TEHRAN – Restoration work on the rock-cut tomb of Achaemenid king Xerxes I is nearing completion after years of conservation efforts, a local official has said.

The tomb is one of the four huge tombs carved on a hillside in the face of Naqsh-e Rostam archaeological near Persepolis in the Marvdasht plain of Fars province, southern Iran.

In Western history, Xerxes is best known for his invasion of Greece in 480 BC. Son of Darius the Great, he consolidated his power by crushing revolts in Egypt and Babylon, and renewed his father's campaign to subjugate Greece and punish Athens and its allies for their interference in the Ionian Revolt.

Mostafa Rakhshandekhoo, head of the Naqsh-e Rostam historical complex, on Monday said the restoration of the tomb, which had suffered damage from weathering over time, is in its final stages after nearly eight years of work.

He said erosion caused by wind and rainfall had damaged reliefs at the tomb’s entrance, prompting detailed studies and the installation of scaffolding comparable in height to a 20-storey tower to allow access for conservation work.

Rakhshandekhoo said reliefs including the Faravahar symbol and a fire altar were restored and stabilized using modern conservation materials, with the work carried out by Iranian specialists.

In May 2024, media reports said heavy rainfall had caused a sizeable cavity to form beneath the tomb, leading to a longitudinal crack at the Naqsh-e Rostam site. Experts warned at the time that erosion and water infiltration posed risks to the rock-cut monument.

Naqsh-e Rostam, located near the UNESCO-listed ruins of Persepolis in Iran’s Fars province, contains royal tombs from the Achaemenid period and later Sassanid-era bas-reliefs carved into the cliff face.

The necropolis embraces four tombs where Persian Achaemenid kings are laid to rest, believed to be those of Darius II, Artaxerxes I, Darius I, and Xerxes I (from left to right facing the cliff), although some historians are still debating this.

There are stunning bas-relief carvings above the tomb chambers that are similar to those at Persepolis, with the kings standing on thrones supported by figures representing the subject nations below. There are also two similar graves situated on the premises of Persepolis, probably belonging to Artaxerxes II and Artaxerxes III.

Beneath the funerary chambers are dotted with seven Sassanian era (224–651) bas-reliefs cut into the cliff depict vivid scenes of imperial conquests and royal ceremonies; signboards below each relief give a detailed description of English.

At the foot of Naqsh-e Rostam, in the direction of the cliff face, stands a square building known as Ka’beh-ye Zardusht, meaning Kaaba of Zoroaster. The building, which is roughly 12 meters high and 7 meters square, was probably constructed in the first half of the 6th century BC, although it bears a variety of inscriptions from later periods.

Though the Ka’beh-ye Zardusht is of great linguistic interest, its original purpose is not clear. It may have been a tomb for Achaemenian royalty or some sort of altar, perhaps to the goddess Anahiti, also called Anahita, believed to be associated with royalty, war, and fertility.

Naqsh-e Rostam, which literally means “Picture of Rostam”, is named after a mythical Iranian hero who is most celebrated in Shahnameh and Persian mythology. Back in time, natives of the region had erroneously supposed that the carvings below the tombs represented depictions of the mythical hero.

AM