The Kushan Empire Declines

Faced with geopolitical challenges from Persia and Central Asia, the Kushan empire begins to disintegrate. New North Indian aristocratic houses begin to emerge to challenge them. South of the Narmada River, a series of major Buddhist monuments and monasteries are constructed, including the final phases of the Great Stupa at Amaravati and the structures and standing Buddhas of Nagarjunakonda. Much of present-day coastal Andhra Pradesh and inland Telangana, as well as parts of Karnataka, produce volumes of Buddhist art.