Naqsh-e Rostam is a monumental cliff site in Fars Province, about six kilometres northwest of Persepolis. Its name, usually rendered “Pictures of Rostam,” reflects a later association between the carved figures and the legendary hero of the Persian epic Shahnameh; it is not the name used by the ancient builders. The cliff brings together remains from different centuries, making a visit less like reading one chapter of history and more like following successive rulers as they reused a striking landscape.
The most visible Achaemenid features are four royal tombs cut high into the rock. Inscriptions identify the oldest as the tomb of Darius I, who ruled from 522 to 486 BCE. The other three are commonly attributed to Xerxes, Artaxerxes I and Darius II, but scholars treat those identifications as tentative because the façades do not all carry decisive names. The distinction between what an inscription establishes and what archaeology infers is central to reading the monument responsibly.