The festivities were concluded with the Shah paying homage to his father, Reza Shah Pahlavi, at his mausoleum.The event brought together the rulers of two of the oldest extant monarchies, the Shah and Emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia. By the end of the decade, both monarchies had ceased to exist. Orson Welles said of the event: “This was no party of the year, it was the celebration of 25 centuries!”