The oldest and most venerated Buddhist monument in Taxila, believed to have been founded by Emperor Ashoka in the 3rd century BC to enshrine relics of the Buddha. The main stupa rises from a circular base surrounded by a ring of smaller votive stupas, chapels, and monastery cells added over the centuries. The site gives a powerful sense of the scale of Buddhist devotion here — at its peak, monks from across Asia came to study and worship at this spot.
The central stupa is surrounded by dozens of subsidiary stupas of varying sizes, each donated by individual devotees seeking merit. The stone carvings remaining on several of the shrines show the Gandhara style at its most refined — faces with Greek features but poses from Indian sculpture, a combination found nowhere else in the world. The site is relatively easy to reach by road and is one of the most atmospheric in the Taxila complex, particularly in the early morning when the light falls across the ruins.