Saed News: The treasure known as the "Bactrian Gold" is a rare and stunning depiction of the ancient culture of a region that we now recognize as Afghanistan. This treasure was first excavated in 1978 by a group of Russian and Afghan archaeologists, led by the Russian archaeologist Viktor Sarianidi.
According to the History Service of Saed News, citing Faradeed, Sarianidi and his team discovered around 21,000 gold pieces in six graves, which contained the bodies of five women and one man; the remains date back to the 1st century BC.
This treasure included ornate necklaces with precious stones, large medals, several belts, and an extraordinarily delicate and amazing crown, as well as thousands of other pieces such as coins and other decorations made of gold, silver, and ivory. The coins found in this treasure ranged from Roman and Parthian coins to one featuring Buddhist designs.
In one of the graves, a silver coin from the reign of the Parthian king, Mithridates II (88-123 BC), was found. This coin was held by the woman buried in grave three. In grave six, a gold coin from the reign of King Gotarzes I was found in the left hand of the corpse.
There are different views about the owners of this treasure. Some believe it belonged to the Parthian or Saka tribes living in the region, while another plausible view attributes it to the Kushan tribes who founded the Kushan Empire.
It was believed that this treasure had been lost in the 1990s, but in 2003, the "Bactrian Gold" was completely discovered in a secret vault beneath the building of the Central Bank of Kabul. It was revealed that Afghanistan's last communist president, Mohammad Najibullah, had ordered the transfer of the treasure to the underground vault. The vault's key was held by only five trusted individuals.
When the treasure was opened in 2003, its collection was cataloged by the National Geographic Society. The Afghan government, at the time, made an agreement with France to appraise this collection and display it internationally at various exhibitions. This was done in collaboration with several renowned museums and the National Geographic Society.
In 2021, after the Taliban took control of Kabul, reports indicated that the group's leaders had begun an intensive search for the treasure. Currently, the fate of the "Bactrian Gold" is once again shrouded in uncertainty.
