Free Republic

Four men are behind bars, accused of a drive-by shooting that left a 13-year-old girl dead in Monroe, authorities said. Officers responded to the shooting scene along Icemorlee Street around 8 p.m. on Saturday. The teen victim, Loyalti Allah, was hit when someone in an SUV opened fire, according to police. She was taken to the hospital, where she died. “My baby was at the wrong place at the wrong time, but she was having fun, and she’s gone,” Loyalti’s mother, Yvette Allen, said. “Can’t never get that back.” Authorities believe the girl was sitting with friends on a picnic...

A world of ancient mystery is located in Iran, with some sites dating back over 7,000 years, far before the civilization of the Persian Empire and its capital, Persepolis. This archaeological site is the number one tourist destination in the country, and with good reason. Culture Trip takes a look into why this forgotten empire is one of the greatest wonders of the ancient world. Persepolis is no doubt the main attraction that lures tourists to Iran. Located about 70 kilometers (43.5 miles) outside of the modern city of Shiraz, these ancient ruins served as the capital of the...

An ancient trilingual inscription has surfaced on a hillside near the tomb of Persian king Darius the Great (Darius I) in Naqsh-e Rustam, the necropolis (“city of the dead”) 4 miles northwest of Persepolis, Iran. Written in Old Persian, Elamite, and Babylonian, the inscription records the title of an official who was close to the royal court. Unfortunately, his name has not been preserved. Not only does this inscription shed light on the elite families who associated with the Persian kings, some of them even serving as advisors, but it also adds a new verb to all three languages—the act...

Meet the world's biggest Easter bunny, Darius the enormous Continental Giant, who weighs a whopping three-and-a-half stone and is 4ft 4in. Darius, aged three, munches through an incredible 12 carrots a day to keep up his strength and fuel his amazing growth spurt. He already held the title of world's biggest rabbit but has now smashed his own record after vets measured him a month ago and realised he had had grown another inch. It is a double celebration for Darius who shares his birthday, on Easter Sunday, with his beloved owner Annette Edwards. Ms Edwards, from Worcester, has bred...

Achaemenid inscription names uncle of Darius in Old Persian for first time Tehran Times Culture Desk TEHRAN -- The name of Farnaka, who was the uncle of Darius I, has been identified in a newly discovered Old Persian Achaemenid inscription for the first time. Written in cuneiform, the stone inscription bears the names of Darius the Great and his uncle, Farnaka, the Persian service of CHN reported on Friday. His name had previously only been found in historical texts written in other languages. Greek texts refer to him as Pharnaces and Elamite texts call him Parnaka. “Sometime ago, I discovered...

In continuation of their excavations in area number 34 of the historic site of Bolaghi Gorge where evidence of a palace denoted to Achaemenid Emperor Darius the Great (549-486 BC) had previously been discovered, Iranian and French archeologists succeeded in discovering the eastern porch of the palace. Announcing this news, Mohammad Taghi Atayi, Iranian head of the Iranian-French archeology team told CHN: "A black cubic plinth was discovered during the first days of excavations in the area which was later found to have been built by stones obtained from Majdabad query." According to Atayi, three meters from the place where...

Lost Achaemenid City Rising from Bam Historic Site Bam Citadel, Kerman province where the Achaemenid city of Paishiyauvada was found Discovery of the Achaemenid city of Nashirmeh in the historic site of Bam has called to challenge the political history of the early Achaemenid era as the city had previously been expected to have been the same as Pasargadae, thereby disproving the theory that suggested Darius the Great was a usurper who occupied the throne. Tehran, 18 December 2006 (CHN Foreign Desk) -- Studies by a team of archeologists from Bam Archeological Research Institute led into discovery of a vast...

Ignorance to Ruin Bisotun's Inscription By Soudabeh Sadigh Lack of funding and general ignorance by cultural heritage authorities is to destroy the inscription of Bisotun. Tehran, 16 October 2006 (CHN) -- Studies conducted by the executive committee of Bisotun world heritage site revealed the existence of several springs inside the mountain on which several ancient reliefs and friezes including an inscription denoted to Darius the Great, the Achaemenid king, have been carved, posing serious threats to this archeological site. This is while Iran's Cultural Heritage and Tourism Organization (ICHTO) has not yet considered any budget to protect these historic evidences....

Palace of Darius the Great Discovered in Bolaghi Gorge Discovery of remains of a gigantic palace in Bolaghi Gorge and its similarity to the constructions of the time of Darius I, Achaemenid King, in Persepolis show that it was built during the same period of time. Tehran, 15 May 2006 (CHN) -- Iran-French joint archeology team at Bolaghi Gorge succeeded in discovering and identifying the remains of a gigantic palace, believed to be from the Achaemenid era (648 BC–330 BC), during their second season of excavations in the area. “Before the start of this season of excavations, our geophysical tests...

How the life Herodotus lived affected his history writing is a subject of dispute among many experts The question of how social conditions affecting Herodotus’s personal life affected his writing history may raise many disputes among historians. “The state where Herodotus was born in was under Persian Empire at that time; it was governed by Lygdamis, who put to death the poet Panyasis, a relative of Herodotus, for opposition and riots against Persia. Following this event, Herodotus had to leave his native city and went to Samos Island in Athena, and ever since he inhabited in Greek lands. But since...

The Islamic regime is to submerge part of Iran's past in a shameful historical cleansing, in order to avoid facing more nationalistic problems with future generations. The construction of a very controversial dam project is near completion and soon, the tomb of "Cyrus the Great" and "Persepolis" would be submerged under water. Cyrus the Great (580-529 BC) (known as Kourosh in Persian; Kouros in Greek; Kores in Hebrew) was the first Achaemenian Emperor and founder of Iran, who issued a decree on his aims and policies, later hailed as his charter of the rights of nations. Inscribed on a clay...

Persian Cuneiform Predating Darius It is widely believed that the invention of Persian cuneiform took place during the rign of Darius the great while now an Iranian professor insists on the hypothesis that Persian cuneiform predates Darius. Tehran, July 6, 2005, (CHN) -- All historians and experts in Iran, believe that the Persian Cuneiform was invented during Darius reign. It is widely believed that the invention of this script was due to the order of Darius the great, the third king in line from the beginning of the Dynasty. Most of Achaemenid historical texts support the same hypothesis as well...

"This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness." -Dalai Lama By Farhad Mafie November 16, 2003 Hold on to Your Hat! Some days the Persian Gulf is referred to as the Arabian Gulf. Some days Rumi?the great Iranian poet and philosopher?is referred to as a poet from Afghanistan or a poet from Turkey. Some days Sina or Avicenna, Râzi, Farabi, Birouni?the great Iranian scientists?are referred to as Arab scientists. Some days Iranian arts are referred to as Islamic arts...

"According to a story in Herodotus, the nature of monarchy, aristocracy, and democracy, and the advantages and inconveniences of each, were as well understood at the time of the neighing of the horse of Darius, as they are at this hour." John Adams: A DEFENCE OF THE CONSTITUTIONS OF GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. [3.80] ... Otanes recommended that the management of public affairs should be entrusted to the whole nation. [democracy] "To me," he said, "it seems advisable, that we should no longer have a single man to rule over us - the rule of one is...

Archaeologists believe they have discovered part of throne of Darius Tehran Times Culture Desk TEHRAN (MNA) -- Iranian archaeologists believe they have found a part of one leg of the throne of Darius the Great during their excavations at Persepolis, the ancient capital of the Achaemenid dynasty, the director of the team of archaeologists announced Sunday. “Four archaeologists of the team found a piece of lapis lazuli during their excavations in water canals passing under the treasury in southeastern Persepolis last year,” said Alireza Askari, adding, “The studies on the piece of stone over the past year led the archaeologists...

Cyrus the Great Cylinder, The First Charter of Human Rights By 546 BCE, Cyrus had defeated Croesus, the Lydian king of fabled wealth, and had secured control of the Aegean coast of Asia Minor, Armenia, and the Greek colonies along the Levant. Moving east, he took Parthia (land of the Arsacids, not to be confused with Parsa, which was to the southwest), Chorasmis, and Bactria. He besieged and captured Babylon in 539 and released the Jews who had been held captive there, thus earning his immortalization in the Book of Isaiah. When he died in 529, Cyrus's kingdom extended as...

TEHRAN (MNA) -- During the latest season of excavations of the northern gate of Takht-e Suleiman, an ancient Zoroastrian fire temple located in northwestern Iran, the stamps of two seals were discovered which indicate that objects entered Takht-e Suleiman from other regions with special tags attached to them which seem to be advertisements. They signify that an early form of advertising was being practiced during the Sassanid era (224-642 C.E.), Yusef Moradi, the head of the excavation team, said on Friday. “The team began its excavations in early August and found the stamps of two seals at the upper levels...

Secrets of an ancient Persian armada sunk off the coast of Greece 2500 years ago are being dredged up by modern archaeologists. A team from Greece, Canada and the United States has just completed a second expedition to retrieve artefacts from 300 ships of the Persian King Darius that were wrecked in a storm off the Mt Athos Peninsula, northern Greece, in 492BC or 493BC. Aucklanders will be among the first to hear the results today when three of the expedition leaders present their findings in a free public lecture at Auckland University. In two trips so far, last October...

The History Channel is going to air a new historical series entitled DECISIVE BATTLES including some classic wars between ancient Persian armies and Roman and Greek ones. The History Channel goes on location to the actual battlefields and integrates cutting-edge videogame technology to bring history and imagination together in the new series DECISIVE BATTLES. The half-hour series DECISIVE BATTLES premieres Friday, July 23 at 9-9:30pm ET/PT. The series is hosted by Matthew Settle (Band of Brothers) on location at the ancient battlefields and features expert commentary from the world©s foremost historians. DECISIVE BATTLES is unlike any series The History Channel...

Archeologists have discovered quarries mined for stones used in constructing and decorating Persepolis, the splendid capital city of the Achaemenid Empire (550-330 B.C.). Working on the Parse and Pasargadae Project, experts found out stones used in Persepolis had been quarried from some mines located in the Marvdasht plateau. “Over the past year, we have discovered 11 mines in the highland area, all pointing to the fact that they had been the main source for different kinds of stones used in Achaemenids’ palaces,” said Hamid Amanollahi, head of the research team in Marvdasht. He added the archeologists are going to continue...