t a x e r x e s III ( 3 5 9 / 3 5 8 - 3 3 8 )
1. T h e Reign of Artaxerxes II: S o u r c e s a n d P r o b l e m s 612;
T w o Brothers ( 4 0 4 - 4 0 1 )

615;

3. Artaxerxes the Victor 630;

in Asia M i n o r a n d Artaxerxes IPs Strategy ( 4 0 0 - 3 9 6 )

M i n o r ( 3 9 6 - 3 9 4 ) 637;

2. T h e War of the

634;

4. C o n d i t i o n s

5. Agesilaus in Asia

6. A c h a e m e n i d S u c c e s s e s a n d Failures: F r o m Asia

M i n o r to E g y p t (ca. 3 9 6 - c a . 370) 645;

P e o p l e s (ca. 3 6 6 - 3 5 9 / 3 5 8 )

656;

of Artaxerxes III ( 3 5 1 - 3 3 8 ) 681

7. Artaxerxes II, His Satraps, and His

8. At the H e a r t o f Power 6 7 5 ;

9. T h e Wars

. . . 612

Contents

PART 5
THE

FOURTH C E N T U R Y AND T H E EMPIRE OF DARIUS III

IN T H E ACHAEMENID LONGUE DUREE:
A PROSPECTIVE A S S E S S M E N T

Chapter 16. Lands, Peoples, and Satrapies: Taking Stock

of the Achaemenid World

693

Introduction: In the S t e p s o f Alexander a n d o n the Trail o f D a r i u s 693;

I. S o u r c e s a n d P r o b l e m s 696;
Sardis to E p h e s u s 700;

2. T h e Satrapy of D a s c y l i u m

697;

3. F r o m

4. F r o m C e l a e n a e to H a l i c a r n a s s u s 7 0 5 ;

5. Pixodarus a t X a n t h u s 707;

6. F r o m T a r s u s to M a z a c a 7 0 9 ;

T a r s u s to S a m a r i a via S i d o n a n d J e r u s a l e m 713;
9. E g y p t from Artaxerxes III to D a r i u s III 7 1 7 ,

7. F r o m

8. F r o m G a z a to Petra 716;
10. F r o m Arbela to S u s a 7 1 9 ;

I I . T h e G r e a t K i n g , Alexander, a n d t h e Peoples o f the Z a g r o s M o u n t a i n s 726;

12. Persepolis, P a s a r g a d a e , a n d Persia 733;

13. F r o m Persepolis to

E c b a t a n a 737:

14. F r o m E c b a t a n a to the Halys 7 4 1 :

Cyropolis 743;

16. F r o m the P u n j a b to the I n d u s Delta 754;

15. F r o m E c b a t a n a to
17. F r o m

Pattala to S u s a a n d Babylon: T h e Persians a n d the Persian G u l f 758;

18. A n

Appraisal a n d S o m e Q u e s t i o n s 7 6 2
Chapter 1 7 . T h e G r e a t K i n g , H i s A n n i e s , a n d H i s T r e a s u r e s
1. T h e Accession of D a r i u s III 769;

769

2. T h e G r e a t K i n g a n d the Persian

Aristocracy 7 8 0 ;

3. T h e Royal A r m i e s 783;

Tribute E c o n o m y

800;

4. S u b j e c t Populations a n d

5. Transition 8 1 2

PART 6
THE

F A L L OF AN E M P I R E ( 3 3 6 - 3 3 0 )

Chapter 18. Darius and the Empire Confront Macedonian Aggression

I . Territories, A r m i e s , a n d Strategies 817;

817

2 . D a r i u s a n d H i s Faithful 842;

3. T h e L o c a l Elites, D a r i u s , a n d Alexander: Popularity a n d U n p o p u l a r i t y o f

A c h a e m e n i d D o m i n i o n 852;

4. T h e D e a t h o f a G r e a t K i n g (330) 864;

5. T h e Fall of a n E m p i r e 8 6 6

Conclusion: From Nabonidus to Seleucus

873

Research Notes

877

List of Abbreviations

1053

Bibliography

1059

Indexes

1125

Index of Sources
Index of Personal Names
Index of Divine Names .
Index of Geographical Names
Index of Ancient Words
Index of Topics

1125
1149
1161
1162
1173
1180

List of Illustrations
Maps
1. The Ionian Revolt

147

after Briant 1992b: 81

2. The Empire and its principal routes

366

after Briant 1992: 20-21

3. The itinerary of Cyrus and the Ten Thousand

367

after Xenophon, Anahase, Les Belles Lettres

4. The expedition of Agesilaus

639

after D u g a s ! 9 ! 0

5. Peoples and roads of the Zagros

727

after Briant 1976

6. Lands and peoples of the Iranian Plateau and Central Asia under
Achaemenid rule

744

after Briant 1984b: 72

7. Alexander in India and eastern Iran

755

Will et al., U lVe siecle (Paris: P U F , 1975) 293

Genealogies
From Artaxerxes I to Artaxerxes II

571

The Succession from Darius II to Darius III

773

Figures
1. Pyramidal tomb at Sardis

87

Cabill 1988

2. Tomb of Cyrus

87

Sancisi-Weerdenburg 1982: 76

3. Tomb at Buzpar

87

Vanden Bcrghe 1964: fig. 8

4. Tomb at Tas Kule

87

Cahill 1988

5. Relief from Palace P at Pasargadae

89

Stronach 1978

6. Winged genius at Pasargadae

91

Sancisi-Weerdcnberg 1982: 79

7. Seal of Kuras of Ansan (PFS 93*)

91

Garrison 1992: fig. 2

8. Relief at Behistun

125

Sancisi-Weerdenburg 1982: 108

XI

List of Illustrations

xi:

9. Plans of the terraces at Persepolis and Susa

Persepolis G h i r s h m a n 1951; Susa Perrot 198'1

10. Peoples bearing the throne (Persepolis: Hall of the Hundred Columns) .
Walser 1966

11. Lower register of throne-bearing peoples on the royal tombs

Walser 1966

12. Some gift-bearing peoples: Medes, Elamites, Parthians,

Aryans, Bactrians, Sagartians
Koch 1992

13. Darius and his court as seen in a Greek painting of the fourth century . .
Hamdf and Reinach, Necropole royak de Sidon, 1892: 290

14. Audience scene from the sarcophagus of Alexander

v o n G r a e v e 1987: 137

15. Audience scene on a seal impression from Dascylium

M u s c h e 1989

16. The tomb of Darius at Naqs-i Rustam

Porada 1963: fig. 77

17. Royal coinage

Stronach 1989b: fig. 1

18. The King, the Persians, and war

a - b : Artaxerxes III? (Bittner 1985: Taf. 15.1); c: Artaxerxes III? ( D a n d a m a e v
1976: Taf. V.A); d: Kuras of Ansan (Amiet 1992: fig. 14); e: seal of the treasury of
Oxus (Moorey 1978: fig. 7); f: seal of Arsama (Moorey 1978: fig 8)

19. The statue of Darius discovered at Susa

C D A F ; ( 1 9 7 4 ) , fig. 21

20. Relief depicting royal audience from the Treasury at Persepolis

Porada 1963: fig. 80

21. Tripylon (Council Hall), south jamb of the eastern doorway

G h i r s h m a n 1957: fig. 6

22. Throne Hall, east jamb of the eastern doorway of the southern wall
Ghirshman 1957: fig. 8

23. Tripylon (Council Hall), west jamb of the southern doorway

G h i r s h m a n 1957: fig. 3

24. Throne Hall, south jamb of the northern doorway in the western wall:
Combat of Royal Hero with a griffin
G h i r s h m a n 1957: fig. 9

25. Rows of Persian and Median nobles

Roaf 1983: 105

26. The royal chariot at Persepolis

Littauer and Crouwel, Wheeled vehicles...,

27. The Royal Hero

Moorey 1978: fig. 6; Porada 1963: fig. 85

28. Darius III in battle

mosaic of Alexander Nylancler 1983: fig. 2

1979

List of Illustrations
29. Hunt scenes on seals: a seal of Darius, showing the king hunting a lion;
inscribed seal depicting a "Mede" hunting a wild hoar

xiii

232

a: Porada 1963: fig. 86; b: Perrotand C h i p i c z

30. Seal of Xerxes

235

Perrot and C h i p i e z : fig. 497

31. The Assyrian king with the "Tree of Life"

236

32. Assurbanipal and the vine-arbor

237

Margueron, Les Misopotctmiem, II (1991): 92

33. Magi and sacrifices

244

a: plaque from the treasury at Oxus (Porada 1963: fig. 84); b: stela from Dascylium
( C u m o n t , Religions orientates, fig. 10); c: seal from the Treasury at Persepolis
(Houtkamp 1991: fig. 1); d: seal impression from Dascylium (Mellink 1988: fig. 12b)
e: animal-sacrifice scene (Moorey 1988: fig. 44b); f: relief on the tomb o f a "Mede"
from Qyzapan (Porada 1963: fig. 71)

34. Ahura-Mazda

248

G h i r s h m a n 1957: fig. 7

35. Fire altars and cult

249

Houtkamp 1991: fig. 2; Moorey 1988: fig. 44a, c, d

36. Hellenistic Persian coin showing a fire temple

250

Houtkamp 1991

37. Anahita: (a) the king before Anahita? (b) representation of Anahita?

253

Moorey 1979

38. Gate of Darius's palace at Susa (section)

260

C D A F / 4 ( 1 9 7 4 ) , fig. 17

39. A Scythian cares for his companion

(on a vase from Koul-Oba in the Crimea)

266

M i n n s 1913

40. Servants waiting on tables: Persepolis

(small staircase south of the Tripylon)

292

G h i r s h m a n 1957: fig. 5

41. Selection of Achaemenid vessels

295

Rozcnbcrg 1993 .figs. 4 , 6 , 9

42. Dogs used in the hunt and in battle by the Assyrians

299

Perrot and C h i p i e z

43. Achaemenid jewelry

306

M u s c h e 1992: CXIV, l . l l j C V I I , 1.11; CIV, 6 3.3

44. Statue of Udjahoresnet

473

C A H I V , fig. 20

45. Stela of the Apis that died in 518

480

C A H I V , fig. 21

46. Egyptian votive stela

483

C A H I V , fig. 22

47. Some Babylonian seal impressions, from Cyrus to Xerxes

486

Graziani 1989

48. Inscribed sarcophagus of Esmunazzar

490

xiv

List of Illustrations

49. Relief from Building G at Xanthus and two Persepolis reliefs

504

(a)Tritsch 1942; ( b - c ) Koch 1992

50. Sidonian coins, Samarian coins, and related evidence

606

( a - b ) Sidonian coins: Perrot and C h i p i e z V, figs. 511-512; (c) Cypro-Phoenician

silver bowl (Childs 1978: fig. 29); ( d - e ) Samarian coins (Meshorer and Q c d a r 1991:
2

nos. 48 and 17), (f) port scene on a Treasury Tablet from Persepolis ( C A H I V ,
fig. 3); (g) Assyrian king in chariot; (h) satrap or dynast on a satrap's sarcophagus
(Kleeman 1958: Taf. 32a)

51. Dynastic(?) coinage from Cilicia

611

Perrot and C h i p i e z V, fig. 517

52. Coin with Aramaic inscription of the name of Tarkumuwa

667

Shahbazi 1980b; fig. 121

53. Monument of the Nereids at Xanthus: (a) audience scene;

(b-d) banquet scenes

671

FdX, VIII, pis. XXXII, LVI, L X , L I X

54. Parade on Pericles' monument at Limyra

673

Borchhardt 1976b

55. Persian relief from Paphlagonia

699

D o n e e ! a n d V o u t e 1984

56. "Greco-Persian" objects from Dascylium

700
2

(a) Kleemann 1958: Taf. 33a; ( b - c ) C A H I V , fig. 12a, c

57. Seal bearing the name of Manes

704

Masson 1987a

58. Xanthus Trilingual Inscription {FdX VI, 1974)

708

59. Cilician civic coins

710

Perrot and C h i p i e z V, figs. 514 and 519

60. Persian relief found near Kayseri

712

after Bittel 1952

61. Coins from Samaria and sealings from the Wadi ed-Daliyeh

715

Meshorer and Qedar 1991 - ( a ) no. 41; (b) no. 50; (c) no. 16; (d) no. 14; (e) no 58

(f-g) Leith, Wadi Daliyeh I (1990) W D 17

62. Some Murasu seals

722

Legiain 1925

63. Tomb of Artaxerxes II (reconstruction)

734

Flandin and C o s t e III, pi. 166

64. Unfinished tomb at Persepolis

735

Flandin and C o s t e 111, pi. 162

65.

Plan of a qanat (showing profile and vertical views)

Goblot 1963

807

Preface to the English

Translation

The text of the book that is presented here to English-speaking readers differs very
little from the French edition published by Editions Fayard in June, 1996. Yet during
the first stage in the process of translation, in the late 1996 and early 1997,1 had hoped
to make systematic modifications and additions to the original text in a way that took account of publications which had appeared after the latest revisions to the French manuscript, in September 1995. A succession of delays in the preparation of the American
translation dissuaded me from carrying out this enterprise, and here I would like to explain my decision to my readers.
I have chosen to present updates and very detailed assessments of research in another form, the Bulletin d'Histoire Achemenide (BHAch), organized in a way that follows the thematic structure of my book. Its aim is to give scholars periodic opportunities
not only to become acquainted with recent bibliography, but also to have a critical
analysis of it. The first number {BHAch I) took the form of a long article published in
Supplement 1 to the journal Topoi (1997, pp. 5-127).' In it, I analyzed about 450 titles
(articles and books) published between October 1995 and October 1997. The second
Bulletin {BHAch II) appeared in 2001, in book form. Following the same plan, I analyzed more than 800 titles published between October 1997 and October 2000. To make
it easier to use, BHAch II is accompanied by indexes which also cover the material in
BHAch I. One of those indexes (pp. 327-30) makes it possible for readers to find the
pages in my 1996 book that need to be revised in the light of new publications. Furthermore, the recent creation of a website specifically devoted to Achaemenid research
1

1. I point out that Ursula Weber and JoscF Wicsclibfcr have brought out an enormous Achaemenid

bibliography.cxhaustivc and minutely classified ( D a s Reich der Acluiinieniden. Eine Bibliographic

(AMI, Erganzungsband 15; Berlin: Dietrich Reimer, 1996).
2. A single significant addition has been m a d e in the part of Chapter 9 devoted to customs and exchange: I have introduced an extraordinary d o c u m e n t dealing with customs in Egypt, drawing on the
main expositions and conclusions of the study by myself and R. Descat, "Un registrc douanier d e la satrapie d'Egypte," in N. Grimal and B. M e n u , eds., La commerce en Egypte ancienne (IFAO Bibliotheque d'Etudes 121; C a i r o , 1998) 59-104. Subsequently, I decided to stop introducing new material
and discussion.
3. S u p p l e m e n t 1 to Topoi (distributed by Boccard, in Paris) included papers from a meeting organized at the Maison de I'Orient (Lyon), March 31April 1, 1997, published under the title Recherches
r&entes sur I'empire achemenide. Almost twenty colleagues from various countries responded to a n invitation from Jean-Frangois Sallcs a n d Marie-Kran^oise Boussac to discuss my book, at that time newly
published by Fayard.
4. Bulletin d'Histoire Ache'me'nide II (Paris: Editions T h o t m , 2001), 334 p p . (sec http://www.thotmeditions.com/editions/bhachII02.htm). T h i s volume inaugurates a new scries, Persika, undertaken on
the initiative of the "Chaire d'histoire et d e civilisation du moncle a c h e m e n i d e et de I'empire d'Alexandre" with the cooperation of the C o l l e g e dc France.

xv

Preface to the English Translation

XVI

(www.acliemenet.com) also gives scholars access to documentary and bibliographic resources on a continuing basis.
I have discussed one of the methodological questions raised by a systematic update,
a question that is not limited to Achaemenid studies, in the "Noruz Lecture" presented
at the Foundation for Iranian Studies (Washington, D.C., March 23, 2001) under the
title "New Trends in Achaemenid History." There, with reference to the updates in
BHAch1 and II, I stated:
5

When one strives to follow and evaluate research and publication on a day-to-day basis and
in an exhaustive manner, one unavoidably develops a permanent habit of painful epistemological questioning of the real results of the research. This question is particularly difficult
to resolve in the Humanities, where accumulated erudition and bibliographic tautology
sometimes take the place of evidence that is accepted but misleading for scientific innovation. To speak bluntly: what is really new in what is published recently? In our domain, what
are the signs that permit us to assert that this or that study marks progress in the order of
knowledge? The answer may seem easy as long as one is dealing with publications of documents, but it is quite a different matter when one considers interpretive publications. And
even among publications of documents one has to make distinctions: some of them add
only one unpublished document in a series that is already known, without modifying the
general sense by much; others, on the other hand, call attention to documentation that in
itself may suggest wholly new lines of interpretation.
Then, after presenting results from excavations at Ayn Manawir in Egypt, I concluded:
In this respect, the discoveries and publications on Achaemenid Egypt that I have presented
in brief are not justrece?it, they are really new, and they open prospects of fundamental new
growth in the near future.
My point is that a thorough updating cannot be brought about in a satisfactory manner
only with hundreds of bibliographic additions, heaped up one on the other. As publications accumulate, so the risk increases of burdening the text and the bibliographic
notes with updates superimposed over one another, and of making the text more difficult to consult rather than more useful. Furthermore, in such a case the appearance of
exhaustiveness would be largely an illusion, for two reasons. First, any book, however
up-to-date its bibliography may be, is subject to some bibliographic lapse by the time it
has appeared. Furthermore, as I have indicated, many added references really add
7

5. T h e creation of this web site also responds to purposes specific to the overall framework of Achaemenid history, that is, an a i m to transform what has been a virtual scientific c o m m u n i t y into an actual
scientific community: see my "Call for Collaboration" (Paris, 2000), available for downloading at
http://www.achcmcnt.com/pdf7call.pdf, as well as the proceedings of a colloquium that I organized at
the C o l l e g e de France, D e c . 15-16, 2000, "Achaemenid History and Data Bases on the Internet: an
Assessment of Work in Progress and Prospects for Future Developments," available at http/Avww.
achemenet.com/pdf/colloque/resumcs.pdf. With the agreement of the editors of Topoi, the entire text
of BHAch 1 can be found on the site at http://www.achemenet.com/bibliographies/l)hachI.htm.
6. An English version is available at http://www.fis-iran.org/achcnieiiid.htni; the French text is
available at http://ww.achemenet.com/rcssources/enligne/jasr/jasr01/htm under the title "L'histoire de
I'empire a c h e m e n i d e aujourd'hui: nouvelles tendances, nouvelles perspectives."
7. By way of example, I may mention that as 1 write this preface, in early July, 2001, the provisional
bibliographic list for BHAch III (which is intended to appear in 2003) already includes more than 150
titles, including some important books and articles.

Preface to the English Translation

xvi 1

nothing new, so it would be necessary to introduce a clear hierarchical distinction between "recent" and "new," and to justify in detail the criteria for selectionprecisely as
I tried to do in my Bulletins of 1997 and 2001.
All this being so, I freely admit that taking into account the most innovative publications that appeared between 1995 and 2000 would make it possible to amend and detail
many of the discussions in this book and to enrich significantly the iconographic documentation. If I have chosen nonetheless to present the American version practically in
the same form as the initial French book, it is also because I have judged whether
rightly or wrongly the reader may decide-that the general image of the Achaemenid
Empire that I expounded in 1996 has not been fundamentally modified.
Consider a particularly significant example, Chapter 16, in which I present a regional
analysis of the empire and attempt an interpretation of relations between center and periphery, in the form of a prospective assessment (pp. 693ff.). T h e point of view that I
adopt and defend there is that the documents discovered between about 1970 and 1995
put in serious doubt the "(pseudo-)statistical hypothesis of a scanty Persian presence and
an inconsequential imperial occupation, based on bodies of evidence that are obsolete
or reduced to a regional perspective" (p. 764). For this purpose, in the corresponding
documentary notes (pp. 1029-1031) I present an assessment of recent discoveries, region
by region. On the face of it, this section should be rewritten, since many new discoveries
made available since 1995 ought to be included. But even if some discoveries treated in
the 1996 version of the text remain under discussion, I believe that overall the documents published between 1995 and 2000 tend rather to confirm the historical interpretation that I presented in the book, whether in the matter of the maintenance of organic
links between central authority and the provinces, or in the matter of the policy
adopted toward local or national sanctuaries, or in the matter of the spread and adaptation of Persian imagery in various countries, or even in the matter of the economic
condition of the empire at the arrival of Alexander. At the same time, wherever one or
another interpretation has given rise to reservations and/or polemics, the reader can easily come to grips with it by consulting BHAc/i I and II and the indexes of BHAch I I .
8

10

11

12

8. For example, concerning the interpretation of the Elamite tablets found in Armenia (French
edition, pp. 9 6 2 - 6 3 ; below p. 938), see the treatments discussed in BHAch I, 25 and BHAc/i II, 44. T h e
discussion is obviously not closed.
9. T o take only one example, the discovery of settlements, qanats, and hundreds of demotic documents dated to the reigns of Artaxerxes I and Darius II at the site of Ayn Manawir is particularly striking
(see most recently BIFAO 100 [2000], 4 6 9 - 7 9 , as well as the description of the work by Michel Wuttmann at http://www.achemcnet.com/recherche/sites/aynmanawir/aynmanawir.htm, a n d my Temarks in
BHAch I, 32-34 and 8 8 - 9 0 , and II, 62, and in A r m i e s 1999/5, 1130-35). T h e new discoveries tend to
support the position that 1 took on pp. 520 and 1006-08 on the maintenance of links between the center
and the Egyptian province throughout the fifth century B.C.
10. O n these topics, to which I return at various points in the book, sec now the specific treatments
in BHAch I, 94-97, II, 176-184 (on religious policy), a n d I, 98-104, II, 911-206 (on the spread of
images).
11. T h e discovery of a network of qanats at Ayn Manawir also contributes to the discussion on
pp. 0 0 0 - 0 0 0 about the relationship between the levying of tribute and investments in production, that
is, about the e c o n o m i c rationality of the Achaemenid imperial system; see the studies collected in

Pierre Briant, ed., Irrigation et drainage dans I'Antiquite: qanats et canalisations souterraines en Iran, en
&g)'pte eten Grece (Collection Persika 2; Paris: Editions T h o t m , 2001).
12.

S e c especially BHAch I I , 3 2 7 - 3 1 : "Index des discussions"

XVIII

Preface to the English Translation

In short, in order to be full and effective, a revision would have to be carried out on a
strategy that is both selective and synthetic. But to do so would involve no more or less
than writing a new book, or at least a fundamentally altered book. That is not the purpose of the American translation made available today. The purpose is simply to put before English-speaking readers a book that was published in French five years ago. My
book of 1996 represents a state-of-the-question , valid at a given moment, of the work carried out by many scholars, as well as a the state of my own historical reflections. Readers
of the French edition and of the American edition can easily avail themselves of the several reviews published since the appearance of the Histoire de I'empire perse in 1996.
And if they want to know about the development of the author's thought, including his
pentimenti, they can also consult the bibliographic tools that I have made available, as
well as the updates that I have published, both on primary documents" and on problems of historiography and method. 1 have no doubt that readers will be able to dispute
the theses and interpretations of this book on the basis of their own thinking, but also in
the light of publications that are recent and sometimes even publications that are new.
15

14

16

Paris, July 7, 2001

13. T h i s is the consideration that eventually dissuaded m e from introducing new and important
iconographic documents that can be found with reproductions and commentaries in BHAch 1 (pp. 11,

16, 18, 21f., 26f, 34, 41, 67, 69, 74, 101) and BHAch II (pp. 34, 36, 40f, 43, 45, 47f., 58, 601, 64, 69, 76,
110f, 116, 192, 195f., 198f, 202f., 205), though it would be technically simple to do so. T h e main and
indispensable correction to illustrations in the French publication consists of adding to the list of illustrations (pp. xiff.) an indication of the source of the drawings reproduced here, unfortunately forgotten
in the page proofs of the 1996 French version.
14. A list can be found in BHAch II, 9 n. 8. As usual, s o m e are merely descriptive, while others
present a deeper consideration of Achaemenid history today (see especially Matthew Stolper, "Une 'vision dure' de l'histoire a c h e m e n i d e (Note critique)," Annates 1999/5: 1109-26).
15. In particular, I have published drastic revisions of s o m e Greek inscriptions pertinent to Achaemenid history, namely the inscription of Droaphernes and the Xanthus Trilingual in two articles published in 1998 ("Droaphernes et la statue d e Sardes," in M . Brosius and A. Kuhrt, eds., Studies in Persian

History: Essays in Memory of David M. Lewis, Achaemenid History, 11 (Leiden), 205-26; "CitGs et satrapes dan I'Empire achemenide: Pix6daros ctXanthos," CRAI: 305-40) and the letter of Darius to G a datas in a study in press (available in pre-publication form at http://www.achemenet.com/ressources/
souspresse/manuscritsOl.htm). In the latter article I concluded that the d o c u m e n t is a falsification, of
Roman date, and I therefore propose that it should be eliminated from discussions of Achaemenid history. Given that this is one of the most celebrated documents in Achaemenid historiography, it is also
one of the texts most frequently cited in my book (see the index, p. 000, s.v. M L 12). T h i s last example
shows clearly how difficult it would have been to patch up the original text in a satisfactory manner.
16. For example: " T h e Achaemenid Empire," in K. Raaflaub and N. Rosenstein, eds., Soldiers, So-

ciety and War in the Ancient and Medieval Worlds (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1998) 10 5-28;
"L'histoire de I'empire a c h e m e n i d e aiijoiii'd'hiii: 1'historien et ses documents," Annates 1999/5, 112736; "Inscriptions multilingues d'epoque achemenide: le texte et l'imagc," in D. Valbelle and J . Leclant,
eds., Le decret de Memphis (Actcs du C o l l o q u e de la Fondation Singer-Polignac, Paris l ' Juin 1999)
(Paris: de Boccard, 2000), 9 1 - 1 1 5 ; "Histoire impdriale et histoire regionale. A propos de l'histoire cle
Juda dans I'Empire achemenide,"in A. Lemaire and N . S a b o e , eds., Congress Volume Oslo 1998 ( V T
Suppl. 80; 2000) 2 3 5 - 4 5 ; "Darius III face a Alexandre: mythe, histoire, legende," Annuaire du College
c

de France, Resume des cours et conferences W9-2Q00 (Paris, 2000) 7 8 1 - 9 2 (also available at http-//www.
college-de-francc.fr/college/annuaire-scientifique/coius99-2000/bnant/briant.pdf);

au College de France (Paris, 2000).

I^cou

inaugurate