Archeologists investigating a site long believed to be the birthplace of Buddha have found new evidence to establish when the profoundly influential sage was born. The discovery marks the first time, researchers say, that any firm link has narrowed Buddha's date of birth to within a certain century.

Reporting in the journal Antiquity, an international team of scientists describe the excavation of a timber structure located in the Maya Devi Temple in Lumbini, Nepal, which they cite as the possible location of Buddha's birth. The temple, a World Heritage site currently being converted into a pilgrimage hub, has long been a pillar of Buddhist faith. Ancient inscriptions at the site, which have been dated to the third century B.C., name it as Buddha's birthplace. Other discoveries at the location suggest that it has long been a sacred place for Buddhists, with evidence of monasteries and shrines that date back to the 3rd century B.C. and up to the 15th century A.D.