Persia from the Earliest Period to the Arab

106 HISTORY OF PERSIA.
the tools by which the upper portions were hewn
down ; and in the adjacent quarries are still many slabs
carved and ready for removal. It is clear, therefore,
that here, as is the case with some of the great
buildings in Egypt, additions contemplated were never
carried into effect. The arrangement of the buildings
on and within the boundary of the great platform,
will be best understood, if it is borne in mind that they
stand on three distinct terraces, each varying in some
degree from the other, as regards their respective
heights above the plain. Of these there still exist
that to the south ; that about twenty-three feet above it
;
that to the north, about thirty-five feet ; and, between
these two, the central or upper terrace, on which repose
the noblest remains, which is as much as forty-five
feet.
To reach these levels from the plain, and from one to
the other, there is a series of gigantic staircases, unique
in character and execution, which form one of the
most characteristic features of Persepolitan art. Of
these the grandest is that towards the northern end
of the west front, which is still the only mode of access
from the plain below. This staircase consists of a
vast double flight of steps, rising from the south and
the north, with a very gentle ascent, the height of
each step being in no instance more than four inches.
Indeed the ascent is so gradual, that Sir R. K. Porter
and other travellers used to ride up it on horseback.
The width of the staircase is twenty-two feet, sufficient
(it is said) to allow ten horsemen to ride up it abreast,
the blocks used in their construction being often so
vast, as to allow of ten to fourteen steps be'ng cut