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The Mauryan Polity c10.s3.t6: Pāṭaliputra the capital

The Mauryan Polity c10.s3.t6

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Pāṭaliputra the capital

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That Pāṭaliputra was the Capital of the Mauryas is evident not only from the records of the classical writers but also from the fifth Rock-Edict and the Sāranāth Edict where a distinct mention is made of it. It stood on the northern side of the river Son, a little above the confluence of the latter with the Ganges. Defended thus by two big rivers it formed a strong citadel for its occupants perhaps answering to the *nadīdurga* of the *Arthaśāstra*. Over this ancient site now stands the modern Patna with a number of villages surrounding it. The city presented to Megasthenes an appearance of a long narrow parallelogram nearly nine miles in length and 1½ miles in breadth.³ A great fortress it was, containing 64 gates, 570 towers, surrounded on all sides by a deep moat of waters. It cannot be denied that Aśoka improved it by an outer masonry wall and decorated it with durable stone buildings as testified by the recent excavations. Unfortunately the excavations have been partial since the nature of the land does not easily admit of it. The depth of the overlying silt often reaching as far as twenty feet and the existence of numerous modern buildings make the excavation exceptionally difficult.¹ In this connection mention may be made of *The Discovery of the exact site of Aśoka's Classic Capital* and the *Report on the Excavations at Pāṭaliputra*² being the works of that enthusiastic writer L. A. Waddell directly dealing with the excavations of the imperial Capital of the Mauryas. Dr. Spooner of the Department of Archæology conducted further excavations and discovered a hall of 100 pillars.³

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³ Fg. 26. Cp. Smith, *Aśoka*, pp. 84-85.

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¹ Smith, *Aśoka*, p. 85.

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² (1903) (ed. Cal.).

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³ *Annual Report of Archaeological Survey of India, E. Circle*, 1912-13, pp. 55–61.

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