Megasthenes wrote about Pataliputra (modern Patna):

• It is a large and beautiful city.
• It is surrounded by a massive wall.
• It has 570 towers and 64 gates.
• The houses, of two and three storeys, are built of wood and mud brick.
• The king’s palace is also of wood, and decorated with stone carvings.
• It is surrounded with gardens and enclosures for keeping birds.