King and Court in Ancient Persia, 559 to 331 BCE, Paperback by Llewellyn-Jones, Lloyd, ISBN 0748641254, ISBN-13 9780748641253, Like New Used, Free shipping in the US The first Persian Empire (559-331 BC) was the biggest land empire the world had seen, and seated at the heart of its vast dominions, in the south of modern-day Iran, was the person of the Great King. This book explores Achaemenid kingship and argues for the centrality of the royal court in elite Persian society.