The Ashoka Pillar at Sanchi is one of the most historically significant objects in India, though its current state is humbling: the column is broken and its famous lion capital (now in the museum) lies separate from the shaft. The pillar was inscribed by the emperor Ashoka in the 3rd century BC with an edict addressing monks and nuns, urging them against causing schism in the Buddhist community.
What remains on the hill is the lower section of the polished sandstone shaft, standing about three metres high. The polish of Mauryan-period stone is extraordinary — smooth and lustrous even after 2,300 years — and worth touching if you can get close enough. The capital in the museum is the better viewing, but standing next to the actual pillar erected by the emperor who changed Buddhism from an Indian sect to a world religion gives the history a physical presence that photographs cannot convey.