Remains of the ancient city of Darabgerd/Darabjerd are situated seven kilometer southwest of the modern town of Darab in Fars province. . It has been suggested that circular wall of this city provided the model for the future city of Aradashir-Xwarra but there are also reports that the original shape of Darabgerd was triangular not circular. Based on archeological evidence, Darabgerd was neither perfect geometrically nor did it have any radial or concentric system of streets. In medieval sources a character named Dara, either an Achaemenid king or one of the Frataraka rulers of Arsacid Persis, is considered to be the founder of the city. According to Tabari, Ardaxshir-e Pabakan was educated in Darabgerd and it was from this town that he started his first territorial conquests, although this is most likely a later assumption. The rock reliefs near the city as well as the mud brick building, rich in stucco decoration, from the time of Shapur II, point to the importance of Darabgerd in early Sasanian history. There are ruins of a citadel in center of the city, as well as three fortresses in the mountains north of Darabgerd.
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Bibliography
- Huff, Dietrich. “Darabgerd,” Encyclopaedia Iranica, 2002.
- Azarnoush, M. “Excavations at Hajiabad, 1977.
- W. Ball, “Some Rock-Cut Monuments in Southern Iran,” Iran 24, 1986, pp. 95-115.
- N. Meshkati, A List of the Historical Sites and Ancient Monuments of Iran,Tehran, 1353 Š./1974.
- P. de Miroschedji, “Un chahār ṭāq dans la plaine de Darab,” Iran 18, 1980, pp. 157-60.
- R. Pohanka, “Die Masdjed-e Djoume in Darab, Südiran,” Anz. der phil.-hist. Klasse der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften 121, 1984, pp. 265-69