It was charged with saving paintings, statues, ancient buildings, historic documents and libraries from theft or destruction by the Nazis.
The Taliban angrily complained that the world seemed more concerned about offering money to save the statues instead of offering aid to save the starving people of Afghanistan, in effect turning the statues from artifacts into idols, venerated more than human lives.
Several years ago their complaints, they say, helped save large statues of Mao that stand outside two large state-owned factories in the city.
Now his collection includes over 5,000 manuscripts and scrolls, he said, but he was also able to save paintings, statues and relics.
Parvati's mother manages to save their statue of Shiva, lord of the dance, from the cyclone; and when Parvati gazes at it, she sees the god dancing for real in a circle of fire.
A merry band of grass rooters have organized to try to save the statue.
Instead of singling out the white supremacists and neo-Nazis who gathered in Charlottesville to save a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee, the president blamed "many sides" on Saturday for the bloodshed in Virginia.
The United Nations led an 11th-hour drive to save two towering statues of Buddha today as the Afghan government assembled explosives at the sites to obliterate them, diplomats feared.
A1 Last-Ditch Bid to Save Buddhas The United Nations led an 11th-hour drive to save two towering statues of Buddha in Bamiyam, Afghanistan, as the country's leaders, the Taliban, assembled explosives at the sites to obliterate them in keeping with the movement leader's strict interpretation of Islamic law banning idols.
There has been speculation that the plinth is being saved for a statue of the Queen on horseback after her death.
Versailles began a fund-raising campaign last week to save its deteriorating outdoor statues.
