Hadda

A major Greco-Buddhist archaeological site 10 km south of Jalalabad in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan, dating primarily to the 3rd-4th century CE. Excavated by DAFA under Jules Barthoux (1926-27) and later by Afghan archaeologists in the 1970s, it yielded some 23,000 clay and plaster sculptures blending Buddhist and Hellenistic styles. The complex comprised roughly 100 monasteries spanning 4-5 km2, once housing thousands of monks under Kushan Empire patronage. Many sculptures rivalled classical Greek art, with Vajrapani depicted in the iconography of Heracles. The collection suffered catastrophic damage when the Taliban destroyed the National Museum's holdings in 2001.