Returned to lender The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.
Miniature Stupas
Not on view
About 2010 four miniature silver stupas were discovered accidentally during construction work at an ancient Pyu urban settlement southwest of Mandalay. While the stupas are assumed to have served as relic containers, likely for copies of sutras (sacred texts), they differ significantly from those recovered from the Khin Ba relic chamber at Sri Ksetra (cat. no. 31a, b). They closely resemble the surviving monumental Pyu stupas at Sri Ksetra and also remind us of what is now missing—a prominent terrace railing (harmika) with crenellations at the summit, surmounted by honorific umbrellas.
cat. no. 35a, b
This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.
