Arched-hill symbol

It is thought that the three-arched hill symbol was initiated during the Maurya Empire (3rd–2nd century BCE).

[1] Later, in coins from Taxila dated from 220 BCE, the three-arched symbol appears regularly, and from 185 BCE is regularly associated with the animal figures of the elephant and the lion.

[3] On coins of the Shunga period, the three-arched hill can appear among a multitude of other symbols, such as the Nandipada, the tree-in-railing, the elephant, or the empty cross.

[citation needed] The symbol is generally considered a representation of a Buddhist Chaitya.

[4] The symbol however, appears in many post-Mauryan contexts as seen with the coins of Taxila and the Shungas.