Egyptian statue of Darius the Great

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Egyptian statue of Darius the Great
National Meusem Darafsh 6 (42).JPG
Statue of Achaemenid king Darius the Great as Pharaoh of the Twenty-seventh Dynasty of Egypt; [1] 522–486 BCE; greywacke; height: 2.46 m; [2] National Museum of Iran in Tehran
MaterialGrey granite from the Wadi Hammamat, eastern Egypt
Size2.46 m high
Created522-486 BC
Discovered Susa (Iran), in 1972
Present location National Museum of Iran

The Egyptian statue of Darius the Great is one of the main surviving works from the Achaemenid Empire, housed at National Museum of Iran. It depicts the Achaemenid king Darius the Great with Egyptian iconography and inscriptions. It is the best known example of in-the-round statuary that has remained from the Achaemenid Empire. [1]

Contents

Darius is depicted wearing a Persian dress, and armed with a dagger at his belt. The pleats of the right side of the robe are inscribed in Old Persian, Elamite and Babylonian cuneiform. The other side of the robe is inscribed with hieroglyphs. According to these inscriptions, the statue was made in Egypt at the request of Darius. This would have followed the Achaemenid conquest of Egypt. [1] The statue was later brought to Susa by Darius' son, Xerxes I. [1]

The base of the statue is in Egyptian style. The front and back has a depiction of Hapi, the Egyptian god of the Nile. The sides represent rows of vassals from numerous countries, with a total of twenty-four cartouches. [1] [3] The statue is of grey granite that chemical analysis has indicated comes from the Wadi Hammamat in eastern Egypt.

After excavating the surrounding areas and still not finding its head, experts concluded that when Alexander the Great invaded in 330 BC, he (or his soldiers) attempted to destroy the statue. But due to its immense weight, they were unable to topple it, so they broke its head and struck the statue with their sword. [4] A major reason that reinforces this conclusion is the presence of multiple sword marks identified on the statue, which remain clearly visible. [5]

Inscriptions

The statue contains four inscriptions in Old Persian, Elamite, and Babylonian:

1- "This is the statue, made of stone, which Darius ordered to be made in Egypt. This is how everyone who will see this in the future, will know that Iranians own Egypt." [6]

2- "A great god is Ahuramazda, who created this earth, who created yonder sky, who created man, who created happiness for man, and who made Darius king." [7]

3- "I am Darius, the great king, king of kings, king of all peoples, king in this great earth far and wide, the son of Hystaspes, an Achaemenid. May Ahuramazda protect me and what I did." [8]

4- "Atum, the god of Heliopolis, has chosen him [Darius] to be the lord of all those who are surrounded by the sun's rays, because he knows that he [Darius] is his [Atum] son. Neith, the goddess of Sais, also chose Darius to become the Lord of the world." [9]

Details

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Razmjou, Shahrokh (1954). Ars orientalis; the arts of Islam and the East. Freer Gallery of Art. pp.  81–101.
  2. ↑ Manley, Bill (2017). Egyptian Art. Thames & Hudson. p. 280. ISBN   978-0-500-20428-3.
  3. 1 2 Petrie, Cameron A. (28 December 2020). Resistance at the Edge of Empires: The Archaeology and History of the Bannu basin from 1000 BC to AD 1200. Oxbow Books. pp. 33–34. ISBN   978-1-78570-306-5.
  4. ↑ "پیکره داریوش هخامنشی". کارناوال ☀️ راهنمای سفر | karnaval (in Persian). Retrieved 2025-12-01.
  5. ↑ "باز سازی سه بعدی مجسمه مصری داریوش بزرگ – استودیو سفیروت" (in Persian). Retrieved 2025-12-01.
  6. ↑ Vallat, F (1972). "L inscription cunefiforme trilingue". JA (in Persian): 249.
  7. ↑ "Susa, Statue of Darius - Livius". www.livius.org. Retrieved 2025-12-01.
  8. ↑ manalkhan (2013-02-27). "Inscription of Darius the Great". Discovering Pakistan. Retrieved 2025-12-01.
  9. ↑ "Susa: The Statue of Darius". www.achemenet.com. Retrieved 2025-12-01.
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