A joint archaeologist’s team of Pakistani and Italian archaeologists have unearthed a 2,300 years old Buddhist temple. The temple dates back to the Buddhist period. The excavation team found the apsidal structure along with several other artifacts of that time. They recovered several coins, pots, vessels, rings, and many more which landed at a sum of almost 2,700 artifacts. The team also unraveled some of the manuscripts written in the kharosthi language from Greece King Menander’s period.
A senior official quoted that they have discovered an over 2,300 years old temple of the Buddhist period in the Northwest part of Pakistan. The official compared the discovery in Swat with Taxila since both sites are known for their historical significance. According to him, the Buddhist period temple in Swat district is much older than what’s discovered in the Taxila heritage site.
The temple in Bazira city of Swat district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province is indeed the most ancient temple of the Buddhist period in the country. As per Dr. Luca Maria Oliver who’s the head of the Italian archaeological mission, the discovery of the temple proves that Swat was one of the oldest as well as biggest hubs for Buddhism in Pakistan during the Buddhist period. This recent discovery has given confidence to archaeologists and they believe that there’s a possibility of more such findings in the district.
The unraveling of the temple and artifacts also points that the Swat region had been a sacred place for around seven religions in the past. Italian ambassador to Pakistan, Andreas Ferrarese made a similar remark. He told the media that archaeological sites are extremely important for different religions of the world. The Italian archaeological mission’s collaboration with the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa archaeological department is not unforeseen as both sides have been protecting the archaeological sites in the province for a quite long time.
According to Dr. Abdus Samad, the director of museum and archaeology, the provincial council has acquired fourteen such archaeological sites since section four allows it. Excavation teams are working on these sites and there’s a chance to learn more about the history.