The romantic East: Burma, Assam, & Kashmir - Khamkoo

40 THE ROMANTIC EAST
is
only 10 feet above the fields, and measures 1390
feet each way. The second platform
is 20 feet
higher, has a perimeter of 2736 feet, and can be
entered by
stairs in the centre of each face. The
octagonal base of the pagoda has sides measuring
162 feet each, and the ti rises to a height of 324
feet from the second platform.
The Shwe-hmaw-daw is a graceful bell-shaped
pagoda, surmounted by a pyramidal metal ti hung
all around with tinkling bells, and it is covered
with gold-leaf in various states
of preservation, the
most recent renewal being on the highest octagonal
part,
where bamboo screens had been erected to
protect the gilders who were at work during our
visit. The smooth circular part above was also
bright and comparatively fresh. The carvings on
the cornices
of the seven-story wooden tower on
the platform are excellent ;
but on the whole there
is not much to be seen at Shwe-hmaw-daw beyond
the pagoda itself, which seems out of place in a
town whose population
is now only about 14,000,
and the pagoda would be deserted but for the
pilgrims who come from a distance to worship at
its shrines.