Pasargadae *
UNESCO World Heritage Site
The tomb of Cyrus the Great one of the remains at Pasargadae
Country	Iran
Type	Cultural
Criteria	i, ii, iii, iv
Reference	1106
Region **	Asia-Pacific
Inscription history
Inscription	2004 (28th Session)
* Name as inscribed on World Heritage List ** Region as classified by UNESCO

"I am Cyrus the king, an Achaemenid." in Old Persian, Elamite and Akkadian languages. It is carved in a column in Pasargadae

Pasargadae (Persian: پاسارگاد‎ Pāsārgād), the capital of Cyrus the Great (559–530 BC) and also his last resting place, was a city in ancient Persia, and is today an archaeological site and one of Iran's UNESCO World Heritage Sites.^[1]

History[link]

Cyrus the Great began building his capital in 546 BCE or later; it was unfinished when he died in battle, in 530 or 529 BCE. The remains of the tomb of Cyrus' son and successor, Cambyses II, has been found in Pasargadae, near the fortress of Toll-e Takht, and identified in 2006.^[2]

Pasargadae remained the Persian capital until Cambyses II moved it to Susa; later, Darius founded another in Persepolis. The archaeological site covers 1.6 square kilometres and includes a structure commonly believed to be the mausoleum of Cyrus, the fortress of Toll-e Takht sitting on top of a nearby hill, and the remains of two royal palaces and gardens. Pasargad Persian Garden provide the earliest known example of the Persian chahar bagh, or fourfold garden design (see Persian Gardens).

Recent research on Pasargadae’s structural engineering has shown that Achaemenid engineers built the city to withstand a severe earthquake, what would today be classified as 7.0 on the Richter magnitude scale. The foundations are classified as having a base isolation design, much like what is presently used in countries for the construction of facilities — such as nuclear power plants — that require insulation from the effects of seismic activity.

Tomb of Cyrus the Great[link]

The tomb of Cyrus the Great

The most important monument in Pasargadae is the tomb of Cyrus the Great. It has six broad steps leading to the sepulchre, the chamber of which measures 3.17 m long by 2.11 m wide by 2.11 m high and has a low and narrow entrance. Though there is no firm evidence identifying the tomb as that of Cyrus, Greek historians tell that Alexander III of Macedon believed it was. When Alexander looted and destroyed Persepolis, he paid a visit to the tomb of Cyrus. Arrian, writing in the second century of the common era, recorded that Alexander commanded Aristobulus, one of his warriors, to enter the monument. Inside he found a golden bed, a table set with drinking vessels, a gold coffin, some ornaments studded with precious stones and an inscription on the tomb. No trace of any such inscription survives, and there is considerable disagreement to the exact wording of the text. Strabo reports that it read:

<poem>Passer-by, I am Cyrus, who gave the Persians an empire, and was king of Asia. Grudge me not therefore this monument.</poem>

Another variation, as documented in Persia: The Immortal Kingdom, is:

<poem>O man, whoever thou art, from wheresoever thou cometh, for I know you shall come, I am Cyrus, who founded the empire of the Persians. Grudge me not, therefore, this little earth that covers my body.</poem>

The design of Cyrus' tomb is credited to Mesopotamian or Elamite ziggurats, but the cella is usually attributed to Urartu tombs of an earlier period.^[3] In particular, the tomb at Pasargadae has almost exactly the same dimensions as the tomb of Alyattes II, father of the Lydian King Croesus; however, some have refused the claim (according to Herodotus, Croesus was spared by Cyrus during the conquest of Lydia, and became a member of Cyrus' court). The main decoration on the tomb is a rosette design over the door within the gable.^[4] In general, the art and architecture found at Pasargadae exemplified the Persian synthesis of various traditions, drawing on precedents from Elam, Babylon, Assyria, and ancient Egypt, with the addition of some Anatolian influences.

During the Islamic conquest of Iran, the Arab armies came upon the tomb and planned to destroy it, considering it to be in violation of the tenets of Islam. The caretakers of the grave managed to convince the Arab command that the tomb was not built to honor Cyrus but instead housed the mother of King Solomon, thus sparing it from destruction. As a result, the inscription in the tomb was replaced by a verse of the Qur'an, and the tomb became known as the "tomb of the mother of Solomon". It is still widely known by that name today.^[5]

Archaeology[link]

Dovetail Staples from Pasargadae

The first capital of the Achaemenid Empire, Pasargadae lies in ruins 43 kilometers from Persepolis, in present-day Fars province of Iran.^[6]

Pasargadae was first archaeologically explored by the German archaeologist Ernst Herzfeld in 1905, and in one excavation season in 1928, together with his assistant Friedrich Krefter.^[7] Since 1946, the original documents, notebooks, photographies, fragments of wall paintings and pottery from the early excavations are preserved in the Freer Gallery of Art, Smithsonian Institution, in Washington, DC. After Hersfeld, Sir Aurel Stein completed a site plan for Pasargade in 1934.^[8] In 1935, Erich F. Schmidt produced a series of aerial photographs of the entire complex.^[9]

From 1949 to 1955 an Iranian team led by Ali Sami worked there.^[10] A British Institute of Persian Studies team led by David Stronach resumed excavation from 1961 to 1963.^[11][12][13] After a gap, work was resumed by the Iranian Cultural Heritage Organization and the Maison de l'Orient et de la Méditerranée of the University of Lyon in 2000.^[14]

Sivand Dam controversy[link]

Pasargadae
Pasargadae Location in Iran
Coordinates: 30°12′00″N 53°10′46″E / 30.2°N 53.17944°E / 30.2; 53.17944

There has been growing concern regarding the proposed Sivand Dam, named after the nearby town of Sivand. Despite planning that has stretched over 10 years, Iran's own Iranian Cultural Heritage Organization was not aware of the broader areas of flooding during much of this time.

Its placement between both the ruins of Pasargadae and Persepolis has many archaeologists and Iranians worried that the dam will flood these UNESCO World Heritage sites, although scientists involved with the construction say this is not obvious because the sites sit above the planned waterline. Of the two sites, Pasargadae is the one considered the most threatened. Experts agree that planning of future dam projects in Iran merit earlier examination of the risks to cultural resource properties.^[15]

Of broadly shared concern to archaeologists is the effect of the increase in humidity caused by the lake;^[16] experts from the Ministry of Energy however believe it could be partially compensated by controlling the water level of the dam reservoir. All agree that humidity created by it will speed up the destruction of Pasargadae.

Construction of the dam began April 19, 2007.

In culture[link]

The Brazilian poet Manuel Bandeira wrote a poem called Pasárgada, Pasargadae in Portuguese, telling the story of a man who wants to go to Pasargadae, described in the poem as an utopian city. An extract, in the original then in a translation:

Vou‐me embora pra Pasárgada[link]

<poem>Vou-me embora pra Pasárgada Lá sou amigo do rei Lá tenho a mulher que eu quero Na cama que escolherei

[…]

E quando eu estiver mais triste Mas triste de não ter jeito Quando de noite me der Vontade de me matar — Lá sou amigo do rei — Terei a mulher que eu quero Na cama que escolherei Vou-me embora pra Pasárgada.</poem>

I will go away to Pasargadae[link]

<poem>I will go away to Pasargadae There I am a friend of the king There I will have the woman I want In the bed I will choose

[…]

And when I get sadder But so sad I will have no way out When at night I get A wish to kill myself — There I am a friend of the king — I will have the woman I want In the bed I will choose I will go away to Pasargadae.</poem>

Gallery[link]

See also[link]

• Achaemenid architecture
• Persian Architecture
• Tang-e Bolaghi
• Cyrus The Great
• Iranian history
• 2,500 year celebration of Iran's monarchy
• Cities of the Ancient Near East

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Pasargadae

• "Pasargadae Excavation Documentation and Fragments of Wall Paintings from Pasargadae", Freer Gallery of Art, Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution, http://www.asia.si.edu/archives/finding_aids/herzfeld.html .
• "Records of Pasargadae", Ernst Herzfeld Papers, 5: Drawings and Maps, Washington, DC: Collections Search Center, S.I.R.I.S., Smithsonian Institution, http://collections.si.edu/search/results.jsp?view=grid&date.slider=&q=ernst+herzfeld+&dsort=&fq=place:%22Pasargadae+%28Extinct+city%29%22 .
• Lunar eclipse in Pasargadae (slideshow), Photoparsi, http://www.photoparsi.com/index.php/mohsen-tavaro/26-mohsen-tavaro/shabestan-photos/376-lunar-eclipse-in-pasargadae .
• Tall_e Takht (pictures), http://www.irantooth.com/iranpics/tall_e_takht.htm .
• World Heritage Center, Unesco, http://whc.unesco.org/pg.cfm?cid=31&id_site=1106 .
• "Pasargadae", History, Iran Chamber Society, http://www.iranchamber.com/history/pasargadae/pasargadae.php .
• "European languages", Save Pasargadae From Destruction, http://www.savepasargad.com/european_languages.htm 
• "Pasargad", Land of Aryan, ATSpace, http://landofaryan.atspace.com/passargad.htm .
• Pasargad (virtual reconstruction of Pasargadae), Persepolis3D .
• (in German) Persepolis & Pasargad (photo gallery), M Heße, 2009, http://www.m-hesse.com/iran/Seiten/persepolis_%26_pasargad.html .
• Pasargadae, Ancient History Encyclopedia, http://www.ancientopedia.com/Pasargadae/ 
• Pasargadae, Cultural Heritage Organization of Iran, http://www.ichto.ir/Default.aspx?tabid=1222 

v t e World Heritage Sites in Iran The Armenian Monastic Ensembles of Iran (St Thaddeus Monastery, St Stepanos Monastery, Chapel of Dzordzor, Chapel of Chupan, and Church of the Holy Mother of God) · Bam and its Cultural Landscape · Bistoun · Chogha Zanbil · Naqsh-e Jahan Square · Pasargadae · Persepolis · The Persian Gardens (Pasargad Pserian, Chehel Sotoun, Fin, Eram, Shazdeh, Dolatabad, Abbasabad, Akbarieh and Pahlevanpour) · Sheikh Safi's Tomb · Soltaniyeh · Shushtar Historical Hydraulic System · Tabriz Bazaar · Takht-i-Suleiman

v t e Architecture of Iran Styles Parsi style · (includes Pre-Parsi style and Achaemenid architecture) Parthian style · (includes Sassanid architecture) Khorasani style · Razi style · Azari style · Isfahani style Elements Bazaars · The Persian Garden (hayāt) · Windcatchers · Shabestan · Kucheh · Talar · Iwan · Howz · Panjdari · Hashti · Andaruni · Biruni · Dalan e Vorudi · Qanat · Kariz · Gonbad · Ab anbar · Yakhchal · Caravanserais · Robats · Burj · Khaneqah · Tekyeh · Sahn · Imamzadeh · Mosques Notable traditional cities Architecture of Tehran · Bam · Bukhara · Ctesiphon · Derbent · Herat · Gur-e Amir  · Isfahan · Amol · Kashan  · Mashhad  · Merv  · Nishapur  · Persepolis  · Qazvin · Qom · Samarkand · Shahrisabz · Shiraz · Susa · Tabriz  · Takht-i-Suleiman  · Yazd Theory and analysis Traditional Persian residential architecture · Traditional water sources of Persian antiquity · Islamic architecture Lists List of ab anbars of Qazvin · List of historical Iranian architects · List of mosques · Args, castles, and ghal'ehs · List of ziyarat-gahs

Coordinates: 30°12′00″N 53°10′46″E / 30.2°N 53.17944°E / 30.2; 53.17944

Nicolás Maduro Moros
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Venezuela
Incumbent
Assumed office August 2006
President	Hugo Chávez
Preceded by	Alí Rodríguez Araque
Personal details
Born	November 23, 1962 Caracas

Nicolás Maduro Moros (born 23 November 1962 in Caracas) is a Venezuelan politician who was appointed foreign minister by President Hugo Chávez on 9 August 2006.^[1]

Biography[link]

Nicolas Maduro began his political career as a bus driver and unofficial trade-unionist representing the workers of the Caracas Metro system in the 1970s and 1980s (back then, unions within the Metro company were not allowed). He finished high school in the Liceo Avalos, a public high-school west of Caracas during the '80 (El Valle neighborhood), but lacks any university or further education. He is considered one of the founders of the Fifth Republic Movement (MVR), but his biggest political accomplishment was as activist for the release of Hugo Chávez from prison, and later as one of this regional political coordinators during the 1998 presidential race. Maduro was elected on the MVR ticket to the Venezuelan Chamber of Deputies in 1998, to the National Constituent Assembly in 1999, and to the National Assembly in 2000 and 2005, representing the Capital District. The legislature elected him Speaker of the Assembly, even though he did not have a college degree or formal education. He held that position from 2005 until the first half of 2006.^[2] Maduro is married to Cilia Flores,^[3] herself a prominent figure within the MVR. She replaced Maduro as Speaker of assembly.^[4]

In January 2009, Israel ordered the Venezuelan ambassador and his staff to leave the country after Venezuela expelled Israeli diplomats over Israel's military offensive in the Gaza Strip. In an interview with Al-Jazeera, Maduro stated, with regard to Israel's expelling of the Venezuelan ambassador, that "The response of the State of Israel is weak, late and in any case for us it's an honor. We're proud that the State of Israel that exists today, led by these criminals, made this decision."^[5]

On September 2006, he was detained by the Homeland Security officers at JFK Airport, after paying for three air tickets in cash.^[6]

On the 15th of December 2011, it was reported in El Universal that President Hugo Chavez wished to make Maduro, the PSUV candidate in the state of Carabobo for governor, which is currently held by the opposition MUD.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Ministerio del Poder Popular para Relaciones Exteriores (Venezuelan Foreign Ministry)
• Nicolás Maduro Moros, Ministro del Poder Popular para Relaciones Exteriores (government CV)

Daddy Yankee
Background information
Birth name	Ramón Ayala
Also known as	Winchester 30-30 El Cangri El Jefe The Big Boss DY El Máximo Lider
Born	(1977-02-03) February 3, 1977 (age 35)
Origin	San Juan, Puerto Rico
Genres	Reggaeton, Latin rap, hip-hop
Years active	1992–present
Labels	El Cartel, Interscope, Sony Music Latin
Website	daddyyankee.com

Ramón Luis Ayala Rodríguez (born February 3, 1977), known artistically as Daddy Yankee, is a Latin Grammy Award-winning Puerto Rican reggaeton recording artist. Ayala was born in Río Piedras, the largest district of San Juan, where he became interested in music at a young age. In his youth he was interested in baseball, and aspired to become a Major League Baseball player. He was unable to continue this sport when he received an injury to one of his legs, leaving him unable to walk correctly. He then became involved in the underground rap movement that was in its early stages in Puerto Rico, later to be called reggaeton. After receiving lessons from several artists within the genre, he developed an independent career, first recording in a production titled Playero 37. After this he began to produce independent albums. His first solo album was No Mercy. He subsequently formed a duo with Nicky Jam, and then continued his solo career with the releases of El Cartel and El Cartel II. This led him be one of many pioneers of the reggaeton genre earning him the nickname "El Cangri".

In 2002 El Cangri.com became Ayala's first album with international success, receiving coverage in the markets of New York and Miami. Barrio Fino was released in 2004, and the album received numerous awards, including Lo Nuestro Awards and a Latin Billboard, as well as receiving nominations for the Latin Grammy and MTV Video Music Awards. Barrio Fino performed well in the sales charts of the United States, Latin America, Europe, and Japan. On June 5, 2007, El Cartel Records released El Cartel: The Big Boss, which was ranked as the top-selling album in Latin music genres in 2007. He promoted the album with an international tour which began in the United States and continued through Latin America, breaking attendance records in Ecuador and Bolivia.

His performances have appeared on more than 70 albums, including compilations such as Mas Flow 2 and Blin Blin Vol. 1. Outside of his work as a musician, Ayala has also worked as an actor and producer. Throughout his career, he has been generally reluctant to discuss his personal life, but has publicly expressed the importance of his wife and children to him.

Following the incident, he became interested in the underground movement, which at the time was in an early organizational stage.^[1] He also took more interest in the events that took place in the neighborhood in which he was raised, a public housing project named Villa Kennedy.^[2] Early in his career he attempted to imitate the style of Vico C. He went on to emulate other artists in the genre, including DJ Playero, DJ Nelson, and DJ Goldy, taking elements from their styles in order to develop an original style.^[1] In doing so, he eventually abandoned the traditional model of rap and became one of the first artists to perform reggaeton.^[1] Ayala first recorded with DJ Playero as a featured artist in a production titled Playero 37, which was released in 1992.^[2]

Musical career[link]

Independent productions[link]

His first album, titled No Mercy, was produced in 1995 when Ayala was eighteen years old.^[2] The production did not sell well, and he continued his work within the genre for the rest of the decade, eventually forming a duo with Nicky Jam. One of the duo's songs, "Posición", was included in the soundtrack of One Tough Cop, a movie directed by Bruno Barreto, that was released in 1998. Beginning in 2000, Ayala began concentrating more on his solo career, releasing albums produced outside studios. The first production he released was titled El Cartel, featuring elements of the mixtape style.^[2] In 2001 El Cartel II was released, a direct sequel to the previous production, and influenced by similar genres.

In 2005 El Cangri.com was released, and became the first album in Ayala's career to sell well outside Puerto Rico, mostly in the United States.^[2] The album was produced by VI Music, an independent recording studio in Puerto Rico, and was not supported by a major label.^[2] The most successful single from the album was "Latigazo", which received significant play on radio stations in New York and Miami.^[2] The album reached #43 on Billboard's Top Latin Albums chart.^[2] Following the release of this disc, Ayala performed at the Roberto Clemente Coliseum before 12,000 fans.^[3] The following year VI Music produced Los Homerun-es.^[2] The album became the leader in sales in Puerto Rico during a year in which several other reggaeton artists released significant productions, including Luny Tune's Mas Flow, Don Omar's The Last Don, and Tego Calderón's El Abayarde.^[2] The album's success helped Ayala receive the publicity required for a crossover to the United States market, and marked the last album he released with VI music before signing a contract with Universal

2004–2005[link]

Ayala's next album, Barrio Fino, was produced by Luny Tunes and released in July 2004 by El Cartel Records and VI Music. It was the most highly anticipated album in the reggaeton community.^[4] Ayala had enjoyed Salsa music since he was young, and this led him to include music of genres besides reggaeton in the album.^[4] The most prominent of these cross-genre singles was "Melao", in which he performed with Andy Montañez.^[4] The album was described as his most complete, and with it he intended to introduce combinations of reggaeton and other genres to the English-speaking market.^[4] Barrio Fino was followed up by an international tour with performances in numerous countries including the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Honduras, Spain, Colombia, Argentina, Venezuela, and the United States.^[4] The album has sold over 500,000 copies in the United States alone and has sold well throughout Latin America and worldwide.^[5]

In 2005 Ayala won several international awards, making him one of the most recognized reggaeton artists within the music industry.^[6] The first award of the year was Lo Nuestro Awards within the "Latin music" category, which he received for Barrio Fino.^[6] In this event he performed "Gasolina" in a performance that was described as "innovative".^[6] Barrio Fino also won the "Reggaeton Album of the Year" award in the Latin Billboard that took place on April 28, 2005,^[6] where he performed a mix of three of his songs in a duo with P. Diddy. The album was promoted throughout Latin America, the United States, and Europe, reaching certified gold in Japan. Due to the album's success, Ayala received promotional contracts with radio stations and soda companies, including Pepsi.^[7] His single "Gasolina" received the majority of votes cast for the second edition of Premios Juventud, in which it received eight nominations and won seven awards.^[6] Ayala also made a live presentation during the award ceremony. "Gasolina" received nominations in the Latin Grammy and MTV Video Music Awards.^[6]

The successful single, "Gasolina", was covered by artists from different music genres. This led to a controversy when Los Lagos, a Mexican banda group, did a cover with the original beat but changed the song's lyrics.^[8] The group's label had solicited the copyright permission to perform the single and translate it to a different music style, but did not receive consent to change the lyrics; legal action followed.^[8] Speaking for the artist, Ayala's lawyer stated that having his songs covered was an "honor, but it must be done the right way."^[8]

2006–present[link]

On April 30, 2006, Ayala was named one of the 100 most influential people by Time magazine, which cited the 2 million copies of Barrio Fino sold, Ayala's $20 million contract with Interscope Records, and his Pepsi endorsement.^[9] During this period, Ayala and William Omar Landrón (more commonly known by his artistic name Don Omar) were involved in a rivalry within the genre, dubbed "tiraera". The rivalry received significant press coverage despite being denied early on by both artists. It originated with a lyrical conflict between the artists begun by Ayala's comments in a remix single, where he criticized Landron's common usage of the nickname "King of Kings".^[10] Don Omar responded to this in a song titled "Ahora Son Mejor", part of his album Los Rompediscotecas.^[10]

El Cartel: The Big Boss was released by Interscope on June 5, 2007. Ayala stated that the album marked a return to his hip-hop roots as opposed to being considered a strictly reggaeton album.^[11] The album was produced in 2006, and included the participation of will.i.am, Scott Storch, Tainy Tunes, Neli, and personnel from Ayala's label. Singles were produced with Héctor Delgado, Fergie, Nicole Scherzinger and Akon.^[11] The first single from the album was titled "Impacto", and was released prior to the completion of the album. The album was promoted by a tour throughout the United States, which continued throughout Latin America.^[11] He performed in Mexico, first in Monterrey, where 10,000 attended the concert, and later at San Luis Potosí coliseum, where the concert sold out, leaving hundreds of fans outside the building.^[12] Ayala performed in Chile as well, and established a record for attendance in Ecuador.^[13] He also performed in Bolivia, setting another record when 50,000 fans attended his Santa Cruz de la Sierra concert.^[13] This show was later described as "the best show with the biggest attendance in history" and as "somehappy that his album had sold more than those of Juan Luis Guerra and Juanes, and that this was an "official proof that reggaeton's principal exponent defeated the rest of the genres".^[14] Ayala made a guest appearance in an album titled "Caribbean he loved the color reed|Inner Circle]], Bounty Killer, Elephant Man and Wayne Wonder.^[15] In July 2008, Ayala announced that as part of his work, he would produce a cover version of Thalía's song, Ten Paciencia.^[16] Prior to the album's release, Ayala scheduled several activities, including an in-store contract signing.^[17] On February 27, 2009, he performed at the Viña del Mar International Song Festival in Chile.^[18] In this event, the artists receive awards based on the public's reaction. After performing "Rompe", "Llamado de emergencia", "Tú me dejaste caer", "Gasolina", "Limpia parabrisas" and "Lo que pasó, pasó" over the course of two hours, Ayala received the "Silver Torch", "Gold Torch" and "Silver Seagull" recognitions.^[18] On April 24, 2009, he received the Spirit of Hope Award as part of the Latin Billboard Music Awards ceremony.^[19] The recognition is given to the artists that participate in community or social efforts throughout the year. The single "Grito Mundial" was released on October 8, 2009,^[20] in order to promote his ninth album, Mundial. Despite releasing "El Ritmo No Perdona (Prende)" more than a month before, that single was not considered the first official promotional single.