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Buddhism in the Maldives was the predominant religion at least until the 12th century CE. It is not clear how Buddhism was introduced into the islands although there are a number of competing theories. The predominant view is that it was introduced with the expansion of the Sinhalese people from neighboring Sri Lanka who are primarily Buddhist.<br/><br/> In February 2012, a group of Islamic extremists forced their way into the National Museum in Male and attacked the museum's collection of pre-Islamic sculptures, destroying or severely damaging nearly the entire collection about thirty Hindu and Buddhist sculptures dating from the 6th to 12th centuries.<br/><br/> Museum staff indicated that as the sculptures were made from very brittle coral or limestone it would be impossible to repair most of them, and only two or three pieces were in a repairable condition.
Buddhism in the Maldives was the predominant religion at least until the 12th century CE. It is not clear how Buddhism was introduced into the islands although there are a number of competing theories. The predominant view is that it was introduced with the expansion of the Sinhalese people from neighboring Sri Lanka who are primarily Buddhist.<br/><br/> In February 2012, a group of Islamic extremists forced their way into the National Museum in Male and attacked the museum's collection of pre-Islamic sculptures, destroying or severely damaging nearly the entire collection about thirty Hindu and Buddhist sculptures dating from the 6th to 12th centuries.<br/><br/> Museum staff indicated that as the sculptures were made from very brittle coral or limestone it would be impossible to repair most of them, and only two or three pieces were in a repairable condition.
Dilmun (sometimes transliterated Telmun) is a land mentioned by Mesopotamian civilizations as a trade partner, a source of the metal copper, and an entrepôt of the Mesopotamia-to-Indus Valley Civilization trade route.<br/><br/> Although the exact location of Dilmun is unclear, it might be associated with the islands of Bahrain, the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Oman and the nearby Iranian coast of the Arab or Persian Gulf.
Mohenjo-daro (lit. Mound of the Dead), situated in the province of Sindh, Pakistan, was one of the largest settlements of the ancient Indus Valley Civilization. Built around 2600 BC, it was one of the world's earliest major urban settlements, existing at the same time as the civilizations of ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Crete. The archaeological ruins of the city are designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.<br/><br/> In 1927, a seated male figure, 17.5 cm tall, was found in a building with unusually ornamental brickwork and a wall-niche. Though there is no evidence that priests or monarchs ruled the city, archeologists dubbed this dignified figure a 'Priest-King', and, like the 'Dancing Girl', it has become symbolic of the Indus valley civilization.<br/><br/> The bearded sculpture wears a fillet around the head, an armband, and a cloak decorated with trefoil patterns that were originally filled with red pigment.<br/><br/> The two ends of the fillet fall along the back, and though the hair is carefully combed towards the back of the head, no bun is present. The flat back of the head may have held a separately carved bun, as is traditional on the other seated figures, or it could have held a more elaborate horn and plumed headdress.<br/><br/> Two holes beneath the highly stylized ears suggest that a necklace or other head ornament was attached to the sculpture. The left shoulder is covered with a cloak decorated with trefoil, double circle and single circle designs that were originally filled with red pigment. Drill holes in the center of each circle indicate they were made with a specialized drill and then touched up with a chisel.<br/><br/> The eyes are deeply incised and may have held inlay. The upper lip is shaved, and a short combed beard frames the face. The large crack in the face may be due to weathering, or it may be a result of the original firing of this object.
Mohenjo-daro (lit. Mound of the Dead), situated in the province of Sindh, Pakistan, was one of the largest settlements of the ancient Indus Valley Civilization. Built around 2600 BC, it was one of the world's earliest major urban settlements, existing at the same time as the civilizations of ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Crete. The archaeological ruins of the city are designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.<br/><br/> A bronze statuette dubbed the 'Dancing Girl', 10.8 cm high and some 4,500 years old, was found in Mohenjo-daro in 1926. In 1973, British archaeologist Mortimer Wheeler described the item as his favorite statuette:<br/><br/> 'There is her little Balochi-style face with pouting lips and insolent look in the eyes. She's about fifteen years old I should think, not more, but she stands there with bangles all the way up her arm and nothing else on. A girl perfectly, for the moment, perfectly confident of herself and the world. There's nothing like her, I think, in the world'.<br/><br/> John Marshall, another archeologist at Mohenjo-daro, described the figure as 'a young girl, her hand on her hip in a half-impudent posture, and legs slightly forward as she beats time to the music with her legs and feet'.<br/><br/> The archaeologist Gregory Possehl said of the statuette, 'We may not be certain that she was a dancer, but she was good at what she did and she knew it'.
Mohenjo-daro (lit. Mound of the Dead), situated in the province of Sindh, Pakistan, was one of the largest settlements of the ancient Indus Valley Civilization. Built around 2600 BC, it was one of the world's earliest major urban settlements, existing at the same time as the civilizations of ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Crete. The archaeological ruins of the city are designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.<br/><br/> A bronze statuette dubbed the 'Dancing Girl', 10.8 cm high and some 4,500 years old, was found in Mohenjo-daro in 1926. In 1973, British archaeologist Mortimer Wheeler described the item as his favorite statuette:<br/><br/> 'There is her little Balochi-style face with pouting lips and insolent look in the eyes. She's about fifteen years old I should think, not more, but she stands there with bangles all the way up her arm and nothing else on. A girl perfectly, for the moment, perfectly confident of herself and the world. There's nothing like her, I think, in the world'.<br/><br/> John Marshall, another archeologist at Mohenjo-daro, described the figure as 'a young girl, her hand on her hip in a half-impudent posture, and legs slightly forward as she beats time to the music with her legs and feet'.<br/><br/> The archaeologist Gregory Possehl said of the statuette, 'We may not be certain that she was a dancer, but she was good at what she did and she knew it'.