Pushkalavati
Pushkalavati (Pashto: پشکلاوتي; Urdu: پُشْكَلآوَتی; Sanskrit: Puṣkalāvatī पुष्कलावती; Prākrit: Pukkalāoti; Ancient Greek: Πευκελαῶτις Peukelaôtis) or Pushkaravati (Sanskrit: Puṣkarāvatī; Pāli: Pokkharavatī), and later Shaikhan Dheri (Pashto: شېخان ډېرۍ; Urdu: شیخان ڈھیری), was the capital of the ancient region of Gāndhāra, situated in present day's Pakistan. Its ruins are located on the outskirts of the modern city of Charsadda, in Charsadda District, in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 28 kilometres (17 miles) northeast of Peshawar. Its ruins are located on the banks of Swat River, near its junction with Kabul River, with the earliest archaeological remains from 1400 to 800 BCE in Bala Hisar mound. Pushkalavati became an Achaemenid regional capital around 600 BCE, and it remained an important city through to the 2nd century CE.
پشکلاوتي | |
The remains of the original mound, Bala Hisar Swat river and Bala Hisar mound just beyond (center of the photograph). | |
Pushkalavati Shown within Pakistan Pushkalavati Pushkalavati (Gandhara) Pushkalavati Pushkalavati (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) | |
| Alternative name | Pushkalavati |
|---|---|
| Location | Outskirts of Charsadda, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan |
| Coordinates | 34.168°N 71.736°E |
| Type | Ancient capital city |
| History | |
| Founded | c. 1400 BCE |
| Periods | Gandhara |
| Site notes | |
| Excavation dates | 1902 |
| Archaeologists | Sir John Marshall Sir Mortimer Wheeler |
The ruins of Pushkalavati consist of two sites, separated by the small Sambor river.: 4–5 To the south is Bala Hisar, which consists of two separate mounds, one eastern and one western.: 4–5 To the north is Shaikhan Dheri, wedged between the Sambor and Jinde rivers.: 5