King and Court in Ancient Persia 559 to 331 Bce - (Debates and Documents in Ancient History) by Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones (Paperback)

About the Book

This book explores the representation of Persian monarchy and the court of the Achaemenid Great Kings from the point of view of the ancient Iranians themselves and through the sometimes distorted prism of Classical authors.

Book Synopsis

Explores Achaemenid kingship and argues for the centrality of the royal court in elite Persian society
The first Persian Empire (559-331 BCE) was the biggest land empire the world had seen, and seated at the heart of its vast dominions, in the south of modern-day Iran, was the person of the Great King. Hidden behind the walls of his vast palace, and surrounded by the complex rituals of court ceremonial, the Persian monarch was undisputed master of his realm, a god-like figure of awe, majesty, and mystery.Yet the court of the Great King was no simple platform for meaningless theatrical display; at court, presentation mattered: nobles vied for position and prestige, and the royal family attempted to keep a tight grip on dynastic power - in spite of succession struggles, murders, and usurpations, for the court was also the centre of political decision-making and the source of cultural expression.
Key features:
Draws on rich Iranian and Classical sourcesExamines key issues such as royal ideology, court structure, ceremony and ritual, royal migrations, gender, hierarchy, architecture and space and cultural achievementsAccesses the rarefied but dangerous world of Persian palace lifeIncludes guides to further reading and web resources to encourage research

From the Back Cover

'This is a very important contribution not only to Achaemenid studies but also to the wider literature on royal courts in general. It is very well written and ably supported by source material which will render it invaluable for students and scholars alike.' St John Simpson, Curator, The British Museum An exploration of monarchy and elite society at the political and cultural hub of the vast Persian Empire The Persians established the biggest land empire the world had seen, and seated at the heart of its vast dominions, in the south of modern-day Iran, was the person of the Achaemenid Great King, immortalised in Greek literature as a despotic tyrant. However, a new vision of Persian kingship is now emerging from Iranian and other Near Eastern sources - literary, visual, and archaeological - which shows the monarchs in a very different light. Inscriptions of Cyrus, Darius, Xerxes, and their heirs, present a propagandistic image of Persian rulers as liberators, peace-makers, valiant warriors, righteous god-fearing judges, and law-makers. Around about them, the kings established a lavish and sophisticated court, the centre of political decision-making and the hub of cultural achievements in which the image of monarchy was endorsed and advanced by an almost theatrical display of grandeur and power. Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones explores the representation of Persian monarchy and the court of the Achaemenid Great Kings from the point of view of the ancient Iranians themselves (as well as other Near Eastern peoples) and through the sometimes distorted prism of Classical and Biblical sources. Key Features - Draws on rich Iranian and Classical sources and exposes new evidence and interpretations - Accesses the rarefied but dangerous world of Persian palace life - Includes a comprehensive timeline, further reading, and web resources to encourage research Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones is Senior Lecturer in Ancient History at the University of Edinburgh. Cover image: Esther Denouncing Haman, Ernest Normand c. 1915. Cover design: [EUP logo] www.euppublishing.com

Review Quotes

King and Court in Ancient Persia, a book that usefully provides numerous excerpts from ancient written sources as well as photographs and line drawings, would also earn a place in your luggage if travelling to Persepolis.

--Shaun Sheehan "Dublin Review of Books "

A very good and compact book for students.--M. N. Wieskopf, Berkeley "Ancient West and East "

Llewellyn-Jones is a skilled philologist and has a special interest in ancient dress and gender studies. His study of the Achamenids is given extra depth by his knowledge of contemporary Iran. Llewllyn-Jones blends an easy mastery of widely disparate sources with a clear-cut, jargon-free prose style.--Peter Green, Professor Emeritus, University of Texas at Austin "London Review of Books "

About the Author

Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones is Professor of Ancient History at Cardiff University and a specialist in the histories and cultures of ancient Iran and Greece. He also works on dress and gender in antiquity and on the ancient world in popular culture, especially Hollywood cinema. He is the author of Designs on the Past: How Hollywood Created the Ancient World, Aphrodite's Tortoise: The Veiled Woman of Ancient Greece, King and Court in Ancient Persia 559 to 331 BCE and Ctesias' History of Persia. He is editor of Women's Dress in the Ancient Greek World, Greek Notions of the Past in the Archaic and Classical Eras, Creating a Hellenistic World and The Hellenistic Court as well as numerous articles on Greek and Persian culture. He is the series editor of Edinburgh Studies in Ancient Persia and co-series editor of Screening Antiquity.