Question

Ashokan pillars are made of which material?
A) Black stone
B) Granite
C) Marble
D) Sandstone

Answer 1

Hint: The pillars and edicts are the first concrete manifestations of Buddhism. The inscriptions confirm Ashoka's Buddhist faith and back up his goal to disseminate the dharma throughout his empire. The edicts make no mention of Buddhism's philosophical underpinnings, leading historians to conclude that Ashoka had a very basic and naive understanding of the dharma.

Complete answer:
The pillars range in height from 40 to 50 feet. They're made of two sorts of stone: one for the shaft and another for the capital. Almost all of the shafts were made from a single piece of stone. Labourers cut and dragged the stone from quarries in Mathura and Chunar, both in Ashoka's kingdom in northern India.

The Ashokan pillars were extremely lifelike, with a Mauryan polished finish that gave the stone a gleaming aspect. The Lion Capital of Ashoka, Ashoka's most famous pillar, was carved from a single block of polished sandstone. The pillar erected at Sarnath, the location of Buddha's First Sermon, where he shared the Four Noble Truths, is the most famous of the Ashokan pillars (the dharma or the law). The pillar is currently located where it was originally buried, but the capital is presently on exhibit in the Sarnath Museum.

Therefore the correct answer is option ‘D’. Ashokan pillars are made of sandstone.

Note: During the Hinayana (Lesser Vehicle) period, the pillars (and stupas) were built. The Hinayana is the initial stage of Buddhism, roughly spanning the sixth to first centuries B.C.E., during which no pictures of the Buddha were created. The practitioners were sustained by their memories of the historical Buddha and his teachings.