At the Achaemenid table, the meal does not oppose appetizer, main course and dessert: it unfolds in simultaneous layers placed on cloths on the ground. One distinguishes the pân (flatbread-base that serves as an edible plate), the khorak (roasted meats and spicy stews at the center), the tabarzad (dried fruits, dates and nuts that circulate constantly) and the may (wine and drinks). A guest's rank is read from his distance from the King and the richness of the layers served to him.

Saffron, harvested on the high plateaus of Media, tints Persian royal dishes with gold — the color of the sun and royalty. With cumin and coriander, it forms the aromatic triptych that *abundantly* perfumes Cyrus's table, distinguishing the King's cuisine from that of the peoples.