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Pakistan is a young state. It appeared on the maps only in 1947. Yet the country occupies the land of the legendary Harappa Civilization, which existed in the 3rd millennium B.C. This civilization was named after one of Punjabi settlements, where the artifacts belonging to this period of time were found during archeological excavations. In Harappa, and in Mohenjodaro settlement on the bank of the Indus River, the archeologists unearthed ruins of walled towns, which had orderly layouts and contained palaces, public buildings, two- and three-storied burnt-brick houses, swimming pools and drainage - rare attributes for the ancient world.
Great skills of Harappa craftsmen can be observed in cast bronze articles, jewelry, clayware, statuettes and many other articles of arts and crafts found during the excavations. At Mohenjodaro site there were found masterly carved signets. One of them contains image of a three-faced god whose head has horns that are curved sharply backward. All the animals on the signets were carved very finely and reflect high level of keenness of observation inherent to local craftsmen: a mountain he-goat with his horned head sharply turned around, a trampling elephant, the majestically standing sacred bull.
There were also found various ceramic articles. Among them the most remarkable are glossy containers covered with patterns representing animal and plant elements. The patterns consist of stylized figures of birds, fish, snakes, goats and antelopes among plants.
In the middle of the 2nd millennium B.C. Mohenjodaro and Harappa culture vanished after the Aryans invaded the Indus valley and mixed up with the local people. It is mostly the Veda - the oldest literary monument - that provides us with information about the life of local people during the centuries to follow. The Veda's hymns to gods reflect religious and philosophical concepts of the Aryans of Punjab, tell about their way of life.
Next historical stage of the region was marked by the flourishing of Kushan State in the 1st - 3rd centuries A.D. The art of Gandhara - a historical area now lying in Pakistan and Afghanistan - is remarkable for its uniqueness. Gandhara Buddhist sculptures and reliefs, which used to decorate the walls of the temples and monasteries, impress us with their diversity of images and artistic taste. Among the artifacts of Kushan period there stand out the portrait statues of the rulers. Very often these were erected as outdoor separate figures.
To help you fancy the multiformity of events which make up centuries-old Pakistani history, it should be noted that from the 6th century B.C. till the times the Kushan State was formed here, Gandhara had been under the rule of the Akhemenid Dynasty, Alexander the Great, the Seleucid Dynasty, Greek-Bactrian kings, Hindu and Sighkh princes, and Parphia.
Consequent to the invasion of Hindustan by the troops of the Arab Caliphate at the beginning of the 8th century, there appeared the first Muslim domains in the region. Founded in the 13th century, the large centralized Delhi's Sultanate consolidated Islam as official state religion.
The next page in the history of Northern India began with the military campaigns of Babur, Tamerlane's descendant. Babur defeated Delhi's Sultan in 1562 and founded the dynasty of Great Moguls. Babur's successors controlled the area as big as Hindustan Peninsula, Kashmir and Afghanistan.
Starting from the 17th century India was being penetrated by the British. Through rivalry with other western powers, with France in particular, the British gradually conquered the entire Indian subcontinent and for many years to follow Hindustan was a British colony.
Only in 1947 the former British colony was divided into two dominions: India and Pakistan. But it was the only territorial division that took place in the region. For almost fifteen years Pakistan consisted of Western Pakistan and Eastern Pakistan with Indian territories in between. But in 1971 Eastern Pakistan became the independent Republic of Bangladesh.
These changes had a profound effect on the life and character of once integrated country. Since it was separated according to religious principle rather than ethnical one, India remained a secular republic, while Pakistan was proclaimed an Islamic state. A number of Muslim historical monuments, including those belonging to the Delhi Sultanate period, are in India now, while some Hinduist temples are in Pakistan.
Today's Islamic Republic of Pakistan lies in the Indus valley. The country borders Iran in the west, Afghanistan in the north-east, and India in the east. In the south Pakistan is washed by the Arabian Sea. In ancient times and in the middle ages some of the caravan routes of the Great Silk Road used to run from Kashgar to Lahore, through the mountain ridges of Hindukush, and then further to Karachi, up to the Indian Ocean.
The capital of Pakistan is Islamabad. It is a young city built in the 1960s, and it has not acquired historical monuments yet. One of the main Islamabad places of interest is the national park Margalla Hills, whose hills tower over the city. There is a vide variety of animals in the park: leopards, apes, deer, mountain goats, boars, pheasants. The territory of the park is so vast that it takes longer than a whole day to tour it in full.
Karachi is the largest port of the country, its economical and financial center. Karachi and its environs give almost half of Pakistani industrial produce. A tour around Karachi usually begins with visiting the mausoleum of Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the founder of the state. Tourists are also deeply impressed by the white marble mosque of National Protection Society. This mosque has one of the largest domes in the world. Another historical monument is Zoroastrian tower, on the top of which they used to put the deceased to be "cleaned" by vultures. The central part of the city, Sedar, is the main market area, where they sell exotic goods and articles of arts and crafts.
Lahore is the administrative center of Punjab Province in the north-east of the country. The oldest part of Lahore is Old Town with medieval walls, towers, mosques and mausoleums. Its ancient fort with a palace complex and Pearl Mosque are especially impressive. Another Punjab city, Multan, is the oldest on the subcontinent. It is 4000 years old. Being a large Islamic center, for centuries it attracted pilgrims, monks and wandering preachers. One can find here lots of burial vaults with tombs of the saints.
Peshawar, located in the north-west of Pakistan, is also famous for its Old Town. This is where the famous bazaar is, the biggest in Asia and the only one which has preserved its original Oriental eccentricity. They say anything can be bought at this bazaar, including lamps with camel skin shades, bamboo ornaments, golden wares, cashmere shawls, mats and carpets, silk, the curved toe shoes 'salim shakhi', silver pendants, small carved wooden tables, snake skin purses.
There are fourteen national parks in Pakistan. Many of them are located not far from the cities. From Karachi it does not take long to get to Kirtar Range Park where a tourist can enjoy very diverse wild nature. The national park Lal Sukhanra, located at a distance of 100 kilometers from Multan, consists of three eco-systems: the desert, steppes and water reservoirs; the rare black antelopes and lions live there alongside with other animals.
The first Pakistani constitution was adopted in 1956. Under this constitution the former British dominion was declared the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Today Pakistan is a parliament republic with presidential government. The everyday life of the Pakistanis is in most cases regulated by shariat - a system of Muslim laws. Muslim customs and traditions are strictly observed in the country; Muslim holidays are national holidays, as well as Independence Day and Day of Pakistan.
Pakistan has developed oil producing and refining, chemical, shipbuilding, metallurgy and textile industries. Today's Pakistan is a combination of the savoury exotics of the Orient and the modern ways of life.
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