According to reports, Pakistan loaned 173 works of art from the Gandhara to China, which will be on display on February 15 at the Palace Museum in the Forbidden City.
The treasures of Gandhara art have been loaned by the Department of Archaeology and Museums from the Peshawar, Swat, Dir, Hund, Taxila, Karachi, and Islamabad museums for a three-month display in Beijing. The museum will display 173 pieces of art in the exhibition. Such a government initiative is expected to create new opportunities for bilateral cooperation in museums and cultural treasures.
The provincial departments of archaeology in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa actively supported the show and loaned some of their best examples of Gandhara art.
Deputy Director of the Department of Archaeology and Museums Dr Mehmoodul Hassan stated, “Dignitaries and top officials from Pakistan will attend the event. Pakistan Embassy in China, the Chinese Embassy in Islamabad and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Pakistan played a key role in materializing this important event. The exhibition will open new vistas of cooperation in the fields of museums and cultural heritage between China and Pakistan”
According to him, joint initiatives in these areas with Palace Museum will contribute to enhancing the country’s cultural heritage owing to propagation on a global level. It would represent the diversity of rich ancestral art forms internationally.
2008 marked the last time Pakistan lent such a sizable shipment of antiquities. Germany received up to 250 antique artefacts on loan. Before returning home in 2011, these antiques were also displayed in Switzerland and France.
Additionally, the Chinese showed great interest in such an association. Following this, they had asked for 250 pieces of artwork from Pakistan but at that time, Pakistan could not cater to the request due to the issues in the administrative department of the Lahore Museum.
The artefacts also include Greek specimens from the best collection found in the Swat, Gandhara, and Taxila valleys from the second to fifth centuries AD, according to Dawn. These specimens include life-size and miniature statues of Siddhartha and Buddha that depict his birth, early palace life, and the periods after enlightenment.
The Islamabad Museum also lent ten items which consisted of specimens such as a gold Greek bowl from the second century.
