Islamic Republic of Great Iran 13 (Road To Persia)

The very first civilization which has ever lived in Iran was The Shoosh Civilization. 8000 years ago, there was a civilization which lived in today's Khoozestan, their name was "Shoosh Civilization," or in English "Susa Civilization." So far this has been reported as the oldest civilization which have ever existed on Earth. By civilization, we mean civilized city government or city state or Empire or Kingdom or any type of local civilized system. The ancient city of Susa is mentioned in Old Testament as the place where prophet Daniel lived. The city name is derived from Shashana, a member of water lily family of flowers, believed to grow in lakes and swamps outside this biblical city in ancient times. Susa was the capital of a ancient kingdom know is Elam. A kingdom built and ruled by Dravidian people who ruled it from second millennium BCE until late mid-first millennium BCE. Elamite kingdom was destroyed by attacks from Babylonians. Elamite influence spread throughout the southern regions of Iran by their cuneiform writing system, and rock inscriptions. After that Cyrus the Great founded his empire and gained control over Susa. Susa was declared as one of the three capitals of the empire covering the southern regions. When Darius established his rule over the empire, he set out to built the palace of Persepolis in his home state, and later an equally magnificent palace in his favorite city of Susa. It is said that the carving style and shapes of the columns in Susa are similar to Persepolis buildings. The fluted shaped column with flowers at pillars are truly an Achaemenian style in ancient palace buildings. Today we can visit the ruins of this palace built on a hilltop overlooking the modern city of Susa. This style was later used in ancient palaces as far as northern India all the way to Ionian Greece. Till the beginning of the control by the moslems, Shoosh continued to thrive. In the year 1898 AD, the famous castle of Shoosh was constructed by "Morgan" on the northern part of the Acropol hill. The ancient name of Shoosh was 'Soos' or 'Dasht-e-Soosiana', and later on was changed to Shoosh. The tomb of Profet Daniel is also located in Shooshtar and it can be seen on the western side of the palace hill. One of the most beuatiful castles in Shooshtar is the Acropol or Shoosh castle which was constructed by a group of French archeologists in the year 1897 AD in the highest region of the city. The design is very similar to the Bastille in France. This castle has been constructed by Dezful artists and by means of bricks obtained from Darius (Dariush) castle and some engraved bricks in the Kific script from Choqazanbil. Valuable and important relics such as the famous statue of Queen Napirasustoon, Hamurabi Code and famed buff earthenware glass of Shoosh with a wild goat drawing have been discovered from the Acropol Hill. It took a period of 15 years to build this structure which stood as a defense fort against the attack of local clans and tribes.