Fodor's Expert Review Chaukhandi Stupa

The first monument you come to in Sarnath, on the left-hand side of Ashoka Marg on the way to the park, is this Buddhist shrine that is believed to have originally been a terraced temple during the Gupta period (the 4th to 6th century). Govardhan, the son of Raja Todarmal (who later became a governor under Akbar's rule), built an octagonal tower to commemorate the visit of Emperor Humayun, the father of Emperor Akbar. The event is recorded in Arabic in a stone tablet above the doorway on the north side.