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Afghan oil paintings world's oldest

Artists in Afghanistan were painting using oils as far back as the 7th century, research shows, hundreds of years before oil paint was used in Europe.

The world's first oil paintings were in caves near two destroyed giant statues of Buddha at Bamiyan.

Samples from paintings, dating from the 7th century, were taken from caves behind two statues of Buddha that were blown up as un-Islamic by Afghanistan's hardline Taliban in 2001.

The paintings in 12 of the 50 caves were created using oil paints, possibly from walnut or poppy, according to scientists at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) in France.

The murals show scenes of Buddhas in vermilion robes sitting cross-legged amid palm leaves and mythical creatures.

"This is the earliest clear example of oil paintings in the world, although drying oils were already used by ancient Romans and Egyptians, but only as medicines and cosmetics," says team leader Yoko Taniguchi.

Synchrotron analysis of the paint layers reveals layers of natural resins, proteins, gums and in some cases a resinous, varnish-like layer, as well as the oil paint.

The researchers publish their findings in the Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry.

It was not until the 13th century that oil was added to paints in Europe and oil paint was not widely used in Europe till the early 15th century.

Bamiyan was once a thriving Buddhist centre where monks lived in a series of caves carved into the cliffs by the two statues.

The cave paintings were probably the work of artists travelling along the Silk Road, the ancient trade route between China, across Central Asia to the West, the ESRF says.

Afghanistan's Taliban government used dozens of explosive charges to bring down the two 6th century giant Buddhas in March 2001, saying the statues were un-Islamic.

Now work is under way to try to restore the biggest of the two statues, once the tallest standing Buddha in the world. But the mammoth task could take a decade to complete.