Bamyan

Bamyan Province (Pashto/Persian: بامیان) is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. It is in the centre of the country. Its capital is also called Bamyan. Bamyan is the largest town in the Hazarajat region of Afghanistan, and is the cultural capital of the Hazara ethnic group that predominates in the area. Bamyan was the site of an early Buddhist monastery. Many statues of Buddha are carved into the sides of cliffs facing Bamyan city. The two most prominent of these statues were standing Buddhas, now known as the Buddhas of Bamyan, measuring 55 and 37 meters high respectively, that were the largest examples of standing Buddha carvings in the world.