The Buddhist saints, that are the subject of thisarticle, are known from a series of inscribedreliquaries collected by Alexander Cunningham and F.C. Maisey at Sanchi and neighbouring sites incentral India. The inscriptions, dating to thecirca early first century BC,have been known since readings of them were firstpublished the mid-nineteenth century. The detailedre-examination of the records presented in thisarticle shows that the reliquary inscriptions givespecial prominence to five Buddhist saints. Thenames given correspond to the five missionaries who,according to Pali sources, were sent to theHimalayan region at the time of the Third Council inthe mid-third century BC. This indicates that (a)the Hemavata school was responsible for there-vitalization of Sanchi in the post-Mauryan periodand (b) that there was a well-established traditionabout the nature of the Third Council in the firstcentury BC.