Dhamek Stupa in Sarnath where Buddha gave his first sermon, first commissioned by Emperor Ashoka (3rd century BCE)

Given below are extracts from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dhamek_Stupa :

Dhamek Stupa (also spelled Dhamekh and Dhamekha, traced to Sanskrit version Dharmarajika Stupa, which can be translated as the Stupa of the reign of Dharma) is a massive stupa located at Sarnath, 13 km away from Varanasi in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India.[1]

...

After the parinirvana of the Buddha, his remains were cremated and the ashes divided and buried under eight mounds with two further mounds encasing the urn and the embers. Little is known about these early stupas, particularly since it has not been possible to identify the original ten monuments. However, some later stupas, such as at Sarnath and Sanchi, seem to be embellishments of earlier mounds.[4] The Dhamek Stupa was built in 500 CE[5] to replace an earlier structure commissioned by the great Mauryan king Ashoka in 249 BCE, along with several other monuments, to commemorate the Buddha's activities in this location. Stupas originated as circular mounds encircled by large stones. King Ashoka built stupas to enshrine small pieces of calcinated bone and other relics of the Buddha and his disciples.[6] An Ashoka pillar with an edict engraved on it stands near the site.

The Dhamek Stupa is said to mark the spot (Rishipattana which can be translated as "where the Rishi arrived") where the Buddha gave the first sermon to his first five disciples, led by Kaundinya, after attaining enlightenment,[7][8] "revealing his Eightfold Path leading to nirvana".[9] This event marked the formation of the sangha.

[References:]

1. "Dhamekh Stupa Sarnath, Varanasi India". iloveindia.com.

4. Possehl, Gregory L (2010). The Indus Civilization: A Contemporary Perspective. AltaMira. p. 12. ISBN 978-0759101722.

5. Sir Banister Fletcher's a History of Architecture, 20th ed. (ed. by Dan Cruickshank). Architectural Press, 1996. ISBN 0-7506-2267-9. Page 646.

6. "Stupas". Indian Heritage. Archived from the original on 8 January 2007. Retrieved 20 November 2006.

7. "Place of the Buddha's First Sermon". Indian architecture. Archived from the original on 28 August 2006. Retrieved 19 September 2006.

8. https://web.archive.org/web/20060901123953/http://www.asia.msu.edu/southasia/india/culture/architecture.html. Archived from the original on 1 September 2006. Retrieved 8 February 2007. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)

9. Quoted from: Pippa de Bruyn, Niloufer Venkatraman, Keith Bain. Frommer's India. ISBN 0-471-79434-1. Page 340.

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Pic of Dhamek Stupa: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/02/Dhamek_Stupa%2C_Sarnath.jpg

The video below is about Sarnath's Dhamek Stupa and nearby areas. It has excellent remarks from Prof. Brinda Paranjape, History dept. of Banaras Hindu University on what Sarnath would have been at the time of Buddha's first sermon given in Sarnath.

Backpacking through History Ep 3: Sarnath Stupa, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jj0pcrdTBic , around 9 mins., published 1st Oct. 2017

[I thank Wikipedia and have presumed that they will not have any objections to me sharing the above extract(s) from their website on this post which is freely viewable by all, and does not have any financial profit motive whatsoever.]