Darius the Great founded Persepolis around 518 BCE as a ceremonial capital for the Achaemenid Empire. It was famously burned by Alexander the Great nearly two centuries later.

The destruction of Persepolis in 330 BC was symbolic retaliation for the Persian burning of Athens 150 years earlier during the Greco-Persian Wars.

The name Persepolis is Greek for City of the Persians. It was the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire until Alexander the Great burned it in 330 BC.

The Apadana's staircases feature reliefs depicting twenty-three delegations from across the empire bringing gifts to the king during royal ceremonies.

The Apadana reliefs show twenty-three delegations bringing regional gifts, such as exotic animals and gold, to the Persian king during the annual Nowruz festival.