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OVERLAND CARAVAN2,700 km Total NetworkActive: 550 BCE – 330 BCE

The Persian Royal Road of Darius I

The paved arterial spine of the Achaemenid Persian Empire built by Darius I, featuring 111 postal relay stations and celebrated by Herodotus.

5.0
Type: overland-caravanMap centre: [44°, 36°]Line: YearMaps schematic line drawn between the documented stations.

Places Along the Persian Royal Road of Darius I

Persepolis, on the Persian Royal Road of Darius I
PersepolisCC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Sardis, on the Persian Royal Road of Darius I
SardisCC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Susa, on the Persian Royal Road of Darius I
SusaNo restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons

Commercial Genesis & Spatial Network

To govern the largest empire the world had yet witnessed, Darius the Great upgraded ancient Assyrian trade tracks into an imperial highway spanning 2,699 kilometers from Susa near the Persian Gulf to Sardis on the Aegean Sea. Herodotus wrote of its royal mounted couriers (pirradazish): "Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds." Mounted messengers covered the entire distance in just seven days.

Economic Impact & Cultural Diffusion

Standardized commerce with the gold Daric coin, secured merchant travel across satrapies, and served as the tactical invasion route for Alexander the Great.

Caravanserais and Halting Places on This Route

73 caravanserais recorded within 40 km of the mapped line. A caravanserai is a roadside inn; a halting place is a named camping ground with no permanent building. How caravans travelled and how a caravanserai worked.

Behistun Palace, Iran

Behistun Palace

Caravanserai · Iran · 34.3866° N, 47.4353° E

Behistun palace is a ruined Sassanid palace located in Bisotun, 20 kilometres (12 mi) from Kermanshah, Iran. It faces the cliff with the much older Behistun inscription and rock relief, across the ancient road running between Behistun mountain and Behistun lake. The palace has long been regarded in Persian tradition as a residence of Shirin, queen of Khosrau II, the Sassanid Shah of Persia who reigned from 590 to 628, shortly before the Muslim conquest of Persia. This connection is first documented, in surviving records, by early Islamic geographers, and is elaborated in various later stories and myths, as a fictionalized Shirin became an important heroine of later Persian literature, such as the Shahnameh ("Book of Kings"). It is included in the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Bisotun.

Text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Photo via Wikimedia Commons

Khan al-Gumruk, Iraq

Khan al-Gumruk

Caravanserai · Iraq · 36.3448° N, 43.1363° E

Khan al-Gumruk al-Akbar (Arabic: خان الكمرك الكبير) is an old caravanserai in the Bab al-Saray area of Mosul, Iraq. Dating back to around 1703 during the Ottoman Empire, the caravanserai is surrounded by mosques and several markets of the Bab al-Saray souq such as the Haddadeen Market, the Atami Market, and the Kawazin Market. The caravanserai is currently located between the Tigris River, and the Bab al-Jisr Square.

Text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Photo via Wikimedia Commons

Shah Abbasi Caravansarai, Bisotun, Iran

Shah Abbasi Caravansarai, Bisotun

Caravanserai · Iran · 34.3844° N, 47.4350° E

The Shah Abbasi Caravansarai is a historic caravanserai located in Bisotun, Kermanshah province, Iran. This caravanserai was listed as an Iranian national heritage site on 4 August 1974.

Text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Photo via Wikimedia Commons

Shah Abbasi Caravanserai, Farasfaj, Iran

Shah Abbasi Caravanserai, Farasfaj

Caravanserai · Iran · 34.4879° N, 48.2830° E

The Shah Abbasi Caravansarai (Persian: کاروانسرای شاه‌عباسی) is a historic caravanserai from the Safavid era and is located in Farasfaj, Iran.

Text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Photo via Wikimedia Commons

Sultan Han (Kayseri), Turkey

Sultan Han (Kayseri)

Caravanserai · Turkey · 38.9729° N, 35.8953° E

Sultan Han is a historic Seljuk-era caravanserai in Turkey, located 47 km northeast of Kayseri on the road to Sivas, in an area also known as Tuzhisar. It was built between 1232 and 1237 CE by Sultan Ala ad-Din Kayqubad I.

Text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Photo via Wikimedia Commons

Taşhan caravanserai

Caravanserai · Turkey · 38.8151° N, 37.9342° E

Taşhan caravanserai, also known as the Hekimhani or Hekim Han, is located in the town of Hekimhan, near Malatya in Turkey. The building was built in 1218 under Sultan İzzettin Keykavus I of the Sultanate of Rum. Its builder was a doctor (hekim), and it was built as a commercial enterprise.

Text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

All Recorded Stopping Places

NameTypeCountryCoordinates
Behistun PalaceCaravanseraiIran34.3866° N, 47.4353° E
Khan al-GumrukCaravanseraiIraq36.3448° N, 43.1363° E
Shah Abbasi Caravansarai, BisotunCaravanseraiIran34.3844° N, 47.4350° E
Shah Abbasi Caravanserai, FarasfajCaravanseraiIran34.4879° N, 48.2830° E
Sultan Han (Kayseri)CaravanseraiTurkey38.9729° N, 35.8953° E
Taşhan caravanseraiCaravanseraiTurkey38.8151° N, 37.9342° E
Afzal CaravanseraiCaravanseraiIran32.0438° N, 48.8521° E
Alacahan Caravanserai (Kangal)CaravanseraiTurkey39.1058° N, 37.5975° E
Aminzadeh CaravanseraiCaravanseraiIran32.0431° N, 48.8519° E
Artuklu Caravanserai (Mardin)CaravanseraiTurkey37.3144° N, 40.7484° E
Barutçu Hanı (Şanlıurfa)CaravanseraiTurkey37.1476° N, 38.7893° E
Bayındır City MuseumCaravanseraiTurkey38.2227° N, 27.6446° E
Behram Paşa HanıCaravanseraiTurkey39.7473° N, 37.0213° E
Bican Ağa Hanı (Şanlıurfa)CaravanseraiTurkey37.1574° N, 38.7906° E
Çakaloğlu HanCaravanseraiTurkey38.4216° N, 27.1321° E
Çardak HanıCaravanseraiTurkey37.8285° N, 29.6658° E
Çengel HanCaravanseraiTurkey39.9370° N, 32.8635° E
Çermelik Köyü HanıCaravanseraiTurkey37.1174° N, 38.3977° E
Chameshk CaravanseraiCaravanseraiIran33.2381° N, 48.2113° E
Çingene HanıCaravanseraiTurkey38.4250° N, 38.3598° E
Cırgalan HanıCaravanseraiTurkey38.7814° N, 35.5591° E
Çorapçı HanıCaravanseraiTurkey39.7485° N, 37.0196° E
Çukur HanCaravanseraiTurkey39.9374° N, 32.8632° E
Damlacik caravansaraiCaravanseraiTurkey37.9075° N, 38.6173° E
Hacı Kamil HanıCaravanseraiTurkey37.1484° N, 38.7900° E
Hacı Turhan Kapan ÇarşısıCaravanseraiTurkey38.3216° N, 26.7683° E
İnay HanıCaravanseraiTurkey38.4295° N, 29.2164° E
Incesu ZaviyesiCaravanseraiTurkey38.6383° N, 35.1522° E
İspile HanıCaravanseraiTurkey38.6787° N, 35.6388° E
Kalehisar HanıCaravanseraiTurkey40.2674° N, 34.7152° E
Kalolar HanıCaravanseraiTurkey38.4873° N, 37.7529° E
Kara Mustafa Paşa CaravanseraiCaravanseraiTurkey38.6237° N, 35.1814° E
Karatay HanCaravanseraiTurkey38.6440° N, 35.9352° E
Keçecizade Hanı (Ödemiş)CaravanseraiTurkey38.2270° N, 27.9697° E
Kemahlıoğlu HanıCaravanseraiTurkey38.4183° N, 27.1323° E
Kızlarağası HanCaravanseraiTurkey38.4214° N, 27.1331° E
Kötünün HanıCaravanseraiTurkey39.0357° N, 37.7432° E
Kurşunlu HanCaravanseraiTurkey39.9379° N, 32.8622° E
Kurşunlu HanCaravanseraiTurkey38.6126° N, 27.4343° E
Kurşunlu Han (Alaşehir)CaravanseraiTurkey38.3503° N, 28.5164° E
Latif Han (Sivas)CaravanseraiTurkey39.5917° N, 36.8353° E
Mahidasht CaravanseraiCaravanseraiIran34.2685° N, 46.8054° E
Mencek Hanı (Şanlıurfa)CaravanseraiTurkey37.1481° N, 38.7894° E
Mescitli HanCaravanseraiTurkey38.3745° N, 37.8795° E
Millet Hanı (Şanlıurfa)CaravanseraiTurkey37.1573° N, 38.7893° E
Paşa HanıCaravanseraiTurkey39.8484° N, 36.9555° E
Pirinç Han (Konak)CaravanseraiTurkey38.4214° N, 27.1316° E
Pınarbaşı HanıCaravanseraiTurkey38.1025° N, 30.2467° E
Qaleh Nasir CaravanseraiCaravanseraiIran33.1856° N, 48.1353° E
Şaban Hanı (Şanlıurfa)CaravanseraiTurkey37.1475° N, 38.7904° E
Salepçioğlu HanıCaravanseraiTurkey38.4189° N, 27.1307° E
Samsat HanıCaravanseraiTurkey37.1556° N, 38.7882° E
Sarı HanıCaravanseraiTurkey38.6033° N, 35.6577° E
Şefik Bey HanıCaravanseraiTurkey38.2558° N, 28.0684° E
Sekili Hanı (YerköyCaravanseraiTurkey39.7155° N, 34.2575° E
Sevserek Han (Battalgazi)CaravanseraiTurkey38.2925° N, 38.5037° E
Shah Abbasi Caravanserai of MahidashtCaravanseraiIran34.2683° N, 46.8055° E
Shahanshan CaravanseraiCaravanseraiIran33.3963° N, 48.2815° E
Silahtar Mustafa Ağa CaravanseraiCaravanseraiTurkey38.4244° N, 38.3647° E
Şişman HanCaravanseraiTurkey38.4049° N, 38.5785° E
Subaşı HanıCaravanseraiTurkey39.7490° N, 37.0194° E
SuluhanCaravanseraiTurkey39.9397° N, 32.8583° E
Sungur Bey Caravanserai (Kula)CaravanseraiTurkey38.5459° N, 28.6427° E
Surur Hanı (Mardin)CaravanseraiTurkey37.3138° N, 40.7406° E
Tajabad CaravanseraiCaravanseraiIran34.8766° N, 48.2208° E
Tarihi Han (Urla)CaravanseraiTurkey38.3220° N, 26.7672° E
Taşhan (Menemen)CaravanseraiTurkey38.6081° N, 27.0657° E
Taşhan (Sivas)CaravanseraiTurkey39.7498° N, 37.0189° E
Taşkale HanıCaravanseraiTurkey38.0296° N, 38.7173° E
The Topçu HanıCaravanseraiTurkey37.1605° N, 38.7897° E
Tuz Hanı (Adıyaman)CaravanseraiTurkey37.7589° N, 38.2788° E
Tuzcu Hanı (Ödemiş)CaravanseraiTurkey38.2274° N, 27.9698° E
Yeni Han (Şehzadeler)CaravanseraiTurkey38.6130° N, 27.4327° E

Sources: Wikidata (caravanserais, CC0) and the OWTRAD project (halting places). All caravanserais and halting places

Logistics, Caravanserais & Overland Hazards

  • ▲Maintained 111 royal post stations (chaparkhaneh) with fresh horses spaced exactly one day’s ride apart
  • ▲Heavily fortified garrison checkpoints and tollgates at key river crossings (Tigris, Euphrates, Halys)
  • ▲Crossing the rugged Zagros Mountains and Anatolian Plateau under winter freeze conditions
  • ▲Official royal passports required to requisition fresh horses and stay at imperial inns

Custodial Empires & Polities

Sovereign states that safeguarded, taxed, or maintained garrisons along this route:

Achaemenid Persian EmpireKingdom of LydiaBabylonian EmpireIonian Greek City-StatesMacedonian Empire

More Routes in This Region

Persia, Arabia and the Levant

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overland caravan • 2000 BCE – 700 CE

Darb Zubaydah (The Kufa–Mecca Pilgrim Road)1,400 km

overland caravan • 750 CE – 1258 CE

The Arabian Incense & Frankincense Route2,400 km

overland caravan • 1500 BCE – 300 CE

Caravan Routes of the Persian Deserts3,200 km

overland caravan • 550 BCE – 1930 CE

Nearby Routes in Other Regions

Route from the Varangians to the Greeks3,000 km

inland waterway • 800 CE – 1100 CE

The Great Silk Road6,400 km

overland caravan • 130 BCE – 1453 CE

The Volga Trade Route5,500 km

inland waterway • 750 CE – 1000 CE