Civilisations, Kingdoms & the Silk Road

Mohenjo-daro — 'Mound of the Dead' — is one of the largest and best-preserved cities of the ancient Indus Valley Civilisation, and one of the earliest urban settlements in human history. At its peak, around 2500 BCE, it was home to an estimated 40,000 people living in a planned city with sophisticated drainage systems, multi-storey buildings and a level of urban organisation that would not be matched in Europe for another two thousand years.

Taxila was one of the great cities of the ancient world — a centre of Buddhist learning, Gandharan art and Silk Road trade that flourished for over a thousand years. The archaeological complex encompasses three distinct ancient cities (Bhir Mound, Sirkap and Sirsukh), numerous Buddhist monasteries and stupas, and the extraordinary Gandharan sculptures that represent one of the finest artistic traditions of the ancient world.

Takht-i-Bahi ('Throne of Origins') is the best-preserved Buddhist monastery in Pakistan — a dramatic complex of courtyards, stupas, meditation cells and assembly halls built on a rocky hilltop overlooking the Peshawar valley. Founded in the 1st century BCE and continuously occupied for over seven centuries, it represents the height of Gandharan Buddhist architecture.

The Lahore Fort is one of the great monuments of Mughal architecture — a vast complex of palaces, mosques, gardens and audience halls built and expanded by successive Mughal emperors from Akbar to Aurangzeb. The Sheesh Mahal (Palace of Mirrors), the Naulakha Pavilion and the Alamgiri Gate are among the finest examples of Mughal decorative arts in the world.

The Badshahi Mosque — 'Imperial Mosque' — was built by the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb in 1673 and remained the largest mosque in the world for over three centuries. Its vast courtyard, capable of accommodating 100,000 worshippers, its four soaring minarets and its red sandstone and white marble facade represent the pinnacle of Mughal religious architecture.

The Makli Necropolis near Thatta is one of the largest historic cemeteries in the world — a vast landscape of tombs, mausoleums and funerary monuments spanning four centuries of Sindhi history. The tombs of the Samma, Arghun, Tarkhan and Mughal rulers represent an extraordinary range of architectural styles, from the austere stone tombs of the Samma period to the elaborate glazed tile work of the Mughal era.

Rohtas Fort was built by the Afghan king Sher Shah Suri as a military stronghold to control the Pothohar Plateau and prevent the return of the Mughal emperor Humayun. Its massive walls — over 4km in circumference — and its twelve monumental gateways represent one of the finest examples of early Mughal military architecture in South Asia.

Rising dramatically from the flat expanse of the Cholistan Desert, Derawar Fort is one of the most spectacular and photogenic monuments in Pakistan. Its massive square bastions, rising 30 metres from the desert floor, are visible for miles across the landscape. The fort was the seat of the Nawabs of Bahawalpur and is surrounded by the royal tombs of the Abbasi dynasty.

Baltit Fort, perched above the village of Karimabad in the Hunza valley, was the seat of the Mirs of Hunza for centuries. Its distinctive Tibetan-influenced architecture, restored by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture, offers a remarkable insight into the history and culture of the Hunza kingdom. The nearby Altit Fort, even older, stands on a dramatic cliff above the Hunza River.