why Mathura has been an important settlement for more than 2500 years?
- Mathura has been important because it was located at the cross roads of two major routes of travel and trade i.e. from the northwest to the east and from north to south.
- There were fortifications around the city, and several shrines.
- Mathura was also a centre where some extremely fine sculpture was produced. Around 2000 years ago Mathura became the second capital of the Kushanas.
- There were Buddhist monasteries, Jaina shrines, and it was an important centre for the worship of Krishna. Several inscriptions on surfaces such as stone slabs and statues have been found in Mathura.