AMRAVATI
Situated in the fertile Krishna Valley of Guntur district, Amravati was once among the greatest Buddhist centres. Now all that remains is the ruins of the Maha Stupa, which in ancient times was the largest and most elaborately carved Buddhist stupa in South India. The religious centre of Amravati was established by the Satavahana kings in the 2nd century BC and later expanded by other dynasties.

The remains of the beautiful limestone sculptures are displayed at the archaeological museum next to the stupa. There are many statues of Buddha (some showing Greek influence) and other carvings depicting stories from the Jatakas, etc.

NAGARJUNAKONDA
This was another great Buddhist settlement in the Krishna Valley established by the sage Nagarjuna. There were large stupas, monasteries, public baths and paved roads neatly laid out in this sprawling campus. The archaeological survey has reconstructed many of the monuments on top of the hill where the main citadel used to be. They have done an excellent job in skilfully re-creating several chaityas and stupas by re-assembling the remains. Unfortunately, the waters of the Nagarjuna Sagar Dam, now submerge the entire valley over which the ancient settlement was spread. The museum here has a fantastic collection of sculptures many of them 2000 years old.