Chronicling the evolution of the Persian garden, this book explores its profound and virtually unacknowledged influence on the development of Western garden design. Penelope Hobhouse follows the origins and history of the Persian garden from the fifth century BC - from ancient beginnings and the world's first extant garden created by Cyrus the Great at Pasargadae more than 2500 years ago, to 19th-century paradise gardens and the modern Islamic designs of the 21st century. She links its development to Persia's great history and religious and secular architecture, showing how buildings, water and plants combine to give the Persian garden a spiritual dimension.