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Pakistan is a culturally rich country known for its natural beauty, traditions, cuisine, and historical monuments. From lush green plains to vast mountains to majestic deserts, Pakistan has it all. It is a paradise for people who love to explore ancient and historical places. Different empires have ruled the country, and many celebrities have also passed through it during their missions.
Undoubtedly, it is full of historical sites and has a deep history. From the ancient Indus Valley Civilization, the city of Mohenjo-Daro to Mughal marvels like the Lahore Fort; each attraction gives you a glimpse into a bygone era. Religious sites like the Katas Raj Temple and Takht Bahi Monastery showcase the country’s diverse religious heritage, while forts like Rohtas Fort are a testament to strategic ingenuity. This list provides a starting point to explore the depth and diversity of Pakistan’s historical treasures.
In this post, we cover the best historical places in Pakistan that you should take advantage of, especially if you have some knowledge of history.
Located in Sheikhupura, Hiran Minar is an early Mughal-era complex built in the 17th century. It is also known as the “Deer Minar.” Emperor Jahangir built the complex in memory of his pet antelope, Mansraj.
Hiran Minar is located in Sheikhupura, a city northwest of Lahore. Sheikhupura Fort, which dates back to the early 17th century, is another famous historical site nearby. Both sites can be reached from Lahore via the M2 highway.
Pakistan’s Historical Places: Hiran Minar
The complex’s structure is also interesting. It consists of four 30-foot-high minarets. The complex also has a huge swimming pool and a pavilion, which add to its beauty and elegance. Karachi has amazing swimming pools for summer swimming.
Located in Bahawalpur, Noor Mahal is a symbol of beauty and elegance. It was built in 1872 by the Nawab of Bahawalpur during British rule. Maps of the city and gold coins were buried in the store’s foundations.
The interior of the store, in addition to its exterior, reveals elegance and taste. Most of the fine furniture was imported from Britain and Italy. The building was completed in 1875 for 1.2 million rupees.
The store covers an area of 44,600 square feet (4,140 square meters) and has 32 rooms, 14 of which are in the basement, six balconies, and five domes. In 1906, Nawab Muhammad Bahaul Khan V added a mosque inside the palace at a cost of 20,000 rupees. The Department of Archaeology, Government of Pakistan, declared the building a “protected monument” in September 2001, and it is now open to the public.
Pakistan’s Historical Places – Noor Mahal
The place also houses many of the Nawab’s personal belongings, including his old swords, old banknotes, old laws issued at the time, an old piano that the Nawab used to play, old furniture used by the Nawab, etc. There is also a long wall with peculiar portraits of members of Parliament.
Mohenjo Daro is an archaeological site in the province of Sindh, also known as the “Heap of Dead Men.” It was built around 2500 BC and is said to be one of the largest and oldest settlements in the Indus River Valley. The city was abandoned in the 19th century BC for unknown reasons. It was rediscovered in 1920, and since then, some major excavations have been carried out in the area.
Paksitan’s Historical Places – Mohen jo Daro
UNESCO designated Mohenjo-Daro a World Heritage Site in 1980. It is located west of the Indus River in the Larkana district of Sindh, Pakistan, and is one of the best places to visit.
The Minar ePakistan is equivalent to Pakistan’s nationalism and patriotism. It is a national monument located in the center of Lahore. The tower was built between 1960 and 1968 on the site where the All India Muslim League passed the Lahore Resolution on March 23, 1940.
The tower is a perfect fusion of Islamic and modern design and architecture. It was designed by the famous Russian architect Nasreddin Murad Khan. The memorial was started in 1960 and completed on October 21, 1968, at an estimated cost of 7,058,000 rupees.
Pakistan’s Historical Places – Minar e Pakistan
The tower base is about 62 meters high, and the total height of the lighthouse is about 70 meters from the ground. The base of the Minar e Pakistan has become a large petal, 9 meters high, and the tower is about 9.75 meters in diameter.
The petals are inscribed with the text of the Lahore Resolution in Urdu, Bengali, and English, as well as the text of the Delhi Resolution adopted on April 9, 1946. They are also 13 meters high and about 9.75 meters wide.
Taxila is an ancient city located near Rawalpindi. Taxila means “city of stone carvings” in Sanskrit. It is located 32 kilometres (20 miles) northwest of Islamabad and Rawalpindi, near the famous Grand Trunk Road. Islamabad has some amazing attractions and haunted places. There are many activities you can do in Rawalpindi.
Some of the sites in the area date back to the Achaemenid Empire in the 6th century BC, followed by the Maurya Empire, Indo-Greek Empire, Indo-Scythian Empire, and Kushan Empire. This shows the area’s historical importance and diversity.
Pakistan’s Historical Places – Taxila
The ruins of Taxila were rediscovered in the mid-19th century by the famous archaeologist Sir Alexander Cunningham. In 1980, UNESCO declared Taxila a World Heritage Site, and in 2006, The Guardian named it the best tourist destination in Pakistan.
If you want to explore ancient Hindu temples and institutions, this is the place for you. The Katas Raj Temples are also popular among the masses. Katas is a complex of multiple temples interconnected by corridors.
It is located near Kalar Kahar at an altitude of 2000 feet. By road, it is about 100 km from the Tila Jogyan complex, another important Hindu pilgrimage destination.
The complex revolves around a pond called Katas, considered sacred by Hindus. The temples are located near the town of Chua Sidanshah and the M2 highway. According to popular legend, Lord Shiva’s tears created the pond in the complex in memory of his late wife, Sati.
Pakistan’s Historical Places – Katas Raj Temple
Another tradition claims that the Hindu god Krishna laid the foundation of the temple and hand-made shillings in it. The pond covers an area of 2 canals and 15 marlas, with a maximum depth of 20 feet.
Harappa is another archaeological site in Punjab, located about 24 km (15 mi) west of Sahiwal. The site got its name from a village on the banks of the Ravi Bank. It is one of the best places to visit in Pakistan. The present-day village of Harappa is less than 1 km (0.62 mi) away from the ancient ruins.
The ruins contain objects dating back to the Bronze Age. The city is estimated to have had a population of 23,500 people and covered an area of about 150 hectares (370 acres). The earliest roots of the Harappan civilization can be traced back to the Mehrgarh culture around 6000 BC. Harappa and Mohenjo-daro were established along the Indus Valley in 2600 BC.
The Harappan civilization was very modern. It had a writing system, urban centers, and a diverse social and economic system. The Harappans were also traders and traded with ancient Mesopotamia. Cotton textiles and agricultural products were the main trade items. You can also visit the Harappan Museum to explore ancient artifacts.
The Lahore Fort, also known as Shahi Qila or Royal Fort, is in the Walled City of Lahore. It is one of the tourist attractions in Lahore. The fort covers an area of 20 hectares and has 21 monuments dating back to the reign of Akbar.
Subsequent emperors also transformed the fort. Shah Jahan added precious marble and floral patterns to the fort, and Aurangzeb added the Great Alamgiri Gate. During the Sikh rule in Lahore, the fort was the residence of Emperor Ranjit Singh, the founder of the Sikh Empire.
Pakistan’s Historical Places – Lahore Fort
In 1981, the fort was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List for its “outstanding collection” of Mughal artifacts. It is also famous for the Sheesh Mahal within the Shah Burj complex.
Takht-e-Bahi, also known as the Water Spring Throne, is a Hindu-Parthian archaeological site in Mardan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. There are many things to do in the city, but you must visit this place as it is one of Gandhara’s most impressive Buddhist monuments.
This Buddhist monastery was built in the first century AD, and Buddhists used this place till the seventh century. Takht-e-Bahi was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1980. The Takht-e-Bahi complex consists of four main areas. The first is the Stupa Courtyard, a group of stupas in a central courtyard.
Pakistan’s Historical Places – Takht e Bahi
The second area consists of the monastic rooms, which consist of individual cells, meeting rooms, and dining halls arranged around a courtyard. Then, there is the temple complex, which consists of stupas resembling a courtyard. Finally, there is a Tantric temple complex consisting of small, dark cells with low openings that may have been used for some forms of Tantric meditation.
Rohtas Fort, also known as Qila Rohtas, is located near Jhelum. It was built during the reign of Sher Shah Suri in the 16th century and is said to be one of the largest forts in the Indian subcontinent. Fortunately, the fort has never been attacked, and it still stands in all its splendour.
Rohtas Fort was listed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1997 because it is an example of Islamic military architecture in Central and South Asia. The fort covers an area of 70 hectares and is surrounded by a 4-km-long wall fortified by 68 fort towers and 12 gates. This large fort could house up to thirty thousand troops.
You should not miss visiting this fort to explore ancient towers and architecture. To escape from the usual city life, visit this famous forts in Pakistan.
Pakistan’s Historical Places – Rohtas Fort
These are some of the most famous historical attractions in Pakistan. If you are a traveller or interested in history, you must visit these attractions. If you want to travel outside Pakistan, many countries offer visa-free entry to Pakistani passport holders.
Since 2017, Saba Ghani has been serving as the talented and dedicated chief content writer for Pakistan Tour and Travel & EMHI Solutions. With her exceptional writing skills and in-depth knowledge of the travel industry, she has been instrumental in crafting engaging and informative content that captivates the audience. You can catch her at [email protected] or Twitter
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