Visit Guide to Kara Tepa Ruins

Kara Tepe is a Buddhist archaeological site in the Central Asia region of Bactria, in the Termez oasis near the city of Termez in southern Uzbekistan. The site of Kara Tepe is located on a slight height, a few hundred meters from Fayaz Tepe. The foundations of the site date to the 1st century CE, with a peak of activity around the 3rd and 4th centuries during the Kushan period, before experiencing a fatal decline around the 5th century CE, probably with the invasion of the Kushano-Sassanian, whose coinage can be found on the site.

Getting There

Travel agencies organize transportation with tour guide or go to the by taxe.

What to Expect

Many niches were found that sheltered sculptures of gold or ceramic Buddhas, and awnings rested on impressive colonnades. Remarkably, some of the Buddha statues are surrounded by a full halo, which became current in Turkestan and East Asia after the Kushan period. A Brahmi inscription was also recovered from the site.

History

Complex Kara-Tepe is recognized as the center of Buddhist culture of the ancient world. Building on three sandy hills, the Karatepa complex is located in the north-west of the Old Termez settlement, with a total area of about 8 hectars. The temple of Kara-Tepe consists of underground and topground cave constructions and the rules of the construction were mastered from Indians. Later, the architectural methods achieved domination.

The constructions in the Kara-Tepe were built during the 1st- 3rd centuries AD. By the end of the 3rd century, The Kara-Tepe assemblage was destroyed. The material, spiritual and artistic objects found here have great significance for the history of Buddhism in Termez, Bactria and Central Asia, and also testified that have made a huge contribution to the global Buddhism culture.