city
Taxila (Gondophares context)
Taxila (Sirkap), Pakistan · India & Indian Ocean
33.746, 72.815
Tradition. ATTESTED CONTEXT: Gondophares's 1st-century rule (coins, inscription). TRADITION: Thomas at his court, known only from the apocryphal Acts of Thomas.
The Acts of Thomas (3rd century) say the apostle was sold as a builder to the Indian king Gundaphorus. Coins and the Takht-i-Bahi inscription show that an Indo-Parthian king Gondophares really ruled in the northwest in the 1st century, with Taxila among his cities. That makes the story's setting historically plausible, but it does not prove Thomas was there.
Source stance: insider. Acts of Thomas (an insider apocryphal text). Coins and inscriptions are neutral.
People and groups named here
- Gondophares (Indo-Parthian king)
- Thomas the Apostle (traditional)
Sources
- Taxila (UNESCO World Heritage List no. 139)
UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Accessed 2026-11-11.
- Acts of the Holy Apostle Thomas (Gundaphorus episode)
tr. A. Walker, ANF vol. 8 (1886), public domain; New Advent. Accessed 2026-11-11.
- Gondophares (Wikipedia)
Wikipedia contributors. Accessed 2026-11-11.
- Pleiades place 60083: Taxila
Pleiades Gazetteer (ISAW, NYU). Accessed 2026-11-11.
Further reading
Councils here
None in this list.