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

Lion Pillar of Bhimsen Temple
(Singha Stambha)
Raju Roka
Lion Pillar of Bhimsen Temple
after restoration and reinstallation.
Photograph Raju Roka,
April 26, 2016
The stone pillar in front of Bhimsen Temple was built in
Nepal Sambat 827 (1708 CE) in the reign of King Shree
Tin Indra Malla. This gilded lion statue on top of a
stone pillar in front of Bhimsen Temple in Patan Darbar
was destroyed in the devastating earthquake of April 25,
2015. The stone pillar was broken into three pieces, with
the lower part of the pillar remaining standing.
The broken parts of the stone pillar were restored (joined
together) by the experts of the University of Applied
Arts, Vienna with stainless steel rods in August 2015.
Newar stonemasons, metal craftsmen, and laborers
restored the repaired stone and copper parts to their
original positions on April 24, 2016.
We believe that this project by the Kathmandu Valley
Preservation Trust was the first monument restoration
in Nepal after the devastating earthquake of April 25,
2015.
The very next day, on April 25, 2016, Mr. Puspa Kamal
Dahal (the present Prime Minister) inaugurated the
reconstruction of monuments in a ceremony a few
meters from the Lion Pillar by laying bricks for the
foundation of the South Manimandapa.
Opposite
Lion Pillar of Bhimsen Temple
after the earthquake.
Photograph Suresh Lakhe,
April 25, 2015
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