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Makli Hill, Sindh. — Fotopedia
Courtesy Khanabadosh Research & Exploration Society and DOAM
Wikipedia Article
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Makli Hill

One of the largest necropolises in the world, with a diameter of approximately 8km. Makli Hill is supposed to be the burial place of some 125,000 local rulers, Sufi saints and others. It is located on the outskirts of Thatta, the capital of lower Sind until the seventeenth century, in what is the southeastern province of present-day Pakistan. It was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1981 under the name, Historical Monuments of Thatta.


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Sindh

Sindh (pronounced [sɪnd̪ʱ]; Sindhi: سنڌ; Urdu: سندھ Indica in Latin, Indus in Greek) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan and historically is home to the Sindhi people. It is also locally known as the "Mehran" and has been given the title of Bab-ul-Islam (The gateway of Islam). The name of Sindh is derived from the Indus River that separates it from Balochistan and the greater Iranian Plateau. This river was known to the ancient Iranians in Avestan as Indus, in Sanskrit as Sindhu, to Assyrians (as early as the seventh century BC) as Sinda, to the Greeks as Indos, to the Romans as Indus, to the Persians as Ab-e-sind, to the Pashtuns as "Abasind", to the Arabs as Al-Sind, to the Chinese as Sintow, and to the Javanese as the Santri.


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List of necropoleis

A necropolis (Greek plural: necropoleis; Latin plural: necropoles) is a large cemetery or burial ground, usually including structural tombs. The word comes from the Greek νεκρόπολις - nekropolis, literally meaning "city of the dead". Apart from the occasional application of the word to modern cemeteries outside large towns, the term is chiefly used of burial grounds, near the centers of ancient civilizations, such as an abandoned city or town. The term "necropolis" is also occasionally used in fantasy fiction to describe a city overrun by fictional creatures known as undead.

Grave field is a term for prehistoric burial grounds that do not include any above-ground structures or markers. These include row graves, urnfields, tumuli, etc.


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Pakistan

Pakistan (i/ˈpækɨstæn/ or i/pɑːkiˈstɑːn/; Urdu: پاکستان) (Urdu pronunciation: [paːkɪˈst̪aːn] ( listen)), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan (Urdu: اسلامی جمہوریۂ پاکستان), is a sovereign country in South Asia. It sits at the crossroads of the strategically important regions of South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. It has a 1,046-kilometre (650 mi) coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by India to the east, Afghanistan to the west and north, Iran to the southwest and China in the far northeast. It is separated from Tajikistan by Afghanistan's narrow Wakhan Corridor in the north, and it shares a marine border with Oman.


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World Heritage Site

A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place (such as a forest, mountain, lake, desert, monument, building, complex, or city) that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance. The list is maintained by the international World Heritage Programme administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, composed of 21 states parties which are elected by their General Assembly.

The program catalogues, names, and conserves sites of outstanding cultural or natural importance to the common heritage of humanity. Under certain conditions, listed sites can obtain funds from the World Heritage Fund. The programme was founded with the Convention Concerning the Protection of World Cultural and Natural Heritage, which was adopted by the General Conference of UNESCO on November 16, 1972. Since then, 189 states parties have ratified the convention.

As of 2011, 936 sites are listed: 725 cultural, 183 natural, and 28 mixed properties, in 153 States Parties. Italy is home to the greatest number of World Heritage Sites to date with 47 sites inscribed on the list. UNESCO references each World Heritage Site with an identification number; but new inscriptions often include previous sites now listed as part of larger descriptions. As a result, the identification numbers exceed 1200 even though there are fewer on the list.


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Islamic architecture

Islamic architecture encompasses a wide range of both secular and religious styles from the foundation of Islam to the present day, influencing the design and construction of buildings and structures in Islamic culture. The principal Islamic architectural types are: the Mosque, the Tomb, the Palace and the Fort. From these four types, the vocabulary of Islamic architecture is derived and used for buildings of lesser importance such as public baths, fountains and domestic architecture.