Religious practices in Ai-Khanoum : The three temples in comparison

Sammanfattning

This paper examines the religious practices of the city of Ai-Khanoum in relation to Bactrian and Greek culture. Ai-Khanoum is located in northern Afghanistan and was a Greek Hellenistic colony between the 4th century BC and the 2nd century BC. The city had three temples, but only one with documented artifacts, and through material culture theory the architecture of the temples and the material from the temple with indented indented niches are discussed. Elements of both religions, Bactrian and Greek, are present: the gods depicted are mainly Greek and the architecture and cult installations are mainly Bactrian. The temple on the acropolis stands out because the architecture is typical of the Iranian tradition, while the temple outside the gates resembles more the temple with indented niches.