Few people haven’t heard about the ancient city of Persepolis, which lies at the foot of the Mountain of Mercy (Kuh-I-Rahmat). In ancient times, Persepolis was the capital of the Achaemenid Empire. Regretfully, it was burned by the Greeks in 330 BC after they looted the immense treasure of this city. It is said that Greeks needed 5,000 camels and 20,000 mules to carry all the treasures from Persepolis. The only thing of Persepolis that has survived the wear of time is the ginormous stone terrace 530 by 330 meters adorned by elaborate stone sculptures. It is amazing how intricately detailed some of the sculptures are, despite the fact that they were created many centuries ago.

“The Africanis is a landrace of South African dogs. It is believed to be of ancient origin, directly descended from hounds and pariah dogs of ancient Africa, introduced into the Nile Valley from the Levant. The Swahili name for the breed is umbwa wa ki-shenzi meaning common or mongrel or “traditional dog”. Africanis is also an umbrella name for all the aboriginal dogs in southern Africa”. – Wikipedia. Photo: Africanis 18. Murraysburg, Western Cape, May 10, 2010. (Photo by Daniel Naudé)

Dressed in ancient Chinese clothes, children at a local kindergarten dance and make traditional perfumed medicine bag to celebrate the upcoming Dragon Boat Festival, Ganyu district, Lianyungang city, east China's Jiangsu province, 19 June 2020. (Photo by Imaginechina via AP Images)

Two ancient bronze coins, which according to Israel Antiquities Authority archaeologists were struck by the Roman procurator of Judea, Valerius Gratus, in the year 17/18 CE and recently were revealed in excavations beneath the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City are exposed to the media' on November 23, 2011 in Israel. (Photo by Lior Mizrahi/Getty Images)

Thailand’s Sanctuary of Truth is an all-wood building filled with sculptures based on traditional Buddhist and Hindu motifs. It is covered in intricate wood carvings, meant to depict complex ideas about ancient thought, human responsibility, and the cycle of life. (Photo by Yury Taranik/Getty Inages)

A Nepalese woman offers prayers to the setting Sun on the bank of Bagmati River during the Chhath Puja festival in Kathmandu, Nepal, Wednesday, November 10, 2021. During Chhath, an ancient Hindu festival, rituals are performed to thank the Sun God for sustaining life on earth. (Photo by Niranjan Shrestha/AP Photo)

Performers take part in a procession as part of the Samhuinn Fire Festival on October 31, 2024 in Edinburgh, Scotland. The Samhuinn Fire Festival is a modern take on an ancient Celtic festival, marking the transition between summer and winter with fire-dancing, drums, acrobatics, and theatre performances. (Photo by Jeff J. Mitchell/Getty Images)

Tourists fly in hot air balloons over the west bank of the Nile River on January 9, 2025 in Luxor, Egypt. Luxor, which contains the historical city of Thebes, capital of ancient Egypt's pharaohs at the height of their power, is full of pharaonic monuments and other antiquities. (Photo by Ahmad Hasaballah/Getty Images)