Women carry water up the steep cliff slope to the caves where they have taken shelter Bamiyan Valley Afghanistan

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Women carry water up the steep cliff slope to the caves where they have taken shelter near where the Buddhas of Bamiyan once stood in Bamiyan Hazarajat Afghanistan. The cliff is dotted with such caves and tunnels which once housed Buddhist monks and monastaries and now are temporary homes for refugees who have fled fighting and drought. The Buddhas which dated back to the 3rd century were blown up by the Taliban in 2001. Bamiyan Valley is located in the Hazarajat at the edge of the Koh-i-Baba range the end of the Hindu Kush in the Central Highlands on what was the ancient Silk Road. Bamiyan was a prosperous Buddhist kingdom untilthe 10th century when the region was converted to Islam; in the 12th century

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Size: 4684px × 3129px
Location: Bamiyan Bamiyan Afghanistan
Photo credit: © Beth Wald / Aurora Photos / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No

Keywords: afghanistan, archaelogy, asia, bamiyan, cave, central, cliff, haza, hazara, hazarajat, history, housing, refugee, shelter, south