486 BC

By place

Persian Empire

• Egypt revolts against Persian rule upon the death of king Darius I. The revolts, probably led by Libyans of the western Delta, are crushed the next year by Xerxes, who reduces Egypt to the status of a conquered province.

  Roman Republic

• Rome enters into a new treaty with the Hernici.
• During his third consulate, the Roman consul Spurius Cassius Viscellinus proposes an agrarian law to assist needy plebeians. The proposal is vehemently opposed by the patricians including the other consul Proculus Verginius Tricostus Rutilus, and the plebs turn against the proposal. In the following year Cassius is condemned and executed for high treason.

  China

• The first part of the Grand Canal of China is built during the reign of King Fuchai of Wu. It links the Yangtze River with the Huai River, and is a measure to ship amble amount of supplies north for intended wars with the northern states of Song and Lu.

  By topic

Art

• The construction of a relief in the Apadana, a ceremonial complex at Persepolis, is finished. It shows Darius and Xerxes receiving tribute and is now kept in the Iranbustan Museum in Tehran.