Amluk-Dara Buddhist stupa- Pakistan

Address

Amluk-Dara Buddhist stupa- Barikot, Swat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

Diety

Buddha

Introduction

Amluk-Dara stupa is located in Swat valley of Pakistan. It is a part of Gandhara civilization at Amluk-Dara. The stupa is believed to have been built in the third century. The stupa was first discovered by a Hungarian-British archaeologist Sir Aurel Stein in 1926. It was later studied by Domenico Faccena in the 60s and 70s. The foundation of the stupa is a square plinth about 4 meters thick. This is surmounted by a hemispherical dome measuring 7 meter in height and 21 meters in diameter, making it visible for miles around it. Though it is the best example of a stupa in Swat, it is unprotected and is being damaged by treasure seekers.

Puranic Significance

The stupa is further surmounted by a hemispherical dome measuring 7m in height. The drum on which the hemispherical dome rests has a diameter of 21m, probably being the largest in the valley. The drum is divided by a bold cornice supported by brackets at intervals of 0.30cm. The height of the stupa from the floor level on the ground up to the existing top of the dome measures 20 meters. The stupa has a flight of ascending step on the north, which is 04.26m wide connecting the pradakshina patha on the ground level with the ambulatory passage on the top of the plinth. On the eastern and northern side of the main stupa, the ruins of the monastery, stupas and miscellaneous remains can still be seen. They are mostly disturbed by the illegal diggers. Stein recorded a number of coins from the Kushanas to the Turki Shahis dating from the 2nd to 7th century A.D. The stupa of Amlokdara is exposed to the treasure hunters have badly damaged the Stupa.