Evidence of administration in the Archaeological Heritage of the Achaemenid period in Iran.

The paper stems from the proceedings of an international colloquium to which the best specialists in the history of the Achaemenid empire were invited. The author, the only archaeologist to have been invited, presented an updated overview of the archaeological interpretations of buildings which have yielded documents and artefacts of various kinds which could suggest a function connected to administration, such as for example the Treasury of the Persepolis Terrace, insisting on functional interpretation of the main archaeological complexes and underlying the need to revise all the interpretations so far proposed on rather inhomogeneous grounds. The author has attempted a new global approach, carried out according to the following scheme, The first level of interpretation is Functional attribution of existing buildings connected to administration, based on finds, plan, architectural details and including, in a separate section, the evidence from Tang-e Bolaghi, which also contains indicators of administrative activity in rural Fars. The second level is the review of Finds outside the original contexts, suggesting the existence of an archive/storehouse. The third level is the Identification of buildings with administrative functions based on written sources. A forth level of study is based on Comparative evidence from later periods.