This artwork is the result of a global conference on "Buddhism and Gandhara Art" that was held while Afghanistan's then-Taliban government was determined to destroy the magnificent works of Gandhara art, notably the enormous Bamiyan Buddha. It is an academic ode to those magnificent Gandhara art artifacts, many of which are no longer on display. The book includes studies and new interpretations of the various components of Gandhara art with the goal of presenting them from a historical viewpoint. The studies presented by a diverse group of art historians and archaeologists provide a fascinating look at the cultural evolution of the Gandhara region from pre-Christian times to the Islamic era.