Maarg Manthan · Topic 2.2

Sculptures of Mauryan Age

Art & Culture › Sculpture & Numismatics · Topic 2.2

Mauryan sculpture is the first monumental stone art of historic India, made from about 321 to 185 BCE and marked by a lustrous surface called Mauryan polish. It has two streams: court art, seen in the Ashokan pillars with animal capitals such as the Sarnath lion capital, the Rampurva bull and the Dhauli elephant, and popular art, seen in yaksha and yakshi figures such as the Didarganj Yakshi and the Parkham Yaksha. The Sarnath lion capital, with its 24-spoked wheel, was adopted as the State Emblem of India on 26 January 1950.

5 min read · UPSC Prelims · Art & Culture · Sculpture & Numismatics

At a Glance

Period About 321 to 185 BCE
Stone Buff Chunar sandstone with a mirror-like polish
Court art Ashokan pillars and animal capitals
Popular art Yaksha and yakshi figures, terracotta
National symbol Sarnath lion capital, State Emblem since 1950
Exam link UPSC Prelims, Art and Culture: Sculpture & Numismatics

Where Does It Fit?

This topic follows Harappan art and begins the historic sculptural tradition. It leads into the Post-Mauryan schools, where Buddhist imagery in the human form first appears. Previous topic: Sculptures of Harappan Civilisation. Next topic: Post-Mauryan Period Sculpture (Gandhara, Mathura, Amaravati Schools).

What Are the Main Mauryan Sculptures?

Sculpture	Place and state	Key detail
Sarnath lion capital	Sarnath, Uttar Pradesh	Four lions back to back on an abacus with a wheel and four animals (elephant, bull, horse, lion) between 24-spoked chakras; now in the Sarnath Museum
Rampurva bull capital	Rampurva, West Champaran, Bihar	A humped bull on a lotus-based capital; a second Rampurva pillar carries a lion; the bull is in the Rashtrapati Bhavan
Lauriya Nandangarh lion pillar	West Champaran, Bihar	A single lion on a pillar, with a well-preserved shaft
Dhauli elephant	Near Bhubaneswar, Odisha	An elephant carved out of the rock at the Ashokan edict site, linked with the Rock Edict Claimed toll 150,000 deported; 100,000 killed Policy shift…">Kalinga war
Didarganj Yakshi	Patna, Bihar (found 1917)	A tall standing female chauri-bearer in polished Chunar sandstone, with heavy ornaments; in the Bihar Museum, Patna
Parkham Yaksha	Parkham near Mathura, Uttar Pradesh	A large standing male figure with a short inscription, in the Mathura Museum; example of popular art

What Are the Features of Mauryan Sculpture?

Mauryan polish: a hard, glossy sheen on the stone, produced by a special polishing technique; the Barabar caves also show it
Material: fine buff sandstone from the quarries of Chunar near Varanasi, shaped and transported to distant sites
Pillar parts: a monolithic shaft, an inverted lotus (bell) capital, an abacus and the crowning animal
Animals: lion, bull, elephant and horse, each linked with Buddhist ideas such as power, the birth of the Buddha and the dharma
Court art: commissioned by Ashoka, with Persian influence in the bell capital and polish, and Indian symbolism in the animals
Popular art: made by local sculptors, in terracotta and stone, mostly yaksha and yakshi, mother goddesses and animals
Sites of terracotta: Mathura, Kausambi, Pataliputra, Ahichchhatra and Taxila yielded Mauryan terracotta
Edicts: the pillars carry Ashokan inscriptions in Brahmi, so sculpture and writing are joined

What Else Should You Remember?

State Emblem: the Sarnath lion capital was adopted on 26 January 1950; three lions are visible, with the wheel in the centre, a bull on the right and a horse on the left
Motto: Satyameva Jayate, taken from the Mundaka Upanishad, is written below in Devanagari script
Wheel on the flag: the Ashoka chakra with 24 spokes appears on the national flag
Persian influence: scholars see the bell-shaped capital and the polish as influenced by the Achaemenid pillars of Persepolis
Number of pillars: about 20 Ashokan pillars survive, of which only a few retain their capitals
Other pillar sites: Sanchi (Madhya Pradesh), Vaishali (Bihar), Sankisa (Uttar Pradesh), Lumbini and Nigali Sagar (Nepal) are among the pillar sites
Allahabad pillar: this Ashokan pillar also carries the Samudragupta inscription and a Jahangir record
Architecture link: the pillars and palaces are discussed in Mauryan Architecture (Ashokan pillars, palaces)
Rock-cut link: the Lomas Rishi cave of Barabar, Bihar, is a polished rock-cut cave with a horseshoe-arch facade that imitates wooden architecture
Dhauli site: the elephant is cut above the Ashokan rock edicts, which include the separate Kalinga edicts addressed to the officers of the conquered region
Chauri bearer: the Didarganj Yakshi holds a chauri (fly-whisk), and the polished finish is the main reason it was dated to the Mauryan period
Later gap: the Mauryan tradition declined after the empire, and the Shunga period shows more indigenous styles, as in Post-Mauryan Period Sculpture (Gandhara, Mathura, Amaravati Schools)

Why Does It Matter for the Exam?

Capital to place: Sarnath, Rampurva, Lauriya, Sankisa, Vaishali
Court versus popular art: pillars versus yaksha figures
State Emblem facts: date, animals, motto, source
Material: Chunar sandstone and polish
Common errors: saying that all four lions are visible, or that the wheel on the emblem has 12 spokes

As an analytical point, Mauryan sculpture shows how an empire used art to spread a message. The pillars were public symbols of dhamma, and the continuity of the lion capital into the modern State Emblem shows how ancient heritage is reused in nation building.

Why Is This Topic Important?

Emblem Frequent factual questions
Pillars Capitals matched with sites
Art streams Court versus popular

What Came Next?

The next topic covers the Gandhara, Mathura and Amaravati schools that grew after the Mauryas. Next topic: Post-Mauryan Period Sculpture (Gandhara, Mathura, Amaravati Schools).

Key People and Terms

Mauryan polish Glossy finish on stone
Chunar sandstone Buff stone from near Varanasi
Abacus Slab under the animal
Yaksha Nature spirit figure
Chauri Fly-whisk
Ashokan pillar Monolithic edict pillar

Study this topic together with these linked topics from other subjects.

Mauryan Art and Architecture (Ancient History)

Exam Corner

Points to Remember

Emblem adopted: 26 January 1950.
Wheel has 24 spokes; motto from Mundaka Upanishad.
Didarganj Yakshi: Patna, found in 1917.
Parkham Yaksha: Mathura, popular art.
Dhauli elephant: Odisha.

Do Not Confuse With

Sarnath capital and the State Emblem The original has four lions; the emblem shows three
Court and popular art Polished pillars versus yaksha figures
Dhauli and Udayagiri An Ashokan rock elephant versus the Kharavela caves

Memory Hook

Lions on a pillar, polish like glass, the Yakshi of Patna holds the fly-whisk.

Mains Angle

Questions ask about state use of art. These points give a frame.

Symbolism Dhamma and power
Foreign influence Persian and Indian
Continuity State Emblem today

A Question You May Face

An original practice question, not a past paper question.

“Discuss the main features of Mauryan court art and popular art with suitable examples.”

How to Answer

Intro Define the two streams.
Court art Pillars, capitals, polish.
Popular art Yakshi, Yaksha, terracotta.
Close Legacy in the State Emblem.

GS Relevance

Prelims: Ashokan pillars, capitals, yaksha-yakshi figures, state emblem. GS Paper 1: Indian heritage and culture, Mauryan art and its features.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Mauryan polish?

Mauryan polish is the hard, mirror-like finish given to stone surfaces in the Mauryan period. It is seen on Ashokan pillars made of Chunar sandstone and on the walls of the Barabar caves in Bihar. It is a mark of royal workshops and is often used to date sculptures.

Which sculpture became the State Emblem of India?

The Sarnath lion capital of Ashoka, with four lions on an abacus, became the State Emblem of India on 26 January 1950. Only three lions are visible in the emblem, and the wheel, a bull and a horse appear on the abacus with the motto Satyameva Jayate.

What is the Didarganj Yakshi?

The Didarganj Yakshi is a tall, polished sandstone figure of a woman holding a chauri, found in 1917 on the bank of the Ganga at Didarganj near Patna. It is a fine example of Mauryan sculpture with a polished finish and is kept in a Patna museum.

What is the difference between Mauryan court art and popular art?

Court art includes the polished Ashokan pillars with animal capitals, made under royal patronage. Popular art includes yaksha and yakshi statues, such as the Parkham Yaksha, and terracotta figures made by local sculptors for ordinary worship. Court art shows foreign influence, while popular art is more local.

Where is the Dhauli elephant?

The Dhauli elephant is carved from the rock at Dhauli near Bhubaneswar in Odisha, beside the Ashokan rock edicts. It is among the earliest rock sculptures of Odisha and is linked to the aftermath of the Kalinga war, though its exact date is debated.

Why is Mauryan sculpture important for UPSC?

Prelims regularly asks about the Sarnath lion capital, State Emblem facts, Chunar sandstone, Mauryan polish and the Didarganj Yakshi. Mains uses it for court versus popular art and Persian influence. Remember that the emblem was adopted on 26 January 1950 with three visible lions.

PYQ Practice — Statement Analysis

1 The State Emblem of India shows four lions clearly visible.

False

Only three lions are visible.

2 The Didarganj Yakshi belongs to the Mauryan period.

True

Found near Patna in 1917.

3 Mauryan polish was applied to Chunar sandstone.