Myanmar to restore murals at pagodas of world heritage site

Yangon, April 7

Myanmar will restore mural paintings at the pagodas in the ancient city of Bagan in Mandalay region, a Unesco world heritage site, according to the Department of Archaeology and National Museums on Friday.

"We were restoring all the mural paintings in Bagan. By restoring like this, people of the next generation will be able to view the fine arts of the ancient period and take pride in Myanmar's cultural heritage," U Ar Kar Kyaw, director from the department, told Xinhua new agency.

The century-old murals can be seen at pagodas, temples and palaces of ancient kings in the ancient city of Bagan, he said.

"To maintain and restore the murals, we also have to take technical assistance from experts of other countries," he said, adding that the countries giving technical assistance for restoring the cultural heritage in Bagan included India, China, Italy and South Korea.

The department maintains and restores the cultural heritage at pagodas in Bagan including mural paintings, he added.

The Bagan Ancient Cultural Zone, where over 3,000 ancient pagodas and religious edifices can be viewed in one place, has been in existence for more than 1,000 years, standing as one of tourist attractions of Myanmar.

It was named as a Unesco world heritage site in 2019.

Lying on a bend of the Ayeyarwady River in the central plain of Myanmar, Bagan is a sacred landscape, featuring an exceptional range of Buddhist art and architecture.

--IANS