Monasteries 45 and 47, standing on the eastern ridge of the monuments site, date from the transition from Buddhism to Hinduism, with strong Hindu elements in their design. The former has two exceptional sitting Buddhas.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
28.17 MILES
Step through the looking glass into what feels like an enchanted forest at this surreal place that is unlike any museum you will have visited before…
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0.12 MILES
Emperor Ashoka's 3rd-century BC Great Stupa, and many other stupas, temples, pillars, gateways and monasteries built in succeeding centuries, stand at the…
26.64 MILES
Bhopal’s third female ruler, Shah Jahan Begum, wanted to create the largest mosque in the world, so in 1877 she set about building the Taj-ul-Masjid…
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4.45 MILES
Cut into a sandstone hill 5km northwest of Vidisha are some 20 remarkable, mostly Hindu, cave shrines from the 4th century AD (Gupta period). The first…
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28.12 MILES
This first-class archaeological museum spread over numerous galleries includes some wonderful temple sculptures as well as 87 10th- and 11th-century Jain…
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The back-to-back lions on the pillars of the monuments compound's Southern Gateway (the oldest) were a favourite Ashokan motif and now form the state…
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The breathtakingly carved figure of a yakshi (mythical fairylike beings), hanging from an architrave on the Eastern Gateway, is one of Sanchi’s best-known…
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The Northern Gateway, topped by a broken wheel of law, is the best preserved of the toranas. Elephants support the architraves above the columns, while…
Nearby Madhya Pradesh & Chhattisgarh attractions
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One of the less ancient remains at Sanchi's Buddhist Monuments site.
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Pillar 25 (east of the Great Stupa) dates from the Sunga period (2nd century BC). Its lion capital is in the Archaeological Museum.
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The 5th-century AD Pillar 26 is an inferior imitation of Pillar 10. Its lion capital can be seen in the Archaeological Museum.
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The rectangular Temple 31 was built in the 6th or 7th century, but reconstructed during the 10th or 11th century. It contains a well-executed image of…
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The breathtakingly carved figure of a yakshi (mythical fairylike beings), hanging from an architrave on the Eastern Gateway, is one of Sanchi’s best-known…
0.06 MILES
Between the Great Stupa and Stupa 3 is the small Stupa 5, unusual in that it once contained a statue of Buddha, now displayed in the Archaeological Museum.
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Like its larger neighbour Temple 18, the Gupta-period Temple 17 bears a resemblance to classical Greek buildings. The columns on its porch are topped by…
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Of the scattered pillar remains, the most important is Pillar 10, erected by Ashoka but later broken. Two upper sections of this beautifully proportioned…