The area of Karachi in Sindh, Pakistan has a natural harbor and has been used as fishing port by local fisherman belonging to Sindhi tribes since prehistory. Archaeological excavations have uncovered a period going back to Indus valley civilisation which shows the importance of the port since the Bronze Age. The port city of Banbhore was established before the Christian era which served as an important trade hub in the region, the port was recorded by various names by the Greeks such as Krokola, Morontobara port, and Barbarikon, a sea port of the Indo-Greek Bactrian kingdom and Ramya according to some Greek texts. The Arabs knew it as the port of Debal, from where Muhammad bin Qasim led his conquering force into Sindh in AD 712. Lahari Bandar or Lari Bandar succeeded Debal as a major port of the Indus; it was located close to Banbhore, in modern Karachi. The first modern port city near Manora Island was established during British colonial Raj in the late 19th century.
Archaeological ruins of Bhanbore
A sketch of the old fort at Karachi from the 1830s
Frere Hall, Karachi, c. 1860
An old image of Karachi from 1889
Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the second-largest Muslim population as of 2023. Islamabad is the nation's capital, while Karachi is its largest city and financial centre. Pakistan is the 33rd-largest country by area and the ninth-largest in Asia. Bounded by the Arabian Sea on the south, the Gulf of Oman on the southwest, and the Sir Creek on the southeast, it shares land borders with India to the east; Afghanistan to the west; Iran to the southwest; and China to the northeast. It shares a maritime border with Oman in the Gulf of Oman, and is separated from Tajikistan in the northwest by Afghanistan's narrow Wakhan Corridor.
Priest-King from Mohenjo-daro (c. 2500 BCE)
Cremation urn, Gandhara grave culture, Swat Valley, c. 1200 BCE
Standing Buddha from Gandhara (1st–2nd century CE)
Badshahi Mosque, Lahore