Previous   Next
Home » Images » 0022 Pictures From History » CPA0010590

Afghanistan: A plate depicting Cybele pulled by lions, a votive sacrifice and the Sun God. Ai Khanoum, 2nd century BCE

Afghanistan: A plate depicting Cybele pulled by lions, a votive sacrifice and the Sun God. Ai Khanoum, 2nd century BCE

Ai-Khanoum or Ay Khanum ( 'Lady of the Moon' in Uzbek, probably the historical Alexandria on the Oxus, also possibly named Eucratidia), was founded in the 4th century BCE, following the conquests of Alexander the Great and was one of the primary cities of the Greco-Bactrian kingdom.

The city is located in Kunduz Province northern Afghanistan, at the confluence of the Oxus river (today's Amu Darya) and the Kokcha river. Ai Khanoum was one of the focal points of Hellenism in the East for nearly two centuries, until its destruction by nomadic invaders around 145 BCE about the time of the death of Eucratides.

The site was excavated through archaeological searches by a French mission under Paul Bernard between 1964 and 1978, as well as by Russian archaeologists. These researches had to be abandoned with the beginning of the Soviet war in Afghanistan, during which the site was looted and used as a battleground, leaving very little of the original material.

Quick links to other images in this gallery: