7 Historic Treasures Destroyed in Wars that Travelers Will Never Get to See
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3Two giant Buddhas — Bamiyan, Afghanistan
The UNESCO World Heritage site of Bamiyan in Afghanistan was once home to two giant Buddha statues.
All that changed in March 2001, when the Taliban desecrated the site, demolishing the statues in a thunder of artillery fire and explosive charges. Such was the scale of the monolithic carvings that it took weeks for militants to reduce them to two huge piles of fragmented rock.
These ancient urban centers, once thriving hubs of culture, innovation, and power, now lie buried beneath layers of time and mystery. From the sunken remains of mythical Atlantis to the buried ruins of Pompeii, these lost cities continue to intrigue and mystify us, offering glimpses into bygone eras and sparking the imagination.