The Indo-Greek Fortified City of Barikot (Swat). The Beginning of the Mature Urban Phase (~ 150 BCE)

Excavations have been carried out at the archaeological site of Barikot by the Italian Archaeological Mission in Pakistan since 1977. This project, started and initially directed by Giorgio Stacul († 2018) and Pierfrancesco Callieri, has been directed since 2010 by Luca Maria Olivieri, since 2017 with the codirection of Elisa Iori. Barikot, located at a strategic point of inner Swat, is definitively identified with the location of the ancient town known as Beira, and as Bazira in the Alexandrographers, a wealthy city besieged, seized and garrisoned by Alexander in Autumn 327 BCE. The study presents the data available as of the conference date regarding the Indo-Greek phases, a set of radiocarbon dates estimated to fall between the Iron Age and the Indo-Greek phase, and historical information as reflected in the numismatic history of the city’s contemporary periods.