The meaning of these objects in ancient Bactria still mystifies scholars. Many are convinced that they must have had a ritual function and were perhaps worshipped as idols. Others argue that they had a more practical purpose and were used as a counterweight for pounding grain or pumping water. Bactria is the ancient Greek name for an area that encompassed parts of Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and northern Afghanistan. It was a mountainous and extremely fertile region that had a highly developed civilisation in the late third and early second millennium BC. Excavations have uncovered other intriguing artifacts such as the composite stone goddesses which attest to the presence of a vibrant religious culture. Today these marble 'pillar-like' sculptures impress us with their simplicity of form and mysterious past. (AM) - (SF.249)