Home Region: Iran (Southwest Asia)

Achaemenid Empire

550 BCE 331 BCE

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EQ 2020 ir_achaemenid_emp / IrAchae

Preceding Entity: Add one more here.

[continuity; Median Empire] [continuity] Update here

Succeeding Entity: Add one more here.

404 BCE 342 BCE Egypt - Inter-Occupation Period (eg_inter_occupation) [secession]

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General Description

The Achaemenid Empire was established by Cyrus II ’the Great’, who inherited the small kingdom of Persia (named after the capital city, Persis) in southwest Iran, a vassal territory of the larger Median Empire to the Northwest. From 553 to 550 BCE, Cyrus led his fellow Persians against Median hegemony (even though the Medes were ruled by his own relatives), establishing the Persians as the dominant group in Iran. His kingdom became known as the Achaemenid Empire after the legendary first King of Persia, Achaemenes, claimed to be an ancestor of the Great Cyrus himself (Achaemenid essentially translates to ’children of Achaemenes’). ^[1]
Capitalizing on these early victories, Cyrus II the Great continued his military domination, conquering the wealthy Lydian Kingdom in modern-day Turkey along with most of Asia Minor and the Neo-Babylonian Kingdom in Mesopotamia, as well as consolidating Persia’s hold over much of central Asia as far as modern Pakistan. His son and heir, Cambyses II, continued this tradition, expanding Achaemenid rule into the large and wealthy kingdom of Egypt. After Cambyses II’s death in 522 BCE, a noble Persian named Darius came to power after overthrowing an alleged usurper to the throne (Gautama, supposedly posing as Cyrus II’s son Bardiya, more commonly known by his Greek name Smerdis). ^[2] Darius I, who also took the title of ’the Great’, was a powerful ruler who inaugurated several military, administrative, and economic reforms, ^[3] though is most well known for leading the Persian army to defeat at the hands of a coalition of small Greek city-states during the famous Persian Wars of the early 5th century BCE. Despite the fact that Darius’ son and heir Xerxes I (the Great) also failed to conquer the Greek Aegean and lost a decisive battle to the same outnumbered coalition of Greeks, the Achaemenid Empire remained intact. ^[4]
In 330 BCE, Darius III became the twelfth and final emperor in the Achaemenid line when he succumbed to the conquests of Alexander the Great and his invading Macedonian army (twelfth not including the alleged usurper Bardiya/Smerdis nor the short-lived Artaxerxes V, who declared himself emperor for a brief moment after Darius III was killed as Alexander was completing his conquest). ^[5] Alexander became the ruler of all the territory formerly held by the Persians, incorporating it into the massive, though short-lived, Macedonian Empire and bringing an end to the great Persian Achaemenid Empire.
Population and political organization
The Achaemenid Empire was one of the largest empires in the pre-modern world, stretching nearly 6 million square kilometres across the Near East, Central Asia, the Indus Valley, Middle East, and into Egypt at its greatest extent. ^[6] It was a massive, multi-ethnic society made up of Medes, Persians, Lydians, Greeks, Egyptians, Babylonians, Bactrians, Sogdians, and numerous other cultural-ethnic groups; indeed, Old Persian, Elamite, Babylonian, Aramaic, hieroglyphic Egyptian, and Greek were all used in royal and provincial communication. ^[7] Between the Great rulers Cyrus II, Cambyses II, and Darius I, the Persians had stitched together an empire out of the centres of the oldest civilizations from Anatolia to Egypt, Mesopotamia and the Indus valley. Persepolis and the grand Pasargadae were large ceremonial and ritual centres in the heartland of Persia, while Susa in western Iran was the major administrative capital. At its peak under Darius I, the empire covered a huge swathe of diverse territory from the eastern Mediterranean all the way to the Indus Valley, incorporating navigable seas and rivers, protected ports and fertile agricultural land as well as rough mountainous passes. This territory held a population of between 17 and 35 million people. ^[8]

[1]: (Briant [1996] 2002) Pierre Briant. [1996] 2002. From Cyrus to Alexander: A History of the Persian Empire, translated by Peter T. Daniels. Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns.

[2]: (Shayegan 2006) M. Rahim Shayegan. 2006. ’Bardiya and Gaumata: An Achaemenid Enigma Reconsidered’. Bulletin of the Asia Institute (n.s.) 20: 65-76.

[3]: (Cook 1983) J. M. Cook. 1983. The Persian Empire. London: J. M. Dent and Sons.

[4]: (de Souza 2003) Philip de Souza. 2003. The Greek and Persian Wars, 499-386 BC. Oxford: Osprey Publishing.

[5]: (Kuhrt 2001, 94) Amelie Kuhrt. 2001. ’The Achaemenid Persian Empire (c. 550 - c. 330 BCE): Continuities, Adaptations, Transformations’, in Empires: Perspectives from Archaeology and History, edited by Susan Alcock, Terence D’Altroy, Kathleen D. Morrison and Carla M. Sinopoli, 93-123. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

[6]: (Broodbank 2015, 583) Cyprian Broodbank. 2015. The Making of the Middle Sea. London: Thames & Hudson.

[7]: (Shahbazi 2012, 135) A. Shapour Shahbazi. 2012. ’The Achaemenid Persian Empire (550-330 BCE)’, in The Oxford Handbook of Iranian History, edited by Touraj Daryaee, 120-41. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

[8]: (Wiesehöfer 2009) Josef Wiesehöfer. 2009. ’The Achaemenid Empire’, in The Dynamics of Ancient Empires: State Power from Assyria to Byzantium, edited by Ian Morris and Walter Scheidel, 66-98. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

General Variables

Identity and Location

1 Utm Zone

1 Original Name

2 Capital

2 Alternative Name

Temporal Bounds

1 Peak Years

1 Duration

Political and Cultural Relations

1 Suprapolity Relations

1 Supracultural Entity

1 Succeeding Entity

1 Scale of Supracultural Interaction

1 Relationship to preceding Entity

2 Polity Succession

2 Degree of Centralization

Language

3 Linguistic Family

5 Language

Religion

1 Religion Genus

1 Alternate Religion

Social Complexity Variables

Social Scale

1 Population of the Largest Settlement

3 Polity Territory

2 Polity Population

Hierarchical Complexity

1 Settlement Hierarchy

1 Religious Level

1 Military Level

1 Administrative Level

Professions

1 Professional Soldier

1 Professional Priesthood

1 Professional Military Officer

Bureaucracy Characteristics

1 Specialized Government Building

1 Merit Promotion

1 Full Time Bureaucrat

1 Examination System

Law

1 Professional Lawyer

1 Judge

1 Formal Legal Code

1 Court

Specialized Buildings: polity owned

1 Market

1 Irrigation System

1 Food Storage Site

1 Drinking Water Supply System

Transport Infrastructure

1 Road

1 Port

1 Canal

1 Bridge

Special-purpose Sites

1 Mines or Quarry

Information / Writing System

1 Written Record

1 Script

1 Phonetic Alphabetic Writing

1 Nonwritten Record

1 Non Phonetic Writing

1 Mnemonic Device

Information / Kinds of Written Documents

1 Scientific Literature

1 Sacred Text

1 Religious Literature

1 Practical Literature

1 Philosophy

1 Lists Tables and Classification

1 History

1 Fiction

1 Calendar

Information / Money

1 Token

1 Precious Metal

1 Paper Currency

2 Indigenous Coin

1 Foreign Coin

1 Article

Information / Postal System

1 Postal Station

1 General Postal Service

1 Courier

Information / Measurement System

Warfare Variables (Military Technologies)

Fortifications

1 Wooden Palisade

1 Stone Walls Non Mortared

1 Stone Walls Mortared

1 Settlements in a Defensive Position

1 Modern Fortification

1 Moat

1 Fortified Camp

1 Earth Rampart

1 Ditch

1 Complex Fortification

1 Long Wall

Military use of Metals

2 Steel

1 Iron

1 Copper

1 Bronze

Projectiles

1 Tension Siege Engine

1 Sling Siege Engine

1 Sling

1 Self Bow

1 Javelin

1 Handheld Firearm

1 Gunpowder Siege Artillery

1 Crossbow

1 Composite Bow

1 Atlatl

Handheld weapons

1 War Club

1 Sword

1 Spear

1 Polearm

1 Dagger

1 Battle Axe

Animals used in warfare

1 Horse

1 Elephant

1 Donkey

1 Dog

1 Camel

Armor

1 Wood Bark Etc

1 Shield

1 Scaled Armor

1 Plate Armor

1 Limb Protection

1 Leather Cloth

1 Laminar Armor

1 Helmet

1 Chainmail

1 Breastplate

Naval technology

1 Specialized Military Vessel

1 Small Vessels Canoes Etc

1 Merchant Ships Pressed Into Service

Economy Variables (Luxury Goods) Coding in Progress.

Religion Variables Coding in Progress.

Crisis Consequence Cases

1 Crisis Consequence

Power Transitions

13 Power Transition

Instability Events

54 Instability Event

NGA Settlements:

Year Range	Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp) was in:
(550 BCE 546 BCE)	Kachi Plain
(546 BCE 539 BCE)	Konya Plain / Kachi Plain
(539 BCE 538 BCE)	Susiana / Konya Plain / Kachi Plain
(538 BCE 525 BCE)	Southern Mesopotamia / Susiana / Galilee / Konya Plain / Kachi Plain
(525 BCE 520 BCE)	Upper Egypt / Southern Mesopotamia / Susiana / Galilee / Konya Plain / Kachi Plain
(520 BCE 405 BCE)	Upper Egypt / Southern Mesopotamia / Susiana / Galilee / Konya Plain / Sogdiana / Kachi Plain
(405 BCE 334 BCE)	Southern Mesopotamia / Susiana / Galilee / Konya Plain / Sogdiana / Kachi Plain
(334 BCE 331 BCE)	Southern Mesopotamia / Susiana / Galilee / Sogdiana / Kachi Plain
(331 BCE 330 BCE)	Sogdiana / Kachi Plain
(330 BCE 329 BCE)	Kachi Plain

Home NGA: Susiana

General Variables

Identity and Location Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Utm Zone	39 S	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Original Name	Achaemenid Empire	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Capital	Pasargadae	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Capital	Susa	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Alternative Name	Persia	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Alternative Name	Persian Empire	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Temporal Bounds Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More
Peak Years	500 BCE
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Duration	[550 BCE ➜ 331 BCE]
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Political and Cultural Relations Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Suprapolity Relations	none	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Supracultural Entity	Persian	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Succeeding Entity	Macedonian Empire	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Scale of Supracultural Interaction	[2,500,000 to 3,000,000] km²	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Relationship to Preceding Entity	continuity	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Preceding Entity	continuity; Median Empire [continuity] Update here
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Succeeding Entity 404 BCE 342 BCE	Egypt - Inter-Occupation Period (eg_inter_occupation) [secession]
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Degree of Centralization	unitary state	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Degree of Centralization	confederated state	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Language Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Linguistic Family	Indo-European	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Linguistic Family	Afro-Asiatic	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Linguistic Family	language isolate	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Language	Old Persian	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Language	Aramaic	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Language	Elamite	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Language	Greek	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Language	Egyptian	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Religion Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Religion Genus	Zoroastrianism	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Alternate Religion	Uncoded Undecided	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Social Complexity Variables

Social Scale Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Population of the Largest Settlement	200,000 people	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Polity Territory	[2,500,000 to 4,100,000] km²	539 BCE 501 BCE
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Polity Territory	[4,800,000 to 5,500,000] km²	500 BCE 451 BCE
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Polity Territory	[3,800,000 to 4,325,000] km²	450 BCE 331 BCE
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Polity Population	[20,000,000 to 26,000,000] people	500 BCE
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Polity Population	[17,000,000 to 35,000,000] people	400 BCE
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Hierarchical Complexity Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Settlement Hierarchy	[5 to 6]	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Religious Level	[3 to 5]	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Military Level	7	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Administrative Level	[6 to 8]	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Professions Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Professional Soldier	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Professional Priesthood	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Professional Military Officer	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Bureaucracy Characteristics Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Specialized Government Building	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Merit Promotion	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Full Time Bureaucrat	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Examination System	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Law Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Professional Lawyer	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Judge	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Formal Legal Code	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Court	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Specialized Buildings: polity owned Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Market	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Irrigation System	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Food Storage Site	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Drinking Water Supply System	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Transport Infrastructure Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Road	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Port	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Canal	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Bridge	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Special-purpose Sites Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Mines or Quarry	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Information / Writing System Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Written Record	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Script	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Phonetic Alphabetic Writing	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Nonwritten Record	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Non Phonetic Writing	Absent	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Mnemonic Device	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Information / Kinds of Written Documents Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Scientific Literature	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Sacred Text	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Religious Literature	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Practical Literature	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Philosophy	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Lists Tables and Classification	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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History	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Fiction	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Calendar	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Information / Money Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Token	Unknown Suspected	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Precious Metal	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Paper Currency	Absent	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Indigenous Coin	Absent	550 BCE 516 BCE
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Indigenous Coin	Present	515 BCE 331 BCE
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Foreign Coin	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Article	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Information / Postal System Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Postal Station	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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General Postal Service	Unknown Suspected	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Courier	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Information / Measurement System Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Warfare Variables (Military Technologies)

Fortifications Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Wooden Palisade	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Stone Walls Non Mortared	Unknown Suspected	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Stone Walls Mortared	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Settlements in a Defensive Position	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Modern Fortification	Absent	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Moat	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Fortified Camp	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Earth Rampart	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Ditch	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Complex Fortification	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Long Wall	60 km	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Military use of Metals Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Steel	Present Uncertain	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Steel	Absent Uncertain	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Iron	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Copper	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Bronze	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Projectiles Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Tension Siege Engine	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Sling Siege Engine	Absent	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Sling	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Self Bow	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Javelin	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Handheld Firearm	Absent	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Gunpowder Siege Artillery	Absent	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Crossbow	Absent	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Composite Bow	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Atlatl	Absent	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Handheld weapons Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
War Club	Unknown Suspected	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Sword	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Spear	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Polearm	Absent Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Dagger	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Battle Axe	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Animals used in warfare Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Horse	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Elephant	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Donkey	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Dog	Unknown Suspected	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Camel	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Armor Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Wood Bark Etc	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Shield	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Scaled Armor	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Plate Armor	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Limb Protection	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Leather Cloth	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Laminar Armor	Absent Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Helmet	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Chainmail	Absent	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Breastplate	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Naval technology Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Specialized Military Vessel	Present	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Small Vessels Canoes Etc	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Merchant Ships Pressed Into Service	Present Inferred	550 BCE 331 BCE
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Economy Variables (Luxury Goods)

Religion Variables

Moralizing Supernatural Punishment and Reward Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Human Sacrifice Achaemenid Empire (ir_achaemenid_emp)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More