Kunduz Bala Hissar

The Bala Hissar is the ruined citadel hill at the heart of the old city, a worn earthen mound rather than a polished monument. Excavations and surface finds have turned up Hellenistic and Kushan-era material, hinting at Kunduz's importance on the trade routes running south from the Oxus toward Bactria.

The site is unrestored and surrounded by modern neighbourhoods. There are no facilities or interpretive signs, and access depends entirely on the security situation in any given month.

things to do sight
A story
The hill that gives Kunduz its name — kuhandiz, an old Persian word meaning 'ancient fortress' — has been a citadel in some form for more than two thousand years. Greek-Bactrian, Kushan, Mongol and Timurid rulers have all built on the same rise above the river plain.