The art and architecture of the Mauryan period (about 321 to 185 BCE), best known for Ashoka's monolithic polished stone pillars, rock-cut caves, and the early stupas, marking a high point of court (royal) and popular art.
- Ashokan pillars are monolithic, made of polished Chunar sandstone with a characteristic mirror-like Mauryan polish; each has a shaft, a capital (often a bell-shaped lotus or inverted lotus), and an animal figure on top.
- The Lion Capital from the Sarnath pillar (four addorsed lions on an abacus with a wheel and four animals) is independent India's national emblem; the wheel inspired the Ashok Chakra on the flag.
- The Barabar and Nagarjuni caves (near Gaya, Bihar) are the earliest examples of rock-cut architecture, donated by Ashoka and his successor Dasharatha to the Ajivika sect; they too show the Mauryan polish.
- Court art includes the pillars and palace remains at Pataliputra (the pillared hall); popular art includes the large free-standing Yaksha and Yakshi figures (such as the Didarganj Yakshi).
- Early stupas, including the original core of the Sanchi stupa, are attributed to Ashoka's patronage of Buddhism.
The Sarnath Lion Capital as the national emblem, the Mauryan polish and Chunar sandstone, the Barabar caves as the earliest rock-cut architecture, and the Ajivika connection are recurring art facts.
Ashokan pillars (monolithic, single stone, with polish) are distinct from later Gupta-era structural pillars; the Barabar caves were given to the Ajivikas, not the Buddhists or Jains.
Mauryan art of polished monolithic Ashokan pillars (Sarnath Lion Capital is the national emblem), the Barabar rock-cut caves, and early stupas.