Gate of All Nations, Ceremonial entrance hall in Persepolis, Iran
The Gate of All Nations is a ruined limestone hall in Persepolis with three doorways and a central room whose roof rested on four fluted columns over 16.5 metres tall. Two columns still stand, and the western doorway is flanked by colossal bulls facing the plain; the eastern doorway carries winged bulls with human heads.
The gate was built under King Xerxes I, who designed it as part of the monumental Persepolis complex. Construction took place during his reign from 486 to 465 BCE and aimed to display the empire's power and international connections.
The gate's name comes from the XPa inscription above it, which records its construction under Xerxes I. Persian sources also call it the Palace of Waiting, since delegations from across the Achaemenid Empire sat on stone benches around the four-columned hall before being admitted to the king's audience hall, the Apadana.
Visitors enter the archaeological site through the western entrance, following the same path that ancient delegations used when arriving at the capital. Entering this way helps travelers understand the original ceremonial route and the layout of the complex.
The gate's walls and even the bodies of its bull statues carry names and dates scratched by famous and unknown visitors over the centuries. The three surviving columns of the central hall were re-erected from fragments; the rebuilt one is considered the least altered column now standing at Persepolis.
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