Directions: Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow.

The pillar with its solid, slightly tapering shaft stands 7.16 m tall. It is surmounted by an inverted lotus emblem, over which there are three fluted discs (amalakas) supporting a square pedestal. The pillar must have been crowned by a Vaishnava emblem, perhaps a garuda. It is considered remarkable because of the metallurgical skill required to forge such a long piece of iron, the clarity of its inscriptions after so many centuries and the fact that it has remained comparitively rust-free even after so many centuries.