Northwest Buddhist treasures in NYC

Tribune.com.pk (2011); Dhr. Seven, Ashley Wells, Wisdom Quarterly (2012)

A vision of paradise (Mohammed Nagri, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 4th Cent.) BELOW: Maha Maya's Dream in Kapilvastu, Sikri, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 2nd-3rd Cent. (sites.asiasociety.org).

  

The Buddha's mother's dream

LAHORE, Pakistan [formerly Northwest India] - Fifty Gandhara Civilization artifacts from the Lahore Museum collection have received a tremendous response from media and visitors to the New Asia Society Museum in New York in the United States.

  

India before 1947 and Pakistan (leics.gov.uk)

Elaine Merguerian, Director of Communications at the New Asia Society Museum, said via email that the exhibition “has received much enthusiastic attention from the media and many, many visitors who are interested in Pakistan, Buddhist heritage, and the story behind the exhibition.”

   

She added that the exhibition was “probably a once in a lifetime opportunity to see these great works of art from Pakistan in the United States.”

  

Lahore Museum (Ed Sentner)

LAHORE MUSEUM Director Humaira Alam said museums in South Korea, Japan, and Sri Lanka had repeatedly asked the Lahore Museum for artifacts. “They are not sent until we are assured about the timely return of the artifacts and their security,” she said.

  

The collection was also displayed in Germany, France, and Switzerland between 2008 and 2010 and as part of an exhibition in Japan in 1999.

Last seen at home?

It was not clear when or if the pieces that have been winning rave reviews in New York were last on display at the Lahore Museum itself, since museum officials made conflicting statements. More

• Dispute over the Buddha's birthplace
• VIRTUAL TOUR: Lahore Museum, PK
• Rescuing Afghanistan's Buddhist history
• The Splendors of Afghanistan (Gandhara)

Discovering Buddhist-Afghanistan
Michal Przedlacki; edited by Dhr. Seven, Wisdom Quarterly

(Dziadek) Archeologists clean the remains of 2,600-year-old Buddhist monasteries and buildings in the MES AYNAK VALLEY. Of an area of roughly 1,000 hectares (1.5 km by 1.5 km) only a tiny portion has been uncovered to date. And not a single site has been fully excavated. Archeologists believe there are three distinct archeological levels in Mes Aynak ("Copper Well"). Excavations are currently underway only on the first (newest) layer, dating back to 2-9th century B.C.E. (PHOTOS)

Mes Aynak excavation site 25 miles east of Kabul (Jerome Starkey)

The World's Oldest Buddhist Monastery