axisofevil Statue of Hercules, Road to Kermanshah, Iran - Axis of Evil World Tour
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Statue of Hercules on the road to Kermanshah

Statue of Hercules

Book Excerpt

... the drive to Kerman Shah took us over one of the highest mountain passes in Iran, one Professor worried would be shut due to snow. Our timing was fortuitous though, all we experienced was a scenic drive through the nearly empty mountains of western Iran. The pass was also my first time to cross paths with Alexander the Great. His armies went through the same pass on their way to conquer Persia – a point that makes him far less popular in Iranian than Greek or Western history.

For the next several days we would repeatedly cross paths with Alexander and his armies, sharing many of the same mountain passes and even walking in some of the same buildings. Visiting these touchstones of Western history imparts a powerful sense of Persia’s age.

Through the pass we made our way to Bisotun, another archeological site. Whereas Hamedan had civilizations on top of each other the mountains of Bisotun had theirs next to one another. Here a small 100 AD statue of Hercules carved by Alexander’s passing army, there a couple of giant 5th century BC inscriptions honoring the Persian king Darius. Further down there’s even a Paleolithic era cave dwelling; though this one now chiefly featured smashed cans of alcohol from a recent clandestine drinking session. A few thousand years ago cave dwellers hid in there to find shelter and hide from enemies. Now people use the same cave to hide out and sneak drinks …

   
   
   
 
   
 
 
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