Maṅgal Bahudvāra Caitya. The Archaeological Excavation of a 19th Century Tashi Gomang Stūpa in Svayambhū, Nepal - HAL-SHS - Sciences de l'Homme et de la Société
Conference Papers Year : 2023

Maṅgal Bahudvāra Caitya. The Archaeological Excavation of a 19th Century Tashi Gomang Stūpa in Svayambhū, Nepal

Abstract

The devastating earthquakes that shook Nepal in 2015 severely damaged and destroyed numerous heritage monuments. Amidst the disaster, archaeological research was possible in some places as an initial step towards future restoration and reconstruction activities. Moreover, a major incentive for this post-disaster archaeology was the need to provide an immediate answer to protect monuments and artefacts from looting and further decay caused by weathering. A central place of Buddhist worship, Svayambhū was one of the most affected world heritage monument zones of the Kathmandu valley. The presentation will discuss the archaeological excavation, carried under the aegis of UNESCO on the Maṅgal Bahudvāra Caitya, a hitherto overlooked monument. As will be explored in the first part of the presentation, the monument was built (or at least renovated) in the 19th century, by a well-established family of Newari merchants involved in a profitable trade between Tibet and Nepal. An expression of this Tibeto-Newar connection is found in the architecture of the Maṅgal Bahudvāra Caitya, that follows the principles of Tibetan Tashi Gomang stūpas. The second part will focus on the iconography developed in the 124 niches of the stūpa’s façades, as they display a rarely encountered iconography, related to rituals described in the Kriyāsaṃgraha, a Tantric Buddhist text redacted in Nepal between the 11th and 13th century. After considering the outer iconography, the presentation will turn to the findings made inside the stūpa. Indeed, the inner structure presents a complex multi-layered architecture hosting a large number of clay caityas and tablets (tib. tsha tshas), coins of various periods and origins, jewelleries, vessels and statues. Finally, the presentation will elaborate on the rituals executed throughout the construction phases of the stupa based on research of the iconographic program, artefacts and architecture encasing of the stūpa.
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Dates and versions

halshs-04323293 , version 1 (05-12-2023)

Identifiers

  • HAL Id : halshs-04323293 , version 1

Cite

David Cornélius Andolfatto. Maṅgal Bahudvāra Caitya. The Archaeological Excavation of a 19th Century Tashi Gomang Stūpa in Svayambhū, Nepal. Guest Lecture, Rangjung Yeshe Institute, Kathmandu University, Centre for Buddhist Studies, Nov 2023, Kathmandu, Nepal. ⟨halshs-04323293⟩
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