Question

The four-headed lion Capital from Ashoka's Pillar at ______ is our National emblem.
A. Sanchi
B. Sarnath
C. Pataliputra
D. Ujjain

Answer 1

Hint: Official art under Ashoka is represented by the Monolithic pillars on which the king’s edicts were engraved. These pillars are the best examples of a highly developed technique in the cutting and polishing of the surface of the stone.

Complete step by step answer:
1. Sanchi: This Ashoka Pillar in India was erected in the 3rd century and its structure is influenced by the Greco Buddhist style. It resembles the Sarnath pillar a lot. It is quite intricately carved but the lions of this Ashoka Pillar in Sanchi do not support the wheel of law or Dharmachakra.
2. Sarnath: The Sarnath pillar consists of four addorsed lions which originally supported a Dharma Chakra. These rest on an abacus bearing in relief an elephant, horse, bull, and lion separated by four small Dharmachakra with 24 spokes. A graphic representation of the four-headed lion capital was adopted as the official emblem of India in 1950.
3. Patliputra: The monumental capital was discovered in 1895 at the royal palace in Pataliputra in the area of Bulandi Bagh in Patna, by an archaeologist named L.A. Waddell in the year of 1895. It was found at a depth of around 12 feet (4 meters), and dated to the reign of Ashoka or soon after, to the 3rd century BCE.
4. Ujjain: Ujjain was the capital of the western province of the empire. Excavation of a mound at Kumhar Tekri four miles north-cast of Ujjain, reveals that it was a burial-cum-cremation ground dating back to before the 3rd century B.C. Hiuen-Tsang writes that not far from Ujjain was a stupa constructed on the site where Asoka had built a 'Hell'.
So, the correct answer is Option B.

Note: The Ashokan monolithic (with edicts) pillars have three parts: the prop under the foundation, the shaft or the column, and the capital. The prop is buried in the ground. The shaft or the column made of a single piece of sandstone supports the capital made of another single piece of sandstone.