Persian Empire, Ancient
Last update: 21 Aug 2026 11:16First version: 6 January 2016
Mostly that of the Achaemanids, though the later pre-Islamic ones (Parthians and Sassanians) are also of some interest to me.
- Recommended:
- Lindsay Allan, The Persian Empire
- John W. Lee, The Persian Empire
- To read:
- Christopher Beckwith, The Scythian Empire: Central Eurasia and the Birth of the Classical Age from Persia to China
- John Boardman, Persia and The West: An Archaeological Investigation of the Genesis of Achaemenid Persian Art
- J. E. Curtis and N. Tallis (eds.), Forgotten Empire: The World of Ancient Persia
- John Curtis and & St John Simpson (eds.), World of Achaemenid Persia: The Diversity of Ancient Iran
- V. S. Curtis and S. Stewart (eds.), Birth of the Persian Empire
- Richard N. Frye, The Golden Age of Persia
- Lori Khatchadourian, Imperial Matter: Ancient Persia and the Archaeology of Empires
- Bruce Lincoln, Religion, Empire, and Torture: The Case of Achaemenian Persia, with a Postscript on Abu Ghraib
- S. K. Mendoza Forrest, Witches, Whores, and Sorcerers: The Concept of Evil in Early Iran
- Margaret Christina Miller, Athens and Persia in the Fifth Century BC: A Study in Cultural Receptivity
- A. T. Olmstead, History of the Persian Empire [I need to finish this one of these years so I can actually move it to "recommended"]
- Nikolaus Leo Overtoom, Reign of Arrows: The Rise of the Parthian Empire in the Hellenistic Middle East
- Edith Porada, The Art of Ancient Iran: Pre-Islamic Cultures
- Matt Waters, King of the World: The Life of Cyrus the Great
- Josef Wiesehfer, Ancient Persia: From 550 BC to 650 AD