Gerard DeGeorge/Corbis

Delegations from all over the Persian empire were probably received by the king in Persepolis’s Apadana, a vast reception hall. The Apadana had elaborate porticoes on the north, east and west sides , as well as monumental stairways with relief carvings on the north side and east side. The main chamber of the Apadana was a huge square, 200 feet on a side, with six rows of six columns topped by bull’s-head capitals. To the southeast of the Apadana was the Central Palace (also called the Council Hall)