https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfYiBTeMZ6o
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There are Stupas dating to 300 BC immediatly after Buddhist council & Emperor Ashoka who converted most population in Asia in least amount of time. Later his generals like Andhras furthered the Buddhist traditions until 300 CE.
https://www.culturalindia.net/iliima...i-30-img-1.jpg
https://media.gettyimages.com/photos...re-id520764914
https://www.culturalindia.net/monume...chi-stupa.html
https://www.culturalindia.net/monume...ekh-stupa.html
http://www.southreport.com/15-buddhi...ndhra-pradesh/
Emperor Ashoka from part Sakyan (early Scythian) lineage. During his lifetime he spread Buddhism in Asia within a generation. No body else in any other religion could match that that much coverage in area or number of people within short time frame in Human History. The artifacts from 225 BC are still national symbols in India associated with ancient Indian thinking from Iron age.
https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-o05zsa803...ppt-17-638.jpg
https://image1.slideserve.com/281131...-232-bce-l.jpg
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bjg64wqSjQ...om%2Bindia.jpg
The stupa is just a mound of earth sometime covered with bricks like Sanchi Stupa that has been completely rebuilt.. There is no 2000 years old brick left.
A old Stupa is a primitive "construction".. not a building.
Sanchi Stupa in India is not a Dome or a building...
Domes are elaborate and free standing structures acting as roofs for buildings.
..
A building is something like this..without any reconstruction..
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...ntheon_Rom.jpg
Sanchi Stupa North gate ( only the marme gates are 2000 years old )..nice but not sophisticated ...
http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/p...nchinorth1.jpg
It is completely Indian structure with mostly Indian symbols like Elephant, asiatic lion, people in Indian clothing doesn't look Greek like Indo-bactrian greek artifacts nor like Roman influence in Amaravati marble doors but probably more similar to Indus Valley. These gates were built to display stories from Buddhist literature & were popular as the gates of stupas.
The older Indian structure were mostly made of Bricks or Huge Timber (teak) stalls. The city of Pataliputra from Iron Age (1200BC) in Gangetic plain was mostly Timber with brick and stone foundations. None of those timber exist now. Only the brick structures show up. The Indus Valley cities (6000BC to 1500BC) have vast brick structures that had halls built from Timber which Stupas probably were based out of.
https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VQ1p01QDT...dy%2BNotes.jpg
http://glimpsesofhistory.com/wp-cont...07/image-9.jpg
https://image.slidesharecdn.com/indu...?cb=1379467353
http://pbs.twimg.com/media/CiopMBDUgAALPw5.jpg