The Bamiyan Valley

THE BAMIYAN VALLEY (Afghanistan)

Home to two monumental 6th-century Buddha statues (125 feet and 180 feet tall, carved directly into a cave-riddled cliff nearly a mile long) until destroyed as idolatrous by the Taliban in March 2001, the area which once lay along one of the "Silk Roads" still has remains of 3rd-5th century Buddhist monastic centers and 6th-10th century Islamic forts.

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(Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons; CTTO)