DNa_inscription

DNa inscription

DNa inscription

Ancient inscription on Darius I's tomb in Iran

The DNa inscription (abbreviation for Darius Naqsh-e Rostam inscription "a") is a famous Achaemenid royal inscription located in Naqsh-e Rostam, Iran. It dates to c. 490 BCE, the time of Darius the Great, and appears in the top-left corner of the façade of his tomb.

A photograph of the DNa inscription at Naqshe Rostam, 2018
The Achaemenid Persian Empire at its greatest extent, c. 500 BCE[1][2][3]
The nationalities mentioned in the DNa inscription are also depicted on the upper register of the tomb of Darius I, as on all the dynastic tombs at Naqsh-e Rustam and Persepolis.[4][5]

Content

The inscription mentions the conquests of Darius the Great and his various achievements during his life. Its exact date is not known, but it can be assumed to be from the last decade of his reign.[6]

Like several other inscriptions by Darius, the territories controlled by the Achaemenid Empire are clearly listed.[7]

The nationalities mentioned in the DNa inscription are otherwise vividly illustrated through the large sculptural relief on the upper registers of all the tombs, including that of Darius I, at Naqsh-e Rostam.[4][5] One of the best preserved is that of Xerxes I.

Script

The inscription is written in the Old Persian cuneiform, a nearly alphabetical, simple form of the ancient cuneiform scripts (36 phonetic characters and 8 logograms), which was specially designed and used by the early Achaemenid rulers from the 6th century BCE.[8]

More information — ...

Full inscription

The full inscriptions consists in two parts, the first one being related to a description of the lineage of Darius, as well as a list of the countries under his rule. The second part is more religious in nature and related to the cult of Ahuramazda.

More information English translation (Part I), Transliteration ...

Specific country names

The DNa inscription records the various territories under the rule of Darius I.

References

  1. [1]
    O'Brien, Patrick Karl (2002). Oxford Atlas of World History. Oxford University Press. pp. 42–43. ISBN 9780195219210. Western portion of the Achaemenid Empire appears on page 42, eastern portion on page 43.
  2. [2]
    Barraclough, Geoffrey (1989). The Times Atlas of World History. Times Books. p. 79. ISBN 0723003041.
  3. [3]
    O'Brien, Patrick (1999). Philip's Atlas of World History. George Philips Limited. pp. 42–43. ISBN 0681031891.
  4. [4]
    The Achaemenid Empire in South Asia and Recent Excavations in Akra in Northwest Pakistan Peter Magee, Cameron Petrie, Robert Knox, Farid Khan, Ken Thomas p.713-714
  5. [5]
    NAQŠ-E ROSTAM – Encyclopaedia Iranica.
  6. [6]
    Orientalia Lovaniensia Periodica (in French). Instituut voor Oriëntalistiek. 1974. p. 23.
  7. [7]
    Briant, Pierre (2002). From Cyrus to Alexander: A History of the Persian Empire. Eisenbrauns. p. 173. ISBN 9781575061207.
  8. [8]
    Schmitt, R. (2008), "Old Persian", in Roger D. Woodard (ed.), The Ancient Languages of Asia and the Americas (illustrated ed.), Cambridge University Press, p. 77, ISBN 978-0521684941
  9. [9]
    Tolman, Herbert Cushing (1893). A guide to the Old Persian inscriptions. New York, Cincinnati [etc.] American book company. p. 146.Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  10. [10]
    "DNa - Livius". www.livius.org.
  11. [11]
    Alcock, Susan E.; Alcock, John H. D'Arms Collegiate Professor of Classical Archaeology and Classics and Arthur F. Thurnau Professor Susan E.; D'Altroy, Terence N.; Morrison, Kathleen D.; Sinopoli, Carla M. (2001). Empires: Perspectives from Archaeology and History. Cambridge University Press. p. 105. ISBN 9780521770200.
  12. [12]
    Darius I, DNa inscription, Line 29
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