The Archaeology of Afghanistan: From Earliest Times to the Timurid Period [2 ed.] 0748699171, 9780748699179

Citation preview

THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF AFGHANISTAN From Earliest Times to the Timurid Period

Original edition by Raymond Allchin and Norman Hammond

Revised and updated by WARWICK BALL with NORMAN HAMMOND

THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF AFGHANISTAN

To the memory of our fellow-authors Raymond Allchin (1923–2010) Klaus Fischer (1919–1993) Maurizio Taddei (1936–2000)

THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF AFGHANISTAN FROM EARLIEST TIMES TO THE TIMURID PERIOD NEW EDITION

ORIGINAL EDITION EDITED BY RAYMOND ALLCHIN AND NORMAN HAMMOND

REVISED AND UPDATED EDITION EDITED BY WARWICK BALL WITH NORMAN HAMMOND

Edinburgh University Press is one of the leading university presses in the UK. We publish academic books and journals in our selected subject areas across the humanities and social sciences, combining cutting-edge scholarship with high editorial and production values to produce academic works of lasting importance. For more information visit our website: edinburghuniversitypress.com Original edition published 1978, edited by Raymond Allchin and Norman Hammond, © Academic Press Inc. (London) Ltd © editorial matter and organisation Warwick Ball and Norman Hammond, 2019 © the chapters their several authors, 2019 Edinburgh University Press Ltd The Tun – Holyrood Road 12 (2f) Jackson’s Entry Edinburgh EH8 8PJ Typeset in Trump Mediaeval by Servis Filmsetting Ltd, Stockport, Cheshire, and printed and bound in the EU by Fine Tone Ltd by arrangement with Associated Agencies Ltd, Oxford A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN 978 0 7486 9917 9 (hardback) ISBN 978 1 4744 5047 8 (webready PDF) ISBN 978 1 4744 5046 1 (epub) The rights of Raymond Allchin, Norman Hammond and Warwick Ball to be identified as Editor of this work have been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patent Act 1988, and the Copyright and Related Rights Regulations 2003 (SI No. 2498). Published with the support of the University of Edinburgh Scholarly Publishing Initiatives Fund.

Contents

Analytical Table of Contents vii List of Figures and Tables xvi Notes on Contributors xxx Acknowledgements xxxiii Note on Transliteration xxxv Foreword xxxvii Mohammad Fahim Rahimi Preface xlix Norman Hammond Introduction to the First Edition 1 Norman Hammond and Raymond Allchin Introduction to the New Edition 10 Warwick Ball CHAPTER 1 The Geographical Background 15 Sophia R. Bowlby and Kevin H. White CHAPTER 2 The Palaeolithic 61 Richard S. Davis CHAPTER 3 The Development of the Oxus Civilisation North of the Hindu Kush 99 Henri-Paul Francfort, Bertille Lyonnet, Cameron A. Petrie and Jim G. Shaffer CHAPTER 4 The Development of a ‘Helmand Civilisation’ South of the Hindu Kush 161 Cameron A. Petrie and Jim G. Shaffer

vi CONTENTS CHAPTER 5 The Iron Age, Achaemenid and Hellenistic Periods 260 Warwick Ball, Simon Glenn, Bertille Lyonnet, David W. Mac Dowall and Maurizio Taddei CHAPTER 6 From the Kushans to the Shahis 344 Warwick Ball, Olivier Bordeaux, David W. Mac Dowall, Nicholas Sims-Williams and Maurizio Taddei CHAPTER 7 From the Rise of Islam to the Mongol Invasion 460 Warwick Ball and Klaus Fischer CHAPTER 8 From the Mongols to the Mughals 546 Warwick Ball and Klaus Fischer CHAPTER 9 Conclusion 609 Raymond Allchin and Norman Hammond Notes 620 Bibliography 651 Copyright Acknowledgements 695 Index 699

Analytical Table of Contents

List of Figures and Tables xvi Notes on Contributors xxx Acknowledgements xxxiii Note on Transliteration xxxv Foreword xxxvii Mohammad Fahim Rahimi Preface xlix Norman Hammond Introduction to the First Edition 1 Norman Hammond and Raymond Allchin Introduction to the New Edition 10 Warwick Ball CHAPTER 1  The Geographical Background 15 Sophia R. Bowlby and Kevin H. White Climate and climatic change 18 Natural resources for subsistence 24 The high mountains 26 The mountains and foothills 31 The plains and lowlands 33 The Amu Darya, Oxus and Helmand-Sistan regions 34 The deserts 36 Patterns of subsistence in the 1950s–1960s 37 Agriculture 38 Nomads 50 Opportunities for trade 56 Summary 60

viii

ANALYTICAL TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER 2  The Palaeolithic 61 Richard S. Davis Problem areas 62 Brief history of palaeolithic research in Afghanistan 63 Initial occupation of Afghanistan – the Lower Palaeolithic 66 The Middle Palaeolithic 67 Darra-i Kur 67 Balkh Province 70 Hazar Sum 70 Kara Kamar 71 Discussion 72 The Late Palaeolithic 74 Kara Kamar Level III 75 The Epi-Palaeolithic 82 Summary 96 CHAPTER 3  The Development of the Oxus Civilisation North of the Hindu Kush 99 Henri-Paul Francfort, Bertille Lyonnet, Cameron A. Petrie and Jim G. Shaffer Introduction 99 The adoption of domesticates: the Neolithic and Chalcolithic periods 101 Early mobile pastoralists in northern Afghanistan 109 Early sedentary agriculturalists in northern Afghanistan 110 Developments in neighbouring regions and connections to northern Afghanistan 111 Central Asia 111 Eastern Iran 113 Pakistan 114 Development of stratified societies 116 The Eastern Bactria survey 117 The Late Chalcolithic/Early Bronze Age (c. 3500 to 2500 bc) 119 The end of the Early Bronze Age and Middle Bronze Age (c. 2500 to 1500 bc) 122 Shortughaï 125 Stratigraphy and architecture 127 Surface topography and magnetometry survey 127 Pottery typology and comparisons 132 Petrographic analyses of pottery 133 Small finds 133 Archaeobotany 135 Archaeozoology 137 Metals 137

analytical table of contents

Physical anthropology 138 Chronology 138 Ecology 139 Economy and society at Shortughaï 140 Ghar-i Mar 140 Darra-i Kur 141 Dashli sites 143 Architecture 143 Dashli 1 143 Dashli 3 144 Ceramics 149 Other artefacts 151 Other sites in northern Afghanistan 151 Conclusions about Bactria, Central Asia and the ‘Oxus Civilisation’ 157 CHAPTER 4  The Development of a ‘Helmand Civilisation’ South of the Hindu Kush 161 Cameron A. Petrie and Jim G. Shaffer Introduction 161 Geographical factors 162 Mundigak 163 Stratigraphy and architecture 166 Period I 166 Period II 168 Period III 170 Period IV 173 Period V 187 Chronology 189 Ceramics 192 Period III handmade pottery 197 Period III turned pottery, undecorated 197 Period III turned pottery, decorated 198 Period III turned pottery, intrusive or special function 199 Period IV handmade pottery 203 Period IV turned pottery, undecorated 204 Period IV turned pottery, decorated 206 Period IV turned pottery, intrusive or special function 209 Lithic artefacts 216 Bone artefacts 217 Metal artefacts 218 Miscellaneous artefacts 221 Spindle whorls 221 Stone vessels 221 Beads and pendants 222

ix

x

ANALYTICAL TABLE OF CONTENTS

Seals 222 Ceramic figurines 223 Faunal and floral remains 224 Said Qala Tepe 224 Stratigraphy and architecture 225 Chronology 228 Ceramics 230 Lithic artefacts 234 Bone artefacts 235 Metal artefacts 235 Small miscellaneous artefacts 235 Spindle whorls 235 Stone vessels 235 Beads and pendants 236 Seals 237 Ceramic figurines 237 Faunal and floral remains 237 Deh Morasi Ghundai 237 Stratigraphy and architecture 239 Chronology 239 Ceramics 239 Other artefacts 241 Miscellaneous artefacts 241 Spindle whorls 241 Ceramic figurines 241 Faunal and floral remains 242 Kandahar 242 Nad-i Ali 243 Helmand-Sistan surveys 245 External relationships with southern Afghanistan 246 Mundigak: Periods I–II 248 Mundigak: Period III 251 Mundigak: Period IV 256 Mundigak: Period V 259 CHAPTER 5  The Iron Age, Achaemenid and Hellenistic Periods 260 Warwick Ball, Simon Glenn, Bertille Lyonnet, David W. Mac Dowall and Maurizio Taddei Historical background 260 The question of Iron Age states 260 The Achaemenid empire 261 Alexander III of Macedon and his successors 263 The Graeco-Bactrians 264 The Parthians 265

analytical table of contents

Yuezhi and Saka invaders 265 The Indo-Parthians 267 Settlement, material culture, architecture and art 267 The Iron Age and Achaemenid periods 267 Bactria 267 The Helmand-Sistan region 276 The Herat region 278 Arachosia 279 The Kabul Valley and Gandhara 283 The Hellenistic period 285 Bactria 285 Begram 287 Kandahar and southern Afghanistan 288 Herat 291 The Greek city of Aï Khanoum 291 Sites outside Afghanistan 309 The nomad ‘invasions’ 311 Epigraphy 315 The Achaemenids 315 Elamite 317 Aramaic 317 Inscriptions of the Mauryan period 318 The Aramaic inscriptions from Laghman 318 The bilingual Greek and Aramaic inscription from Kandahar 320 The Ashokan inscription in Greek from Kandahar 320 The Indo-Aramaic inscription from Kandahar 321 The Sophytos inscription from Kandahar 322 Historical significance 323 Seleucid and Graeco-Bactrian inscriptions and epigraphy 324 The Aristonax inscription from Kandahar 324 Inscriptions from Aï Khanoum 324 The inscriptions of Klearchos 324 The Dedications in the Gymnasium 325 Finds from the necropolis 325 Economic and other documents 325 The Aramaic ostracon 326 Miscellaneous Greek documents from northern Afghanistan 326 Kuliab 326 Early Kharoshthi inscriptions 326 The inscription of Tiravharna the Satrap 327 The Bimaran vase 328 Numismatics 328 Evidence for currency and circulation 328 The Achaemenids 328

xi

xii

ANALYTICAL TABLE OF CONTENTS

Role of the siglos 328 The Oxus Treasure 329 The Miho Treasure 329 The al-Sabah collection 329 The 1966 Balkh hoard 330 The Chaman-i Hauzuri hoard 330 Other hoards of bent bar coins 330 Changes due to Alexander 331 Alexander’s currency reform 331 Later elements of the Oxus Treasure 331 After Alexander 332 The 1990 ‘Afghanistan’ hoard 332 Mauryan and Graeco-Bactrian coinage 333 The overall pattern 333 Mir Zakah I 335 Mir Zakah II 336 Finds from Begram 337 Excavated coins from Aï Khanoum 338 The Kuliab hoard 340 The Qunduz hoard 340 The currency of western Afghanistan 341 Yuezhi, Sakas and Indo-Parthians 342 The Yuezhi currency of Bactria 342 Coins of the Azes Dynasty and Su Hermaeus 342 The distribution of Indo-Parthian issues 343 CHAPTER 6  From the Kushans to the Shahis 344 Warwick Ball, Olivier Bordeaux, David W. Mac Dowall, Nicholas Sims-Williams and Maurizio Taddei Historical background 344 The Kushans 344 The Later Kushans, Sasanians and Kushano-Sasanians 345 Hunnic groups 349 The Western Turks 350 The progress of Islam 351 Turki and Hindu Shahis 351 Settlement, material culture, architecture and art 352 Begram 353 Kandahar 361 Wardak 365 Jaghatu 365 Kharwar 368 The Kabul sites 369 Mes Aynak 375

analytical table of contents

Surkh Kotal 376 Rabatak 379 Rag-i Bibi 381 Balkh 384 Zadiyan and the Balkh Oasis wall 386 Buddhist art and architecture 390 Cave monasteries 390 Stupa-monastery complexes 402 Sculpture 403 Classical connections and chronology 414 Pictorial art 419 Late Buddhist sculpture 423 Non-Buddhist art 424 Everyday life 432 Problems of dating 434 Epigraphy 436 Bactrian inscriptions and texts 436 The era of Kanishka 444 Inscriptions connected with the Kanishka era 444 Undated Kharoshthi inscriptions 445 The Jaghatu inscriptions 446 The inscriptions of Uruzgan 446 Indian inscriptions in Sharada script 446 Numismatics 447 The Kushan coinages 447 The Kushan monetary system 447 Foreign influence 452 Coins in Buddhist stupa deposits 453 Other hoards and site finds 453 The Late Kushan coinages 454 Sasanian influences 456 The Kushano-Sasanian coinages 456 The Tepe Maranjan hoard and other Sasanian finds 456 Coinage of the Huns 456 The coins of the Nezak 457 The issues of Vrahitigin 457 Gadhaiya paisa 458 Problems with the Shahi coinage 458 The pattern of the coinage 458 Silver coins of Spalapati Deva 458 Silver coins of Samanta Deva 458 The Shahi copper denominations 459 The billon currency 459 Hoards and site finds 459

xiii

xiv

ANALYTICAL TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER 7  From the Rise of Islam to the Mongol Invasion 460 Warwick Ball and Klaus Fischer Historical background 460 The Tahirids, Saffarids and Samanids 460 The Ghaznavids 462 The Ghurids 463 The Khwarazm-shahs 464 Architecture of the Early Islamic period 465 Background 465 The earliest period 465 Ghaznavid buildings 469 Lashkari Bazar 469 Bust 474 Ghazni 475 Baba Hatim Ziyarat 478 Charkh-i Logar 479 Daulatabad 484 Minor monuments 487 Sistan 487 Outside Afghanistan 506 Summary of Ghaznavid art and architecture 506 Palaces 509 Gardens 509 Mosques 509 Minarets 509 Decoration 509 Painting 510 Sculpture 511 Ceramics 511 Ghurid buildings 511 The minaret of Jam 513 The minaret of Sakhar 517 Shahr-i Arman and Naraiman 518 Ghur fortifications 519 Bamiyan fortifications 525 Chisht 527 Larwand 527 Herat 532 Shah-i Mashhad 534 Danestama 536 Ghazni 536 Bust 542

analytical table of contents

CHAPTER 8  From the Mongols to the Mughals 546 Warwick Ball and Klaus Fischer Historical background 546 Sistan 549 Herat 558 City plan and citadel 558 The ‘musalla’ complex 559 The Friday Mosque 565 Mosque of Hauz-i Karboz 568 Mausoleum of Shahzadeh Abdullah 572 Gazurgah 572 Herat region 578 Azadan 580 Ziyaratgah 580 Kuhsan 585 Khaniqah of Sard al-Din Armani 585 Kush Rabat 585 Zindajan 585 Ghazni 585 Mausoleum of Shah Shahid 585 Mazar-i Sharif 589 Shrine of Hazrat Ali 589 Balkh 591 Timurid works of art 592 Herat, bronze cauldron in the courtyard of the Great Friday Mosque 592 Metal ewer, British Museum 593 Summary of Timurid art 597 Architecture 597 Sculpture 602 Painting 602 Minor arts 603 Post-Timurid art and architecture 605 CHAPTER 9  Conclusion 609 Raymond Allchin and Norman Hammond The Palaeolithic 610 The appearance of sedentary settlements 611 The beginning of history in Afghanistan 613 The arrival of Islam 617 Notes 620 Bibliography 651 Copyright Acknowledgements 695 Index 699

xv

Figures and Tables

Figures 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 1.21 1.22 1.23 1.24 1.25 1.26 1.27

The location of Afghanistan within Eurasia 16 Afghanistan: relief and drainage, showing major rivers 17 Average precipitation and cultivated land 19 Average temperature by season 20 Climatic regions 21 The physiographic regions of Afghanistan 24 Natural vegetation 26 The Pamir Mountains in Wakhan 27 The north side of the Salang Pass 28 The Panjshir Valley 29 The Farah Rud, with the discolouration in the hills caused by iron ore deposits 30 The Ghorband Valley 30 The Kabul River Gorge 31 The southern foothills near Ghazni 32 The Balkh River in the mountains south of Balkh 33 The Herat-Farah lowlands between Adraskand and Farah Rud 34 The Balkh Plain near Balkh 35 The Amu Darya floodplain from Kampyr Tepe in Uzbekistan 35 The Helmand River 36 Giant sand-dunes of the Registan Desert on the edge of the Helmand Valley 37 Principal types of agricultural irrigation 39 Cross-section of a qanat system 40 Aerial view of a typical qanat system in southern Iran 40 Irrigation canal or jui in the Balkh Plain 41 Grape field in the Kandahar area 42 Traditional ploughing in the Bamiyan region 43 Winnowing in the Kandahar region 44

figures and tables

1.28 1.29 1.30 1.31 1.32 1.33 1.34 1.35 1.36 1.37 1.38 1.39 1.40 1.41 1.42 1.43 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20 2.21 2.22 3.1 3.2

Abandoned cave dwellings in Ghur Province 45 Vaulted mud-brick domestic roofing near Kandahar 46 Flat timber and mud roofing at Istalif 47 A traditional qal’a in the Bamiyan Valley 47 Donkey transport in the Kandahar region 48 A camel caravan passing in front of the Iron Age citadel at Old Kandahar 49 Seasonal movement of nomads 51 Nomad market on the Wazmin Pass in the western mountains 52 Pashtun peaked black tent between Delaram and Gulistan 52 Pashtun vaulted black tent 53 Firuzkuhi yurts in three stages of construction in western Afghanistan 54 Firuzkuhi yurt in use 55 Black tents of the Taimani in western Afghanistan 55 Raw lapis lazuli in a trader’s shop in Kabul 57 Lapis bust of a Parthian prince in the Iran Bastan Museum 58 Lapis-bearing rock at the main lapis lazuli mines at Sar-i Sang in Badakhshan 59 Palaeolithic sites in Afghanistan 62 Satellite image of the Dash-i Nawur 65 Petroglyphs near Sarhad in Badakhshan 66 Darra-i Kur, Middle Palaeolithic 68 Darra-i Kur, Middle Palaeolithic 69 Kara Kamar 71 Kara Kamar, Level II, Late Palaeolithic 74 Kara Kamar, Level III, Upper Palaeolithic 77 Kara Kamar, Level III, Upper Palaeolithic 78 Kara Kamar, Level III, Upper Palaeolithic 81 Plan of Aq Kupruk showing the location of the archaeological sites 83 View of Aq Kupruk from the west 83 The Shelter of Aq Kupruk II 84 Flint nodules in situ near Aq Kupruk (Dar-i Archa) 85 Aq Kupruk, Epi-Palaeolithic 86 Aq Kupruk, microlithic component, Epi-Palaeolithic 87 Aq Kupruk, Epi-Palaeolithic 89 Aq Kupruk, Epi-Palaeolithic 91 Aq Kupruk, Epi-Palaeolithic 92 Plan of Aibak vicinity 93 Kok Jar Epi-Palaeolithic surface site 93 Kara Kamar, Level I, Epi-Palaeolithic 94 The Bronze Age in Afghanistan and surrounding regions 100 Neolithic material from northern Afghanistan 108

xvii

xviii

FIGURES AND TABLES

3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 3.18 3.19 3.20 3.21 3.22 3.23 3.24 3.25 3.26 3.27 3.28 3.29 3.30 3.31 3.32 3.33 3.34 3.35 3.36 3.37 3.38 3.39 3.40 3.41 4.1

The Eastern Bactria survey 118 Abandoned canal, east Bactria 119 Example of a river diversion 120 Chalcolithic sherds from Taluqan 121 Andronovo/Burguljuk/Jaz I related sherds from AÈ Khanoum 124 Plan of Shortughaï 126 Shortughaï Period I–II 128 Shortughaï Period I–II 129 Shortughaï Period I jar in situ 130 Shortughaï wall Period II and intrusive Period Ib burial 130 Shortughaï Period III 131 Shortughaï Period IV burial 131 Shortughaï Period I Harappan sherd 132 Shortughaï Period II pedestal dish 132 Shortughaï ‘Andronovo’ sherds 132 Shortughaï Period I–II etched carnelian beads 134 Shortughaï Period I long carnelian bead 134 Shortughaï Period III bronze pin 135 Shortughaï Harappan seal 135 Map showing a reconstruction of the Bronze Age environment of the Shortughaï Plain 136 Shortughaï Period I–II crucible fragments 137 Shortughaï: raw lapis lazuli 138 Map of the Dashli and associated sites in the north-west of Balkh 143 Dashli 1 fort 144 Dashli 3 ‘temple’ 145 Dashli 3 ‘palace’ 146 Dashli 3 ‘sceptre’ in the National Museum 147 Dashli 3 fragments of alabaster mosaic in the National Museum 148 Dashli ceramics in the National Museum 149 Dashli ceramics in the National Museum 150 Bronze Age sites north of Tashkurghan 152 Fullol Hoard: gold vessels 152 Fullol Hoard: silver vessels 153 Fullol Hoard: silver vessels 153 Fullol Hoard: motifs 154 Bronze Age objects from illicit excavations in Afghanistan displayed on a Kabul street in 1975–6 155 A Bactrian bronze seal in the Louvre 156 A Bactrian decorated chlorite flagon in the Louvre 156 A Bactrian bronze axe-head in the New York Metropolitan Museum 156 Map of the Kandahar area in the Bronze Age 162

figures and tables

4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 4.9 4.10 4.11 4.12 4.13 4.14 4.15 4.16 4.17 4.18 4.19 4.20 4.21 4.22 4.23 4.24 4.25 4.26 4.27 4.28 4.29 4.30 4.31 4.32 4.33 4.34 4.35 4.36 4.37 4.38 4.39 4.40 4.41

Mundigak, general site plan of excavation areas 164 Mundigak, view of mound A in 1956 165 Mundigak, view of mound A in 1966 165 Mundigak A: Period 1, 5 167 Mundigak A: Period II, 2 168 Mundigak A: Period II, 3b 168 Mundigak A: Period III, 2 170 Mundigak A: Period III, 6a 171 Mundigak, general plan of the Period IV structures 174 Mundigak A: plan and elevation of ‘colonnade’ 175 Mundigak A: façade of the Period IV monumental building 176 Mundigak A: façade of the Period IV monumental building 176 Mundigak A: ‘palace’ first reconstruction 177 Mundigak A: ‘palace’ final reconstruction 178 Mundigak B: angle of rampart and contemporary structures IV, 1 180 Mundigak D: bastion IV, 1 181 Mundigak G: plan and section of ‘temple’ 182 Mundigak G: view of the ‘temple’ from Mound A in 1966 183 Mundigak G: view of the ‘temple’ showing triangular ‘buttresses’ 184 Mundigak, conjectural reconstruction of the Period IV ramparts 185 Mundigak A: plan of the ‘massive monument’ 187 Mundigak, pottery from Period I 193 Mundigak, pottery from Period II 194 Mundigak, pottery from Period III 195 Mundigak, decorated pottery from Period III 198 Mundigak, decorated pottery from Period III, showing Quetta ‘solid’ style 200 Mundigak, decorated pottery from Period III, showing Quetta ‘linear’ style 201 Mundigak, pottery from Period III 202 Mundigak, wheelmade and decorated pottery from Period IV1 203 Mundigak, wheelmade and decorated pottery from Period IV1 204 Mundigak, wheelmade and decorated pottery from Period IV1 205 Mundigak, wheelmade and decorated pottery from Period IV1 206 Mundigak, decorated pottery of Quetta style, Period IV1 207 Mundigak, special function and/or intrusive pottery, Period IV2 208 Mundigak, wheelmade and decorated pottery from Period IV2 210 Mundigak, polychrome vessel from Period IV2 211 Mundigak, wheelmade and decorated pottery from Period IV3 212 Mundigak, wheelmade and decorated pottery from Period IV3 213 Mundigak, special function and/or intrusive style pottery from Period IV3 214 Mundigak, decorated pottery from Period V 215

xix

xx

FIGURES AND TABLES

4.42 4.43 4.44 4.45 4.46 4.47 4.48 4.49 4.50 4.51 4.52 4.53 4.54 4.55 4.56 4.57 4.58 4.59 4.60 4.61 4.62 4.63 4.64 4.65 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 5.8 5.9 5.10 5.11 5.12

Mundigak, miscellaneous objects 216 Mundigak, stone bowls; copper/bronze objects 219 Mundigak, metal objects 220 Mundigak, stone vessels in the National Museum 221 Mundigak, seals, spindle whorls and Period IV ceramics in the National Museum 223 Said Qala, sondage profiles 226 Said Qala, example of Period II architecture 227 Said Qala: example of architecture, Period III; oven from above structure 229 Said Qala, intrusive or special function sherds 231 Said Qala, intrusive or special function sherds 232 Said Qala, intrusive or special function pottery 233 Said Qala, examples of stone hoes 234 Said Qala, metal objects 236 Said Qala, terracotta figurines 238 Deh Morasi Ghundai: shrine complex, Period Ila; used magnetite nodule, Period Ila; female figurines, Period IIa 240 Mundigak IV bowls from Kandahar and Mundigak 242 Nad-i Ali, Sorkh Dagh mound 244 Characteristic artefact styles of the Quetta valley 249 Characteristic artefacts at Damb Sadaat II 250 Namazga pottery from Geoksyur 252 Comparison of decorated pottery of Namazga III and Mundigak III 253 Comparison of decorated pottery, seals and figurines of Damb Sadaat II and Namazga III 254 Pottery of Damb Sadaat II 256 ‘Zhob mother goddess’ figurines 256 Map of the eastern Achaemenid Empire showing satrapies 262 Map of Hellenistic Afghanistan and adjacent regions, with the route of Alexander 264 Plan of Kohna Qal’a, the Iron Age ‘city’ adjacent to Aï Khanoum 269 The circular ramparts of Iron Age Kohna Qal’a 270 Satellite image of Qunduz Bala Hisar 271 Plan of Altin 10, Palace 1 272 Plan of Altin 10, Palace 2 273 Plan of Altin Dilyar Tepe 274 General view of the site of Chashma-i Shafa 275 The excavated fire temple and altar at Chashma-i Shafa 276 Painted Iron Age ceramics from Qala 350A in the Sar-o-Tar basin of Sistan 278 View of Kandahar from the ridge overlooking the site 279

figures and tables

5.13 5.14 5.15 5.16 5.17 5.18 5.19 5.20 5.21 5.22 5.23 5.24 5.25 5.26 5.27

5.28 5.29 5.30 5.31 5.32 5.33 5.34 5.35 5.36 5.37 5.38 5.39 5.40 5.41 5.42 5.43 5.44 5.45 5.46

Map of the site of Kandahar showing excavated areas 280 Section through the east rampart at Kandahar 281 The cut through the rampart at Kandahar 281 Plan of the Site H building at Kandahar 282 Achaemenid ceramics from Site D at Kandahar 284 View of the excavations at Tepe Zargaran, Balkh, with fragmentary Classical column remains 286 Plan of the circular Hellenistic town of Emshi Tepe 287 Plan of part of the excavated Hellenistic temple of Jiga Tepe 288 The lower town and ramparts of Sikandarabad Shahr-i Kohna with the citadel in the foreground 290 Plan of Aï Khanoum 292 Aï Khanoum, view from the citadel 294 Aï Khanoum, photo of the site revealing extensive damage caused by robbing 294 Aï Khanoum, reconstructed view towards the south-west from the theatre 295 Aï Khanoum, reconstructed view to the south-east: the propylaeum and courtyard of the palace 295 Aï Khanoum, reconstructed view to the west: the main street, the temenos of the temple with indented niches and the courtyard of the palace 296 Aï Khanoum, plan of the administrative complex 297 Aï Khanoum, colonnade of the palace 298 Aï Khanoum, Corinthian capital from the south portico of the palace courtyard 299 Capitals from Aï Khanoum re-used in a nearby tea-house 300 Aï Khanoum, mosaic floor in the administrative building 301 Aï Khanoum, plan of the temple with indented niches 303 Aï Khanoum, the temple with indented niches 304 Aï Khanoum, a herm of an elderly man from the gymnasium 306 Aï Khanoum, funerary relief from the necropolis 307 Aï Khanoum, silver medallion with Cybele on a chariot 308 Aï Khanoum, bone figurine representing a standing goddess 308 Aï Khanoum, bronze statuette of a beardless Heracles 309 Aï Khanoum, headless female statuette from the sanctuary of the temple with indented niches 310 Tillya Tepe, pendant with seal of Athene 312 Tillya Tepe, tree 313 Tillya Tepe, ‘Bactrian Aphrodite’ 314 Tillya Tepe, clasp 315 Tillya Tepe, dagger and sheath 315 Tillya Tepe, ‘dragon king’ 316

xxi

xxii

FIGURES AND TABLES

5.47 Aramaic document, probably from Balkh, concerning the campaign against Alexander 318 5.48 Aramaic inscription from Darunta 319 5.49 The Graeco-Aramaic bilingual inscription of Aªoka from Kandahar 321 5.50 The Greek building inscription from Kandahar 322 5.51 The Sophytos inscription, purportedly from Kandahar 323 5.52 The Kharoshthi inscription of Tiravharna from the neighbourhood of Jalalabad 327 5.53 Sophytos silver coin of unknown denomination 332 5.54 Gold stater of the Graeco-Bactrian king Diodotus 333 5.55 Silver Attic tetradrachm of the Graeco-Bactrian king Antimachus 334 5.56 Square bronze coin of the Graeco-Bactrian king Antimachus 334 5.57 Silver Attic standard tetradrachm of Eucratides I 334 5.58 Square silver drachm of reduced Indian weight struck by Apollodotus I 335 5.59 Square copper bilingual coin of Pantaleon 335 6.1 Map to illustrate main sites discussed in Chapter 6 344 6.2 Map of sites associated with Begram on the Kuh-i Daman plain north of Kabul 354 6.3 The excavations at Begram 355 6.4 Plan of the site of Begram 356 6.5 Ivory from Begram in the Musée Guimet 357 6.6 Ivory from Begram in the Musée Guimet 357 6.7 Ivory from Begram in the Musée Guimet 358 6.8 Glass from Begram in the Musée Guimet 359 6.9 Glass from Begram in the Musée Guimet 359 6.10 Glass from Begram in the Musée Guimet 360 6.11 Plaster plaques from Begram in the Musée Guimet 361 6.12 The stupa-monastery at Kandahar 362 6.13 Spiral-burnished pottery from Kandahar 363 6.14 Plan of the site of Wardak 366 6.15 Stupa 1 at Wardak 367 6.16 Remains of paintings in the monastery at Wardak 367 6.17 Photo of the site of Kharwar 368 6.18 Plan of the remains at Kharwar 369 6.19 Map of the sites in and around Kabul 370 6.20 The city walls of Kabul 371 6.21 Isometric view of the Tepe Narnenj remains 372 6.22 Photo of the excavated stupa of Qol-e Tut 373 6.23 The stupa at Shiwaki 374 6.24 The Minar-i Chakri 374 6.25 Aerial view of Mes Aynak 375

figures and tables

6.26 6.27 6.28 6.29 6.30 6.31 6.32 6.33 6.34 6.35 6.36 6.37 6.38 6.39 6.40 6.41 6.42 6.43 6.44 6.45 6.46 6.47 6.48 6.49 6.50 6.51 6.52 6.53 6.54 6.55 6.56 6.57 6.58 6.59 6.60 6.61 6.62

A stupa at Mes Aynak 376 The excavations at Surkh Kotal 377 Plan of Surkh Kotal 378 The ‘altar’ at Surkh Kotal 379 One of the merlons from Surkh Kotal in the Musée Guimet 380 Pseudo-classical pilaster and cornice from Surkh Kotal in the Musée Guimet 381 Statue of Kanishka from Surkh Kotal in the National Museum 382 The sanctuary site of Rabatak 383 The Sasanian rock relief of Rag-i Bibi 383 The ramparts of Balkh 385 Tepe Rustam at Balkh 385 Takht-i Rustam at Balkh 386 A digital elevation model of Zadiyan from satellite imagery 387 The citadel of Zadiyan 387 The Balkh oasis wall 388 Approximate alignment of the Balkh oasis wall in relation to other Kushan fortifications in the Balkh oasis 389 Elevation, section and plan of the Balkh oasis wall 390 General view of the main cliffs at Bamiyan with the two colossal Buddhas 391 The 53-metre Buddha at Bamiyan 392 The 38-metre Buddha at Bamiyan 393 The standing Buddha at Kakrak 394 Seated Buddha at Bamiyan 395 Wooden architecture imitated in stucco in one of the caves at Bamiyan 396 Painting from Bamiyan in the Musée Guimet 396 Wall painting in the niche of the 38-metre Buddha 397 Plan of the caves at the foot of the 54-metre Buddha and 38-metre Buddha at Bamiyan 398 Plan of the fortifications at Shahr-i Zohak 399 The fortress of Shahr-i Zohak 400 The fortress of Chehel Burj 400 Detail of the decoration and arrow slits at Chehel Burj 401 The rock-cut stupa at Haibak 401 The stupa at Guldarra 402 Plan of the stupa-monastery at Tepe Sardar 404 The main stupa at Tepe Sardar 404 Tapa Sardar: male head from earlier period, Bodhisattva (?) 405 Tapa Sardar: bearded head from earlier period, Bodhisattva Vajrapani (?) 405 Tepe Sardar: colossal gilded foot from Room 100, Antique Period 2 406

xxiii

xxiv

FIGURES AND TABLES

6.63 Schist Buddha statue from Paitava in the Musée Guimet 407 6.64 Schist relief from Shotorak in the Musée Guimet 408 6.65 Schist reliefs from Chakhil-i Ghundi, Hadda, in the Musée Guimet 408 6.66 Relief from Qunduz in the National Museum 409 6.67 Map of the sites in the Hadda-Jalalabad area 410 6.68 Hadda: plan and front view of Stupa 121 at Tapa Kalan 411 6.69 Plan of Tepe Shotor at Hadda 412 6.70 Aerial view of Tepe Shotor 412 6.71 The ‘Heracles’ relief from Tepe Shotor at Hadda 413 6.72 The ‘fish porch’ from Tepe Shotor at Hadda 414 6.73 Stucco bust from Tepe Kalan at Hadda in the Musée Guimet 415 6.74 Stucco head from Tepe Kalan at Hadda in the Musée Guimet 416 6.75 Composite image of the gold reliquary of Bimaran in the British Museum 417 6.76 Painting from Bagha Gai at Hadda in the Musée Guimet 420 6.77 The Sasanian painting at Ghulbiyan 421 6.78 Interpretive drawing of the Ghulbiyan painting 421 6.79 Dilbarjin Tepe: wall painting in the temple depicting Shiva and Parvati 422 6.80 The so-called ‘royal couple’ from Fondukistan in the Musée Guimet 424 6.81 The bejewelled deity from Fondukistan in the Musée Guimet 425 6.82 The bejewelled Buddha from Fondukistan in the Musée Guimet 426 6.83 Tepe Sardar: row of clay stupas and thrones on the eastern side of the main stupa 427 6.84 Tepe Sardar: detail of the unbaked-clay sculpture in chapel 37 428 6.85 Tepe Sardar: detail of the unbaked-clay Parinirvana Buddha in shrine 63 429 6.86 Tepe Sardar: multiple mould used to obtain decorative plaques for clay stupas, thrones, etc. 429 6.87 Gudul-i-Ahangaran; Ghazni: an inscribed clay tablet from inside of miniature stupa; Buddhist profession of faith 430 6.88 Marble statue of Surya from Khair Khana in the Musée Guimet 431 6.89 The barrow cemetery at Kandahar 434 6.90 The Rabatak Inscription in the National Museum 437 6.91 The well inscription from Surkh Kotal in the National Museum 438 6.92 A polyandric text from the Bactrian documents in the Hirayama Collection 440 6.93 A mention of Shahanshah Peroz in a text from the Bactrian documents in the Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art 441 6.94 The oldest mention of ‘Afghans’ in a text from the Bactrian documents in the Hirayama Collection 442

figures and tables

6.95 A translation of the Islamic invocation ‘bismillah’ in a text from the Bactrian documents in the Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art 443 6.96 Copper didrachm of Soter Megas, with the rayed head of Mithra and the reverse type of the king mounted on horseback (late first–early second century ad) 448 6.97 Kushan gold dinar of Vima Kadphises, with the bearded and diademed king emerging from rocks or cloud, and Shiva naked and standing on the reverse (early second century ad) 449 6.98 Kushan gold dinar of Kanishka, with the king standing at an altar and the reverse type of Nana (mid-second century ad) 450 6.99 Kushan copper tetradrachm of Kanishka, with the reverse type of Mioro (Mithra) radiate 451 6.100 Kushan gold dinar of Huvishka, with the reverse type of Miiro (late second century ad) 451 6.101 Kushan copper tetradrachm of the reduced standard of Huvishka, showing the king riding an elephant and a figure of Mao 452 6.102 Kushan copper unit of Vasishka, with the king standing at an altar, and Oesho in front of a bull on the reverse (mid-third century ad) 455 6.103 Kushan copper unit of Kanishka II, with the king standing at an altar, and Ardochsho on the reverse (first half of the third century ad) 455 6.104 Kushan copper unit of Shaka, with the king standing at an altar, and Ardochsho on the reverse (early fourth century ad) 455 7.1 Map showing early Islamic sites described in the text 461 7.2 Plan of the Mosque of No Gunbad at Balkh 466 7.3 Balkh, mosque of No Gunbad, view of interior 467 7.4 Balkh, mosque of No Gunbad, detail of stucco decoration 468 7.5 Lashkari Bazar, general plan 470 7.6 Lashkari Bazar, ground plan of the south palace 471 7.7 Lashkari Bazar, forecourt of the central palace 472 7.8 Lashkari Bazar, entrance to the central palace 472 7.9 Lashkari Bazar, south palace, wall decoration 473 7.10 Lashkari Bazar, south palace, squinches 473 7.11 Lashkari Bazar, fragment of wall painting from pillar 474 7.12 Ghazni, palace of Mas‘ud III, ground plan 475 7.13 Ghazni, polylobated arch with inscriptions bearing the name of Mas‘ud III 476 7.14 Ghazni, palace of Mas‘ud III, fragments of marble decoration. a: dado with benedictory inscription. b: panel with octagon pattern 476 7.15 Ghaznavid copper dish. National Museum 477 7.16 Ghaznavid glazed bowl with lustre decoration. National Museum 478 7.17 Ghaznavid copper and gold dish. National Museum 479 7.18 Ghazni, minaret of Mas‘ud III 480 7.19 Ghazni, minaret of Mas‘ud III, detail of the carved brick-work 481

xxv

xxvi

FIGURES AND TABLES

7.20 Ghazni, marble cenotaph on the tomb of Mahmud 482 7.21 Baba Hatim Ziyarat, façade of monument to the memory of Salar Khalil 483 7.22 Charkh-i Logar, wooden mihrab in local mosque 483 7.23 Charkh-i Logar, zone of transition in mihrab 484 7.24 Daulatabad, minaret 485 7.25 Daulatabad, minaret detail 486 7.26 Sar-i Pul, stucco decoration in the Ziyarat-i Imam-i Kalan 488 7.27 Sar-i Pul, stucco inscription in the Ziyarat-i Imam-i Kalan 489 7.28 Darra-i Shakh oratory, stucco decoration 489 7.29 Plan and elevation of the Baba Rushnai mausoleum 490 7.30 Plan and elevation of the Abu Hurayra mausoleum 491 7.31 Plans of the two mosques at Shahr-i Gholghola, Bamiyan 492 7.32 Map of early Islamic sites in Sistan 493 7.33 Plan of Nad-i Ali 494 7.34 The minaret of Khwaja Siah Push 496 7.35 The stellate plans of the minarets at Ghazni, Nad-i Ali, Khwaja Siah Push and the Qutb Minar in Delhi 497 7.36 Gul-i Safid, ground plan of a courtyard house in the centre of the city 498 7.37 Gul-i Safid, decorated wall of ivan in the same courtyard house as Fig. 7.36 499 7.38 Gul-i Safid, the same courtyard house as Fig. 7.36 499 7.39 Detail of the decoration at Gul-i Safid 500 7.40 Gul-i Safid, double-storeyed mud-brick tower to the north of the ruin-field 501 7.41 The citadel at Peshwaran 502 7.42 Peshwaran, façade of the mosque 503 7.43 House façade at Chigini II 504 7.44 Citadel and walls of Shahr-i Gholghola in Sar-o Tar 504 7.45 Plan of Sar-o Tar 505 7.46 Plan and elevation of the fortress of Qal’a-i Nau 506 7.47 The fortress of Qal’a-i Nau 507 7.48 Jam, the minaret, with fortifications in the background 514 7.49 Jam, the minaret: view showing horseman at the foot 515 7.50 Jam, detail of the tile decoration on the minaret 515 7.51 Jam, detail of the brick decoration on the minaret 516 7.52 Sakhar, the minaret 518 7.53 Qal’a-i Chahar Baradar, line of square and round towers 519 7.54 Comparative plans of towers in Ghur 520 7.55 Nili, mud-brick tower on stone base 521 7.56 Qal’a-i Chahar Baradar 4, detail of the decoration 521 7.57 Muna ‘Ala tower decoration 522 7.58 Qal’a-i Qaysar fortress 523

xxvii

figures and tables

7.59 7.60 7.61 7.62 7.63 7.64 7.65 7.66 7.67 7.68 7.69 7.70 7.71 7.72 7.73 7.74

Qal’a-i Qaysar fortress Qal’a-i Qaysar fortress detail Bamiyan, tower decoration Chisht, view of the two dome chambers Chisht, plans and sections of the two dome chambers Chisht, details of the brick decoration on the east dome chamber Larwand, façade and entrance of mosque Larwand, plan and elevation Herat, Friday Mosque, the Ghurid portal Herat, Friday Mosque, detail of the Ghurid portal Shah-i Mashad, ground plan Shah-i Mashad, south façade Shah-i Mashad, detail of decoration Shah-i Mashad, detail of decoration Danestama, ground plan of ruin Ghazni, moulded terracotta from the Ghurid phase of the palace of Mas‘ud III 7.75 Tala Begum, plan 7.76 Bust, so-called Ziyarat of Ghiyath al-Din 7.77 Bust, Ziyarat of Ghiyath al-Din, interior 7.78 Bust, Ziyarat of Ghiyath al-Din, inscribed tombstone 7.79 Bust, the arch 7.80 Bust, the arch detail 7.81 Bust, the arch detail 7.82 Bust, façade of mud-brick palace 8.1 Map showing main sites discussed in Chapter 8 8.2 Map of late Islamic sites in Sistan 8.3 Characteristic fortifications in Sistan 8.4 Characteristic zone of transition used in Sistan 8.5 Plan of Diwal-i Khudaydad 8.6 Diwal-i Khudaydad, courtyard house 8.7 Nishk, castle with corner bastions 8.8 Nishk, interior of castle 8.9 Nishk, fortified gate of city wall 8.10 One of the ruin fields of Sistan with the University of Bonn mission in the background 8.11 Typical ivan house in Sistan, showing characteristic vaulting, squinches and niches 8.12 The scouring effect of the ‘wind of 120 days’ on the ruins of Sistan 8.13 Herat, map showing main monuments 8.14 Herat, distant view with the two minarets and dome of the Gawharshad complex and the four minarets of the Husain-i Baiqara complex clearly visible

524 525 526 527 528 529 530 531 532 533 535 536 537 538 539 540 540 541 541 542 543 543 544 545 546 550 551 552 553 553 555 555 556 556 557 557 559

560

xxviii

FIGURES AND TABLES

8.15 8.16 8.17 8.18 8.19 8.20 8.21 8.22 8.23 8.24

Herat, distant view of the city in 1974 560 Herat, the city walls photographed in 1885 561 Herat, plan of Qal’a-i Ikhtiyaruddin 561 Herat, tile decoration on the northern tower of Qal’a-i Ikhtiyaruddin 562 Herat, reconstructed plan of the Gawhar Shad complex 563 Herat, sketch of the Gawhar Shad mosque by Durand 564 Herat, sketch of the Gawhar Shad madrasa by Durand 564 Herat, surviving minaret of the Gawhar Shad madrasa 566 Herat, surviving minaret of the Gawhar Shad mosque 567 Herat, detail of the tile-work inscription on the minaret of the Gawhar Shad mosque 568 8.25 Herat, plan of the Gawhar Shad mausoleum 569 8.26 Herat, interior decoration of the Gawhar Shad mausoleum 570 8.27 Herat, interior dome of the Gawhar Shad mausoleum 571 8.28 Herat, exterior dome of the Gawhar Shad mausoleum 571 8.29 Herat, the minarets of the Sultan Husain madrasa 572 8.30 Herat, tile detail on the Sultan Husain madrasa 573 8.31 Herat, plan of the Friday Mosque 574 8.32 Herat, Friday Mosque 574 8.33 Herat, mosque of Hauz-i Karboz, mihrab 575 8.34 Herat, plan and section of the mausoleum of Shahzadeh Abdullah 576 8.35 Herat, plan of the Gazurgah shrine 577 8.36 Herat, shrine complex of Gazurgah 577 8.37 Herat, tile decoration on the façade of Gazurgah 578 8.38 Herat, detail of tile decoration inside the main ivan at Gazurgah 579 8.39 Herat Province, map showing the number of sites in the Hari Rud catchment 580 8.40 Ziyaratgah, plan of the Friday Mosque 581 8.41 Ziyaratgah, ivan in front of the prayer hall of the Friday Mosque 582 8.42 Ziyaratgah, courtyard and side ivan of the Friday Mosque from the main ivan 583 8.43 Ziyaratgah, plan of the Khaniqah of Mulla Kalan 584 8.44 Ziyaratgah, the Khaniqah of Mulla Kalan 584 8.45 Kuhsan, plan and section of the madrasa 586 8.46 Kuhsan, tile decoration on the madrasa 587 8.47 Kuhsan, detail of the tile decoration on the dome 587 8.48 Deh-i Minar, plan and section of the Khaniqah 588 8.49 Kush Rabat, plan of the caravanserai 589 8.50 Ghazni, plan and section of the mausoleum of Shah Shahid 590 8.51 Ghazni, the mausoleum of Shah Shahid 590 8.52 Mazar-i Sharif, the Shrine of Ali 591 8.53 Balkh, plan and section of the Shrine of Khwaja Abu Nasr Parsa 593 8.54 Balkh, the Shrine of Khwaja Abu Nasr Parsa 594

xxix

figures and tables

8.55 Balkh, tile-work detail on the Shrine 8.56 Balkh, tile-work detail on the Shrine 8.57 Herat, bronze cauldron in the Friday Mosque 8.58 Metal ewer, signed and dated by Muhammad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghuri 8.59 Herat, Chaharsuq, covered reservoir 8.60 Herat, terraced garden overlooking the city 8.61 Herat, axonometric reconstruction of the Bagh-i Nazargah 8.62 Herat, decorated marble grave cover near Gazurgah 8.63 Kabul, the Bagh-i Babur 8.64 Kabul, the mosque of Shah Jahan in the Bagh-i Babur 8.65 Balkh, the arch of the madrasa of Sayyid Subhan Quli Khan 8.66 A hauz or cistern between Herat and Kuhsan

595 596 597 598 599 600 601 602 605 606 607 608

Tables 1.1 2.1 2.2 2.3 3.1 3.2 4.1 4.2 6.1 6.2 6.3

Natural vegetation in the Central mountain zone and Nuristan Late Palaeolithic flint industries of northern Afghanistan Calibrated radiocarbon dates for the Palaeolithic in Afghanistan Faunal remains from the Palaeolithic levels of Aq Kupruk II Radiocarbon dates from sites mentioned in the text Calibrated radiocarbon dates for the sites of Aq Kupruk II, Aq Kupruk I, Darra-I Kur and Shortugaï Radiocarbon dates from sites mentioned in the text Calibrated radiocarbon dates for the Neolithic and Bronze Age in southern Afghanistan Kushan king list Approximate framework for rulers of Gandhara and adjacent region Kushan, Kushanshah and Sasanian links

29 73 76 90 102 104 190 191 346 347 348

Notes on Contributors

Raymond Allchin (1923–2010) was one of the foremost British archaeologists in South Asian archaeology, elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries (FSA) in 1957 and of the British Academy (FBA) in 1981. He did fieldwork in Afghanistan, at Shahr-i Zohak, and for many years across South Asia in collaboration with his wife Bridget. They founded the biennial South Asian Archaeology symposia held across Europe since 1971, and the Ancient India and Iran Trust in Cambridge. He was a member of the Faculty of Oriental Studies, University of Cambridge, 1963–89, then Emeritus Reader in South Asian Archaeology there. Warwick Ball is a Near Eastern archaeologist who has carried out excavations, architectural studies and monumental restoration in Afghanistan (where he was Acting Director of the British Institute of Afghan Studies), Iran, Iraq (where he was Director of Excavations of the British School of Archaeology in Iraq), Jordan, Libya and Ethiopia. He is currently Editor in Chief of Afghanistan, the journal of the American Institute of Afghanistan Studies, and also author of many books and articles on the history and archaeology of the region, including: Archaeological Gazetteer of Afghanistan (2 vols, 1982; new edition, 2019); with Anthony McNicoll, Excavations at Kandahar 1974 and 1975 (1996); and Monuments of Afghanistan (2008). Olivier Bordeaux studied Central Asia numismatics under the supervision of Professor Osmund Bopearachchi at the Université de Paris Panthéon-Sorbonne. He is currently the Deputy Director of the Délégation Archéologique Française en Afghanistan (DAFA). He is also working on the publication of the Kushan coin collection at the Bibliothèque National de France (BNF). Sophia Bowlby has retired from the Geography and Environmental Studies Department of the University of Reading, where she specialised in feminist social geography. She continues her research as an Honorary Research Fellow at Reading and Visiting Professor at Loughborough University.

notes on contributors

Richard S. Davis is a prehistorian with particular focus on northern Afghanistan, southern Tajikistan, eastern Turkey and central Siberia. Recently, his work has shifted to maritime cultures of the Aleutians and Bering Sea coast. His basic research interests centre on the study of human adaptations to the changing environments of the Pleistocene and Holocene, and he is now Professor Emeritus in Anthropology at Bryn Mawr College, Pennsylvania. Klaus Fischer (1919–93) conducted archeological field research on pre-Islamic and Islamic art and archaeology in Afghanistan between 1959 and 1962, and between 1966 and 1974 carried out survey work on mainly Islamic remains in Sistan. From 1966 to 1985 he taught at the Faculty of Arts at the University of Bonn. Henri-Paul Francfort is a Member of the Institut de France (Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres), and senior researcher emeritus at Centre Nationale de Recherche Scientifique. He is Director of the Archaeology of Central Asia team of CNRS (1984–2004), and the French Archaeological Mission in Central Asia (1989–2012). He has carried out fieldwork in Afghanistan (Bamiyan, Aï Khanoum, Shortughaï), India, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kirghizstan and Siberia, and is the author of more than 160 publications. Simon Glenn is Research Fellow in the Heberden Coin Room at the Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford. He wrote his doctoral thesis on the coins of the early Graeco-Bactrian kings. Norman Hammond is a Senior Fellow of the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research at Cambridge University and Professor Emeritus of Archaeology at Boston University. He directed the first archaeological survey of the Helmand Valley in southern Afghanistan in 1966, was founding editor of Afghan Studies and South Asian Archaeology, and has also worked in North Africa and Latin America. He was elected FSA in 1974, FBA in 1998 and a Member of the Academia Europaea in 2018. Bertille Lyonnet is an archaeologist, and Directrice de Recherche Emerita at the CNRS, Paris. She has worked in Central Asia (Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan) since 1972, and since 1990 in north-eastern Syria, the northern Caucasus and Azerbaijan. A specialist in ceramics of different periods, she has always shown a special interest in the interrelations between the different worlds where she worked. She is the author of several book, including (with Nadezhda Dubova) The World of the Oxus Civilisation (forthcoming), and over 150 articles. David W. Mac Dowall (FSA 1960) was formerly a numismatist at the British Museum, a civil servant, Master of University College, Durham, and Director of the North London Polytechnic (now University of North London). A specialist in

xxxi

xxxii

NOTES ON CONTRIBUTORS

the pre-Islamic numismatics of Afghanistan, he has written widely on the coinage and epigraphy of Afghanistan and South Asia generally. Cameron A. Petrie is Reader in South Asian and Iranian Archaeology at the University of Cambridge, and a Fellow of Trinity College. He has conducted fieldwork in India, Iran and Pakistan, which has involved the investigation of archaeological landscapes and settlement sites dating to the Neolithic, Chalcolithic, Bronze Age, Iron Age and historic periods. Jim G. Shaffer is Associate Professor of Anthropology at Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland. Since the late 1960s he has conducted archaeological field research throughout Afghanistan, Pakistan and India, focusing on the Bronze through Iron Ages, and has published widely on those subjects. Nicholas Sims-Williams is Emeritus Professor of Iranian and Central Asian Studies at SOAS, University of London, and was elected FBA in 1988. His research centres on the medieval Iranian languages of Afghanistan and Central Asia, in particular Sogdian and Bactrian, and his publications include a three-volume edition of Bactrian documents from northern Afghanistan (2001–12). Maurizio Taddei (1936–2000) was an officer of the Museo Nazionale d’Arte Orientale in Rome from 1964 to 1974 and from 1968 a lecturer in Indian Art and Archaeology at the Istituto Universitario Orientale, Naples, becoming Professor of Indian Art History from 1976 and Vice Chancellor from 1981 to 1984. He was Director of the Italian excavations at Tapa Sardar from 1967, returning there in 1999. Kevin White is Associate Professor in Environmental Remote Sensing in the School of Archaeology, Geography and Environmental Science at the University of Reading, UK. He has thirty years’ experience of fieldwork, mostly focused on soils, geology and vegetation in dryland regions of Africa and Asia.

Acknowledgements

This new edition has only been made possible with the assistance of a great many people. As editors we are grateful to all our co-authors, both those who contributed to the 1978 volume, who have in some cases made significant emendations to their original chapters, and those who have joined us for this revised and expanded second edition. We are grateful to Carole Hillenbrand, who persuaded EUP to take the book on. We, however, remain entirely responsible for all errors missed and advice ignored. Norman Hammond appreciates the encouragement given by our late co-editor, Raymond Allchin, and his wife Bridget, for the idea of a new edition of The Archaeology of Afghanistan, and to Sir Nicholas Barrington of the Ancient India and Iran Trust, which will benefit from the royalties. David Whitehouse allowed the use of his unpublished colour photographs of the 1974 Kandahar excavations, and a serendipitous encounter with Mitch Allen in Vancouver led to the inclusion of results from his and William Trousdale’s 1970s work in Sistan; Marc Abramiuk shared the results of his more recent work in the Helmand valley. Sophie Bowlby and Rick Davis went back four decades in their memories and files to revise our first two chapters, but NH is above all grateful to Warwick Ball for agreeing to join the project and taking charge of the bulk of the revision and augmentation: the extensive assistance he was able to recruit for both text and illustrations is reflected in his own acknowledgements and in the book itself. Warwick Ball is grateful to Norman Hammond for inviting him to take part in this exciting project in the first place. For advice, comments and discussions gener