Restoration and reconstruction of monuments at Bagan (Pagan), Myanmar (Burma), 1995–2008

Abstract

The reconstruction of Myanmar's eleventh- to fourteenth-century ce capital, Bagan, has been perhaps the most radical heritage management project in modern times. At least 1,299 Buddhist temples, monasteries and stupas have been speculatively rebuilt from mounds of rubble since 1995. A further 688 damaged buildings have received major repairs. This paper considers the contrasting views of donors who wish to make merit, of the Myanmar military regime which wishes to present a national palladium, of political interest groups who are critical of the regime's motives, of heritage architects who are critical of the methods of the reconstruction project and of archaeologists and historians who have received new data to analyse.