Local residents in the Zard Sang village in Baghlan province have discovered monuments believed to be thousands of years old. The Ministry of Information and Culture was quickly notified of the 25 monuments, many of which are inscribed with drawings of animals and symbols.
Nezamuddin Tokhi, a government official for the Ministry in Baghlan, said, “So far, we are unable to determine how old these pre-Islamic monuments are, but we believe they go back at least 1,000 years.”
He said it is likely the monuments were from the Buddhist era in Afghanistan when it was common to make stone monuments and cave inscriptions on cliffs and in places of worship.
Archaeologists will examine the monuments to determine their exact time period of origin and the meaning behind the inscriptions. The Ministry is securing the area where the monuments were found to prevent looting. They hope that the area will eventually become a tourist attraction and generate income for the local community.
Col. Ghulam Dastgir of the Baghlan Police Department said, “The monuments are part of our national heritage and belong to the people of Afghanistan. We will ensure they are protected from potential looters.”
According to the Ministry of Information and Culture, there are 19 archaeological sites in Baghlan province. Afghan artefacts continue to be found all across the country. Last year, a Bhuddist-era site was found by local labourers in Balkh just east of the provincial capital Mazar-e Sharif.
Archaeologists began exploring pre-Islamic artefacts in Afghanistan in the 1950’s and continued until the Soviet invasion in 1979. Famous historians such as Louis Dupree say that humans have been living in Afghanistan for the past 50,000 years and formed some of the world’s earliest farming communities. Traders travelling between China and Rome have passed through Afghanistan for centuries leaving items such as plates, cups and jewellery behind. Afghan artisans became influenced by the various designs and began incorporating them into their work.
After the Russian invasion, Afghan historians were determined to protect the country’s artefacts, many of which date back 4,000 years. They successfully removed boxes of artefacts out of the National Museum and stored them in a bank vault in the presidential palace just outside of Kabul where they remained for over two decades.
Not only did they protect the artefacts from being looted, they also prevented them from being destroyed. In addition to blowing up Bamiyan’s historic Buddha statues in March of 2001, the Taliban destroyed 2,500 other cultural artefacts from Kabul’s National Museum that they deemed to be against Islam.
Nezamuddin Tokhi, a government official for the Ministry in Baghlan, said, “So far, we are unable to determine how old these pre-Islamic monuments are, but we believe they go back at least 1,000 years.”
He said it is likely the monuments were from the Buddhist era in Afghanistan when it was common to make stone monuments and cave inscriptions on cliffs and in places of worship.
Archaeologists will examine the monuments to determine their exact time period of origin and the meaning behind the inscriptions. The Ministry is securing the area where the monuments were found to prevent looting. They hope that the area will eventually become a tourist attraction and generate income for the local community.
Col. Ghulam Dastgir of the Baghlan Police Department said, “The monuments are part of our national heritage and belong to the people of Afghanistan. We will ensure they are protected from potential looters.”
According to the Ministry of Information and Culture, there are 19 archaeological sites in Baghlan province. Afghan artefacts continue to be found all across the country. Last year, a Bhuddist-era site was found by local labourers in Balkh just east of the provincial capital Mazar-e Sharif.
Archaeologists began exploring pre-Islamic artefacts in Afghanistan in the 1950’s and continued until the Soviet invasion in 1979. Famous historians such as Louis Dupree say that humans have been living in Afghanistan for the past 50,000 years and formed some of the world’s earliest farming communities. Traders travelling between China and Rome have passed through Afghanistan for centuries leaving items such as plates, cups and jewellery behind. Afghan artisans became influenced by the various designs and began incorporating them into their work.
After the Russian invasion, Afghan historians were determined to protect the country’s artefacts, many of which date back 4,000 years. They successfully removed boxes of artefacts out of the National Museum and stored them in a bank vault in the presidential palace just outside of Kabul where they remained for over two decades.
Not only did they protect the artefacts from being looted, they also prevented them from being destroyed. In addition to blowing up Bamiyan’s historic Buddha statues in March of 2001, the Taliban destroyed 2,500 other cultural artefacts from Kabul’s National Museum that they deemed to be against Islam.
source: http://centralasiaonline.com
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