Gandhara

A culture of the 2nd and 1st millennia BC in the valleys of northwestern Pakistan - and the Achaemenid (Persian) satrapy of this name. This culture was important in passing Persian ideas on to the civilizations of the Ganges valley. It also introduced Hellenistic art styles to India. Western influence is also apparent in the grid town planning found at the Gandharan cities of Charsada and Taxila. Characteristic burials are in tombs consisting of two small chambers, one on top of the other; the lower chamber contained both the burial (inhumed or cremated) and the grave goods, while the upper chamber was empty. The population, which bred livestock and carried out agriculture, were accomplished metalworkers, producing tools, weapons, and ornaments of copper, bronze, gold, silver, and iron. The pottery within the grave goods was mostly a red or gray plain burnished type.

An area on the northwest frontier of Pakistan which from the 6th century bc formed a satrapy of the Achaemenid (Persian) empire. Through this province Western influences, and perhaps actual craftsmen, reached India. Gandharan art reflects these Western (provincial Hellenistic) influences, alongside other elements of purely Indian origin. Western influence is apparent also in the grid-iron town planning found at the important Gandharan cities of Charsada and Taxila.