53 Interesting Facts About the Number 53: Buddha of Bamiyan was 53 meters tall
Today is Buddha’s Birthday as celebrated by the Vietnamese and others. Just as Christmas celebrates the birth of Christ, so does Vesak celebrate the birth of Buddha. It is one of the most important celebrations on the Buddhist calendar. Read here about events in Ventura County.
This week’s interesting fact about the number 53 got me scurrying around the internet looking for something about Buddha and the number 53.
I kept coming back to these amazing statues in Bamiyan c. 300s CE, where a 53 meter tall Buddha was carved in Bamiyan cliffs, Afghanistan. The c onstruction of Stucco, Limestone, Straw, Wood, mud started in 544 AD.
53 meters equals 173.885 feet, the height of a 10 or more story building.
In March 2001, this Buddha was destroyed by the Taliban because it was seen as an idol. UNESCO is working to conserve what is left and more.
There are actually two Buddhas of Bamiyan. These 6th-century monumental statues of standing Buddha were carved into the side of a cliff in the Bamyan valley in the Hazarajat region of central Afghanistan, northwest of Kabul at an altitude of 2,500 meters. Wikipedia
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Construction started: 544 AD
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Architectural style: Greco-Buddhist art
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Media: Stucco, Limestone, Straw, Wood, mud
art predator 