Ancient Near East Subsequently, the Medes controlled much of the ancient Near East from their base in Ecbatana (modern-day Hamadan, Iran), most notably most of what is now Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and the South Caucasus. Following the fall of the Medes, the Achaemenid Empire was the first of the Persian Empires to rule over most of the Near East and far beyond, and the second great Iranian empire (after the Median Empire). At the height of its power, encompassing approximately 7.5 million square kilometers, the Achaemenid Empire was territorially the largest empire of classical antiquity, and the first world empire. It spanned three
Temesa (ancient city) Temesa (ancient city) Temesa ( or Τεμέσα [Doric]), later called Tempsa, was an ancient city of Magna Graecia on the shore of the Tyrrhenian Sea. It was situated close to Terina, but its precise location has not yet been found. It is thought to have been located near the Savuto river to the north of the Gulf of Sant'Euphemia. More recently Campora San Giovanni, a town near the mouth of the Savuto, has been considered as a more precise location. The archeologist Gioacchino Francesco La Torre excavated a temple outside the town in the early 2000s, which was located within