* Herodotus only mentions ten Persian tribes; Xenophon speaks of twelve. The chiefs of these two tribes were elected from among the members of seven families, who, at first taking equal rank with that of the Pasargadaae, had afterwards been reduced to subjection by the Achaemenidae, forming a privileged class at the court of the latter, the members of which shared the royal prerogatives and took a part in the work of government. Of the remaining tribes, the Panthialad, Derusiaei, and Carmenians lived a sedentary life, while the Dai, Mardians, Dropici, and Sagartians were nomadic in their habits. Each one of these tribes occupied its own allotted territory, the limits of which were not always accurately defined; we know that Sagartia, Parseta-kone, and Mardia lay towards the north, on the confines of Media and the salt desert,* Taokene extended along the seaboard, and Carmania lay to the east. The tribes had constructed large villages, such as Armuza, Sisidona, Apostana, Gogana, and Taoke, on the sea-coast (the last named possessing a palace which was one of the three chief residences of the Achaemenian kings),** and Carmana, Persepolis, Pasargadae, and Gabae in the interior.*** * Parsetakene, which has already been identified with the Partukkanu (or Partakkanu) of the Assyrian inscriptions, is placed by Ptolemy in Persia; Mardia corresponds to the mountainous district of Bebahan and Kazrun. ** The position of most of these towns is still somewhat doubtful. Armuza is probably Ormuz (or Hormuz) on the mainland, the forerunner of the insular Hormuz of the Portuguese, as the French scholar d'Anville has pointed out; Sisidona has been identified with the modern village of Mogu, near Ras-Jerd, Apostana with the town of Shewar, the name seeming to be perpetuated in that of the Jebel Asban which rises not far from there. Gogana is probably Bender Kongun, and Taoko, at the mouth of the Granis, is either Khor Gasseir or Rohilla at the mouth of the Bishawer. The palace, which was one of the three principal residences of the Achaemenian kings, is probably mentioned by Strabo, and possibly in Dionysius Periegetes. *** Carmana is the modern Kerman; the exact position of Gabae, which also possesses a palace, is not known. [Illustration: 287.jpg A PERSIAN] Drawn by Boudier, from a photograph of one of the bas- reliefs at Persepolis, in Dieulafoy.