Fayaz Tepe

Fayoztepa

Uzbekistan · Surkhandarya

Temple / ritual siteUnknown
Approximate periodKushan period and later phases of use See on the map ↓

In brief

The site near Old Termez is an excavated Buddhist complex consisting of a stupa, temple, monastery and service rooms. Its sculptures and wall paintings illustrate the development of Buddhist art in Bactria; numerical date limits have been left blank because the foundation dates given by different sources do not agree.

What was found?

  • 1Relief of the Buddha and two monks

    The relief showing the Buddha with two monks is one of the site's principal works. The seated Buddha depiction in the main sanctuary exemplifies the meeting of Buddhist and Hellenistic artistic traditions.

  • 2Clay statue fragments

    Fragments of clay statues were recovered from the monastery and temple complex. These remains document the furnishing of sacred spaces with statues.

  • 3Wall painting fragments

    Examples of wall paintings found during excavations were transferred to the museum collection. Together with the statues, they show that the complex had a colorful interior decorated with images.

  • 4Stupa and monastery buildings

    A stupa, sacred rooms around a courtyard and a kitchen-dining section were uncovered in the complex. This arrangement shows that worship and the community's daily needs were accommodated together.

What does it point to?

Fayaz Tepe was a Buddhist center with areas for food preparation and communal life as well as worship spaces. Depictions of the Buddha and the building complex help explain the spread of Buddhism through Gandhara into Central Asia and farther east.

What did it teach us?

  1. Showed that worship and dining areas were organized within the same complex in Buddhist monastic life.
  2. Provided works in which Hellenistic artistic influences can be traced in Buddhist imagery.
  3. Documented the role of the area around Old Tirmiz in the spread of Buddhism through concrete buildings and artworks.

Images

Fayoztepa-3
Marat Nadjibaev · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Record

Culture
Bactrian Buddhist culture
First modern dig
1968
Team / historical
L. I. Albaum
Coordinates
37.2863°, 67.1880°

Sources

  1. uzbekistan.travel
  2. en.wikipedia.org
  3. unesco.emb-japan.go.jp
  4. meros.uz
  5. Özbekistan Kültürel Mirasını Araştırma, Koruma ve Tanıtma Dünya Derneği
  6. Özbekistan Tarihi Devlet Müzesi — Budist buluntular üzerine akademik makale

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12.000

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