Ancient site · City
Pataliputra (Kumhrar)
Also known as Patna, Palibothra
Remains of ancient Pataliputra, capital of Magadha and of the Maurya and Gupta empires, excavated at Kumhrar in modern Patna, Bihar. The town began as a fort built by Ajatashatru by the Ganga; under Chandragupta Maurya and Ashoka it became one of the largest cities in the world, visited and described by the Greek envoy Megasthenes.
Excavators found a hall of 80 polished sandstone pillars of the Mauryan period and four phases of occupation from about 600 BCE to 600 CE.
- Dates
- c. 600 BCE–600 CE
- Still standing
- No, or only traces
- Location
- 25.60° N, 85.19° E
How we know
Described by the Greek envoy Megasthenes and in Indian texts; the remains at Kumhrar were excavated from 1912.
Nearby sites
- Nalanda c. 427 CE–c. 1400 CE
- Lauriya Nandangarh pillar c. 243–236 BCE (dating of Ashoka's reign varies)
- Sarnath c. 250 BCE–1194 CE
- Lumbini pillar of Ashoka c. 249–242 BCE (Ashoka's 20th regnal year)
- Bharhut railings c. 125–100 BCE (some argue 1st century CE); later abandoned
- Hathigumpha inscription, Udayagiri c. 1st century BCE (from the style of its letters)