Discovering Cyrus: The Persian Conqueror Astride the Ancient World (Iran's Age of Empire)

Despite what he achieved and bequeathed, much about Cyrus remains uncertain. Persians of his era had no great respect for the written word and the most complete accounts of his life were composed by Greeks. More fragmentary or tangential evidence takes many forms--among them, archaeological remains, administrative records in subject lands, and the always tricky stuff of legend.

Given these challenges, Discovering Cyrus: The Persian Conqueror Astride the Ancient World is a remarkable feat of portraiture. In his vast sweep, Reza Zarghamee draws on sources of every kind, painstakingly assembling detail, and always weighing evidence carefully where contradictions arise. He describes the background of the Persian people, the turbulence of the times, and the roots of Cyrus' policies. His account of the imperial era itself delves into religion, military methods, commerce, court life, and much else besides. The result is a living, breathing Cyrus standing atop a distant world that played a key role in shaping our own. Cyrus the Great, Persian Empire.