The Behistun Inscription (Old Persian: Bāgastana; translated as - The Place of God) is a sizable multilingual rock sculpture carved in Mount Behistun, close to the Iranian city of Kermanshah. Darius I, the third king of the Achaemenid Persian Empire (r. 522-486 BC), directed it. The fact that the inscription contains three separate versions of the same text written in cuneiform-based languages—Old Persian, Elamite, and the Babylonian dialect of Akkadian—made it essential for the decipherment of cuneiform. A brief autobiography of Darius I, outlining his ancestry and pedigree, is included in the opening paragraph of the inscription. Later on in the writing, Darius describes the protracted series of events that took place after the demise of Cambyses II, during which he engaged in nineteen battles over the course of a year (ending in December 521 BC) to put down several uprisings across the Achaemenid Empire. It explicitly claims that multiple impostors and their accomplices, each of whom fraudulently proclaimed themselves as king during the turmoil, coordinated the rebellions throughout several places. Darius declares himself the undisputed winner of every conflict fought throughout the uprising and attributes his triumph to the -- Grace of Ahura Mazda. The inscription is located on a limestone cliff above an ancient road that once connected the capitals of Babylonia and Media (Babylon and Ecbatana, respectively) at a height of around 15 metres high, 25 metres wide and 100 metres above surface level. The Elamite text has 593 lines in eight columns, the Old Persian text has 414 lines in five columns and the Babylonian text is 112 lines long. A life-sized bas-relief of Darius I holding a bow as a symbol of his kingship and placing his left foot on top of the chest of a figure lying on his back in front of him served as the illustration for the inscription. The figure is thought to be the magus Gaumāta, who in opinion of Darius, was a fraud and impersonator of Bardiya (a son of Cyrus the Great). Above, a Faravahar is seen bestowing its benediction on the king. [Info and Image Credit : Behistun_Inscription, Wikipedia] [Image : Punishment of captured forgers and conspirators: Gaumāta is placed under the boot of Darius the Great; Skunxa, the last person in line, is recognised by his traditional Scythian headdress and attire. After the inscription was finished, his image was added, necessitating the removal of some wording.] [Image Availed Under Public Domain Work of Art (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)][Source Image URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Behistun_inscription_reliefs.jpg ]
Old World
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