Khaltchayan Reception Hall, Yuezhi north Bactria, 50 BC-50 AD

A Cataphract


Source: 'Kushan sculpture of Buddhism' at consequit.org

A reconstruction of the Cataphract from The Armies of Bactria 700BC - 450 AD, Volume 2 by Valerii P Nikonorov
The main reception chamber in the Khaltchayan hall was decorated with splendid wall reliefs in clay and stucco on a wooden frame picked out in vivid colours. In the centre of the main wall sat a royal couple flanked by attendants; on the north side were further nobles including this man holding a suit of armour, and a goddess on a chariot, while on the south were central Asian horse-archers.



Khaltchayan in Surxondaryo prov., southern Uzbekistan, site of a settlement and palace of the nomad Yuezhi, with paintings and sculptures of the mid-1st century BCE. The Yuezhi, and perhaps other nomad groups, overthrew the Hellenistic Greek dynasty which had ruled there since the mid-3rd century as successor to the post-Achaemenid governments of Alexander and the Seleucids.
Reference: Iranica online - Khalchayan



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