Ancient World
Mogao Caves at Dunhuang: Buddhist Art on the Silk Road
A small hermit's cave grew into nearly 500 decorated cave temples, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the richest stores of Buddhist art in the world.
Region
Asia
Ancient World
Arrival of the Huns in Europe (c. 370): Collapse of the Goths
The Alans and the Gothic kingdoms north of the Black Sea collapsed, and tens of thousands of Goths sought refuge inside the Roman Empire in 376.
Ancient World
Battle of Fei River (383): Eastern Jin Halts the Former Qin
Decisive Eastern Jin victory; the Former Qin army collapsed, Fu Jian's empire broke apart and southern China remained independent.
Ancient World
Faxian's Pilgrimage to India (AD 399): A Chinese Monk's Record
Faxian brought Buddhist monastic rules and scriptures back to China and wrote the earliest surviving first-hand Chinese account of India.
Ancient World
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali: The Ancient Text Behind Yoga
The Yoga Sutras became the classic text of yoga philosophy in India and, after the 19th century, a foundational text for yoga in the West.
Ancient World
Iron Pillar of Delhi: The Rust-Resistant Gupta Monument
A forged wrought-iron pillar of the Gupta age that still stands largely free of corrosion after some 1,600 years.
Ancient World
Theodosian Walls (413): The Land Walls of Constantinople
The triple line of land walls made Constantinople almost impregnable until the Ottoman artillery siege of 1453.
Ancient World
Gwanggaeto Stele (414): The Monument to Goguryeo's Great King
King Jangsu raised a giant inscribed stone recording his father's deeds; it is the longest surviving inscription from early Korea and a key, much-debated source for the region's history.
Ancient World
Nalanda Mahavihara: Ancient India's Great Buddhist University
A royal-sponsored Buddhist monastery grew into Asia's leading centre of learning for some seven centuries.
Ancient World
Daisen Kofun: Japan's Giant Keyhole Tomb of Emperor Nintoku
A keyhole-shaped mound about 486 metres long was raised for a Yamato great king; it is now part of the Mozu-Furuichi Kofun Group World Heritage Site.
Ancient World
Yungang Grottoes: Colossal Buddhas of the Northern Wei Dynasty
The Northern Wei carved about 45 major caves with more than 51,000 statues, creating one of the earliest great centres of Buddhist rock-cut art in China.
Ancient World
Sigiriya: King Kashyapa's Rock Fortress in Sri Lanka (AD 477)
A short-lived royal capital that later became a monastery and is now one of South Asia's best-preserved ancient urban sites.