Dioceses of the Church of the East to 1318 to represent them. None of these four dioceses is mentioned again, and it is not clear when they lapsed. By the end of the 5th century there were at least three East Syriac dioceses in the Sassanian province of Media in western Iran. Canon XXI of the synod of Isaac in 410 foreshadowed the extension of the metropolitan principle to the bishops of Beth Madaye and other relatively remote regions. Hamadan (ancient Ecbatana) was the chief city of Media, and the Syriac name Beth Madaye (Media) was regularly used to refer to the East Syriac diocese of Hamadan as well
Ecbatana orange; all these colors with paint. The last two have their battlements coated respectively with silver and gold. All these fortifications Deioces had caused to be raised for himself and his own palace." Herodotus' description is corroborated in part by stone reliefs from the Neo-Assyrian Empire, depicting Median citadels ringed by concentric walls. Other sources attest to the historical importance of Ecbatana based on the terms used by ancient authors to describe it such as "Caput Mediae" (capital of Media), the Royal Seat, and great City. It is said that Alexander the Great deposited the treasures he took from Persepolis