Page:An Elementary History of Art.djvu/52

22 Medo-Persian Architecture. Fig. 13. — Column with spiral ornament. neighbourhood. Here also occur the tombs of the Persian monarchs, excavated from the rock and adorned with high sculptured facades cut from the same material. The tomb of Darius at Naksh-i-Rustam (Fig. 12) is remarkable for having on the facade beneath the sarcophagus a representation of the Palace of Persepolis as it was in the days of the Great King, by means of which the parts missing in the ruins can be supplied. In all these facades we recognise an imitation of the Persian columns, which are remark- able for the carved bulls' and unicorns' heads which form the capitals, and for the spiral orna- ment which reappeared at a later date as the characteristic feature of Greek Ionic architecture. The ruins of the Hall of Xerxes, the Chehil Minar, show that it must have been one of the largest build- ings in this part of the world. The bases of no less than seventy-two columns still remain to mark the enormous size of this grand temple, which must have occupied more ground than most of the cathedrals of the present day.