Chinese experts to carry out maintenance work on Thatbyinnyu Temple

Deputy Prime Minister Union Defence Minister General Mya Tun Oo said at the 1/2023 meeting of the Steering Committee for the Maintenance of Cultural Heritage in Bagan’s World Heritage Site that a group of Chinese experts will carry out maintenance work on Thatbyinnyu Temple.
He pointed out that a Chinese team of experts has been in Myanmar since March this year for the repair and maintenance of Thatbyinnyu Temple, which was affected by the 2016 earthquake in the Bagan cultural heritage area, and necessary measures have been taken.
The launching ceremony of Bagan’s Thatbyinnyu Temple maintenance project, supported by China, commenced on 8 January 2022 at the site of the Pagoda.
Mr Chen Hai, Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar, said, “Today, the maintenance project of Bagan’s Thatbyinnyu Temple, supported by China, will officially begin. Bagan’s pagodas and temples are the cultural treasures of the Myanmar people as well as a world-famous cultural heritage.
“The Pagoda is the tallest in Bagan and one of the most famous pagodas in Myanmar. After many discussions, the Department of Cultural Heritage of China and the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Culture of Myanmar have jointly approved the repair and maintenance of Thatbyinnyu Temple, which was damaged by the earthquake. The technical team from Shaanxi and Yunnan Provinces of China will be in charge of the maintenance,” he highlighted.
Regarding the maintenance of Thatbyinnyu Temple, emergency maintenance and repair works have been carried out in advance, and the relevant departments are constantly monitoring the current condition of the temple, according to the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Culture.
In the future, the maintenance of the ancient buildings of the Bagan cultural heritage zone will continue to be coordinated and managed at the national level. A total of 389 religious buildings and stupas were affected by the Bagan earthquake in 2016, including the Thatbyinnyu Temple.According to the Department of Archaeology and National Museum (Bagan Branch), the mural paintings in about 90 ancient pagoda buildings in the Bagan region are being repaired and maintained jointly by experts from Myanmar and India. — TWA/KZL