Levant: Persian Control

Written by Levi Clancy

First published June 9, 2009 Last modified October 10, 2011

The period of Persian hegemony (538-332 BC) began when Persian king Cyrus seized Babylonia. Persian Control is split into Persian I (538-450 BC) and Persian II (450-332 BC), ending with Alexander’s conquest of the Levant (332 BC).

Jewish diaspora communities appeared in Israel and Judah (amidst the First Return and Second Return), as well as in Babylon and Elam (which had popped up as early as the 8^th cent BC), Northern Mesopotamia (ie, Guzana) and Egypt (mostly the Delta and additional migrations to Elephantine).

Cyrus Takes Babylon	539 BC	The period of Persian hegemony (538-332 BC) began when Persian king Cyrus captured Babylon in 539 BC and assumed control of Babylonian territory. The Levant (aka land Beyond the River) was Persia’s 5^th satrapy (aka province) and was divided into Samaria (aka Samerian), Dor, Megiddo and Judah (aka Yehud). These provinces were clearly defined by: coinage, which was minted specially for each province; bullae, which bore the names of provinces; and textual attestation of governors of the satrapy Beyond the River.
Decree of Cyrus		When Cyrus captured Babylon, he issued a decree that those who had been exiled by the Babylonians could return to their homelands and start rebuilding. This culminates in 515 when the Israelites rebuilt the temple. Cyrus prepared a cylinder that described how the Babylonian deity should approve of his work improving the lives of Babylonians, repatriating displaced peoples and restoring temples and sanctuaries. In fact, Persian Jerusalem was depopulated and impoverished. Persia enacted heavy taxes (Nehemiah 5) and there were conflicts with the Samaritans (Nehemiah 4, 6). The Jerusalem Temple was rebuilt, but it was meager compared to its former glory (Ezra 3). There was a Samaritan Temple at Mount Gerizim. May all the gods whom I have resettled in their sacred cities ask daily Bel and Nebo for a long life for me and may the recommend me (to him); to Marduk, my lord, they may say this: “Cyrus, the king who worships you, and Cambyses, his son,…”…all of them I settled in a peaceful place … ducks and doves … I endeavored to fortify/repair their dwelling places … (Cyrus Cylinder, 6^th century BC)
First Return Persian I	538-450 BC	Persian I is markd by rebuilding of Jerusalem’s Temple (520-515 BC) and Ezra’s arrival in Jerusalem (458 BC). Leading figures of the First Return of Jews to the former land of Israel were: the prophets Zechariah and Haggai; a member of the Davidic line, Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel; and the High Priest Joshua. The Temple was rebuilt ~520 – 515 BC, and thus 515 BC marks a significant new era. This period is attested in Haggai 1-2, Zechariah 6:9-15 and Ezra 3.
Second Return Persian II	450-332 BC	The Second Return of Jews to the former land of Israel was pioneered by Ezra (arrived in 458 BC) and Nehemiah (arrived in 445 BC). Ezra began the return by forming a so-called purified community without foreigners (Ezra 7-10). When Nehemiah arrived in Jerusalem around 445 BC, he had the Wall of Jerusalem rebuilt (Nehemiah 2-3, 4:15-17). There were conflicts with the current inhabitants of the land, including some remnants of Jews and the particularly troublesome Samaritans led by Sanballat I (2 Kings 17).
Alexander the Great	332 BC	Alexander the Great seized the territory.

Vessels were rarely painted during the Persian period. Burnishing was the norm, as well as knife shaving, ribbing (a new development) and impression. In Persian-ruled former-Israel, the earliest coins were Greek. These were replaced by Phoenician coins from Tyre, Sidon and Arwad (but not Byblos).

By the 5^th and 4^th centuries BC, the five Beyond the River satrapy (Yehud, Samaria, Ashdod and Gaza) each manufactured their own coins. During 400-344 BC, Egyptian coins also were used. The cosmopolitan nature of Persian control over the Levant extended to burial customs.

Pottery Style	Overview
Local	Continuation of local Iron Age tradition.
Eastern	Local copies of imported “eastern” wares. (Assyrian, Persian, Phoenician, & Egyptian)
Western	Local copies of imported “western” wares. (Greek)

Burial	Overview
Cist Burial	Found at Gezer.
Phoenician Tophets	Found at Achzib and Ruqeish.
Phoenician Shaft Tombs	Phoenician shaft tombs of the 5^th and 4^th centuries were anthropoid sarcophagai. They did not contain Achaemenid pottery, although they sometimes contained Greek wares.
Rock-Cut Bench	The rock-cut bench tomb.
Infant Storejars	Infant storejar burials (“tots in pots”).
Tumuli	Tumuli tombs were found in the Jordan Valley.
Greek Tombs

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