Persepolis - meaning, the “Persian city” was once the capital of the Achaemenid Empire (550-330BC). Cyrus the Great chose the site, but it was King Darius the Great, his son Xerxes and grandson Artaxerxes who built the palatial buildings for the rulers of the empire and a center for receptions and ceremonial festivities. However, in 331-330 BC the palaces were looted and burned by Alexander the Great.