Explore the diverse breathtaking moments From urban streets to remote landscapes across the globe

The interior of the main chamber of the Palace of Ardashir Pāpakan in Iran. The palace was built in 224 CE by King Ardashir I, the founder of the Sasanian Empire

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The interior of the main chamber of the Palace of Ardashir Pāpakan in Iran. The palace was built in 224 CE by King Ardashir I, the founder of the Sasanian Empire

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Inside the Palace of King Ardashir in Fars , built the same year he founded the Sasanian Empire in 224 AD - the earliest example of Sasanian architecture.

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Inside the Palace of King Ardashir in Fars , built the same year he founded the Sasanian Empire in 224 AD - the earliest example of Sasanian architecture.

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The ruins of Dezh Dokhtar Castle in southern Iran, built during the rule of Ardashir .

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The ruins of Dezh Dokhtar Castle in southern Iran, built during the rule of Ardashir .

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A corner of the Badgir Mansion , one of the many mansions at the Golestan Palace in Tehran, Iran, built by the order of Fath-Ali Shah, the second Qajar king.

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A corner of the Badgir Mansion , one of the many mansions at the Golestan Palace in Tehran, Iran, built by the order of Fath-Ali Shah, the second Qajar king.

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A drone photo of Fort 9, with the canal-lined Great Gorgan Wall visible on the right. Built in the 5th or 6th century CE by the Sasanian Empire in Iran, the wall is 195 km long and 6–10 m wide, and features over 30 fortresses spaced at intervals of between 10 and 50 km

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A drone photo of Fort 9, with the canal-lined Great Gorgan Wall visible on the right. Built in the 5th or 6th century CE by the Sasanian Empire in Iran, the wall is 195 km long and 6–10 m wide, and features over 30 fortresses spaced at intervals of between 10 and 50 km

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A soapstone container containing several hundred gold coins from the Roman Empire was found in the center of the Italian city of Como.

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A soapstone container containing several hundred gold coins from the Roman Empire was found in the center of the Italian city of Como.

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Capitals of the Salle du Manege. Louvre Museum, Paris. The Manege room in the Louvre is a large space built under Napoleon III for equestrian events. After the fall of the Second Empire, the room was granted to the museum. In 1928 the Salle became the entrance to the museum...

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Capitals of the Salle du Manege. Louvre Museum, Paris. The Manege room in the Louvre is a large space built under Napoleon III for equestrian events. After the fall of the Second Empire, the room was granted to the museum. In 1928 the Salle became the entrance to the museum...

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Flint mace-head, found beneath the eastern chamber of the passage tomb at Knowth in the Boyne Valley, Ireland, c. 3300-2800 BC

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Flint mace-head, found beneath the eastern chamber of the passage tomb at Knowth in the Boyne Valley, Ireland, c. 3300-2800 BC

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The Fortifications of Derbent are defensive lines originally built by the Sassanian Persian Empire. Located in modern day Russia, certain segments of the walls still contain Persian inscriptions.

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The Fortifications of Derbent are defensive lines originally built by the Sassanian Persian Empire. Located in modern day Russia, certain segments of the walls still contain Persian inscriptions.

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The coronation chair of King Edward I, made by Walter of Durham. England, 1296 AD

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The coronation chair of King Edward I, made by Walter of Durham. England, 1296 AD

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Brass and iron mace head depicting three bulls. Iran, Sasanian Empire, 3rd-7th century AD

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Brass and iron mace head depicting three bulls. Iran, Sasanian Empire, 3rd-7th century AD

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The Arch of Ctesiphon in modern-day Iraq is the only remaining structure of ancient Ctesiphon, built in 242–272 AD during the Sassanid Empire. Considered a landmark in architecture history, the Persian masterpiece was on the brink of collapse in 2021 when Iran intervened to restore it.

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The Arch of Ctesiphon in modern-day Iraq is the only remaining structure of ancient Ctesiphon, built in 242–272 AD during the Sassanid Empire. Considered a landmark in architecture history, the Persian masterpiece was on the brink of collapse in 2021 when Iran intervened to restore it.

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Gold belt fittings. Iran, Sasanian Empire, 6th-7th century AD

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Gold belt fittings. Iran, Sasanian Empire, 6th-7th century AD

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The Canon of Lewuke Dissawe was gifted to the King of Kandy in 1745. It was later plundered by Dutch forces during their invasion of the palace in 1765 but was returned in 2023.

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The Canon of Lewuke Dissawe was gifted to the King of Kandy in 1745. It was later plundered by Dutch forces during their invasion of the palace in 1765 but was returned in 2023.

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Śiva-Maheśvara, Dandan-Uiliq, Khotan, Xinjiang, Painted by Visha Irasanga, Khotanese Saka painter in the court of the T'ang dynasty of China in the mid 7th century C.E.

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Śiva-Maheśvara, Dandan-Uiliq, Khotan, Xinjiang, Painted by Visha Irasanga, Khotanese Saka painter in the court of the T'ang dynasty of China in the mid 7th century C.E.

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Bust of Shapur II the Great, the tenth King of Kings of the Sasanian Empire / the Metropolitan Museum of Art

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Bust of Shapur II the Great, the tenth King of Kings of the Sasanian Empire / the Metropolitan Museum of Art

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A historical house in Isfahan, Iran, built around 1606 AD during the Safavid Empire, now serving as a café.

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A historical house in Isfahan, Iran, built around 1606 AD during the Safavid Empire, now serving as a café.

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