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However, in March 2001, both statues were destroyed by the Taliban following an order given on February 26, 2001, by Taliban leader Mullah Muhammad Omar, to destroy all the statues in Afghanistan "so that no one can worship or respect them in the future". [7] International and local opinion condemned the destruction of the Buddhas. [8]
BAMIYAN, Afghanistan — The Taliban’s destruction of the Bamiyan Buddha statues in early 2001 shocked the world and highlighted their hard-line regime, toppled soon after in a U.S.-led invasion.
Afghanistan is uniquely situated as a throughway of cultures throughout its history due to it geographic placement in South Asia. Afghanistan's location lends porous borders to trade routes between the East and West, while the Silk Road providing a vector for Buddhism and Hellenistic culture and even Egyptian influences from the west, renders an amalgamation of culture and art.
The site is also the location of Afghanistan's largest copper deposit. The site of Mes Aynak possesses a vast 40 ha (100 acres) complex of Buddhist monasteries, homes, over 400 Buddha statues, stupas and market areas. The site contains artifacts from the Bronze Age, and some of the artifacts recovered have dated back over 3000 years.
One of the Buddhas of Bamiyan (destroyed by the Taliban in 2001) photographed at its base in August 1977 Ancient Buddhist cave in Jalalabad, 2009. Buddhism, a religion founded by Gautama Buddha, first arrived in modern-day Afghanistan through the conquests of Ashoka (r. 268–232 BCE), the third emperor of the Maurya Empire.
The famous Bamiyan Buddha statues from the 6th century. Around the niches of the two 53 and 35 meter high, destroyed statues, at least 900 caves are carved into the rock, decorated with frescoes and stucco work. The Islamic fortress Schahr-i Suhak about 15 km east of the cliff from the time of the Ghaznavids and the Ghurids (10th to 13th ...
Kushan era Buddhist stupas and statues in Swat valley were demolished by the Taliban and after two attempts by the Taliban, the Jehanabad Buddha's face was dynamited. [ 97 ] [ 98 ] [ 99 ] Only the Bamiyan Buddhas were larger than the carved giant Buddha status in Swat near Manglawar which the Taliban attacked. [ 100 ]
Later, during the Islamic period, several fortifications were built, and the Buddhist culture declined. Two colossal standing Buddha statues (the larger one pictured) were destroyed by the Taliban in 2001, an act that resulted in international condemnation. The site has been listed as endangered immediately upon inscription in 2003.