Achaemenid Persian Empire (Spithridates' Axe)

Persia under the Achaemenid Dynasty (559 BC - 112 AD) was the most powerful empire of the ancient era, ruling over several areas considered to be cradles of civilization like Mesopotamia, Egypt and the Indus Valley. Cyrus the Great founded the first Persian Empire in 559 BC by overthrowing his Median overlords. This first Persian dynasty left it's cultural and political footprints on most of West Asia for centuries to come.