KVPT’s Patan Darbar Earthquake Response Campaign - Work to Date - September 2016

Taleju Agam North
By Liz Newman
History and Description of Taleju Agams
(North and South)
The Taleju Agam North (1671) and Taleju Agam South
(1666) are two of the three remaining primary agam
(rooftop temples) of the Patan Royal Palace Complex,
along with the larger Degutale Temple (b. 1661) to the
north of Mul Cok. Unlike the temples throughout the
adjacent Patan Darbar Square, which stand on stepped
plinths built at grade level, these agam are built atop
courtyard palaces and above Patan’s roofscape, examples
of the “floating” temple design that is unique to Newar
architecture.
It was under the patronage of the Malla kings that the
craftsmanship of the Kathmandu Valley flourished,
making Patan’s Taleju temples a historic and artistic
testament to the five and a half century rule of the Mallas.
All three of the Patan Palace temples are dedicated
to the Goddess Taleju, the tutelary deity of the Malla
kings. Royal temples dedicated to this lineage deity of
the Malla kings were erected in all three Darbar Squares
of the Kathmandu Valley.
During the great earthquake of 1934, all of the royal palace
temples in Patan were severely damaged, and among
the Taleju temples only these three were restored. One of
the notable losses which appears in a number of historic
photographs is what is today known as the “lost agam
of Mul Cok,” which rose from the north wing of Mul
Cok, near the square, and appears to have been joined at
an upper level to the adjacent Degu Taleju temple to the
north. Even today the configuration of this area suggests
there is a missing piece.
North Taleju is one of the finest examples of a wellproportioned,
triple-tiered brick and timber agam of the
Malla period (1200-1769 CE). It was built atop the
northeast corner of Mulcok palace and consecrated by
King Srinivas Malla in 1671. It occupies a prominent
position and is equal in both religious and artistic significance
to the Valley's larger Taleju temples. North
Taleju features unusual, exquisite, carved timber struts
representing tantric deities such as the bhairavs and
the matrikas. Taleju Agam South was likewise built by
Srinivasammalla and consecrated by him in 1666. Although
it is the smallest of the three surviving Taleju
temples, the Taleju Agam South nonetheless occupies
a prominent position and is equal in significance to the
larger Taleju temples.
In Newar architecture, the uppermost roof of every
tiered temple is covered with gilded metal sheets and
crowned with a gilded copper pinnacle (gajura). The
gilded pinnacle atop the North Taleju is particularly
significant as it is sculpted in the shape of a temple
built in the sikhara style, and is larger and more complex
than that of the Taleju Agam South. The rafters
of the temple’s uppermost roof are joined to a central
timber king post (baymvah or galathan). This central
post provides the crucial support structure for the pinnacle.
The king post starts at the upper level brick core
and extends through the roof and into the pinnacle.
(KVPT's application of October 2013 to the Sumitomo
Foundation for restoration of the Taleju Agam
South pinnacle informed this history, and is a source
for further information on pinnacles in Patan Darbar
and in Newar architecture in general.)
The Taleju Agams North and South continue to this
day to be used for religious and ritual events, which are
overseen by local resident priests. During the October
Dashain festival, Nepal’s most celebrated holiday, both
Agams house the deity of Taleju—patron goddess of
the Malla Dynasty. As a result, the North and South
Taleju agam are the hub of Dashain ritual activities in
Patan each year.
Opposite
Taleju Agam North and South
above Patan Palace rooftops, view
looking North.
383