290318
The location of the site is 33.756458' N,
72.829781' E
The second city at Taxila is called
Sirkap, which means "severed head" and is the name of a mythological
demon that is said to have lived on this site. It devoured human flesh and was
killed by the hero Rasalu. Sirkap was founded by the Bactrian king
Demetrius, who conquered this region in the 180s BCE. The city was rebuilt
by king Menander.
A
special Stupa at Sirkap is the so-called 'Double-Headed Eagle Stupa'. The
pilasters here are of a Greek design, "Corinthian columns". In the
middle arch, a Greek temple is shown; in the outer, a shrine of a Hindu design
can be seen. On top of these sanctuaries, a Double-headed eagle is seated
from which the name of the Stupa has been derived. This motive is rather odd,
to say the least, as it is originally Babylonian. It seems to have
spread to Scythia, and introduced in
the Punjab by the Saka rulers.
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