Precious relic
Pristine ancient Buddha statue to make Kabul museum debut.
KABUL: Having withstood time, the elements, looters and war, a spectacular Buddha restored and removed from one of Afghanistan’s most dangerous regions is to make its public debut in the country’s national museum.
The statue, which depicts the sage in a purple shroud offering his hands to the heavens, had been hidden beneath layers of soil and silt since some time between the third and fifth centuries, according to archaeologists who discovered it.
The exceptionally well-preserved piece, with its colours still vibrant, was found in 2012 at the Mes Aynak site about 40km southeast of Kabul, in the now Taliban-infested Logar province.
Its discovery was made possible after a Chinese consortium began digging a massive copper mine that uncovered an ancient monastery complex stretching out over an area of 1,000 acres.
“The statue was almost whole when it was discovered, with its head present, which is rare,” said Ermano Carbonara, an Italian restoration expert.
“It was placed in the centre of a niche, which itself had been decorated with painted flowers, in the heart of an area used for prayer. It was better to remove it from the site to protect it,” he added.
Carbonara said details of the face, the black curls of the Buddha’s bun, its pink cheeks and deep blue eyes pointed to a “truly sophisticated technique” of craftsmanship.
The Buddha left DAFA’s workshops earlier this week under military escort and was brought to the National Museum of Afghanistan in preparation for its public unveiling. — AFP