Bamian
(2002 est. city pop 30,000). Bamian refers to a city, a pass, and a valley lying at the foot of the Hindu Kush Mountains in Afghanistan, where, until recently, stood two huge carved statues of the Buddha, designated as world heritage monuments by UNESCO. These sculptures were completed in the second century CE, during the reign of King Kaniska (flourished 78?–103?) of the Kushan dynasty (78–200), whose realm included most of Afghanistan and the northwest portions of Pakistan as well as India.
The statues exhibited a serene blending of Greek and Indian artistic traditions, in the Gandhara style. The larger statue was about fifty-four meters in height, and the smaller about forty meters. Both were carved into the cliff face of the mountains that tower over Bamian. The statues stood in niches shaped like body halos, in Buddhist fashion. Lining the niches were rich frescoes, depicting scenes from the life of the Buddha, as well as of various deities, the most famous of which was the sun god (either Surya or Mithra). Bamian was an important Buddhist pilgrimage center, and some ten monasteries were built into the surrounding mountains. It also lay at the heart of the Central Asian trade route that linked east and west and north and south; it was especially renowned as a re-export center for gems, pearls, ivory, and spices.
Afghanistan and most of northwest Pakistan remained Buddhist until the arrival of Islam, at which time many of the ancient monasteries and shrines were destroyed. Centuries later, a similar fate befell the Buddhist statues and frescoes at Bamian. On 12 March 2001, both statues were blown to bits on the orders of the Taliban then ruling in Afghanistan. This destruction was part of a massive effort by the Taliban to rid Afghanistan of its non-Muslim past. Despite pleas from art institutions around the world, many Hindu and Buddhist antiquities were destroyed; these were seen as graven images by the devoutly Muslim Taliban and therefore an abomination before the sight of God.
Further Reading
Baker, Piers H. B., and Frank R. Allchin. (1991) Shahr-i-Zohak and the History of the Bamiyan Valley, Afghanistan. Oxford, U.K.: B.A.R.
Klimburg-Salter, Deborah E. (1989) The Kingdom of Bamiyan: Buddhist Art and Culture of the Hindu Kush. Naples: Istituto universitario orientale, Dipartimento di studi asiatici; Rome; Istituto Italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente.
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