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When a Buddhist devotee approached the stūpa to which this panel belonged, they were received by the serpent-enthroned Buddha, referencing a legend in which the snake king Mucalinda protected the meditating Buddha during a violent storm and ensuing flood. Celebrants honor the Buddha with garlands, perfumes, and aromatic pastes poignant reminders of the centrality of fragrance in Buddhism. The panel precisely depicts stūpa architecture from the period. Five commemorative pillars rise in front of the drum. At Nagarjunakonda, many of these carry the donor inscriptions of princess Chāṁtisiri, a leading royal patron of Buddhism in the mid-third century CE, allowing a secure dating of these monuments.