Engineering an Empire: Persia Questions

1. What is the order of Persian leaders?

The Achamenid dynasty was the founding empire of the Persians, and it was first ruled by Cyrus the great.  Cyrus was politically a genius, and was the undisputed ruler of Persia.  However, he died in battle in 530 BC, and his son, Darius took over for him.  Darius was too a successful king, who is credited with linking together the Persian empire by the use of one massive, stone highway.  

2. What is a qanat?  How does it work?

A qanat was an underground water well, which was developed and used by the Persians.  Due to the arid climate of Iran, where the Persian Empire was located, it was necessary for the Persians to take advantage of this technology.  When they found sources of water, they constructed underground tunnels to Cary the water to their civilization. The water flowed in the general direction from mountain tops to the Persian gulf.  The qanat was made by digging down horizontally, and then digging vertically.  Every so often, another well was dug.  These qanats channeled vast set of water over long distances 30-40 km. 

3. What is Cyrus’ tomb like?

In one aspect, Cyrus's tomb mirrored himself in his method of lifestyle, stylistic simplicity and elegance.  The tomb was built out of stone and was very durable.  I was built in a western style, which was common to architecture at the time.  He might have made his tomb so simple to dissuade others from robbing his tomb.

4. What interaction does Cyrus have with the Jews?

For awhile, the Jews had been living under the control of Babylonians and their king Nebuchadnezzar.  When Cyrus conquered them, he did not enslave them, however.  Instead, he freed them from the control of Nebuchadnezzar.  I is for this reason that Cyrus is the only foreign king mentioned in the bible to be mentioned as the Messiah.  

5. What did Darius build?

King Darius built a massive stone highway that would weave the empire together.  The road consisted of miles of pavement, and it was called the Royal Road.  located within the road were rest stations and inns, which came up every 11 miles.  Watchmen were posted along its length to ensure the safety of the travelers.