• Afghanistan
• Bāmiyān province (C)
• Bāmiyān

Bāmiyān

Bāmiyān is located in the Hazarajat region of central Afghanistan and is famous for its two colossal Buddha sculptures. The one to the east is 38 meters and the other one to the west is 55 meters high. In the past Bāmiyān was a caravan halt along one of the silk routes that became a renowned artistic and Buddhist center. When the celebrated Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang visited Bāmiyān between 629 and 645 he left an important description of its monuments and life of its inhabitants. After the C14 examinations the smaller Buddha was dated to the mid-6th century AD and the bigger one to the early 7th century (ICOMOS, pp. 231–236). Both sculptures are cut into the same cliff and are separated by about 800 m. They were part of a large Buddhist complex with around 700 caves which were used as sanctuaries, pilgrim hostels, and storage rooms. The rock-cut niches, caves and tunnels were painted, some of them are partly preserved.
The Giant Buddhas were destroyed by the Taliban in March 2001.

Bibliography

Samuel Beal/Si-Yu-Ki, Buddhist Records of the Western World, by Hiuen Tsiang. 2 Vols. Translated by Samuel Beal. London 1884. (Reprint: Delhi 1969)

André Godard/Yeda Godard/Jospeh Hackin, Les antiquités bouddhiques de Bāmiyān, MDAFA 2, Paris and Brussels 1928.

Jospeh Hackin/Jean Carl, Nouvelles recherches archéologiques à Bāmiyān, MDAFA 3, Paris 1933.

Shumpei Iwai, Extraction of Samples, in: K. Yamauchi (Ed.) Recent Cultural Heritage Issues in Afghanistan, Vol.2, Tokyo 2006, pp. 33-115.

Shumpei Iwai/Kosaku Maeda, The Original Locations of Mural Pieces Removed from the Bamiyan and Foladi Sites, in: Study of the Afghanistan's Displaced Cultural Properties. Materials and Techniques of the Bamiyan Mural Paintings, in: Recent Cultural Heritage Issues in Afghanistan, Vol.3, Tokyo 2006, pp. 24-25.

Deborah Klimburg-Salter, Buddhist Painting in the Hindu Kush: Bamiyan, Foladi, Fondukistan, Kakrak. Harvard University (unpubl.) 1976.

Deborah Klimburg-Salter, The Kingdom of Bāmiyān. Buddhist art and culture of the Hindu Kush, Naples and Rome 1989.

ICOMOS/Michael Petzet (Ed.), The Giant Buddhas Of Bamiyan. Safeguarding the Remains, Berlin 2009.

Zemaryalai Tarzi, L’architecture et le décor rupestre des grottes de Bāmiyān, 2 Vols., Paris 1977.

Radiocarbon Dating of the Bamiyan Mural Paintings, in: K. Yamauchi (Ed.) Recent Cultural Heritage Issues in Afghanistan, Vol.2, Tokyo 2006.

Structure, Design and Technique of the Bamiyan Buddhist Caves, in: M. Iwade/S. Kubodera (Ed.), Recent Cultural Heritage Issues in Afghanistan, Vol.5, London 2013.