Taxila (Punjabi: ٹيکسلا, romanized: Ṭeksilā), historically known as Takshashila, is a city and UNESCO World Heritage Site on the Pothohar Plateau of Punjab, Pakistan. Founded around c. 1000 BC, it is one of the oldest cities in South Asia. Taxila is located within the Taxila Tehsil of Rawalpindi District in northern Punjab, and it lies approximately 25 kilometres (16 mi) northwest of the Islamabad–Rawalpindi metropolitan area and is just south of the Haripur District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Established during the Vedic period, Old Taxila was for a time the capital city of ancient Gandhāra. Situated on the eastern shore of the Indus River—the pivotal junction of the Indian subcontinent and Central Asia—it was possibly founded around 1000 BCE. Takshashila and Pushkalavati remained prominent cities in Gandhāra during the Mahajanapadas. The city is believed to have become part of the Achaemenid Empire during 550 – 326 BCE. In 326 BCE, it was claimed by Alexander the Great, after overthrowing the Achaemenids. Alexander gained control of the city without a battle since it immediately surrendered to his Macedonian Empire. This was followed successively by the Mauryans (~317 – ~200 BCE), the Indo-Greeks (~200 BCE – ~55 BCE), the Indo-Scythians (~80 BCE – ~30 CE), and the Kushan Empire (~30 CE – ~375 CE), who destroyed the existing city, in the first century CE, to build their own on a site to the north of the ruins. Owing to its strategic location, Taxila has changed hands many times over the centuries, with many polities vying for its control. When the great ancient trade routes connecting these regions ceased to be important, the city sank into insignificance and was finally destroyed in the 5th century by the invading Hunas. In mid-19th century British India, ancient Taxila's ruins were rediscovered by British archaeologist Alexander Cunningham and extensively excavated by Sir John Marshall. In 1980, UNESCO designated Taxila as a World Heritage Site. The area was part of the ancient Gandhara region. Taxila (ancient city) was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1980 and is located in the town of Taxila.
