Persian Period Apadana at Susa

While Persepolis may have been the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenian Empire, the city of Susa in south-western Iran was the administrative capital. At the site, Darius built a large palace of which very ruined remnants remain. This photograph shows a portion of the Apadana or Audience Hall of the palace. In the distance is the castle-like dig house built by the French who originally excavated the site.