Sandamuni Pagoda, Buddhist pagoda near Mandalay Hill, Myanmar
Sandamuni Pagoda is a Buddhist shrine in Mandalay housing 1774 white marble shrines arranged in orderly rows throughout its grounds. Each shrine contains a stone tablet with carved Buddhist scripture, forming a complete religious library preserved in this format.
King Mindon commissioned this pagoda in 1874 to honor his brother Crown Prince Kanaung, who died during a 1866 rebellion. The project reflected the king's devotion to building spiritual monuments that celebrated his family and faith.
The marble tablets inside the shrines contain three core Buddhist scriptures carved in stone for permanent preservation. Visitors walking through the rows can see how believers treat these texts as sacred objects worth protecting in this way.
The site is reached by heading northeast from the Royal Palace through a straightforward path. The grounds are open throughout the day, allowing visitors time to explore the many rows at a comfortable pace.
The grounds house a massive iron Buddha statue cast in 1802 that was later transported here from the nearby town of Amarapura by a later king. This ancient metal casting is one of the oldest artworks on the site.
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