The Cyrus Cylinder, symbol of Persian tolerance, heads to US
The 2,600 year old Cyrus Cylinder, a promise of tolerance from the ancient Persian King, is heading to the U.S. for the first time.
The Cyrus Cylinder arrives in the United States for the first time this week, a 2,600-year-old symbol of enlightened rule that heralded the freedom of the Jews after the capture of Babylon by the Persian King Cyrus the Great.
The size of a football with tapered ends and some shards lost to the centuries, the Cyrus Cylinder today represents a potent blend of Persian pride and tolerance and respect for others and their beliefs, and is regarded as one of the most iconic objects of the ancient world.
Inscribed upon the baked-clay cylinder in spiky cuneiform script is a proclamation made by Cyrus when he conquered Babylon in 539 BC. Noting that he was “king of the universe” – the Persian Empire then was the largest the world had ever seen – Cyrus describes how, with the help of the “great lord,” he peaceably captured Babylon and set free captured minorities, including the Jews.
The US tour starts this week at the Smithsonian Institution (Washington, D.C.) and will travel to Houston, New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, cities where concentrations are highest of Iranian-Americans living in the US. The tour is sponsored by the London-based Iran Heritage Foundation.
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