Naqsh-e-Rustam
Naqsh-e-Rustam is a cliff face located just northwest of Persepolis. Originally an Elamite royal site, it later became an Achaemenid burial ground, featuring four royal tombs and a large enigmatic stone tower known today as the Ka'ba-ye-Zartosht (The House of Zoroaster), on which the Sasanian king Shapur I (r. 240-270 C.E.) left a long victory inscription.
In the Sasanian period, several rulers commissioned rock reliefs on the same site as part of an effort to link themselves to Achaemenid power and mystique. Notable reliefs include an investiture scene of King Ardashir I, the founder of the Sasanian dynasty, King Shapur I's relief of himself vanquishing Roman emperors, and the investiture of King Narseh (r. 293-303 C.E.).
