Buddhas of Bamiyan - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.

org/wiki/Buddhas_of_Bamiyan

Buddhas of Bamiyan
The Buddhas of Bamiyan (Persian:‫ – ﺑﺖﻫﺎی ﺑﺎﻣﻴﺎﻥ‬bott-hâye Bāmiyān) were 6th-century[1] monumental statues
Buddhas of Bamiyan
of Gautam Buddha carved into the side of a cliff in the Bamyan valley in the Hazarajat region of central
Afghanistan, 230 kilometres (140 mi) northwest of Kabul at an elevation of 2,500 metres (8,200 ft). Built in 507 UNESCO World Heritage site
CE (smaller) and 554 CE (larger),[1] the statues represented the classic blended style of Gandhara art.[2] They were
35 (115 ft) and 53 meters (174 ft), respectively.[3]

The main bodies were hewn directly from the sandstone cliffs, but details were modeled in mud mixed with straw,
coated with stucco. This coating, practically all of which wore away long ago, was painted to enhance the
expressions of the faces, hands, and folds of the robes; the larger one was painted carmine red and the smaller
one was painted multiple colors.[4]

The lower parts of the statues' arms were constructed from the same mud-straw mix supported on wooden
armatures. It is believed that the upper parts of their faces were made from great wooden masks or casts. The
rows of holes that can be seen in photographs held wooden pegs that stabilized the outer stucco.

They were dynamited and destroyed in March 2001 by the Taliban, on orders from leader Mullah Mohammed
Omar,[5] after the Taliban government declared that they were idols.[6] An envoy visiting the United States in the
following weeks said that they were destroyed to protest international aid exclusively reserved for statue
maintenance while Afghanistan was experiencing famine,[7] while the Afghan Foreign Minister claimed that the
destruction was merely about carrying out Islamic religious iconoclasm. International opinion strongly Taller Buddha of Bamiyan
condemned the destruction of the Buddhas, which in the following years was primarily viewed as an example of
Location Bamiyan, Afghanistan
the extreme religious intolerance of the Taliban. Japan and Switzerland, among others, have pledged support for
the rebuilding of the statues.[8]
Part of Cultural Landscape and
Archaeological Remains
of the Bamiyan Valley

Contents
Criteria Cultural: i, ii, iii, iv, vi.
Reference 208-001
History (http://whc.unesco.org
Attacks on the Buddha's statue
/en/list/208-001)

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11th to the 20th century Inscription 2003 (27th Session)

1997 to 2001, under the Taliban Endangered 2003-present
2001, destruction by the Taliban
Area 105 ha
Commitment to rebuild Buffer zone 225.25 ha
Developments since 2002
Coordinates 34°49′55.35″N
Discoveries
Another giant statue unearthed
67°49′36.49″E

Restoration
Rise of Buddhas with 3D light projection
Gallery
See also
References
Further reading
External links

Location of Buddhas of Bamiyan in

History Afghanistan

Bamiyan lies on the Silk Road, which runs through the Hindu Kush mountain region, in the Bamiyan Valley. The Silk Road has been historically a caravan route
linking the markets of China with those of the Western world. It was the site of several Buddhist monasteries, and a thriving center for religion, philosophy, and
art. Monks at the monasteries lived as hermits in small caves carved into the side of the Bamiyan cliffs. Most of these monks embellished their caves with
religious statuary and elaborate, brightly colored frescoes. It was a Buddhist religious site from the 2nd century up to the time of the Islamic invasion in the later
half of the 7th century. Until it was completely conquered by the Muslim Saffarids in the 9th century, Bamiyan shared the culture of Gandhara.

The two most prominent statues were the giant standing sculptures of Buddhas Vairocana and Sakyamuni, identified by the different mudras performed. The
Buddha popularly called "Solsol" measured 53 meters tall, and "Shahmama" 35 meters—the niches in which the figures stood are 58 and 38 meters respectively
from bottom to top.[3][9] Before being blown up in 2001 they were the largest examples of standing Buddha carvings in the world (the 8th century Leshan Giant
Buddha is taller,[10] but that statue is sitting). Since then the Spring Temple Buddha has been built in China, and at 128 m (420 ft) it is the tallest statue in the
world. Plans for the construction of the Spring Temple Buddha were announced soon after the blowing up of the Bamiyan Buddhas and China condemned the
systematic destruction of the Buddhist heritage of Afghanistan.

It is believed that the monumental Buddha sculptures were carved into the cliffs of Bamiyan between the 3rd to 6th centuries AD, while the cave complex in the
east, including the 38 meter Buddha, a stupa was built in the 3rd or 4th centuries AD. The 55 meter Buddha is believed to date from the 5th and 6th centuries
AD. Historic documentation refers to celebrations held every year attracting numerous pilgrims and that offers were made to the monumental statues

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(http://whc.unesco.org/uploads/nominations/208rev.pdf). They were

perhaps the most famous cultural landmarks of the region, and the site
was listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site along with the
surrounding cultural landscape and archaeological remains of the
Bamiyan Valley. Their color faded through time.[11]

Chinese Buddhist pilgrim Xuanzang visited the site on 30 April 630

AD,[12][13][14] and described Bamiyan in the Da Tang Xiyu Ji as a
flourishing Buddhist center "with more than ten monasteries and more
Drawing of the Buddhas of
Bamiyan, visited by Alexander than a thousand monks". He also noted that both Buddha figures were
Burnes in 1832 "decorated with gold and fine jewels" (Wriggins, 1995). Intriguingly,
Xuanzang mentions a third, even larger, reclining statue of the Buddha.
[4][14] A monumental seated Buddha, similar in style to those at Bamiyan,
still exists in the Bingling Temple caves in China's Gansu province.

The destruction of the Bamyan Buddhas became a symbol of oppression and a rallying point for the freedom of
religious expression. Despite the fact that most Afghans are now Muslim, they too had embraced their past and many The taller of the two Buddhas of
were appalled by the destruction.[15][16] Bamiyan before 2001

Attacks on the Buddha's statue

11th to the 20th century

In 1221, with the advent of Genghis Khan, "a terrible disaster befell Bamiyan."
[17][18] Nevertheless, the statues were spared. Later, the Mughal emperor,
Aurangzeb, tried to use heavy artillery to destroy the statues. Another attempt to
destroy the Bamiyan statues was made by the 18th century Persian king Nader
Afshar, directing cannon fire at them.[19]

Smaller Buddha in 1977
The enormous statues, the male Salsal ("light shines through the universe") and Taller Buddha in 1963 and in 2008
after destruction
the (smaller) female Shamama ("Queen Mother"),[20] as they were called by the
locals, did not fail to fire the imagination of Islamic writers in centuries past. The
larger statue reappears as the malevolent giant Salsal in medieval Turkish tales.[21]

Afghan king Abdur Rahman Khan destroyed its face during a military campaign against the Shia Hazara rebellion. [22] A

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Frenchman named Dureau had photographed it in 1847.[23]

1997 to 2001, under the Taliban

Abdul Wahed, a Taliban commander operating around the area, announced his intention to blow up the Buddhas in 1997, even before he had taken control of
the valley. In 1998 when he battled off the Hizb-i-Wahdat militia from the area and took control of Bamiyan, Wahed drilled holes in the Buddhas' heads for
explosives. He was prevented from taking further action by the local governor and a direct order of Mohammed Omar, although tyres were later burned on the
head of the great Buddha.[24] In July 1999, Mullah Mohammed Omar issued a decree in favor of the preservation of the Bamiyan Buddha statues. Because
Afghanistan's Buddhist population no longer exists, and the statues were no longer worshipped, he added: "The government considers the Bamiyan statues as an
example of a potential major source of income for Afghanistan from international visitors. The Taliban states that Bamiyan shall not be destroyed but
protected."[25] In early 2000, local Taliban authorities asked for UN assistance to rebuild drainage ditches around tops of the alcoves where the Buddhas were
set.[26]

However, Afghanistan's radical clerics began a campaign to crack down on "un-Islamic" segments of Afghan society. The Taliban soon banned all forms of
imagery, music, and sports, including television, in accordance with what they considered a strict interpretation of Sharia.[27]

In March 2001, the statues were destroyed by the Taliban of Mullah Omar following a decree issued by him. The Taliban supreme leader Mullah Omar explained
why he ordered the statues to be destroyed in an interview:

I did not want to destroy the Bamiyan Buddha. In fact, some foreigners came to me and said they would like to conduct the repair work of the
Bamiyan Buddha that had been slightly damaged due to rains. This shocked me. I thought, these callous people have no regard for thousands of
living human beings - the Afghans who are dying of hunger, but they are so concerned about non-living objects like the Buddha. This was
extremely deplorable. That is why I ordered its destruction. Had they come for humanitarian work, I would have never ordered the Buddha's
destruction.[28]

Information and Culture Minister Qadratullah Jamal told Associated Press of a decision by 400 religious clerics from across Afghanistan declaring the Buddhist
statues against the tenets of Islam. "They came out with a consensus that the statues were against Islam," said Jamal.

According to UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura, a meeting of ambassadors from the 54 member states of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference
(OIC) was conducted. All OIC states—including Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, three countries that officially recognised the Taliban
government—joined the protest to spare the monuments.[29] Saudi Arabia and the UAE later condemned the destruction as "savage". [30] Although India never
recognised the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, New Delhi offered to arrange for the transfer of all the artifacts in question to India, "where they would be kept
safely and preserved for all mankind". These overtures were rejected by the Taliban.[31] Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf sent Moinuddin Haider to Kabul to
try to prevent the destruction, by arguing that it was un-Islamic and unprecedented. [32] According to Taliban minister, Abdul Salam Zaeef, UNESCO sent the
Taliban government 36 letters objecting to the proposed destruction. He asserted that the Chinese, Japanese, and Sri Lankan delegates were the most strident

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advocates for preserving the Buddhas. The Japanese in particular proposed a variety of different solutions to the issue, these included moving the statues to
Japan, covering the statues from view, and the payment of money. [33][34] The second edition of the Turkistan Islamic Party's magazine Islamic Turkistan
contained an article on Buddhism, and described the destruction of the Buddhas of Bamiyan despite attempts by the Japanese government of "infidels" to
preserve the remains of the statues.[35]

A statement issued by the ministry of religious affairs of the Taliban regime justified the destruction as being in accordance with Islamic law. [36] Abdul Salam
Zaeef held that the destruction of the Buddhas was finally ordered by Abdul Wali, the Minister for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice.[37]

2001, destruction by the Taliban

The statues were destroyed by dynamite over several weeks, starting on 2 March 2001. [38][39] The destruction was
carried out in stages. Initially, the statues were fired at for several days using anti-aircraft guns and artillery. This
caused severe damage, but did not obliterate them. During the destruction, Taliban Information Minister
Qudratullah Jamal lamented that, "This work of destruction is not as simple as people might think. You can't knock
down the statues by shelling as both are carved into a cliff; they are firmly attached to the mountain". [40] Later, the
Taliban placed anti-tank mines at the bottom of the niches, so that when fragments of rock broke off from artillery
fire, the statues would receive additional destruction from particles that set off the mines. In the end, the Taliban
lowered men down the cliff face and placed explosives into holes in the Buddhas. [41] After one of the explosions failed
to obliterate the face of one of the Buddhas, a rocket was launched that left a hole in the remains of the stone head.[42]
Destruction of the site by the Taliban
On 6 March 2001, The Times quoted Mullah Mohammed Omar as stating, "Muslims should be proud of smashing
idols. It has given praise to Allah that we have destroyed them." [43] During a 13 March interview for Japan's Mainichi
Shimbun, Afghan Foreign Minister Wakil Ahmad Mutawakel stated that the destruction was anything but a retaliation against the international community for
economic sanctions: "We are destroying the statues in accordance with Islamic law and it is purely a religious issue."

On 18 March 2001, The New York Times reported that a Taliban envoy said the Islamic government made its decision in a rage after a foreign delegation offered
money to preserve the ancient works. The report also added, however, that other reports "have said the religious leaders were debating the move for months, and
ultimately decided that the statues were idolatrous and should be obliterated".[44]

Then Taliban ambassador-at-large Sayed Rahmatullah Hashemi said that the destruction of the statues was carried out by the Head Council of Scholars after a
Swedish monuments expert proposed to restore the statues' heads. Hashimi is reported as saying: "When the Afghan head council asked them to provide the
money to feed the children instead of fixing the statues, they refused and said, 'No, the money is just for the statues, not for the children'. Herein, they made the
decision to destroy the statues"; however, he did not comment on the claim that a foreign museum offered to "buy the Buddhist statues, the money from which
could have been used to feed children".[45]

The destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas despite protests from the international community has been described by Michael Falser, a heritage expert at the

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Center for Transcultural Studies in Germany, as an attack by the Taliban against the globalising concept of "cultural
heritage".[46] The director general of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Koichiro
Matsuura called the destruction a "...crime against culture. It is abominable to witness the cold and calculated
destruction of cultural properties which were the heritage of the Afghan people, and, indeed, of the whole of
humanity."[47]

Commitment to rebuild
Though the figures of the two large Buddhas have been destroyed, their outlines and some features are still
recognizable within the recesses. It is also still possible for visitors to explore the monks' caves and passages that
connect them. As part of the international effort to rebuild Afghanistan after the Taliban war, the Japanese
government and several other organizations—among them the Afghanistan Institute in Bubendorf, Switzerland,
along with the ETH in Zurich—have committed to rebuilding, perhaps by anastylosis, the two larger Buddhas.

Developments since 2002

Site of the larger statue after it was
In April 2002, Afghanistan's post-Taliban leader Hamid Karzai called the destruction a "national tragedy" and destroyed
pledged the Buddhas to be rebuilt.[48]

In September 2005, Mawlawi Mohammed Islam Mohammadi, Taliban governor of Bamiyan province at the time of the destruction and widely seen as
responsible for its occurrence, was elected to the Afghan Parliament. He blamed the decision to destroy the Buddhas on Al-Qaeda's influence on the Taliban.[49]
In January 2007, he was assassinated in Kabul.

Swiss filmmaker Christian Frei made a 95-minute documentary titled The Giant Buddhas (released in March 2006) on the statues, the international reactions to
their destruction, and an overview of the controversy. Testimony by local Afghans validates that Osama bin Laden ordered the destruction and that, initially,
Mullah Omar and the Afghans in Bamiyan opposed it. [50] A novel titled 'An Afghan Winter' provides a fictional backdrop to the destruction of the Buddhas and
its impact on the global Buddhist community.[51]

Since 2002, international funding has supported recovery and stabilization efforts at the site. Fragments of the statues are documented and stored with special
attention given to securing the structure of the statue still in place. It is hoped that, in the future, partial anastylosis can be conducted with the remaining
fragments. In 2009, ICOMOS constructed scaffolding within the niche to further conservation and stabilization. Nonetheless, several serious conservation and
safety issues exist and the Buddhas are still listed as World Heritage in Danger.[52]

In the summer of 2006, Afghan officials were deciding on the timetable for the re-construction of the statues. As they wait for the Afghan government and
international community to decide when to rebuild them, a $1.3 million UNESCO-funded project is sorting out the chunks of clay and plaster—ranging from

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boulders weighing several tons to fragments the size of tennis balls—and sheltering them from the elements.

The Buddhist remnants at Bamiyan were included on the 2008 World Monuments Watch List of the 100 Most
Endangered Sites by the World Monuments Fund.

In 2013, the foot section of the smaller Buddha was rebuilt with iron rods, bricks and concrete by the German branch
of ICOMOS.[53] Further constructions were halted by order of UNESCO, on the grounds that the work was conducted
without the organization's knowledge or approval. The effort was contrary to UNESCO's policy of using original
material for reconstructions, and has been pointed out that it was done based on assumptions.[54][55]

Discoveries
After the destruction of the Buddhas, 50 caves were revealed. In 12 of the caves, wall paintings were discovered. [56] In
December 2004, an international team of researchers stated the wall paintings at Bamiyan were painted between the
5th and the 9th centuries, rather than the 6th to 8th centuries, citing their analysis of radioactive isotopes contained
in straw fibers found beneath the paintings. It is believed that the paintings were done by artists travelling on the Silk
Site of the smaller statue in 2005
Road, the trade route between China and the West.[57]

Scientists from the Tokyo Research Institute for Cultural Properties in Japan, the Centre of Research and
Restoration of the French Museums in France, the Getty Conservation Institute in the United States, and
the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) in Grenoble, France, analysed samples from the
paintings,[58] typically less than 1 mm across.[59] They discovered that the paint contained pigments such
as vermilion (red mercury sulfide) and lead white (lead carbonate). These were mixed with a range of
binders, including natural resins, gums (possibly animal skin glue or egg), [59] and oils, probably derived
from walnuts or poppies.[57] Specifically, researchers identified drying oils from murals showing Buddhas
in vermilion robes sitting cross-legged amid palm leaves and mythical creatures as being painted in the
middle of the 7th century.[56] It is believed that they are the oldest known surviving examples of oil
painting, possibly predating oil painting in Europe by as much as six centuries.[57] The discovery may
lead to a reassessment of works in ancient ruins in Iran, China, Pakistan, Turkey, and India.[57] Grotto painting in 2008

Initial suspicion that the oils might be attributable to contamination from fingers, as the touching of the
painting is encouraged in Buddhist tradition,[59] was dispelled by spectroscopy and chromatography giving an unambiguous signal for the intentional use of
drying oils rather than contaminants.[59] Oils were discovered underneath layers of paint, unlike surface contaminants.[59]

Scientists also found the translation of the beginning section of the original Sanskrit Pratītyasamutpāda Sutra translated by Xuanzang that spelled out the basic

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belief of Buddhism and said all things are transient.[60]

Another giant statue unearthed

On 8 September 2008, archaeologists searching for a legendary 300-metre statue at the site announced the discovery of parts of an unknown 19-metre (62-foot)
reclining Buddha, a pose representing Buddha's Parinirvana.[61]

Restoration
The UNESCO Expert Working Group on Afghan cultural projects convened to discuss what to do about the two
statues between 3–4 March 2011 in Paris. Researcher Erwin Emmerling of Technical University Munich announced
he believed it would be possible to restore the smaller statue using an organic silicon compound.[62] The Paris
conference issued a list of 39 recommendations for the safeguarding of the Bamiyan site. These included leaving the
larger Western niche empty as a monument to the destruction of the Buddhas, a feasibility study into the rebuilding
of the Eastern Buddha, and the construction of a central museum and several smaller site museums. [63] Work has
since begun on restoring the Buddhas using the process of anastylosis, where original elements are combined with
modern material. It is estimated that roughly half the pieces of the Buddhas can be put back together according to
Bert Praxenthaler, a German art historian and sculptor involved in the restoration. The restoration of the caves and
Buddhas has also involved training and employing local people as stone carvers. [64] The project, which also aims to
encourage tourism to the area, is being organised by UNESCO and the International Council on Monuments and
Sites (ICOMOS).

The work has come under some criticism. It is felt by some, such as human rights activist Abdullah Hamadi, that the
empty niches should be left as monuments to the fanaticism of the Taliban, while NPR reported that others believe
the money could be better spent on housing and electricity for the region.[65] Some people, including Habiba Sarabi,
the provincial governor, believe that rebuilding the Buddhas would increase tourism which would aid the
caution sign, 2017
surrounding communities.[65]

Rise of Buddhas with 3D light projection

After fourteen years, on 7 June 2015, a Chinese adventurist couple Xinyu Zhang and Hong Liang filled the empty cavities where the Buddhas once stood with 3D
laser light projection technology. The projector used for the installation, worth approximately $120,000, was donated by Xinyu and Hong, who were saddened
by the destruction of the statues. With the desire of paying tribute, they requested permission from UNESCO and the Afghan government to do the project.
About 150 local people came out to see the unveiling of the holographic statues on Sunday, 7 June 2015.[66][67]

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Gallery

Taller Smaller Buddha, after View of the rock where The landscape of the
Buddha, destruction monasteries and Buddhas archaeological Remains of
after are carved the Bamiyan Valley
destruction

See also
Armenian cemetery in Julfa
Buddha Collapsed out of Shame
Destruction of cultural heritage by ISIL
Islamist destruction of Timbuktu heritage sites
List of colossal sculpture in situ
World Heritage Sites in Danger

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29. "World appeals to Taliban to stop destroying statues" (https://web.archive.org/web/20071224155700/http://archives.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/asiapcf/central
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//www.nytimes.com/2001/03/04/world/04AFGH.html?ex=1218686400&en=f513bb4edae409e0&ei=5070). The New York Times. Archived from the original
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31. "General Assembly "Appalled" By Edict On Destruction of Afghan Shrines; Strongly Urges Taliban To Halt Implementation" (https://www.un.org/News/Press
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q=Another%20suggestion%20they%20had%20was%20that%20they%20cover%20the%20statues%20from%20head%20to%20toe%20in%20a%20way%2
0that%20no%20one%20would%20recognize%20they%20had%20ever%20been%20there%2C%20while%20preserving%20them%20underneath). Oxford
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offered-to-hide-bamiyan-statues-but-taliban-asked-japan-to-convert-to-islam-instead). JAPANTODAY. 27 February 2010.
35. ‫ "ﺍﻟﺩﺑﺎﻧﺎ ﺍﻟﺑﻭﺫﻳﺔ‬.(1429 ‫( "ﻣﺣﻣﺩ ﺿﻳﺎء ﺍﻟﺭﺣﻣﻥ ﺍﻷﻋﻅﻣﻲ )ﺫﻭ ﺍﻟﻘﻌﺩﺓ‬https://azelin.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/e1b8a5izb-al-islc481mc4ab-al-turkistc481nc4abs-turkistan-
islamic-party-22turkistc481n-al-islc481mc4abyyah-222.pdf) (PDF). ‫ﺗﺭﻛﺳﺗﺎﻥ ﺍﻹﺳﻼﻣﻳﺔ‬. No. ‫ ﺍﻟﻌﺩﺩ ﺍﻟﺛﺎﻧﻲ‬:‫ﺍﻟﺳﻧﺔ ﺍﻷﻭﻟﻰ‬. pp. 46–49. Check date values in: |date= (help)
36. "Destruction of Giant Buddhas Confirmed" (http://www.beliefnet.com/story/70/story_7096_1.html). AFP. 12 March 2001. Retrieved 6 January 2008.
37. Zaeef p.126

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38. Domingo, Plácido (December 2016). "End the International Destruction of Cultural Heritage". Vigilo. Din l-Art Ħelwa: National Trust of Malta (48): 30–31.
ISSN 1026-132X (https://www.worldcat.org/issn/1026-132X).
39. Shah, Amir (3 March 2001). "Taliban destroy ancient Buddhist relics – International pleas ignored by Afghanistan's Islamic fundamentalist leaders"
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Independent. Archived from the original (https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/taliban-destroy-ancient-buddhist-relics-694425.html) on 6 January
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40. "Photos document destruction of Afghan Buddhas" (https://web.archive.org/web/20070313235406/http://edition.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/asiapcf/central
/03/12/afghan.buddha.02/). Archived from the original (http://edition.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/asiapcf/central/03/12/afghan.buddha.02/) on 13 March 2007.
Retrieved 2007-03-13.
41. "Destruction and Rebuilding of the Bamyan Buddhas" (http://www.slate.com/id/2104119/entry/2104187). Slate Magazine.
42. Bergen, Peter. "The Osama bin Laden I Know", 2006. p. 271
43. Markos Moulitsas Zúniga (2010). American Taliban: How War, Sex, Sin, and Power Bind Jihadists and the Radical Right (https://books.google.com
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ved=0CEoQ6AEwCA&q=%22Muslims%20should%20be%20proud%20of%20smashing%20idols%22). Polipoint Press. ISBN 1-936227-02-9.
44. Crossette, Barbara (19 March 2001). "Taliban Explains Buddha Demolition" (https://web.archive.org/web/20090503215139/http://www.nytimes.com/2001/03
/19/world/19TALI.html?ex=1142571600&en=e5ba6c267eada53a&ei=5070). The New York Times. Archived from the original (https://www.nytimes.com
/2001/03/19/world/19TALI.html?ex=1142571600&en=e5ba6c267eada53a&ei=5070) on 3 May 2009. Retrieved 6 January 2008.
45. Kassaimah, Sahar (12 January 2001). "Afghani Ambassador Speaks At USC" (https://web.archive.org/web/20071008012138/http://www.islamonline.net
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46. Falser, Michael. "The Bamiyan Buddhas, performative iconoclasm and the 'image' of heritage". In: Giometti, Simone; Tomaszewski, Andrzej (eds.): The
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47. U.N. Confirms Destruction of Afghan Buddhas (http://abcnews.go.com/International/story?id=81406&page=1#.UA4FSrQe5TI), 12 March 2001, ABC News.
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49. Focus on Terrorism, Volume 8 by Edward V. Linden
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53. Martini, Alessandro; Rivetti, Ermanno (6 February 2014). "Organisation says actions of German archaeologists who have partially rebuilt one of the statues
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55. "タリバン破壊のバーミヤン遺跡、ドイツ隊が勝⼿に⾜復元 ユネスコが撤去勧告も" (http://www.sankei.com/west/news/140518/wst1405180058-n1.html).
The Sankei Shimbun (in Japanese). May 18, 2014. Retrieved 2017-12-17.
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afghanistan.html). Earthtimes.org. Retrieved 24 April 2008.
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dq=oil+painting+Theophilus&sig=oEkZ_FzY5mTDvyXr-FE9GLyZu-o), p. 42 "Archived copy" (https://web.archive.org/web/20080411000138/http://www.hs-
augsburg.de/~harsch/Chronologia/Lspost12/Theophilus/the_da00.html). Archived from the original (http://www.hs-augsburg.de/~harsch/Chronologia
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58. "Ancient Buddhist Paintings From Bamyan Were Made Of Oil, Hundreds Of Years Before Technique Was 'Invented' In Europe"
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carvers-taliban-bamiyan) The Guardian
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66. Mary-Ann Russon (12 June 2015). "Afghanistan: Buddhas of Bamiyan resurrected as laser projections" (http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/buddha-statues-
destroyed-by-taliban-resurrected-laser-projections-1505794). International Business Times. Retrieved 16 June 2015.
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buddha-statues-destroyed-taliban-reimagined-holograms-343113). News Week. Retrieved 16 June 2015.

Further reading
Cloonan, Michele V. "The Paradox of Preservation" (https://web.archive.org/web/20080506085728/http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-170113895.html),
Library Trends, Summer 2007.
Braj Basi Lal; R. Sengupta (2008). A Report on the Preservation of Buddhist Monuments at Bamiyan in Afghanistan. Islamic Wonders Bureau.
ISBN 978-81-87763-66-6.
Kassaimah, Sahar. "Afghani Ambassador Speaks At USC" (https://web.archive.org/web/20080403085825/http://www.islamonline.net/english/news/2001-03
/13/article12.shtml), IslamOnline, 12 March 2001.
Maniscalco, Fabio. World Heritage and War, monographic series "Mediterraneum", vol. 6, Naples 2007, Massa Publisher "Catalogo: MEDITERRANEUM"
(https://web.archive.org/web/20081231120911/http://www.massaeditore.com/mediterraneum.htm). Massa Editore. Archived from the original
(http://www.massaeditore.com/mediterraneum.htm) on 31 December 2008. Retrieved 6 December 2009.
Noyes, James. "Bamiyan Ten Years On: What this Anniversary tells us about the New Global Iconoclasm" (http://www.telospress.com
/main/index.php?main_page=news_article&article_id=423), "Telos", 1 March 2010.
Weber, Olivier, The Assassinated Memory (Mille et Une Nuits, 2001)
Weber, Olivier, Tha Afghan Hawk: travel in the country of talibans (Robert Laffont, 2001)
Weber, Olivier, On the Silk Roads (with Reza, Hoëbeke, 2007)
Wriggins, Sally Hovey. Xuanzang: A Buddhist Pilgrim on the Silk Road. Boulder: Westview Press, 1996
"Afghan who had statues destroyed killed" (https://web.archive.org/web/20070128162824/http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070126/ap_on_re_as/afghanistan).
Archived from the original (https://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070126/ap_on_re_as/afghanistan) on 28 January 2007. Retrieved 2007-01-26.
"Afghanistan 1969-1974: February 2001" (http://www.thewalt.de/afghanistan/index_e.html)
"Artist to recreate Afghan Buddhas" (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/4134252.stm). BBC News, 9 August 2005.
"Bamian Buddha Statues and Theosophy" (http://www.teosofiskakompaniet.net/BamianTeosofiHPB2001.htm)
(http://mdn.mainichi.co.jp/news/archive/200412/11/20041211p2a00m0dm006001c.html)permanent dead link] "Japanese researchers make breakthrough on
destroyed Bamyan paintings". Mainichi Shimbun, Japan, 2004-12-11.
"Pakistani, Saudi engineers helped destroy Buddhas" (https://web.archive.org/web/20060830135801/http://www.dailytimes.com.pk
/default.asp?page=2006%5C03%5C19%5Cstory_19-3-2006_pg7_38) Daily Times, Sunday, 19 March 2006.
"The Rediff Interview/Mullah Omar, 12 April 2004" (http://www.rediff.com/news/2004/apr/12inter.htm)

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Buddhas of Bamiyan - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhas_of_Bamiyan

External links
Japan offered to hide Bamiyan statues, but Taliban asked Japan to convert to Islam instead (https://japantoday.com/category/national/japan-offered-to-hide-
bamiyan-statues-but-taliban-asked-japan-to-convert-to-islam-instead)
News articles about the Buddhas of Bamyan (https://web.archive.org/web/20071023075942/http://tamu.edu/anthropology/Buddhas.html)
Photos of the Buddhas of Bamyan (https://web.archive.org/web/20070307141401/http://www.afghanistan-photos.com/crbst_21.html)
Bamyan Afghanistan Laser Project (http://www.bamiyanlaser.org/)
World Heritage Tour: 360 degree image (after destruction) (https://web.archive.org/web/20080407004350/http://www.world-heritage-tour.org/asia/central-
asia/afghanistan/bamiyan/monks-caves/sphere-quicktime.html)
Bamyan Development (http://www.bamiyan-development.org/) Community Portal for cultural heritage management of Bamyan
The World Monuments Fund's Watch List 2008 listing for Bamyan (https://web.archive.org/web/20080311222733/http://wmf.org/watch2008
/watch.php?id=S8255)
Historic Footage of Bamyan Statues, c. 1973 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RDbrZaoXh4I) on YouTube
The Valley of Bamiyan (https://archive.org/details/TheValleyOfBamiyan) A tourist pamphlet from 1967
Researchers Say They Can Restore 1 of Destroyed Bamiyan Buddhas (https://web.archive.org/web/20110302103707/http://www.aolnews.com/2011/03
/01/researchers-say-they-can-restore-1-of-destroyed-bamiyan-buddhas/)
Secrets of the Bamiyan Buddhas (http://www2.cnrs.fr/en/1345.htm), CNRS
Bamiyan photo gallery (http://www.unesco.org/new/en/media-services/multimedia/photos/bamiyan-photo-gallery/), UNESCO
Secrets of Bamiyan Buddhist murals (http://www.esrf.eu/UsersAndScience/Publications/Highlights/2008/imaging/imaging8). ESRF
Photo Feature Covering Bamiyan Site (https://web.archive.org/web/20130127085215/http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2922/stories
/20121116292206100.htm)

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