On loan to The Met The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.
Rangoon: Signal Pagoda
Linnaeus Tripe British
Not on view
When sailing up the Irrawadi River toward Rangoon, the first thing visitors saw was the spire of this pagoda, high on a hill above the town. The British outfitted it as a signal station to allow naval captains to reset their chronometers with the precision needed for accurate navigation. The British regarded the signal station as evidence of their civilizing influence on Rangoon, but to the Burmese it marked the desecration of a sacred site.
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