Bagan Shwegugyi Temple, Myanmar

Address

Bagan Shwegugyi Temple, Myanmar

Bagan, Old Bagan,

Myanmar (Burma)

Moolavar

Buddha

Introduction

Shwegugyi Temple (built c. 1131) (or Shwe-gu-gyi, “Great Golden Cave”) temple and the nearby ruins of the former royal palace form an interesting juxtaposition of Bagan sites. According to a contemporary Pali inscription on stone slabs in the building the temple was built in 7 1/2 months in 1131 AD under orders from King Sithu I. Located just to the north of Thatbyinnyu, the Shwegugyi is a large single story temple set on a large and tall (c. 13 feet) platform. There are three square receding upper terraces with corner spires or stupas at each corner on top of the central block.

The temple is reflective of a slow change in architectural style to a lighter, airier and more decorated form with a stress on the vertical and reminds one of the transitions between the Romanesque and Gothic styles in European cathedral architecture. There is an entry hall on the north side and a barrel-vaulted shrine room in the central block. The distinctive corncob sikhara is tall and slender and emphasizes the verticality of the entire structure.

A bright interior is created through the use of broad ambulatory corridors and eleven open arched windows. The temple is also famous for its fine stucco and carved wooden doors in the interior.

Just to the northwest of Shweguygyi are the brick foundations and post pits that are apparently the ruins of the former royal palace begun by King Kyanzittha (1084-1113) and added to over the next few centuries. The original palace buildings were made of wood and are no longer extant, but it was a large (c. 315 ft. x 263 ft) and multi-faceted structure.