Site
of the most famous royal proclamation carved by Darius I on the great cliff known as
"Mountain of the Gods" which celebrates various of his victories including his
defeat over Gaumata, pretender to the throne. Unfortunately, now and for the foreseeable
future, the proclamation is covered by scaffold.There are also two Parthian bas-reliefs to
be seen, those of Mithridates II and Gotarzes II, although these are badly worn and
are defaced by a later Safavid inscription. Other objects of interest include an immense
rock surface smoothed down at the beginning of the 7th century AD during the reign of the
Sassanian king, Khusraw II; although its intention is unknown, experts believe a fire
temple may have been planned in front of the surface. You will also see a statue of
Herakles (Hercules) reclining on a lion; it was carved in 148 BC during the Seleucid
period.