ECBATANA

ancient city on the site of which stands the modern city of Hamadan (q.v.), Iran. Ecbatana was the capital of Media and was subsequently the summer residence of the Achaemenian kings and one of the residences of the Parthian kings. According to ancient Greek writers, the city was founded in about 678 BC by the semilegendary Deioces, who was the first king of the Medes. The Greek historian Herodotus described the city in the 5th century BC as being surrounded by seven concentric walls. Ecbatana was captured from the Median ruler Astyages by the Persian king Cyrus the Great in 550 BC, and it was taken from the last Achaemenian ruler by Alexander the Great in 330 BC. The site of the ancient city lies partly within the modern city of Hamadan and has never been excavated.