Page:History of Art in Persia.djvu/246

 2^6 History of Art in Amtiquitv. seen on the rocks hard by, dating undoubtedly from the second Persian empire.' The hood worn by the personage reminds us also of the woollen tiara in vogue among the Magi of Strabo's time, with long flaps on each side of the face so as to cover the mouth.* It occurs also on coins that are generally attributed to those princes of Persia proper who enjoyed a quasi-inde- pendence in the reign of the Seleucidae, which they kept under the Parthian dominion ; ' we allude to tetradrachms of Attic weight with Pelehvi lettering' (see tailpiece, end of chapter). The l^;end seen on one of the faces has not yet been satisfactorily deciphered, yet enough is known to prove that the money is posterior to the Achaemenid rule. Moreover, both sides have an effigy of the k i n g. recogn izable f rom the band circling his brow. On the one it is a bust ; on the other, however, he stands before the fire-altar; but neither wears the traditional tiara of the successors of Cyrus. To return : twelve metres above the plinth is a porch once supported by two pillars ; above it again an entablature, com- posed of two narrow and one broad band. The shaft must have been made of several drums joined together, for they have dis- appeared. Bases and abaci, being rock-cut, are still in place. In depth the porch is 3 m. 10 c, 9 m. wide, and 3 in. 5 c. high (Fig. 1 14). The simple cube-like shape of the double base reminds us of that which characterizes the necropolis at Nalwsh-i- the head of the king at PersepoUs. See Flandin and Costs, Artr mdefum, Plates CLV., CLVI. • Strabo, XV. iii. 15. • //is/. 0/ Art, torn. v. p. 587. ' Barclay Head, Ifi^ NHmmtm, p. 696, Fig. 364. 'Ditmjifw{V Art antique, i 19) has published a much enUuged copy of this and another similar piece, except the effigy on the obverse. He calls them c, an apellation apt tO mislead both as to date and the monetary system to which they belong. Fig. 113. — Serpul-i-Zohab. Figure carved on rock. Flamdin hkI Com, Fine anetmnet Plate CCXI.
 * The dress somewbat resembles that of the attendant holding a fly-catcher over