Bagan was
founded in 849 on the banks of the Ayeyarwaddy river about
500 kilometers north of Yangon. Today it is only a small town
... with a big past. Bagan once was the capital of the
first realm in today's Myanmar, whose area of dominance had roughly
the extent of the present Burmese state.
Bagan ...
today it is, strictly speaking, more of an archaeological site
than a town, because more than 2,000 pagodas cover in mostly
undamaged condition an area of about 40 square kilometers about
the extent of the classical Bagan. Besides that, one finds in
this area, which can be managed in walking stages, at least
another 2,000 temple ruins. Even though Bagan is less famous
than Angkor Wat in Cambodia, it is occasionally compared
to the templecity of the Khmer concerning its archaeological importance.
Bagan's
peak time coincided with Myanmar's architectural peak time
in 1044 with Bagan King Anawratha's ascension to the throne.
Only one year after King Anawratha's conversion to Buddhism
in 1056 by a Mon monk, Shin Arahan, he went to war
against the Mon town of Bago to gain possession of holy Buddhist
scripts (the Tripitaka), which Mon King Manuba was unwilling
to surrender voluntarily.
After a siege
lasting several months Manuba finally surrendered. Bago was destroyed
and the Tripataka was transported to Bagan on the backs of 32
white elephants.But the holy Buddhist scripts were not the
only trophies gained from the war. The Burmanese army took 30,000
Mons prisoners of war to Bagan, among them numerous craftsmen
and artisans, who in following decades not only enriched,
but even determined, Bagan's culture. The Pagodas of the following
period were almost exclusively built in Mon style.
The integration
of the Mon artisans and craftsmen not only caused the pagodas
to be built in Mon style, but also led to a so far in Myanmar
unparalleled level of construction activity.
In 1287 hordes
of Mongolian horsemen under Kublai Khan conquered Bagan.
The town, at least the wooden, secular buildings, were mostly
burnt down. Soon after, the realm of Bagan disintegrated into
many, smaller kingdoms and fiefdoms. In latter times the town
was not rebuilt.
In 1975 a
strong earthquake damaged and destroyed many smaller temples
and even a number of large and massively built temples and pagodas
were harmed.
More information:
Attractions in and around
Bago
