Behistun T 04

Behistun or Bisotun: town in Iran, site of several ancient monuments, including a famous inscription by the Persian king Darius I the Great (r.522-486 BCE), the great organizer of the Achaemenid Empire.

On these pages, you can find drawings, a transliteration and an adapted version of the King/Thompson translation of the inscription.

Column i, lines 27-35

  1. tiy \ Dârayavauš \ xšâyathiya \ ima \ tya \ manâ \ kartam \ pasâva \ yathâ \ xš
  2. âyathiya \ abavam \ Kabûjiya \ nâma \ Kûrauš \ puça \ amâxam \ taumây
  3. â \ hauvam \ idâ \ xšâyathiya \ âha \ avahyâ \ Kabûjiyahyâ \ brâ
  4. tâ \ Bardiya \ nâma \ âha \ hamâtâ \ hamapitâ \ Kabûjiyahyâ \ pasâva \ Ka
  5. bûjiya \ avam \ Bardiyam \ avâja \ yathâ \ Kabûjiya \ Bardiyam \ avâja \ kârahy
  6. â \ naiy \ azdâ \ abava \ tya \ Bardiya \ avajata \ pasâva \ Kabûjiya \ Mudrâyam
  7. \ ašiyava \ yathâ \ Kabûjiya \ Mudrâyam \ ašiyava \ pasâva \ kâra \ arika \ abava
  8. \ pasâva \ drauga \ dahyauvâ \ vasiy \ abava \ utâ \ Pârsaiy \ utâ \ Mâdaiy \ ut
  9. â \ aniyâuvâ \ dahyušuvâ \ thâtiy \ Dârayavauš \ xšâyathiya \ pa

(10) King Darius says: The following is what was done by me after I became king. A son of Cyrus, namedCambyses, one of our dynasty, was king here before me. That Cambyses had a brother, Smerdis by name, of the same mother and the same father as Cambyses. Afterwards, Cambyses slew this Smerdis. When Cambyses slew Smerdis, it was not known unto the people that Smerdis was slain. Thereupon Cambyses went to Egypt. When Cambyses had departed into Egypt, the people became hostile, and the lie multiplied in the land, even in Persia and Media, and in the other provinces.