The complex site of Taxila

Until now, I pictured Taxila as one big city as it is in modern times. What threw me off was that ancient sources talked about the three ancient cities of Bhir, Sirkap as well as Sirsukh instead of Taxila. Meanwhile, modern archaeology has established that Taxila is composed of 18 separate sites of great cultural value. This demanded a closer and more in-depth study of the matter. 

From the 6^th century BC onward, the city of Taxila was known by the Persian Achaemenid kings, who turned it into an important hub on their Royal Road from Persepolis to Central Asia. For Alexander, Taxila was the first major city he encountered on this way into India. It also was the residence of King Taxiles, who came to meet him while he was still in Sogdiana. He had promised to join his forces to those of Alexander but he died before they could meet. True to his father’s word, Omphis (also called Mophis or Ambhi) received Alexander in Taxila (see: Alexander crossing the Indus at Ohind). 

We will recall that Omphis had provided supplies to Hephaistion and the Macedonians as they were bridging the Indus River. When both kings met outside the city, Omphis  handed his fifty-six elephants over to Alexander, together with an impressive herd of livestock including 3,000 bulls dressed up for sacrifices. 

The site of Bhir is actually the place where this meeting took place in 326 BC since Omphis’ palace stood on top of a mound that carried that name. This same location was later occupied by Chandragupta Maurya (see: Was Chandragupta inspired by Alexander?) and his grandson, Asoka. As the latter introduced Buddhism in the Gandhara region, the first Buddhist monastery was erected at this very spot at some time in the 3^rd century BC. By the 2^nd century AD, this construction was replaced by the Dharmarajika Stupa, remains of which still are visible. 

With Alexander, Greek knowledge and science reached Taxila. Here, philosophers and the like met and developed science, mathematics and astronomy. 

Sirkap emerged at a later date. After Alexander’s conquest, the eastern part of his empire was ruled by the Seleucid kings till about 250 BC. By then, power was taken over by the self-proclaimed King Diodotus I of Bactria, who laid the foundations of what became the Greco-Bactrian Empire. These Bactrian Greeks advanced into the Gandhara region and erected their well-planned city of Sirkap as part of Taxila. For the next five hundred years, Greek remained the lingua franca and the influence of Greek art and beliefs lived on (see: Unique Hellenistic heritage in Pakistan). 

This link is confirmed by the Greek philosopher Apollonius of Tyana (15-100 AD) who described Taxila as being rich with Greek type of constructions. This happened in the 1^st century AD and it is generally accepted that he was talking about Sirkap.

As a result of the heavy traffic on the Silk Road that connected Central Asia to China, business flourished while the population mingled with the Scythians, the Parthians and later the Kushans. Besides silk and other precious goods, Buddhism also spread steadily in the wake of Buddhist monks travelling to China, Korea and Japan. It was under the Kushan emperors that a new form of art blossomed blending classical Greek expression with local art forms. This became known as the Gandhara Art, which produced the most remarkable statues of Buddha and Bodhisattvas (see: Indo-Greek art or the influence of Hellenism on Buddhist art). 

One of the oldest Stupas is the so-called Round Stupa from the 1^st century AD. The largest sanctuary is the Apsidal Temple; measuring 70x40m with a square nave and several rooms used by the Buddhist monks. It also presented a building in an apsidal shape – hence its name. It may have been decorated by a Greek artist but the earthquake of 30 AD destroyed most of the building. 

Of particular interest in the Double-Headed Eagle Stupa which displayed pilasters of Greek design with Corinthian columns. It has a strange combination of a Greek temple and a Hindu shrine. The ensemble is crowned with a double-headed eagle as originally found in Babylon. The theory is that the idea spread to Scythia and was introduced to the Punjab by the Saka rulers. 

The large Dharmarajika Stupa already mentioned in Bhir, was situated not far from Sirkap. It was built with the sole purpose of housing relics of the Buddha and was surrounded by several monastic buildings. 

The most recent city is Sirsukh, which was founded by the Kushans after 80 AD. King Kanishka had decided to abandon Sirkap and to build his own new city in a typical Central Asian style. The city was surrounded by a strong fortification wall that was almost five kilometers long and more than six meters thick. Its particularity was that the face of these walls was covered with diaper or diamond shaped masonry. Until now, the city proper could not be investigated properly because today it is buried deep underneath the low richly irrigated land. Sirsukh was completely destroyed by the Huns who invaded the Punjab around 500 AD.

Punjab, Land of Five Rivers

One close look at the map will make you realize that Punjab is an enormous alluvial plain that counts far more than the five main rivers. Situated at the foot of the Himalayas, it covers a surface of over 50,000 square kilometers. Its watershed is fed by snow and glacial meltwater from the world’s highest peaks, like the Karakorum, the Hindu Kush, and the Himalayan Mountains.

The Achaemenids had only conquered the lands west of the Indus, meaning that once Alexander crossed this mighty river, he entered uncharted territory. Modern historians do not spend much time following the king’s march further east and his countless river crossings but instead focus on battlefields, sieges, and other ruthless fights. However, each and every crossing, including the numerous tributaries, is an enormous logistic enterprise. It makes you wonder how many of these rivers, streams, and waterways the Macedonians had to cross by any means available. That alone is a gigantic task!

After taking the Aornos Rock, Alexander headed for the Indus River, where Hephaistion had worked hard to build a pontoon bridge across the river as well as a fleet partly new and partly reassembling the elements which had been carried along. The crossing of the Indus took place at Ohind, modern Hund, in north-western Pakistan (see: Alexander crossing the Indus at Ohind).

Once his troops reached the opposite bank, Alexander headed for the capital Taxila at the junction of the major trade routes from Bactria, Kashmir, and the Ganges valley. This was the realm of Omphis, the son of King Taxiles, who had visited Alexander while he was still in Bactria and died before he arrived in India. Besides sending provisions to Hephaistion during the construction works, King Omphis welcomed Alexander with 200 silver talents, 3,000 oxen, 10,000 sheep, 30 elephants, and 700 Indian cavalry and 5.000 infantry.

The next river Alexander had to tackle was the Hydaspes (modern Jhelum), where the famous battle against King Porus took place (see: The Battle of the Hydaspes and the genius of Alexander), a masterpiece and a genius enterprise that was never surpassed.

As casually mentioned by Arrian, Alexander marched on through the populous region, taking some thirty-seven towns and many villages as the natives surrendered without much protest. Their lands were graciously handed over to King Porus.

The next obstacle was the Acesines River (modern Chenab) which was so broad and swift that Ptolemy found it necessary to mention it in his biography used by Arrian. It is hard to simply imagine a three kilometers wide river and how much one could see of the opposite bank. The Macedonians used boats to get across, but navigation among the rocks was a true challenge, and many were broken up, and the men were swept away by the current. The floats for the baggage and horses fared much better as they were far more shallow than the boats, but the trip was nevertheless one more logistic challenge.

The Hydraotes River (modern Ravi) was another major river on Alexander’s path, and as he marched through these lands, most Indian tribes surrendered without resistance. Those who refused were, of course, taken by force. Sangala was such an exception (see: The siege of Sangala). The tribes nearby the city had sought and found refuge inside its strong walls. Eventually, Sangala was taken by an assault in which up to 17,000 Indians were killed while over 70,000 were taken prisoner.

[Map from Wikimedia by Apuldram - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0]

The last of the five major rivers was the Hyphasis River (modern Beas). Here, the Macedonians bluntly refused to follow Alexander anywhere closer to the edge of the world despite his eloquent and fiery speech. This was a severe blow to the king’s ego and pride, but he issued the order to retreat after three days.

Obviously, Alexander withdrew in style, and after building twelve altars (see: Alexander erected twelve altars on the banks of the Hyphasis) to thank the gods for having led him so far as conqueror and leaving an impressive memorial to his own accomplishments, he turned around having to cross the Hyphasis, Hydraotes, and Acesines once again. He sailed down the Hydaspes to ultimately reach the Indus River.

Some scholars consider Alexander’s experience in Punjab as useless and a waste of time, but it is hard to believe that he would do anything without reason. He would not endanger the life of his Macedonians lightly, and he certainly would not have invested nine months of this life on a sole whim. Judging Alexander’s conduct with today’s eyes is impossible. Besides, we only have sparse historical documentation to support his decision-making.

The Khyber Pass into India

On their return from Sogdiana (see: End of Alexander’s Campaign in Central Asia), the Macedonians spent a well-deserved rest of six months at Alexandria-in-the-Caucasus (Begram) in the heart of the Kabul Valley. Here, Alexander worked hard to reshuffle and reorganize his army.

[Map is from the Encyclopaedia Britannica]

His strategic phalanx was dismantled since it no longer served its purpose after the Bactrian guerilla wars. The mounted Lancers joined the Companion Cavalry together with the skillful horsemen from Bactria and Sogdiana, to which he added 2,000 horse-archers from Spitamenes’ nomads.

On another level, the commanding posts needed to be redistributed after the execution of Philotas and Parmenion and the murder of Cleitos. Their detachments were split between Ptolemy, Hephaistion, Perdiccas, and Leonnatus. The Royal Shield Bearers were promoted to the title of Silver Shields (Argyraspids), led by Seleucos and Nearchus, under the supreme command of Neoptolemus. The Royal Squadron of Companions remained under Alexander’s own command. These Cavalry Commanders and trusted squadron leaders enabled him to divide his army more freely between different locations at any one time.

That winter of 327 BC, the entire army was on the march again, with their forces divided in two. Hephaistion and Perdiccas are sent ahead to the Indus in order to prepare the crossing of that river with half the Companions and all the mercenary cavalry. The timing is well chosen to avoid the summer heat upon arrival in India. With the other half of the troops, Alexander starts his march up the Kunar Valley into the Swat Valley in modern Pakistan.

There is little or no information about the expedition of Hephaistion and Perdiccas as they head east. It is clear that to reach the Indus River, they must cross the Hindu Kush Mountains again. The obvious route this time leads over the Khyber Pass. Even today, the main road from Kabul to Peshawar runs over the same mountain pass.

The Khyber Pass is situated at an elevation of 1070 meters and is 53 kilometers long. The passage varies between 3 and 137 meters in width, meaning that the Macedonians had to cope with the inevitable bottlenecks. On top of that, the Khyber Pass is walled in by steep cliffs towering 200-300 meters above the men’s heads.

It is not known how long it took Hephaistion and Perdiccas to get across the pass, only that they marched to Peucelaotis and hence to the Indus. Their instructions, according to Arrian, were that they had to take all the places they encountered, either by force or by agreement.

Peucelaotis, however, resisted. Hephaistion besieged the town for thirty days, after which the defenders surrendered, maybe simply because their governor, Astes, was killed. The newly appointed governor was a certain Sangaeus who had deserted Astes some time before to join Taxiles. This made the man trustworthy.

Eventually, Hephaistion and Perdiccas reached the River Indus at Ohind/Hund (near modern Attock) in Punjab. Here, they built a fleet of thirty-oared galleys and a pontoon bridge of linked boats spanning the river, which at this point is at least 400 to 500 meters wide. This operation is not to be underestimated, for although the bridge was constructed far upstream in the Punjab region, the river is fed by snow and glacial meltwater from the Karakorum, the Hindu Kush, and the Himalaya Mountains, and its annual flow is known to be two times faster than that of the Nile or three times that of the Euphrates and the Tigris combined.

Even in antiquity, historians tend to focus solely on Alexander, but his generals also excelled in their missions, which were multiplied from Sogdiana and Bactria onwards. The War of the Diadochi that broke out after Alexander’s death certainly proves – if a proof is needed – how capable each and every one of his generals was. Well, they certainly had an excellent master!

[The Black&White picture is taken by John Burke, 1879-1880]

Alexander crossing the Indus at Ohind

In spite of the continuous tribal wars in Pakistan, archaeologists seem to say that they were able to carry out excavations at the village of Hund (Ohind in antiquity) in the north-western region of Kyber-Pakhtunkhwa, in modern Pakistan – the “land of the five rivers”. It is said that Alexander the Great stayed at this village before moving to Taxila. This is a known fact, but I wonder how far there is truth to today’s excavation story (see this article published in The Statesman in March 2016), as it sounds rather vague.

The town of Hund (also known as Odabandapura) is where Alexander crossed the Indus River in 327 BC over a bridge built by Hephaistion, who, together with Perdiccas, was sent ahead with part of the army to subdue the lands on their route. They had marched from the Cophen River (modern Kabul River) through the Khyber Pass down to the Indus, taking Peucelaotis in the Peshawar Valley on the way. Hephaistion had constructed a fleet of thirty-oared galleys and a pontoon bridge of linked boats spanning the Indus River, which at this point is at least 400 to 500 meters wide. This operation is not to be underestimated, for although the bridge was constructed far upstream in the Punjab region, the river is fed by snow and glacial meltwater from the Karakorum, the Hindu Kush, and the Himalaya Mountains and its annual flow is known to be two times faster than that of the Nile or three times that of the Euphrates and the Tigris combined.

Alexander, together with Craterus and Coenus in the meantime, campaigned against the Aspasians and the Assacenes north of that road to consolidate their rear in order to avoid being cut off from their line of supplies. Both Macedonian units united near modern Hund, from where the entire army crossed the Indus River.

Beyond the preparations for the crossing, little is told about the traverse itself. The local king, Omphis, had provided supplies to the Macedonians working at the river, but he had not met any of them in person. Omphis (also called Mophis in some sources) was the son of Taxiles, whom Alexander had met whilst in Sogdiana. King Taxiles had promised to join his forces to those of Alexander in his upcoming Indian campaign. After his father’s death, Omphis had sent notice to Alexander inquiring whether he would approve him reigning in the interim at Taxila or if, on the contrary, he preferred to appoint a viceroy pending his arrival – a gesture that Alexander highly appreciated. For the time being, Omphis could continue to rule but should not yet carry the title of Taxiles, as was reserved for the king in power, till Alexander’s arrival.

When the Macedonian army reached Taxila, one of the smaller states in Punjab,  they were met by Omphis, pleased to come forth with his army and elephants. Watching the approach, Alexander became suspicious because the Indian king’s display looked as if he was ready for battle with his elephants distributed evenly between the formations of soldiers. To be on the safe side, Alexander immediately sounded the call to arms, and the entire army took their position with the cavalry deployed at the wings, all facing the foe in silence. Noticing this sudden change, Omphis realized the impact his approach had had on the Macedonians.

Omphis ordered his men to raise their lances and stop their advance. He himself moved forward to meet Alexander, escorted by only a few of his cavalry. Alexander followed suit, and when both men met face to face, it became immediately clear that this was a friendly meeting. The expression on their faces said it all, pending the arrival of an interpreter.

When the interpreter arrived, Alexander wanted to know why Omphis had mobilized his entire forces to meet him. The Indian responded that he had brought his army in order to place his men at Alexander’s disposal. On hearing this good news, both men shook hands as a token of friendship and fidelity. Omphis handed his fifty-six elephants over to Alexander, together with an impressive herd of livestock, including 3,000 bulls dressed up for sacrifices.

Then Alexander granted him the royal insignia together with the permission to bear his father’s name, Taxiles, as he was known henceforth by his people.

The newly appointed king hosted Alexander as his guest for three days, allowing the Macedonians a time of rest. On the fourth day, Taxiles announced the amount of grain he had provided to Hephaistion while building the bridge over the Indus and, at the same time, handed gold crowns to Alexander and each of his Friends, plus eighty talents of minted silver and a number of unspecified strange jungle beasts. Alexander was evidently delighted but returned all the gifts to Taxiles and, in addition, gave him 1,000 talents together with an array of gold and silver vessels and thirty of his steeds equipped as his own.

It is under these circumstances that King Taxiles joined his forces to those of Alexander as they headed further east to challenge Porus, who was waiting for them on the opposite bank of the Hydaspes River.

[Map of the Indus from Livius site]