There are two central narratives around which the collections of the Patna Museum were initially organised, first to highlight the glories of the land of Buddhism and to trace the journey of the historic Buddha by the acquisition of relics from various sites associated with his life. The second theme was based on the personality of Asoka, projected as the first ‘Monarch of India’, the great ambassador of Buddhism. The museum sought to capture the grandeur of the fabled Mauryan capital Pataliputra, which was recognised as modern day Patna.
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