The Indian capital has a long history, including a history as the
capital of several empires. The earliest architectural relise date back
to the maurya time; since then, the site has seen continuous settlement.
In 1966, an inscription of the Mauryan Emperor ashoka (273-236 BC) was
discovered near Srinivaspur. Two sandstone pillars inscribed with the
edicts of Ashoka were brought to by firoj shah in the 14th century. The
famous Iron pillar near the qutub minar was commissioned by the emperor kumar I of the gupata (320-540)
and transplanted to Delhi during the 10th century. Eight major cities
have been situated in the Delhi area. The first five cities were in the sautharn part of present-day Delhi.