Kampyr Tepe
Kampir Tepe · Alexandria on the Oxus (candidate)
Hellenistic to Kushan (c.300 BCE–3rd cent CE, candidate Alexander 329 BCE)·Greco-Bactrian → Kushan·🇺🇿 Surxondaryo Region, Amu Darya right bank near Shoʻrob, 30 km west of Termez, Uzbekistan
About
About Kampyr Tepe
Hellenistic–Kushan fortress-city on Amu Darya right bank near Shoʻrob, called Pompeii of Central Asia, discovered 1972 by E. Rtveladze and excavated 1979–. Greek citadel with arrow slits becomes Kushan city with Buddhist sanctuary outside walls, candidate for Alexander's Alexandria on Oxus (329 BCE crossing). 14C workshop dates late 4th c. BCE,保存完 Greek pottery and Kushan coins.
Why it mattersOxus crossing fortress candidate for Alexander's Alexandria preserving Greek to Kushan levels
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Kampyr vs Ai Khanoum as Alexander's Oxus crossing?
- 02Kushan Buddhist sanctuary inside vs outside walls
Theories
- 01Oxus crossing colonial model: Alexander's Bactrian phrourion → Kushan trade node
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c.300 BCE (Seleucid)
- Period
- Hellenistic to Kushan (c.300 BCE–3rd cent CE, candidate Alexander 329 BCE)
- Culture
- Greco-Bactrian → Kushan
- Builders
- Seleucid Greeks → Kushan
- Purpose
- Oxus crossing fortress and Kushan port on Amu Darya
- Abandoned
- c.3rd cent CE
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
c.300 BCE (Seleucid)
Initial construction
c. 1033 CE
Rediscovery
On the ground
Structures & features
37.4100° N · 67.0300° E · 300 m · 2 mapped features
Hellenistic citadel
citadelSeleucid pakhsa citadel with loopholes and Greek workshop (14C late 4th c BCE)
37.4102° N · 67.0302° EKushan lower town and stupa
settlementKushan Buddhist sanctuary and lower town outside citadel walls
37.4098° N · 67.0298° E