Alexander in Pakistan

[Dr YA Qureshi]

Dear colleaguesKind regards. Being of Pakistani extraction, I find it incredibly humiliating not to be well read on the sub-topic of Alexander's exact movements in this region (Pakistan in particular). Although I have visited Taxila, Swat and Jhelum, my travels have yielded little information, perhaps due to my own failings. My question is: Are there any decent books/articles specifically on Alexander in Pakistan that are readily available?ThankyouYassar

[jona]

There's nothing to feel humiliated about - except for Taxila, the architectural remains from the age of Alexander are very unimpressive (I think I've photographed about everything there is, and it's not much: http://www.livius.org/a/pakistan.html).Yet, even though there is not much certainty about the places Alexander visited, we know quite a lot about his acts, because our main source Arrian uses not the usual two, but at least four and probably five sources for his description of the Punjab and Sind (Aristobulus, Ptolemaeus + Megasthenes, Nearchus and perhaps Onesicritus). As a result, Arrian's account is excellent, so if you want to know more, this is the place to start.Alternatively, you may read Brian Bosworth's *Alexander in the East*, which is, in my opinion, one of the very best books on Alexander.Best wishes,Jona

[susan]

You could also try :
Aurel Stein - 'On Alexander's track to the Indus'
which is the path through the North West frontier.
This describes his attempts to find Aornos.Also,
'Cities of Alexander the Great' by P.M.Fraser, which tries to identify the towns that Alexander founded - although I personally find it rather heavy-going to read.There's also a book by Arnold Toynbee - "Between the Oxus & the Jumna", which is quite interesting; although it's more about his travels at the present time, it does mention some possible sites for Alexander's towns.You can read Arrian's description of India online at :
http://www.und.ac.za/und/classics/india/arrian.htm
Susan

[marcus]

I'm glad I'm not the only one who found Fraser difficult - in fact, I never finished it.I have the Toynbee and Stein books, and they're both great - well worth reading. I'd say the Toynbee is better for general information, though, as Stein is rather specific in the area he covers.Jolly interesting, all the same!All the bestMarcus

[amyntoros]

Hello Yassar:I just found the following item on Ebay which might be of interest to you. http://cgi.aol.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl ... 9&rd=1Sind Before the Muslim Conquest by H.T. LambrickHyderabad, Sind, Pakistan: Sindhi Adabi Board, 1973 - First Edition, 218 pages. Index of Geographical Places. Historical Index. Maps. "This book is Volume II of the History of Sind Series planned by the Sindhi Adabi Board, established in 1951 by the Sind Provincial Government to foster the language and literature of Sind. The aim was to produce a definitive history of the country from prehistoric times till the birth of Pakistan in 1947...The complete history will ...be published in nine volumes in three languages, Sindhi, Urdu and in English." Volume II includes discussion of the Indus civilization, Persian occupations, Alexander the Great's invasion, the Scythians and their successors, the Buddhist Period, and the Brahman dynasty and its fall. The text is illustrated with fold-out maps and black & white photographic images. . This book is one of 2,000 copies published as a First Edition in 1973. This is a scarce title. It was written, published and distributed in Pakistan."Best regards,Linda Ann