ere feature of the external
ornamentation, and to have had nothing to do with the interior.

The exterior ornamentation of the Sassanian buildings was by pilasters,
by arched recesses, by cornices, and sometimes by string-courses. An
ornamentation at once simple and elegant is that of the lateral faces of
the palace at Firuzabad, where long reed-like pilasters are carried
from the ground to the cornice, while between them are a series of tall
narrow doubly recessed arches. Far less satisfactory is the much more
elaborate design adopted at Ctesiphon, where six series of blind
arches of different kinds are superimposed the one on the other, with
string-courses between them, and with pilasters, placed singly or
in pairs, separating the arches into groups, and not regularly
superimposed, as pillars, whether real or seeming, ought to be.

The interior ornamentation was probably, in a great measure, by stucco,
painting, and perhaps gilding. All this, however, if it existed, has
disappeared; and the interiors now present a bare and naked appearance,
which is only slightly relieved by the occasional occurrence of windows,
of ornamental doorways, and of niches, which recall well-known features
at Persepolis. In some instances, however, the arrangement of the larger
rooms was improved by means of short pillars, placed at some distance
from the walls, and supporting a sort of transverse rib, which broke the
uniformity of the roof. The pillars were connected with the side walls
by low arches.

Such are the main peculiarities of Sassanian palace architecture. The
general effect of the great halls is grand, though scarcely beautiful;
and, in the best specimens, the entire palace has an air of simple
severity which is striking and dignified. The internal arrangements do
not appear to be very convenient. Too much is sacrificed to regularity;
and the opening of each room into its neighbor must, one would
think, have been unsatisfactory. Still, the edifices are regarded as
"indicating considerable originality and power," though they "point to a
state of society when attention to security hardly allowed the architect
the free exercise of the more delicate ornaments of his art."

From this general account of the main features of the architecture it
is proposed now to proceed to a more particular description of the
principal extant Sassanian buildings--the palaces at Serbistan,
Firuzabad, Ctesiphon, and Mashita.

The palace at Serbista